It all started like many ideas do these days, with a scroll on social media.
The idea that the arts industry was in rapid decline plagued us all throughout the first UK national lockdown from March to August, though it seems that few of us were unsure exactly what we could do to stop this.
Each day I recall seeing a spread of posts across Instagram, Facebook and Twitter from local music venues, artists and creatives, reaching out for support. Unknowing of when they could return back to normal, they called upon the public for help raising funds and signing petitions which would force the UK Government to act.
Our consumer behaviour is what struck me most. The consumption of music, television, film and radio sky-rocketed as we spent more time in the confines of our homes- the willingness to pay for these services however, did not.
This became the driving force to focus my Major Multimedia Project on grassroots music; an industry in decline. Whilst larger venues such as the London 02 and Wembley stadium are also struggling throughout these lockdown-induced closing periods, their cash reserves are much larger. Not only this, but the artist base that performs at these larger-capacity venues is much more well-known; hence a larger revenue. I felt a sense of injustice here as it became clear that the prospects of new, regional artists in my community were compromised by the COVID-19 pandemic.
I began researching what was being done to save venues across the UK, in a bid to understand the state of the grassroots music industry and how we, as an audience, can help to preserve these businesses. My focus was rather selfish in some ways, as I looked deeper into the venues at risk across the South, close to where I live.
A few pages of research notes later, and I had evidence to re-affirm the fact that the state of the grassroots music industry was being overlooked and if I could cover this well, I'd be playing my part in raising awareness of the people at the heart of this declining chain of opportunity.
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