Venues are tuning up for a year on rebound
Things are looking a little less bleak for independent music venues across the country.
Sure, they’re still closed amid the coronavirus pandemic, but since the Save Our Stages (SOS) Act passed as part of last month’s COVID-19 relief package, live music businesses have access to an estimated $15 billion in grant programs.
“SOS saved an entire industry,” says Chris Bauman, founder and president of Zenith Music Group in Chicago. “The vast majority of us are all small, mom-and-pop businesses. With no revenue, we are totally unbankable and have zero access to the capital we need to get through something like this, which is very different than a publicly traded company which has almost unlimited ability to get more cash when needed.”
The relief bill was too late for at least 300 venues that have closed permanently since the country was locked down, says Audrey Fix Schaefer, spokeswoman for the National Independent Venue Association. Among the shuttered clubs are The Satellite in Los Angeles (now a restaurant), the Copacabana in New York City (which may reopen in a new location) and Threadgill’s in Austin, Texas.
The association, a group made up of owners of nearly 3,000 venues nationwide, formed last year with the goal of advocating for aid for music venues. Among its members are stages that have played vital roles in musical culture, including Minneapolis’ First Avenue, which was featured in Prince’s film “Purple Rain”; the Troubadour in Los Angeles, where Elton John became a rock star and Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee, where Elvis Presley made his first and only appearance at the Grand Ole Opry.
Fix Schaefer estimates that as many as 95% of workers at independent music venues across the country have been let go or furloughed because of the pandemic. More than 272,000 people worked in America’s oncert and event promotion industry in 2019, according to market research firm IBIS World. With a vaccine just now being rolled out, it could be months before live music comes back. First to return, she expects, will be outdoor concerts because they allow for easier social distancing and mitigation measures, followed by indoor performances.
The Small Business Administration is expected to start talks for grants for venues in the coming weeks, Fix Schaefer says.
“This battle has lasted 10 months,” she says. “The response has been an enormous, unanimous gasp. We did it. Help is on the way.”
In the meantime, the National Independent Venue Association is doing its part to help venues, too.
Today, the group announced it fundraised $3 million in emergency grants with plans to distribute money to more than 150 venues. The grants went to some of the nation’s “most distressed” spots, in hopes of helping them hang on until government assistance arrives.
Tipitina’s in New Orleans
Robert Mercurio, co-owner of Tipitina’s in New Orleans, says he’s “feeling much more positive“in 2021 than when he spoke to USA TODAY in September and adds, “It is truly horrifying trying to figure out how we will get through this.”
But there is still a lot of uncertainty ahead for the venue that dates back to 1977 and has been home to a number of live album recordings by bands such as Phish and Wilco.
Tipitina’s had to cut about 40 workers shortly after the lockdown began, even after receiving Paycheck Protection Plan funding. They’ve managed to stay afloat thanks to longtime patrons who’ve bought merchandise online and sent donations. They’re ready to return, Mercurio says, as soon as possible.
“As soon as it is safe, the regulars are extremely ready to come back and see a live concert,” he says.
Orange Peel in Asheville, North Carolina
2020 was shaping up to be a big year for Orange Peel, an 18-year-old venue in downtown Asheville. A new outdoor stage was set to open, bringing in more shows than ever. Then coronavirus hit and Orange Peel had to shutter and reduce staff.
The outdoor stage did open in late August but hasn’t seen as much action because of local restrictions that limit the number of people gathering. For a venue that relies on ticketed shows for 90% of its business, the current climate is untenable, event coordinator Liz Tallent says. “We are very hopeful that if we are able to successfully apply for and receive an SOS grant, it will save our business, full stop,” she says. But, as was the case with the Paycheck Protection Plan, competition is expected to be fierce. Not all who apply will receive the cash they’re seeking.
“We have yet to book a single new show for 2021 since we still face so many unknowns between the delayed vaccine rollout and much-reduced, statemandated capacity numbers,” Tallent says. “If we can get the SOS grant funds in time, it will be a critical lifeline that will allow us to survive and hold out until which time we are allowed to open again.”
Zenith Music Group in Chicago
Bauman says the past 10 months have been “devastating.” The company operates several venues in the Chicago area including Plum Tree Festival Grounds, Avondale Music Hall and Olympic Theater.
“There is no magic math where a business can survive with no revenue indefinitely yet still have to continually pay monthly fixed expenses,” he says. ‘It’s been a struggle to survive every day since March, somewhat like navigating a ship in a storm only not knowing when the storm will actually end.”
While a number of venues and performers have pivoted, trying livestreaming and drive-in concerts, for example, Bauman says nothing can replace the experience of an in-person concert. He’s not certain when his venues will be able to reopen, saying SOS is just the first of many necessary steps.
“This a big step in the right direction,” he says. “Everyone is anxious and excited to get back to concerts. Live music is part of our American culture. Our stages are the incubators of American talent which then go around the world. We need it back now more than ever. It’s the ultimate unifier.”
Neumos and Barboza in Seattle
In September, Steven Severin, co-owner of Neumos and Barboza, told USA TODAY he’d “never worked so hard to lose money.”
The venues remain closed, but Severin says he has taken it as an opportunity to rethink his business. He hopes that after the pandemic, he can make some big changes, including a push for more inclusivity.
“We’ve had a lot more conversations with artists,” he says. “We’ve talked to them about the things that work with our venues and what doesn’t. We have had tons of conversations about equity in the music industry. We want to see more (diverse groups) get an opportunity to enter our industry in a way that they can move into management and ownership positions. We want to find ways to have more of a dialogue with people.”
While the doors are closed, fans have been helping out by making donations and buying merchandise on keepmusiclivewa.com.
“No income, no money,” Severin says. “Sometimes you just slam your head against the brick wall a few times. Either way, every single person is feeling it in one way or another.”