LIVE said its LIVE Trust, a funding initiative launched in January to support the grassroots live music industry via a stadium and arena show levy, has been pledged £500,000.
LIVE (Live music Industry Venues & Entertainment), which represents 15 live music industry organisations including the Concert Promoters Association and Independent Festivals Association, has received the pledges from UK tours of domestic and international artists including Pulp, Diana Ross, Mumford & Sons and Hans Zimmer.
The LIVE Trust receives funding from a voluntary contribution of £1 per ticket from shows with a capacity of more than 5,000. LIVE said the trust is overseen by a panel of industry experts, which sets a funding strategy to support grassroots artists, venues, festivals and promoters.
Music Fans Voice, a report released last week that involved a survey of more than 8,000 live music event-goers, found that 93% of respondents supported the idea that £1 from every ticket of any arena or stadium live music event should go to a fund that directly supports the Grassroots.
LIVE CEO Jon Collins said, “This is a welcome milestone for The LIVE Trust and marks a very significant contribution to the grassroots live music sector. What this demonstrates is that there is a real appetite from performers and their teams to support the wider live ecosystem and we applaud and thank those that have already taken this initiative. Whilst this is an excellent start there is still much work to do if we are to convince government that a voluntary rather than statutory levy is both workable and sustainable.”
The Trust was launched on the back of demands from politicians and policymakers for the live music industry to increase its support for its grassroots stakeholders. A Culture, Media and Sport (CMS) Committee Report on Grassroots Music Venues, published last May, recommended that the live music industry introduce a voluntary levy on arena and stadium tickets to support those venues, artists and promoters with fixed deadlines to implement tangible and workable solutions.
