Coronavirus: Supporting the music community

Coronavirus (COVID-19) is clearly having a huge impact on people and economies across the world. One of the industries which is taking a particularly hard hit is the music and entertainment industries.

We realise that many musicians, DJs, festivals, gigs and the like have been heavily affected by the virus. In response to this, the Jazz FM team wants to do what we can to support the musicians who are the lifeblood of everything we do.

A new study by Encore Musicians has outlined the impact of the COVID crisis, indicating that 64% of musicians are considering leaving the profession because of the events of this year.

The same survey says jazz musicians have lost an average of £10,470 in gig cancellations since March 2020 and have an average of four bookings still in the diary. 36% said they had already applied for other jobs.

To help combat the effects of the crisis, we've create guide outlining the ways in which we can all continue to support the industry which we cherish and love, as well as providing information to help artists and those within the industry.

With the situation ongoing and developing, we will continue to update this page to help in anyway we can.

Purchasing music, supporting artists and supporting record stores:

With gigs, the festival season and live performances still scarce, it is more important than ever to financially support musicians and artists within our means as fans.

It is vital to keep on purchasing music; artists have spent countless hours and often significant funds to create the tracks and albums for us all to enjoy. Equally, it's important supporting artists through buying merchandise, as this has become another key outlet for revenue over the past few years.

One of the best ways to do this is through buying it directly through their websites or through outlets such as Bandcamp - who aim to create the best service for artist and labels to share and earn money from their music (with 80-85% of the money going to the artist).

Since the start of the pandemic, Bandcamp has been supporting the music community through Bandcamp Fridays, where on the first Friday of the month the service have waived their fees and given their share directly to artists and independent labels.

In doing this, the music service has generated over $40 million, which goes straight into the pockets of artists and labels. Bandcamp have announced that will continue running these events until at least May 2021.

Our presenters have been highlighting some of the music they're championing for Bandcamp Friday, why not take a look at their picks?

Similarly to artists, our beloved independent record stores also need help and support during this testing time. As such, campaigns like Love Record Stores are being setup to counteract the economic disruption caused by COVID-19.

We understand that everyone is not able to do financially contribute, but for those who are able to support the musicians we can help offset the shockwaves created by the current situation.

As everyone cannot financially support artists during these times, there are other ways in which you can help, such as following and subscribing to artist's social media channels and mailing lists. In this way, we can continue to communicate and engage with the musicians we love.

Supporting venues:

Over the course of the pandemic, venues, events companies and festivals have been faced with changing guidance and the majority have been shut for months on end, so are in dire financial circumstances. Live Nation, for example, reported that they had a drop in revenue of 90% year-on-year, estimated to be a loss of $319 million. Similarly, the UK Parliament's Culture Select Committee has estimated that the festival sector's revenue dropped by 90% over 2020.

There have been growing calls within the UK for the government to look into more financial support for the live music industry, with fears there could be a collapse of the sector.

With many gigs and events continually being disrupted or cancelled, it is crucial that fans continue to support live venues if they can. Make sure to research your favourite venues and subscribe to venue membership support pages, like the ones here by the Southbank Centre and Sage Gateshead. Subscribing and donating to these institutions, as well as music charities, could be critical in these uncertain times.

The Music Venue Trust has launched the #SaveOurVenues campaign in response to the economic threat throughout the UK. If our venues collapse across the UK, this could lead to over 5,000 job losses, a loss of millions of employment opportunities and a incalculable cultural hit.

As part of #SaveOurVenues, which aims to stop the permanent closure of venues in the face of the crisis, the organisation has launched a fundraiser called 'The Red List' which aims to prevent the closure of 30 music venues that they have identified as the 'most a risk' of permanent closure. You can find out more and contribute to 'The Red List' fundraiser here.

Financial support, funds and advice for UK-based musicians:

Last year for UK Music Day, we highlighted the fundraising of the MU’s Coronavirus Hardship Fund, to help support the jazz and music community. The MU Hardship Fund is working alongside Help Musicians UK and PRS For Music to help as many musicians as they possibly can with funding at this unprecedented and challenging time.

The union has also provided a guide of steps for members to follow in cases where members are refused work for "health concerns, or their right to be paid for work which has been cancelled by their employer or engager due to issues related to COVID-19".

If you are a member of the Musicians' Union, you can read their advice guideline here.

The MU and Ivors Academy have teamed up to launch the Keep Music Alive campaign - calling on the UK government to undertake a review of streaming rights in order to 'fix' the way the distribution model works. Criticism has been ongoing for years about the small amount many artists make from streaming, but has recently flared up in the COVID crisis as artists' revenue streams are drying up. You can find out more here.

This pressure resulted in the UK Parliament launching an inquiry into the economic impact of music streaming on artists, record labels and the sustainability of the wider music industry.

Help Musicians is another outlet that offers help and support for professional musicians of all genres. They offer to help at time of crisis, as well as extra support at crucial stages in musicians' careers.

Over the course of the pandemic, Help Musicians have supported 18,000 musicians with over £11,000,000 in financial hardship funding in the UK, Help Musicians have launched Phase 3 of their Financial Hardship Funding, which is targeted at self-employed musicians who are unable to fund themselves during a time of further lockdown and ongoing restrictions. If you'd like to find out more about Help Musicians' Coronavirus Financial Hardship Funding, click here. The latest initiative offers financial support until March 2021.

Help Musicians has also created a rolling information page to find sources of support, which is available here.

The Association of Independent Music (AIM) is also processing applications of their Crisis Fund for Independent Music Contractors. As the name suggests, the fund is aimed at both contractors and freelancers in the independent music industry whose income has been impacted by restrictions. You can find out more about the fund here.

Administered by the PRS Foundation, longstanding members are also eligible for various means of financial support and crisis grants, if you have been a member for at least seven years and have earned £500 in royalties. Find out more here.

Stagehand, which is aimed to support those involved in the production of live events, has a COVID-19 Crew Relief Fund, which is particularly vital with the projection of events in 2021.

UK-based small businesses are also able to borrow anywhere between £2,000 and £50,000 as part of a government-backed "Bounce Back Loan" scheme, with the first 12 months of the loan being interest-free. Applications for the scheme are open until the 31 March 2021.

Streaming service Spotify is inviting users to donate money to specific music-orientated organisations through their COVID-19 Music Relief. So far, Help Musicians and PRS Foundation are the UK-based organisations along with Musicares in the US to have signed up to the scheme. The service will be matching all user donations up to a maximum of $10 million.

Additionally, Spotify has launched a feature on their service - Spotify For Artists - where artists will be able to add in a donation button to the profile on the service.

There is also information available from the Incorporated Society for Musicians (ISM) and The Association of Independent Professionals and Self-Employed which could help during these times.

Mental Health support:

Along with financial support, we also need to be helping musicians mentally and emotionally too. Thankfully, there are a series of outlets which can help.

An organisation which can offer assistance to anyone within the music industry is Music Support. The organisation can help support those who are suffering with emotional or mental health issues.

Music Minds Matter is a body (run by Help Musicians) which operates a free and confidential helpline service, run by trained advisors, who can help with musicians who are struggling to cope with any pressures they may be having.

Similarly, ISM offers a 24-hour hotline which offers aims to help members struggling with mental health.

UK government support and advice:

Since UK Music's calls for setting up a standalone task force, the UK government has appointed a specific Commissioner and taskforce to advise how the sports, culture and heritage industries can emerge from the COVID-19 shock.

It is important to follow the current guidelines which are being released by the UK government - as guidance and support is being offered to the music community through various means, including a £1.57 billion arts bailout which has started to be distributed.

With the situation ongoing and developing, we will continue to update this page to help in anyway we can.

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