One of the hardest hit industries during the Covid-19 pandemic has to have been the Arts community. My inbox over the past couple of weeks has been full of promoters announcing that shows have been cancelled, and while I look around the street around me I see live music venues and cinemas closed and in darkness. Most of these places can’t even give an estimation of how long they will be closed, although one cinema owner told me that he had been told by a credible source that he can expect not to be operating for at least ninety days… yes you read that correctly three months.
For music acts both big and small Covid-19 has been shot through the heart that some may not recover from. A good friend of mine has lost the gigs he does four nights a week in restaurants and pubs across Melbourne… doesn’t sound like much except it’s his livelihood. At the same time this week I interviewed Hans Ziller from the legendary German band Bonfire only hours after it had been announced that most of the European music festivals had been cancelled – when I asked him about it all he could manage to say was “that it our livelihood, man, I don’t know what we are going to do.”
So that got me thinking – what can we do to help our artists out at the moment… and I came up with this little list:
- BUY MERCHANDISE
Perhaps a simple one but maybe the best way to help out some of music acts at the moment is simply buy some merchandise off their website. While they can’t currently sell tickets to shows if you jump on their website and buy a T-Shirt or perhaps get creative and buy a stubby holder or a bottle opener or something then it is still money going into their pocket… and at the moment anything is better than nothing. The great thing is many of us are saving money at the moment by not eating out or going to shows – so if you have the money to do so use what you would normally spend for your entertainment budget every week to purchase something from an artist.
- BUY THEIR WORK ONLINE
Just like I said with merchandise now is a great time to purchase music directly from some of your favourite artists. A lot of artists still have single and albums coming out during this time so make sure you keep on top of that and still buy the music online. If an artist puts up a track and lets you buy it with a ‘donation’ don’t be a tight-ass and buy it for fifty cents or whatever, do the right thing and give a bit extra.
Now is also probably a great time to be exploring bands that you have never heard of before. Check your favourite music magazine or website see which local bands have new EPS or albums coming out, give them a try and if you like what you hear then go and buy some of the stuff from their back catalogue.
My only word of warning would to make sure that where you are buying the album from online is still sending out parcels during the pandemic. Some European stores are only currently mailing out medical items so just check before you buy… oh hey, Rue Morgue Records is still mailing out stuff… why not start here?
Also don’t just think of musicians, many gig photographers are also doing it tough at the moment with no shows to shoot. So if you need a unique gift at the moment maybe check out which photographers sell prints online and then grab one of your favourite artist. This is especially a great idea if your need to buy someone a birthday present while the shops are all closed – just simply get the photographer to send the parcel direct to the person you are buying it for.
- LOOK FOR SPECIAL ONLINE SHOWS
Some artists have decided that lockdown is a time to try and find some unique ways to get their music out to the masses. Many artists who have had shows cancelled have decided to now hold that show online instead. Likewise many artists who have albums coming out at the moment have opted to do an online album launch. So watch band’s social media channels and keep an eye for when they might be doing an online show. Again I would suggest not to be at tight arse and just sit there and watch their show for free. If you like the show do the right thing and buy something from their website while you are on there.
- DON’T ASK FOR REFUNDS
While many of the bigger bands (Iron Maiden etc) have the luxury of just postponing their cancelled gigs many local artists don’t have the same luxury for their tours and shows. For many local acts doing a tour means taking time off work, that perhaps is something they can’t do later in the year or perhaps the venues they were playing at don’t have nights free later on. If you did buy a ticket to a local show and now it is cancelled then perhaps don’t ask for the refund. Let the artist keep it and try to keep themselves going.
5 PREPARE FOR A BOMBARDMENT OF MUSIC
This was something that a week ago I wouldn’t have even though of, but as I’ve chatted to various artists over the week one thing has become very, very clear. Most artists seem to be using the lockdown as a time to write music. And why not? For once in their lives they are home and have nothing else to distract them. That creative energy needs to go somewhere so it may as well go into song-writing.
Of course that will mean we can probably expect a mountain of new music to be dropped on is in a few months time but for a few very lucky artists that have their own recording studios at home we may see those albums get released even quicker.
Yes, this is going to be a tough time for a lot of people. For some people they are not going to have the spare cash to do any of the things I suggested above, and that’s okay maybe just settle for liking a track an artist places on line so that the next person might be drawn to a track that suddenly has three thousand likes. This is a tough time for everyone but if we work together we might just be able to help our artists through it.