LET THE MUSIC PLAY - SAVE OUR COMMUNITY, SAVE OUR VENUES

2 Jul

“COVID HAS BROUGHT GRASSROOTS VENUES TO THEIR KNEES: WITH 400 STILL AT HIGH RISK OF CLOSING DOWN AND NO SIGN OF GOVERNMENT SUPPORT, WILL YOU STAND BY AS THE LIFEBLOOD OF LIVE MUSIC FADES AWAY?"

#LETTHEMUSICPLAY

Remember those days of freedom when your calendar was scribbled full of gigs at the venue down the street. Buildings which looked so serene by day, but at night came alive with sound. Places to catch the next soon-to-be-viral artist before they snatch the attention of radio and the mainstream, these are the hometown haunts of the music community.

A hotbed for creativity, independent venues are spaces for eager artists to develop their craft, dabble in music journalism or photography and unite with people from all backgrounds, abilities, genders and, ultimately, walks of life. Without these spaces acts like Catfish and The Bottlemen would never have perfected their ferocious sound and got signed, Sundara Karma would have never made it out of Reading and even Radiohead wouldn’t have discovered their unique sound (according to a recent interview with NME). Without a live music circuit, it is inevitable that we will lose artists. Many will never feel the spark to play on the stage before them, never play their first gig and consequently never release that one song which would have become the soundtrack to part of your life.

“FROM LAST YEAR'S MUSIC BY NUMBERS REPORT, THE LIVE SECTOR WAS THE SECOND LARGEST EMPLOYER IN THE INDUSTRY, PROVIDING OVER £1 BILLION OF THE TOTAL INDUSTRY’S £5.2 BILLION TO THE UK ECONOMY”

Beyond the individual pleasures of live music, it is an undeniably lucrative part of a music industry. From last year's Music by Numbers report, the live sector was the second largest employer in the industry, providing over £1 billion of the total industry’s £5.2 billion to the UK economy. Yet, despite both the wide economic and cultural impact of grassroots venues to the country, they have been consistently swept aside by the government which has left 556 venues to fend for themselves in a period when they are legally forced to keep their doors shut.

Even prior to the hurricane that is COVID-19, independent venues were struggling, with low profit margins on sales and a willingness to support artists no matter the cost. January’s Independent Venue Week saw a renewal of this conversation as 230 venues highlighted the need for more support from the government and fans. The Music Venues Trust (MVT, the charitable body which runs Independent Venue Week) called for decisive action, asking the UK to “stop saying you support your grassroots music venues, get off your arse and actually do it.”

“STOP SAYING YOU SUPPORT YOUR GRASSROOTS MUSIC VENUES, GET OFF YOUR ARSE AND ACTUALLY DO IT.” (MUSIC VENUE TRUST)

Now with the added pressure of a pandemic, the MVT have spearheaded the #saveourvenues campaign. A movement putting the onus on fans, artists and venues to save themselves. Within its first 48 hours over £100,000 was raised, a figure which has now long surpassed £2 million. Slowly but surely the number of venues under imminent threat has reduced to 400, yet this still leaves pivotal venues like Band on The Wall (Manchester), The Boileroom (Guildford) and Oporto (Leeds) in the fire pit.

Today, however, sees yet another attempt at get a drop of support from the government with the launch of #LetTheMusicPlay, a campaign aimed specifically to get the attention of the culture secretary Oliver Downden. Its two pronged attack firstly features a letter to the man himself, signed by thousands of high profile artists, crews and venues. The contents of which describes the now dire need for some sort of support package to the live industry which employs 210,000 people afloat- stating that the “government has addressed two important British pastimes – football and pubs – and it’s now crucial that it focuses on a third, live music.” The second part of the campaign aims to amplify its message, asking all fans, artists and venues alike to upload footage of the last gig they went to accompanied with #LetTheMusicPlay to emphasise the ferocious public adoration for the UK’s thriving live music industry. While still in its early states, this may be the breakthrough live venues need- but only time will tell.

Beyond this prolific campaign, the government has also been lobbied. With industries around the country being supported by Parliament, the music industry continues to slip through the gaps. Ignoring the institutions which created the British artists MP's often use to emphasise our country’s vibrant cultural history. This obviously begs the question, why, if they value the art, do they not the community and spaces which made it possible?

To this date, the only economic support offered to the live industry has been from London Mayor Sadiq Khan who pledged £450,000 to the MVT in an attempt to preserve venues in the capital. Yet, even this fails to scratch the surface when venues each need tens of thousands of pounds to simply survive this turbulent time. The past week saw the MVT lobby for a £50 million support package (paired with a reduction in the VAT imposed on ticket sales) from the government to keep venues afloat beyond June, however, somewhat unsurprisingly, this was rejected. Offering only this statement from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport in return: “We are doing all we can to support our grassroots music venues through substantial financial measures including loans and the extended Job Retention Scheme that thousands of individuals and organisations have accessed.”

Sadly, this isn’t the first time in recent months where the government has turned their backs on the live sector of the music industry. Many may have missed during the pandemic’s viral impact on the news that from January artists will need a Tier 5 Visa to tour Europe. This small change in legislation has a large impact on the up-and-coming artists who reside in the independent venues touring circuit, requiring them to pay disproportionately more than established acts (with larger touring budgets) to expand their audience. While the industry petitioned for the option of a two-year work visa, the government chose to reject this option. Ultimately disregarding the export of British music which provides the UK with £2.7 billion a year.

“COUNTING ON THE GOVERNMENT FOR ANYTHING IS THE BIGGEST WASTE OF TIME GOING”JOHN GIDDINGS (ISLE OF WIGHT FESTIVAL)

With a refusal to provide any aid, and their distancing measures hindering any venue from opening (with only 13% of independent music venues being able to support social distancing, and only 4% of these profitably), how can we support the venues which are the lifeblood for our community?

As artists are called forward by #saveourvenues to organise their own fundraising shows (the events can be found here: https://saveourvenues.co.uk/events/#/), fans are simply being asked to dig deep to save our cultural powerhouses (donate here: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/save-our-venues). While it seems strange to pay for live performances in this period where they have been devalued through neverending free live streams, even paying the price of a normal Frank Turner gig once a month will make a huge difference.

This month has also seen the release of the CloseUp x Blood Records x Flying Vinyl’s collaborative album What’s Going On? . An apt title reflecting the confusion of the music industry's current crumbling state, this LP features established and soon to be massive artists who are willing to give away exclusive B-sides and remixes to help grassroots venues. From indie dreamboats Peace, to Irish heartthrobs whenyoung and the infectious Abbie Ozard, there’s something for everyone. All the profits made from this vinyl run will be shared between MVT (90% of all profits), and musically-aligned, BAME supporting mental health outfits via L;FE (10% of all profits).

“ALL THE PROFITS MADE FROM THIS VINYL RUN WILL BE SHARED BETWEEN MVT (90% OF ALL PROFITS), AND MUSICALLY-ALIGNED, BAME SUPPORTING MENTAL HEALTH OUTFITS VIA LIFE (10% OF ALL PROFITS).”

While Boris’ Conservative slogan to ‘Unleashing Britain’s Potential’ seems to fall flat in favour of alcohol tax, it’s up to us to save our community housed within these sacred spaces. Sadly, once independent venues are gone, they are not going to come back. While it bears mentioning that venues (and the live sector of the industry in general) are not alone in reaping the effects of the pandemic - record stores, management companies and even the biggest festivals in the country are feeling the strain - venues are the spaces which allow artists to develop, find their unique voice which attracts an audience and, ultimately get signed. Without them there wouldn’t be any new albums, artists to manage, or a vibrant introducing stage at festivals. So with a large portion of the UK glued to the TV last weekend for sets of Glastonbury past, how much do you really value the music industry? And, more importantly, will you come to its aid on this, its day of need?