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Brexit - impact on musicians, touring and the music/events industry

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I've been chatting to friends in different bands recently and not one of them has any European dates booked - and it's the same for my band too.

The reason? Fucking shitty Brexit.



 
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I'd imagine the raging pandemic the other side of the channel had played no small part in this as no one has a scooby when any venues will be open again

There is on the one hand the shitty deal the Johnson government has got, which under normal conditions sets great hurdles for UK bands touring the EU

And on the other the shitty pandemic which stops conditions being normal and any bands reaching anything more than tentative arrangements to tour the EU atm
 
I'd imagine the raging pandemic the other side of the channel had played no small part in this as no one has a scooby when any venues will be open again
Has not had. The covid situation in most of Europe is dire . On a bright note Ed's band management might want to look at Portugal where things are slowly looking up for outdoor festivals.
 
I'd imagine the raging pandemic the other side of the channel had played no small part in this as no one has a scooby when any venues will be open again
Yes that has already been thoroughly discussed, but even for booking tours a year in advance in Europe, Brexit has introduced huge problems.
 
Has not had. The covid situation in most of Europe is dire . On a bright note Ed's band management might want to look at Portugal where things are slowly looking up for outdoor festivals.
We're not really a festival band and generally preferred to do a proper tour, travelling by train through the countries.
 
The governments own advice basically admitting that U.K. touring hauliers and bus companies are now fucked:

We still haven't got a single European date in our diaries. It's a total disaster for musicians, road crew, promoters and venues.
 
Touring artists and professionals now face unnecessary barriers which will mean that, for many, going on tour in Europe will no longer be viable. Having to navigate the differing requirements of 27 Sovereign EU states means getting work permits for crews (including dancers and performers, techs, video, sound and lighting crew, the riggers, special effects, set carpenters, automation, wardrobe, make-up and hair, the production team, catering, drivers, and anyone else working behind the scenes) for the various countries they visit and will have a huge impact and cost.

It's fucking ridiculous that this far down the line the music and entertainment industry has to keep begging for support.
 
It's fucking ridiculous that this far down the line the music and entertainment industry has to keep begging for support.
I do realise and appreciate that it's affecting you, but how are musicians any different from the multitudes of other people that Brexit is also affecting? Do you think musicians should be given preferential treatment simply because they're musicians? I'm not having a pop here, it's a serious question. We've all been affected by Brexit. I have a very close friend who runs an engineering company, and he has to bite the bullet and live by the new rules that Brexit has imposed on him, and he's losing lots of money as a direct result. It actually looks like he might have to close shop due to this, but it's a direct result of what the majority of voters voted for. This doesn't make it any more palatable for him but why should one segment of society be given priority over another?
 
I do realise and appreciate that it's affecting you, but how are musicians any different from the multitudes of other people that Brexit is also affecting? Do you think musicians should be given preferential treatment simply because they're musicians? I'm not having a pop here, it's a serious question. We've all been affected by Brexit. I have a very close friend who runs an engineering company, and he has to bite the bullet and live by the new rules that Brexit has imposed on him, and he's losing lots of money as a direct result. It actually looks like he might have to close shop due to this, but it's a direct result of what the majority of voters voted for. This doesn't make it any more palatable for him but why should one segment of society be given priority over another?

Industries that involve people travelling across multiple European countries should have been considered when negotiating Brexit. Music isn't the only industry affected by that, but it's one of them, and it's not a minor one.
 
Industries that involve people travelling across multiple European countries should have been considered when negotiating Brexit. Music isn't the only industry affected by that, but it's one of them, and it's not a minor one.
Industries that send goods to multiple European countries are surely no different? In fact, I can guarantee that its costing my mate a lot more than the price of a carnet.
 
I do realise and appreciate that it's affecting you, but how are musicians any different from the multitudes of other people that Brexit is also affecting? Do you think musicians should be given preferential treatment simply because they're musicians? I'm not having a pop here, it's a serious question. We've all been affected by Brexit. I have a very close friend who runs an engineering company, and he has to bite the bullet and live by the new rules that Brexit has imposed on him, and he's losing lots of money as a direct result. It actually looks like he might have to close shop due to this, but it's a direct result of what the majority of voters voted for. This doesn't make it any more palatable for him but why should one segment of society be given priority over another?

The arts are considered differently to other industries and generally given more freedom to travel. This was offered to the UK but turned down as brexiteers didn’t want reciprocal rights for European artists.
 
Industries that send goods to multiple European countries are surely no different? In fact, I can guarantee that its costing my mate a lot more than the price of a carnet.
It doesn’t help your mate for British musicians to not complain about the problem. In fact, British musicians complaining can only be of benefit to your mate in the long run, as it keeps the issue alive of how businesses are affected by the Brexit arrangements.
 
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I do realise and appreciate that it's affecting you, but how are musicians any different from the multitudes of other people that Brexit is also affecting? Do you think musicians should be given preferential treatment simply because they're musicians? I'm not having a pop here, it's a serious question. We've all been affected by Brexit. I have a very close friend who runs an engineering company, and he has to bite the bullet and live by the new rules that Brexit has imposed on him, and he's losing lots of money as a direct result. It actually looks like he might have to close shop due to this, but it's a direct result of what the majority of voters voted for. This doesn't make it any more palatable for him but why should one segment of society be given priority over another?
Did the 'majority of voters' vote for this kind of Brexit, though? Isn't it time to stop mentioning the referendum as a justification for this fuck up?

As for your friend, I would guess that editor and all the other musicians pushing for rule changes to help them would also support rule changes to help him. Time for a bit of solidarity, no?
 
Did the 'majority of voters' vote for this kind of Brexit, though? Isn't it time to stop mentioning the referendum as a justification for this fuck up?

As for your friend, I would guess that editor and all the other musicians pushing for rule changes to help them would also support rule changes to help him. Time for a bit of solidarity, no?
A call from a non union member to have solidarity with musicians who also refuse to join a union.

Middle class solidarity is a funny thing.
 
Industries that involve people travelling across multiple European countries should have been considered when negotiating Brexit. Music isn't the only industry affected by that, but it's one of them, and it's not a minor one.
tbh industries that don't involve travelling across multiple european countries should have been considered during the negotiations. but look at eg the silversmiths whose hallmarks are no longer recognised in europe. when the pm is on record as being of the opinion "fuck business" it's hardly a great surprise the entire thing's a clusterfuck for a whole host of activity is it
 
A call from a non union member to have solidarity with musicians who also refuse to join a union.

Middle class solidarity is a funny thing.

Oh that's nice and sneery. Instead of projecting your damning opinions on the failure of working musicians to join the MU, why don't you ask them why they're not interested and why the union has such a low take up in smaller bands?

Not sure where middle class comes into it either.
 
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