The RBA is killing the music
Australian music titan and Bluesfest godfather Peter Noble says the Reserve Bank’s interest rate hikes helped kill off the Splendour in the Grass festival and the government needs to save the industry.
Mr Noble said it was “obvious why festivals are hitting the wall” after Splendour in the Grass was cancelled on Wednesday.
“The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) have done their job … but they’ve done it on us,” Mr Noble said.
He said higher interest rates and rising costs of living had put a strain on Australian families who no longer want to spend money and that “we need to let our government know enough is enough.
“When the RBA is inadvertently putting whole industries in the firing line, there’s a problem. When will Australian families again feel safe and going out and spending rather than having to squirrel away all their money for a rainy day?
“Sadly Splendour and other festivals like Groovin the Moo and Falls (Festival) have been the canaries in the coalmine.”
Mr Noble joked he was the “last man standing” as this year’s Bluesfest opened in Byron Bay yesterday.
Tasmanian MP Brian Mitchell, chair of the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Communications and the Arts, has announced his committee will inquire into challenges facing Australia’s live music sector.
“Australian live music is too precious to lose but in recent years it has come under sustained pressure, resulting in the cancellation of much loved events,” Mr Mitchell said.
“My own state of Tasmania lost the much-loved Falls Festival a couple of years ago.”