Clash Issue 132 - Fan Life

Fans are the life blood of the music industry. They’re the people who support new artists, who celebrate their wins, and spread the good word. It’s the kid at the merch desk, buying his first t-shirt; it’s the fan at the crash barrier, making sure she gets the best spot; and it’s the person at home, soaking up the action through social media. Those champions are fundamental to understanding how music works in 2025, and – in truth – we would always count ourselves as fans, first and foremost.

Spotify’s Fan Life campaign aims to both explore and expand on this. Across two instalments the global endeavour pinpoints the movement, sound, and energy of fan communities, looking at fandoms who coalesce around artists as disparate as Charli xcx and Sleep Token, Lil Uzi Vert and Pitbull.

Working in tandem with Spotify, CLASH brought together three representatives from potent UK fandoms: three young people with different takes on what it means to be a music obsessive in 2025. Neesha has travelled from Sheffield where she oversees CentralCee_Media, an Instagram fan account with more than 600,000 followers. James  lives in rural Lincolnshire, and he heads up the official Yungblud Discord channel, the fulcrum of the British star’s Black Hearts Club. Arriving from Brighton, Megan runs CreepyCrawlerHQ, a safe space for fans of Warrington alt group The Crawlers.

Allowing these three music fans to open up, CLASH invites you to experience 21st century fandom through the eyes of those championing it.

“You get to meet so many new people. You get to meet so many new friends. You get to create a sense of community around yourself with people who love the same artist that you do,” reflects Megan “It’s such a beautiful thing to involve yourself with.”

Pre-order your copy now. Magazines will be shipping out from the UK from Friday 14th November 2025, please allow sufficient time for your copy to arrive.

Words: Robin Murray

Photography: Dan Boulton

Styling: Sabrina Soormally