LetTheMusicPlay

The live music industry calls upon the UK Government to present a clear timeline for venues reopening and a financial support package for the sector. Three days after the campaign, the government responds, stating that cultural and heritage organisations are to be protected with £1.57bn support package…

On Thursday 2 July, the music industry joined forces under the banner of #LetTheMusicPlay for one purpose – to send one united message, calling for the British government to provide immediate assistance during this trying time. Along with some of the world’s biggest artists, UK-based crew members, rental houses and manufacturers also got behind the campaign to show solidarity in support of a worthy cause.

When the lockdown first became a reality on 23 March, few would have thought that we would make it to July and still not have a clear idea of the future of live events and when they were due to return. Although regulations are beginning to slacken, with shops now open and pubs not too far behind, the live events sector is still somewhat of a question mark in the UK. Although the government released a five-point roadmap, there has been significant backlash as the advice still doesn’t provide solid dates and, what’s more, doesn’t seem to take into account the reality of keeping a venue open while not being able to operate at standard capacity. Turn to page 66 for more on this.

These frustrations culminated on 2 July, with the global events market coming together under the #LetTheMusicPlay banner. Spearheaded by UK Live Music along with the Music Venues Trust, the campaign saw some of the world’s leading touring talents such as the Rolling Stones, Ed Sheeran, Sir Paul McCartney, Iron Maiden and many more making an urgent plea for government aid to the sector, warning that a lack of support and continued uncertainty around reopening is having a “devastating” impact on one of the world’s biggest live music markets.

The appeal was centred on a letter to the UK’s culture secretary, Oliver Dowden, signed by 1,500 artists and bands, touring personal and members of the events industry. The joint letter stated: “UK live music has been one of the UK’s biggest social, cultural, and economic successes of the past decade. But, with no end to social distancing in sight or financial support from government yet agreed, the future for concerts and festivals and the hundreds of thousands of people who work in them looks bleak.

“U ntil these businesses can operate again, which is likely to be 2021 at the earliest, government support will be crucial to prevent mass insolvencies and the end of this world-leading industry.”

As part of the campaign, the overall message is for the government to provide a clear, conditional timeline for reopening venues without social distancing, a comprehensive business and employment support package, access to finance and full VAT exemption on ticket sales.

The business and employment support package should include, they say, a government-backed insurance scheme to allow shows to go ahead; an extension of the furlough scheme and help for the self-employed to prevent mass redundancies; rent breaks for venues to allow them to reopen; an extension of business-rate relief to the entire live music supply chain; rolling over fees for single-premises event licences for festivals; and financial support for lost box-office income.

“July would normally see the UK embarking on a world-famous summer of live music, but this year the lights are switched off and the microphones unplugged,” commented Phil Bowdery, Chairman of the Concert Promoters’ Association. “Live music has sought to play its role in helping tackle coronavirus, with many artists providing entertainment for people from their homes. But our shutdown is likely to go on for much longer than most, with many concerts and festivals unable to operate until 2021 at the

earliest. Without rapid government support, the long-term impact will be devastating, with the loss of hundreds of thousands of highly-skilled jobs and billions of pounds from the UK economy.”

Ke y to the #LetTheMusic play campaign was a widespread social media effort with people sharing both the hashtag along with a number of stats that showcase the importance of live events to the nation’s economy. Trending worldwide on Twitter throughout the day and seeing massive engagement from all sectors of the industry, it was without doubt a huge success. Not ones to be silent, manufactures, rental houses and crewmembers alike joined the call to action, many of which you can see on the preceding pages.

Since the campaign – and on the day we sent this issue to print – there was news from the government that the arts, culture and heritage industries will receive a world-leading £1.57bn rescue package to help weather the impact of coronavirus.

Thousands of organisations across a range of sectors including the performing arts and theatres, heritage, historic palaces, museums, galleries, live music and independent cinema will be able to access emergency grants and loans. The announcement marks the biggest ever one-off investment in UK culture. It will help them stay afloat while their doors are closed. Funding to restart paused projects will also help support employment, including freelancers working in these sectors.

This new package will be available across the country and ensure the future of these multi-billion-pound industries are secured. Oliver Dowden Culture Secretary said: “Our arts and culture are the soul of our nation. They make our country great and are the lynchpin of our world-beating and fastgrowing creative industries. “I understand the grave challenges the arts face and we must protect and preserve all we can for future generations. Today we are announcing a huge support package of immediate funding to tackle the funding crisis they face. I said we would not let the arts down, and this massive investment shows our level of commitment.”

Th e package announced includes funding for national cultural institutions in England and investment in cultural and heritage sites to restart construction work paused as a result of the pandemic. This will be a big step forward to help rebuild our cultural infrastructure.

This unprecedented package includes: a £1.15bn support pot for cultural organisations in England delivered through a mix of grants and loans – this will be made up of £270m of repayable finance and £880m grants; £100m of targeted support for the national cultural institutions in England and the English Heritage Trust; and £120m capital investment to restart construction on cultural infrastructure and for heritage construction projects in England which was paused due to the coronavirus pandemic. The new funding will also mean an extra £188m for the devolved administrations in Northern Ireland (£33m), Scotland (£97) and Wales (£59m).

De cisions on awards will be made working alongside expert independent figures from the sector including the Arts Council England and other specialist bodies such as Historic England, National Lottery Heritage Fund and the British Film Institute.

Repayable finance will be issued on generous terms tailored for cultural institutions to ensure they are affordable. Further details will be set out when the scheme opens for applications in the coming weeks. TPi www.psa.org.uk