How To Help Musicians During This Time
The Covid-19 pandemic has thrown the American economy into recession. There is no question. With so many businesses closed and people out of work, there is no way around it. I saw a stat online yesterday that something like 18% of American workers have lost hours or jobs because of this disease. Because of this, you need to do everything you can to protect your own capital reserves. I try to live my life like I am always in a recession: no debt except for a mortgage, an emergency fund and the ability to cut unnecessary bills (like streaming services for example) if required. Not everyone can live this way and I am privileged more than most. So this post is for people like me who have some financial runway. For everyone else, you are now in what Dave Ramsey calls "storm mode." Batten down the hatches and save as much as possible.
Musicians are struggling like restaurant and travel industry workers. Concerts are a want not a need and now crowds are essentially banned in America (and most of the world). This may be a time of creative force. Musicians may use their downtime to write songs and that is a silver lining. Non-wealthy acts will struggle to stay afloat because touring is not an option. Help these acts by buying their albums, either physical or digital and pick up T-shirts. Some musicians are doing guitar lessons on Cameo. I know Tracii Guns is doing that right now. Acts like Def Leppard, Motley Crue, Springsteen and those folks do not need help. The Tweet below has more information on how you can help musicians during this special time.
The Recording Academy and MusiCares call on the entire music community including labels and streaming services to join them - as Bandcamp launch drive to help artists https://t.co/xiZFAFTmmi
— Classic Rock (@ClassicRockMag) March 18, 2020