BATTLE OF THE BANDS FOR SURVIVAL
Freedom delays could mean lost generation of rock ’n’ roll acts as industry faces financial wipeout
DELAYS in lifting lockdown restrictions for live music and festivals “could kill a generation of rock ‘n’ roll bands”.
John Giddings, boss of The Isle Of Wight Festival and one of the UK’S biggest music agents, claims bigmoney sports like football, tennis and motor racing have been favoured by the Government, while those in the music industry have been treated like “third-class citizens”.
Mr Giddings, who represents some of the biggest acts in the world, including U2 and Beyoncé, warns some festivals will not survive.
He even says members of a band he manages are now cleaning windows and cars to make ends meet.
He is furious at the impact on an already devastated industry of extending restrictions beyond June 21 and he warned “nobody trusts the Government anymore”.
If restrictions go on beyond the new July 19 deadline Mr Giddings insisted “we will all go bust”.
Mr Giddings, 68, who has run the Isle of Wight Festival since its revival in 2002, said: “The delays could kill a generation of bands. Everybody in the music industry is seriously disappointed. We are third-class citizens when it comes to the Government.
“They want football, they want the Grand Prix but they couldn’t seem to care about an industry that brings in millions of pounds every year.
“I honestly don’t think the Government are respecting what the music business brings to their economy. I think they are glory seeking with football, the Grand Prix and Wimbledon. They are showing us no respect. With no festivals there is £500million of income lost.”
Mr Giddings, whose agency Solo also represents Lady Gaga, Sting, and Madonna, added: “I don’t think some festivals will financially recover. Definitely some smaller festivals who have committed to costs are completely stuffed.”
His warning comes as a series of live concerts at Englefield Estate in Berkshire were rescheduled yesterday. The performances by Russell Watson, Boy George and Supergrass have been postponed until next year because of the recent delays.
Download Festival at Donnington is running this weekend as part of a government pilot scheme with a 10,000 capacity crowd. It is the UK’S first post-covid music festival and is being monitored by scientists.
Mr Giddings said: “The impact of the delays and no financial support from the Government mean smaller festivals and many self-employed people face real hardship, losing their livelihood and futures despite being part of the British summer experience and our cultural heritage.
“Even a fourweek delay will lose millions for the industry.
“I’m sitting with a band now, they haven’t had a gig for 18 months. They are living off side jobs.
“We risk a whole generation of rock bands being lost because of lockdown – it’s shocking.” Mr Giddings still hopes the Isle Of Wight Festival will go ahead from September 16-19, after being forced to cancel last year and postpone this month.
Tom Jones, Liam Gallagher and Duran Duran are due to headline.
The event attracts 72,000 music lovers and provides work for up to 1,500 people, boosting the local economy on the island.
Mr Giddings continued: “The delay means people are losing millions of pounds in income.
“We can’t guarantee anyone a living without knowing if (a festival) is going to happen. Nobody trusts the Government anymore.”
The highly respected music heavyweight was critical of the Government’s suggestions people in the arts should retrain in other fields.
“Whoever it was in the Government who said they should retrain should not be in their jobs.
“The Isle of Wight Festival employs
400 to 500 people, and if you include artists and their crew, it’s a thousand to 1,500.
“That’s a huge number of people who won’t be paid a penny if it didn’t happen, but we fully intend for it to proceed.”
At the height of the pandemic Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: “I can’t pretend that everyone can do exactly the same job that they were doing at the beginning of this crisis.”
But Mr Giddings, who also represented music legend David Bowie, added: “It’s heartbreaking when I have to ring up artists and managers and say I have no work for you.
“I haven’t earned a penny for a year and a half.”
“The UK has 1,500 festivals a year. It will be brilliant to have ours but
we will have about 10 festivals in the UK this year if we are lucky.
“If the Government says in July, ‘Oh, another delay’ then we’re are in serious trouble.we will all go bust.
“I am going to the Isle of Wight on Saturday when the festival should be on and will take a picture of myself standing in the field, feeling lonely.”
One of Mr Giddings’ upcoming acts is a young Warrington group The K’s, who have been hit hard by the pandemic.
He said: “We’ve gone to the pub and we’re sitting outside because there is no career for them at the moment. These guys want to happen and without lockdown being lifted they are unemployed.
“If we weren’t in lockdown they would be touring and happening, they had to get other jobs to stay alive.
“Car cleaning, window washing. They have had to adapt to earn some money. Artists have just delayed their tours and are waiting – there are crews who are unemployed.
“This has basically kept people unemployed for a year and a half.”