Former Chambers DJ to bring Easter weekender club night sets to Sunderland homes

But a Sunderland club night is set to bring the party to people’s homes with a weekend of live stream DJ sets.

Former Chambers DJ Michael Lane runs the Forever 54 club brand and pre-Covid would usually be behind the decks at city venues such as Poetic License, P’s & Q’s and the Manor Bar.

Pubs and clubs may still be closed, but he’s organising an Easter Weekender to help give people the feelgood factor at home.

On Good Friday, April 2, as well as Easter Sunday and Easter Monday, from 2.30pm to 10pm, people can watch free live music from a host of top DJs which will be streamed from the Forever 54 platforms.

The event was inspired by Michael’s time at former city clubbing institution Chambers, and will also be raising money for Cancer Research UK, with people asked to donate to the cause.

He said: “Bank Holidays are usually a big event in Sunderland. Especially the Easter one as it’s the first days off most people have had since Christmas and the weather is starting to pop its head through the clouds.

"This one is going to be a strange one for people. Lots of people have built home bars in Lockdown and we wanted to be able to give people some of that Bank Holiday feeling with three days of free music.

"We usually use our own resident DJs for our events. But we decided to shoot for the stars and go for some really high-brow DJs for this one. If you wanted to book them for an event they’d cost 30/40k in total, but people will get them streamed into their house for free.”

Each day will consist of eight world class DJs and 1 world class PA performance. Included in the event is internet sensation SUAT, house legends Lenny Fontana, Terry Hunter and Angie Brown. Also headlining are: Milk & Sugar, The Cube Guys and Hed Kandi sax sensation Ellie Sax.

To access the streams, which will be on all the major platforms, all people need to do is visit the Forever 54 Facebook Group.

Mike says he’s missing pubs and clubs, but that having to stream music instead of playing to people in person has actually introduced them to a new audience.

"We set up Forever 54 because we wanted to raise money for charity with events,” he said. “But because of Covid, like most DJs, we’ve moved to streaming and we’ve ended up getting a massive following, with people from all over Europe, South America and Australia, and donations from all over the world.

"It will be amazing to get back to performing for people in person though.”

The event will be available to watch on TVs, phones, laptops and tablets via the streaming platforms being used by Forever 54.

To donate to the Just Giving page visit https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/forever54

In line with the Government’s roadmap for leading the country out of Lockdown, pubs will open their outdoor areas from April 12, with people being able to sit in from May 17. Nightclubs can trade again from June 21.

Support your Echo and become a subscriber today. Enjoy unlimited access to local news, the latest on SAFC and new puzzles every day. With a digital subscription, you can see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Click here to subscribe.