The immense $30.9 million package plans to inject $22.5m back into small businesses in the form of live music grants, assisting venues afford crucial soundproofing and other costs to ensure small venues can continue to cultivate local live talent.
Elsewhere, the funding plans to put $2.1m into a women in music mentorship program, $2.7m in Indigenous contemporary music, $2m to the Australia Council to increase performance opportunities and $1.6m for the expansion of Sounds Australia, helping them grab the upper hand on emerging audiences from Asia.
In a statement welcoming the funding, APRA AMCOS CEO Dean Ormston said “The Morrison Government has recognised that Australia is a music nation. Of all the art forms Australians engage with, music is by far the most popular. From the west coast and the Kimberley to Alice Springs and the eastern seaboard this package will be a boon for the pipeline of talent coming from across the nation and now exporting to the world.
“This package from the Morrison Government also tackles the key issues faced by our industry that have emerged in the House Standing Committee on Communications and the Arts’ inquiry into factors contributing to the growth and sustainability of the Australian music industry… Importantly, this announcement recognises the importance of live music to the development and presentation of musical talent.”
While we’ll have to wait and see how this funding impacts our industry twelve months from now, it’s definitely a good step in the right direction for ScoMo and his squad. Hopefully they manage to revive NSW’s nightlife somewhere along the line too, right?
The Federal Budget is announced in its entirety tomorrow night at 7.30 PM.
