July 25, 2020
Due to COVID 19 Pandemic, most international public events were canceled to fight the spread of the disease enticing catastrophic consequences for the tourism sector and electronic music scene. This Coronavirus pandemic is an entirely new situation concerning us collectively but people whose livelihoods depend on tourism, nightclubs, festivals are suffering the most as the live music industry, which relies completely on large groups of people to gather in a crowded space, has been brought to an almost total standstill.
Big gatherings were banned in Asia, Europe, and the USA, and the impact of canceled events has shone a light on how fragile the electronic music ecosystem was, and how interconnected we all are. Governments across the globe have already taken steps to protect many industries, often promising relief for ‘small businesses’, but it remains unclear how the small businesses of the electronic music industry, which acts as a large source of revenue for certain cities, might have access to governmental relief funds. The Electronic music industry is built most of the time on entrepreneurship and risk-taking; most promoters start as music-lovers who decide to book an artist to a venue in their city. Most artists start as music-lovers who try making something they would enjoy listening to themselves. Very few people got into this business with big money in mind, and very few people have been setting aside savings for months of cancellations. In many countries, organizing parties are not seen as a ‘business’, and self-employed artists are left unprotected from the risks of forced unemployment.
Today it becomes obvious that Live music needs structural change to survive COVID-19 so a rising collective created FACE THE MUSIC a platform where ideology goes beyond the business case. People involved have music as a passion and a way of life. They approach music as a form of art with the idea of building a community, an alliance via a non-profit association acting globally to support and enhance the electronic music industry.
They aim to represent and put together not only the direct industry affected but also Booking & Management Agencies, Artists, Promoters, Clubs, Venues, Tour Managers, media professionals, travel agencies, airlines, hotels, etc. Their principal goal is to find sponsorship and/or funding for their members, collate up to date to date information on COVID 19 measures and the industry’s re-opening, establish communication with other associations who share the same aims like the Booking United, the Global Night Mayor, EFEM, NTIA and nighttime.org to name a few, and to provide government lobbying power on behalf of all members.
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