To say that this year has brought its challenges, would be an understatement. If you’d said last year that people would be locked into their houses, shops and pubs would be forced to close, and sport would be put on hold worldwide, you would be pretty scared of what’s to come. We now find ourselves in the middle of this scenario, across the ring from a global pandemic, with lives and careers hanging in the balance.... sorry to start with such a dark tone.
Camelphat recently recorded their Radio 1 essential mix at an empty Printworks in support of venues.
The music industry is one of the more heavily impacted industries, with musicians, venue owners and promoters left twiddling their thumbs since March. Adaptation has happened, with socially distant gigs and outdoor venues, but the brief glimmer of hope provided by these was dashed quickly by the imposed 10pm curfew. As the end of furlough draws nearer, there is little-to-no light at the end of the tunnel for people who have dedicated so much to a career in the music industry. The response from the government is that those in the creative industry should consider re-training and look elsewhere to earn a living. While adapting to the times and taking stock where necessary is important and a sensible thing to do, you can’t help but feel that the music industry is being hung out to dry.
Now, it is easy to undervalue these roles when you take in city nightlife is a luxury that many of us turn to more than we think. Whether it be a night out, the perfect soundtrack to your video, or that playlist you turn to at times of sadness or joy. But music also has a bigger part to play economically. In 2018, the UK music industry contributed £5.2 billion to the UK economy. It also provided a total of 190,935 jobs (UK Music, 2019).
The message here, is that there are many people out there at the moment who have dedicated their whole life to music and have had their main platforms to earn their living wiped from underneath them. On top of that, when asking for support and reassurance, the response has been to simply start from scratch and retrain. Just think of your favourite dark and dingy club (anyone else missing Cellar?). How are they going to earn enough money to stay open when there is no furlough to pay their employees and no room to host socially distant events? The good news is, there is lots you can do to support musicians and #saveourscene.
Go to socially distant events
If you can, then make sure to go and support these venues that are trying to survive on minimum capacity and shortened opening hours (with staff, rent and licenses still to pay). By going to these events, you are supporting your favourite venues at their biggest time of need. Surely, the least you can do for all the joy they have brought you.
Here are some event you could consider:
The Garden Project featuring Skream
Saturday, 31st October – Longton Wood, Maidstone
DnB Halloween Big BBQ
Saturday, 31st October – The Cause Ashley House, London
Student Comedy Night at Lakota
Tuesrday, 13th October – Lakota, Bristol
Lakota is a great one to talk about, with a fantastic variety of entertainment going on in their beautiful gardens. I have picked a comedy event to share here as it’s important to give love to all of the creative arts where possible. Lakota does have a lot of fantastic musicians visiting the gardens as well, including DJ Boring and Mella Dee
Please note: As painful as they are, please do follow the rules that have been out in place without causing an issue. This is our one shot at a scene at the moment, but it will be taken away if people can’t enjoy it safely…
Sign
Keep an eye out for any opportunities to sign petitions or open letters that support the music industry. We have made your life a bit easier by dropping a couple in here.
· Resident Advisor Open Letter: https://www.residentadvisor.net/features/3641
· Extend furlough for music and theatre industry: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/329174
Listen
The simplest suggestion - which is also the easiest and most enjoyable – is to carry on enjoying music. Stream your favourite artists, buy their albums and vinyls. But most importantly, shout about it. Share the love and help them become someone else’s favourite.
If you want a starting point, why not check out Chris' last blog about his favourite Soundcloud tracks: https://rubix-uk.wixsite.com/rubix/post/top-5-free-soundcloud-tracks
Written by Oliver Ong
Instagram: @oliong_1
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