NI MAXINE RETURNS TO BIRMINGHAM FOR INDEPENDENT VENUE WEEK 2026

PRESS RELEASE

‘Neo-jazz star, Ni Maxine’ (NME) returns to Birmingham for her first headline show presented by Variations at Hare & Hounds (Kings Heath) on Wednesday 28th January 2026 for Independent Venue Week.

Listen to Ni Maxine’s latest single, ‘Not For Me’ here, the perfect soundtrack for anyone who has stepped into the new 2026 prioritising self-care and boundaries.

‘One to watch, Ni Maxine on the vocal jazz tip’ - Tony Minvielle for Mostly Jazz Festival 2024

From bursting onto the Birmingham scene at a Jam House open-mic night to a standing ovation at her fully booked b:music ‘Free Jazz Friday’ show, followed up by a stand-out Mostly Jazz Festival performance in 2024, Ni Maxine is growing in popularity in the Birmingham music community.

With her debut EP ‘Mother’s Arms’ title track out on Wednesday 11th February 2026 and the full EP out on Wednesday 4th March 2026, this is your chance to hear new music live ahead of its release.

‘Dripping with charisma and soul…’ - Soweto Kinch, ‘Round Midnight, BBC Radio 3. 

This show, presented as part of a brand new live music series by popular Birmingham club night ‘Variations’ connecting jazz and jazz-adjacent music to a progressive club-going community is a perfect mid-week January evening out for the live music lover and the sober-curious who are looking for an evening of connection.

‘Her exquisite vocal delivery bears favourable comparison with the late great American soul singer Minnie Riperton as she captures the right balance between consciousness and self-determination’ - Simon Godley, God Is In The TV

Joined by UK Jazz royalty, Luke Bacchus (piano) and Daniel Casimir (upright bass) and Nate Ricketts (drums), don’t miss Ni Maxine playing live for Independent Venue Week 2026. This will be one for the books!

Date: Wednesday 28th January 2026

Location: Hare & Hounds, High Street, Kings Heath, B14 7JZ

Doors: 7:30PM

Tickets: here

About Ni Maxine

Award-winning Liverpool based ‘Neo-jazz star, Ni Maxine’ (NME) is one to watch. Her music moves between past and future, blending conscious lyricism, rich storytelling, and an unshakable sense of self as she detangles her transatlantic roots.

'For Ni Maxine, the stage isn’t just about performance, it’s communion.' (Wordplay Magazine). Themes of home, identity, self-worth, and belonging weave through her work, creating something that feels both deeply personal and universally resonant.

Taking home ‘Breakthrough Act of The Year' at The Jazz FM Awards 2025 marks the beginning of a significant chapter for Ni Maxine. She consistently pushes the boundaries of jazz, locking in support from tastemakers Jamz Supernova and Gilles Peterson across the BBC, Worldwide FM, Selector Radio and more.

From We Out Here to The Jazz Cafe - wherever she plays, she pulls people in.

With a string of sold-out shows and a nomination in the NOTION New Music Awards behind her, Ni Maxine isn’t just rising; she’s redefining what it means to belong in this moment of UK music.

About Variations

Variations is a Birmingham-based grassroots music series creating new connections between jazz, global rhythms and contemporary club culture. Launching a brand new live music series in 2026 during Independent Venue Week 2026, Variations is a platform bringing live jazz and jazz adjacent music to a progressive club-going community.

Founded by female promoter Toni Grehan, Variations platforms female and gender-expansive DJs and musicians with a club night blending broken beats, soulful house and percussive grooves with live horns, rhythm sections and improvisation, creating a hybrid dancefloor experience that moves fluidly between live performance and DJ culture.

Variations was created in response to a clear gap in Birmingham’s nightlife: a lack of spaces where jazz-influenced music, global traditions and a progressive club community could coexist.

The series has welcomed artists and tastemakers including Tina Edwards, Coco Maria, Poly Ritmo, and more, alongside live local horn players, jazz quartets and improvising musicians, creating space for jazz musicians to reach new audiences, and for club-goers to experience live musicianship in a social, dance-led context. Variations is about cultural exchange, access and musical curiosity; a space where jazz traditions, global sounds and contemporary dance music meet on equal footing.

About Independent Venue Week

Independent Venue Week (IVW) is the UK’s annual 7-day celebration of independent music & arts venues and the people that own, run and work in them. Read more about it here.