Two bills in the Senate hope to help independent live music venues weather the virus. Here’s how you can help.

Late last week, Texas Senator John Cornyn and Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar introduced the “Save Our Stage Act,” which would budget $10 billion to help independent music venues hammered by the Coronavirus pandemic. They have been closed since March and will likely remain closed into 2021, and without financial assistance, the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) estimates that 90 percent of its member venues will have to close forever. Here in New Orleans, we’ve saw Gasa Gasa go on the market, and Robert Mercurio of Galactic isn’t sure how long the band can keep losing money as owners of Tipitina’s.

In their announcement, Cornyn pointed to “the culture around Texas’ dance halls,” while Klobuchar, predictably, invoked Minneapolis’ favorite son. “Minnesota’s concert halls, theatres, and places of entertainment, like First Avenue in Minneapolis, where Prince famously performed, have inspired generations with the best of local music, art, and education,” she wrote. 

The Save Our Stages Act is the second piece of legislation introduced in the Senate to try to help live music venues. Todd Young and Michael Bennet introduced the RESTART Act, while Jared Golden and Mike Kelly introduced a version of it in the House. “My bipartisan RESTART Act would provide a much-needed lifeline to the hardest-hit businesses, like restaurants, hotels and motels, theaters and concert venues, and gyms,” Bennet says. “We should work quickly to pass the RESTART program into law so our Main Street businesses can survive and get to the other side of the pandemic.” 

The RESTART Act was introduced in May, so the whole “work quickly” thing didn’t happen, and even though it has bipartisan support from 35 senators, its passage looks unlikely. When Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin was asked about it, he said, “I think parts of it should be incorporated” in the next stimulus package. Save Our Stages similarly comes at a time when the Senate is trying to craft and pass another stimulus package, and it’s not clear that there will be the willpower and bandwidth to deal with a smaller, different-but-related piece of legislation after wrangling a larger package.

If nothing else, it’s a tell that music-related outlets have carried this story, but media that cover politics regularly have paid little attention to it. Local television news outlets can do stories on it, seeing hope for their suffering clubs, but major outlets see the problem more clearly than these bills becoming the solution.

The act is needed though, because the Payroll Protection Program (PPP) that anchored previous stimulus packages provided money for payroll—something live music venues can’t use since they can’t run shows. They need the financial wherewithal to endure another six months to a year without income, and the PPP didn’t come with the kind of flexibility to make that possible. 

At this point, NIVA and supporters of the bill hope you’ll do your part to help live music venues with the #SaveOurStages hashtag and directly lobbying your senators. NIVA has posted a letter with their talking points on their website so that you can send it from there. Since calls and emails direct from you carry more weight than efforts like this one, here’s the text of the letter. You can use it to generate your own contact with legislators and incorporate it in your social media posts as well. Since social distancing and small venues are essentially incompatible, the venues need our help. 

I write today in support of the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) and ask you to please support and cosponsor S. 4258, the Save Our Stages Act introduced by Senators Cornyn and Klobuchar and S. 3814/H.R. 7481, the RESTART Act, introduced by Senators Young and Bennet in the Senate and Representatives Golden and Kelly in the House, both of which would ensure the survival of independent venues across the nation.

The PPP and other programs do not work for venues, which are completely shuttered small businesses in need of long-term support that provides flexibility for the use of funds due to high overhead costs.

Venues are experiencing upwards of 90% revenue loss and will be closed well into 2021 due to safety concerns posed by large gatherings. Without support from Congress, 90% of NIVA’s independent venues across America say they will be forced to close their doors forever.

This would also take a toll on our local economy. Independent music venues are economic multipliers, community builders, and beloved institutions. A Chicago study estimated that $1 spent at a small venue resulted in $12 of economic activities for neighboring restaurants, hotels, and retail shops. Venues drive revenue to other businesses in cities and towns across America. What would our communities look like without them?

These venues closing permanently would also impact the entire music economy and ecosystem in America – artists, talent agents, stagehands, security, catering, artist managers, tour bus industry, production, radio/social media/tv/print advertising, record companies, and many others.

The closure of these venues would be devastating for music lovers. The cultural impact of our venues on our local communities is priceless. We are the steadfast incubators and launch pads for the most popular talent in the world.

We are thankful for the support of so many Senators and Representatives that are helping to #SaveOurStages, and we are asking you to support and cosponsor S. 4258, the Save Our Stages Act and S. 3814/H.R. 7481, the RESTART Act. Doing so would ensure that independent venues – arguably the industry hardest hit by the pandemic – receive the financial assistance needed to be able to reopen their doors when it is safe to do so.

Thank you for your hard work for our state and our country in these absolutely uncharted times.