21/09/2024
After the considerable onslaught against Sydney’s live music industry, with legislation introduced in 2019 that further crippled the new buds of creativity. We have since seen an escalation of weight against new and longstanding live music festivals, with many, including long established events, closing down, or never able to get off the ground in the first place. Many are no longer able to support the increase of financial and political requirements newly introduced to function such as the overinflated costs of government required legislated police and ambulance presence. Again, this isn’t about the required presence of the police and ambulance, seriously, thank you guys. It’s about the overinflated costs, insurances included, and the fear of being arrested for smoking a joint. I have heard many of the concerns ailing music festivals written off, as with many things, as a result of COVID. But the seeds of this well and truly predate covid.
Anyway, there has been an announcement from the NSW Government that they are allocating three million dollars to support NSW music festivals. Now I’m sure that some of the politicians supporting this are presenting this out of genuine sentiment. It seems like a legitimate goto solution. And when things are scrabbling across your board everyday, yeah it ticks the box. But let’s delve into this a little deeper.
One of the first things to cover here, if the notion is to genuinely support the industry, culture and social infrastructure of music festivals is that the $3 million is going to run out, especially with a maximum potential allocation of five hundred thousand dollars per festival. So great, we may get 6 – 10 festivals out of this while bleeding money out of the tax payer reserves, with the box ticked within the government to say that they tried and a three million dollar allocation to back it up. That’s a lot of weight to pass it under the table and consider music festivals under rug swept, with far more pressing issues to consult.
The thing is, this allocation is specific to covering government incurred costs. Fair enough really, but if longevity and support of the multi billion dollar live music industry is the concern, then would addressing the symptom, the over inflation of costs, rather than offering some candy to a few specifics be of greater sustainability ?
Another vulnerability of this method of funding counter costs is that it introduces a very effective selection mechanism into government. No cost really to the government because they are just reallocating it back to themselves from costs that are overinflated anyway. But it does mean that you have to run through hoops, or be the selected ones to ever run a festival. A concern within the music industry where a selection mechanism can offer means to effect the supported intellect circulating through the social networks and mainstream.
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