Fonthill pub foots bill for livestream ‘lockdown’ show
There won’t be a crowd. There won’t be liquor sales. But at least one Niagara pub is still going to pay for its entertainment Saturday night.
Like every other restaurant and bar in the region, Peter Pipers Pubhouse in Fonthill is closed during the COVID-19 pandemic and relegated to takeout or delivery only.
But owners Pete and Stephanie Moore want to at least bring back the sounds of a typical Saturday, so they’ll be paying Niagara singer Jessica Wilson to livestream an acoustic show from her home.
“We’ve always been a supporter of live music in our establishment and I know that a number of our acts, Jess being one of them, depend solely on performing,” said Pete Moore. “We try to give back as much as we can, so we thought this might be a good idea to hire her for a gig and see how it goes.”
The show, “In Lockdown with Jess,” will was streamed on Facebook Live this past Saturday and a second show will be aired this coming Saturday starting at 7 p.m.
The Niagara Music Award-winner said she was “surprised” by the offer, knowing how much local bars and restaurants are suffering during the pandemic.
“As a musician, I’m considered the least essential right now, so for a business to want to support me was surprising,” she said. “But I wasn’t surprised it was Peter Pipers because they’re heavily involved in the local music scene.”
Local livestreams have been prevalent since COVID-19 shut down all live entertainment, but few of them have been paying gigs. Moore said Wilson originally didn’t want her full fee because there wouldn’t be the usual customers, but they arrived at a “compromise.”
He’s hoping other local bars follow suit.
“It’s a form of advertising as well,” he said. “And it’s a way to help the struggling artists. We’re all in it together.”
Wilson will also be part of the new Showcase Niagara online series, appearing in the May 13 episode.
She’s impressed that a local bar would “leave room in the budgeting to hire a musician, and b.) want to use their extra income on supporting local music.”
The show will livestream on Wilson’s Facebook page.