Cheeky Foundation

02/04/2026

Funding / grants for artists & performers

Have you worked for Arts Council England, Big Lottery Fund, Esmee Fairbairn, Garfield Weston, or the PRS for Music Foundation?

12/03/2026

Music for me, as someone who's also struggled with food (though Ive gotten better, expanded the range of food eat), is like food, emotional, mental, quasi physical sustenance. It's how I acknowledge, work through, process my emotions. I *Need* it.

At the same time, it's how I connect with myself, how I find my Self *and* how I lose myself. It's how I express myself. It's how I connect with other humans - through sharing music, listening, creating, rehearsing, performing as a pianist / drummer in a band, singing in choirs at college & Uni and community choirs with members of my family.

We use the arts to help people manage their mental health and support themselves by doing what they love through events & community.

05/03/2026

Using the arts to support mental health & community. Cheeky Fest uses the creative and performing arts to help people manage their mental health and support themselves by doing what they love.

At Cheeky Fest we recognise the connection between creativity and mental health. In May 2019 I lost a close friend and musician I used to play with. He died by su***de after struggling with bipolar disorder. I have also struggled with depression at various points in my life. This experience strengthened my commitment to supporting people through the arts, listening to their stories, connecting them with others, and helping to reduce stigma around mental health.

Cheeky began as a Facebook group in January 2013 to help musicians connect and promote themselves. Over time it grew across social platforms and through interviews with musicians and entrepreneurs. After an accident in 2011, I wanted to organise an event to fundraise for London Air Ambulance, who rescued me and took me to hospital. I also wanted to support Nordoff Robbins, a music therapy charity — something meaningful to me as I received music therapy myself as a child. Cheeky Fest was born from that idea.

With the support of Alejandro Sesma, the first Cheeky Fest took place in Kingston, SW London on 29 August 2024. The second took place on 10 April 2025 in the same venue. Cheeky Fest is creative, collaborative, colourful, inspiring, empowering and thought-provoking. It brings together people who want to:

• Share their stories
• Connect with other artists and audiences
• Develop skills and opportunities
• Earn a living doing what they love
• Support others facing mental health challenges

We want to take Cheeky Fest to the next level.
Your support will help us:
• Hire a larger venue
• Guarantee fair fees for performers
• Build a small team and pay them fairly
• Develop a strong marketing campaign
• Expand the event to include music, theatre, opera and dance

Possible venues; Bush Hall (From 900 UKP + VAT), All Saints Kingston (500-3k depending on how much of the church we want to hire), Battersea Arts Centre (10-15K depending on how much of the building we want), or Exhibition White City (c15k+).

By supporting Cheeky Fest you can receive:
• Private event invitations
• VIP or backstage access
• Opportunities to volunteer and meet artists
• Promotion or branding opportunities for businesses
• Newsletter updates
• Lifetime entry to Cheeky events (travel not included)

Most importantly, you help build a community where creativity supports mental health and people support each other. Be part of something creative, collaborative and meaningful. Support Cheeky Fest today. Join us!

We use the arts to help people manage their mental health and support themselves by doing what they love through events & community.

04/03/2026

Ahead of the inaugural Cheeky Fest in Aug '24, Alejandro Sesma produced this film explaining WHY I was organising Cheeky Fest. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b54CZzs0C-Q

🎵 Music is, quite literally, my first language. At almost 5 years of age, I couldn't speak a word—speech therapy didn't help. Thanks to music therapy, I spo...

01/03/2026

In an attempt to reach more eyes, ears, hearts & minds, and raise more money, I've launched a Cheeky Fest crowdfunding campaign on Crowdfunder - head to the campaign now and donate what you can & share it as much as you can. https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/cheekyfest26

22/02/2026

Do you sell branded ?

14/02/2026

I'm fundraising to hire a venue, pay performers a fair fee and develop a real world marketing campaign (inc print, billboards) for Cheeky Fest 3 in London. This is important to me because music and the other performing arts help us manage our mental health, make friends, be part of a community, find our voices & express ourselves, get paid fairly for doing what we love. Please consider donating anything you can. The money will go towards hiring a venue, paying performers and marketing. Visit to donate or share: https://www.gofundme.com/f/cheekyfest26

10/02/2026

I'm fundraising to hire a , pay a fair fee and a real world campaign (inc print, billboards) for Cheeky Fest 3. This is important to me because and the other performing arts help us manage our mental health, make friends, be part of a community, find ourselves, our voices, earn money. Please consider donating anything you can. The money will go towards hiring a venue, paying performers and marketing. Visit to donate or share:

We're going BIG in 2026! BIG venue, BIG audience, BIG impact Cheeky Fest is Not Just Anoth… Rupert Cheek needs your support for Cheeky Fest go big in 2026

05/02/2026

Help us put on the best Cheeky Fest ever!

We're going BIG in 2026! BIG venue, BIG audience, BIG impact Cheeky Fest is Not Just Anoth… Rupert Cheek needs your support for Cheeky Fest go big in 2026