I’m increasingly hearing that there is a decline in people going out to see live acts, especially at a local level. Yes, there is still a demand for major acts and people will queue for hours to see some artists, but many local live venues seem to be struggling or closing down in recent years. Perhaps in an era of 24 hour TV and the internet, there’s more competition for people’s attention and that could be a factor.
Artist collaboration v self obsession?
When I set up Music for The Head and Heart, the idea was to promote artist collaboration and sharing resources. I have realised that there is a huge variation between how much artists collaborate and/or simply focus on their own interests. I had this experience with The Original Ukulele Songs platform which I set up 3 years ago. Some performers were happy to engage and collaborate whereas with others it was just one way traffic. I sponsored and ran a stage for one promoter, paid to fly in an artist from overseas and pressed 150 free sample CDs all a personal expense only to realise a total lack of recipricol appreciation and that many artists were totally self obsessed and only interested in their own “needs”
Fortunately with Music for the Head and Heart there are artists who have a more selfless orientation and special thanks go out to Martin Simpson, Jon Gomm, Captain of The Lost Waves all of who have helped with the platform and willingly given their time to help with the promotion.
The MHH Launch event and future live events?
I was persuaded to make the ticket price for a token 6 pounds for the launch event in a few week’s time in Leeds. This is amazing value for 4 established artists and over 3 hours of music and we will see how well attended the event is. I will pay all artists regardless of ticket sales and will underwrite the cost of the event as I believe in creating more live opportunities for the public. That said, if despite all the promotions, there is a lukewarm response, I may have to review running such events…
My hope has always been that there is an audience that wants to hear great live music. I’m a big fan of events for 80 – 150 attendees, like The Village Vanguard, but it remains to be seen if there is still an interest in the UK. We’ll see in a few weeks what happens and plan accordingly!
Remember you can book here if you want to support such events and see more such events in the future…