Yesterday, August 11, the streets of many UK cities were awash with music industry workers, demonstrating under the #WeMakeEvents banner. The ‘Red alert day of action’ was designed to raise awareness of the live events industry, which has been devastated in the wake of COVID-19 and lockdown, and isn’t receiving enough support from the British government.
One such demonstrator was Kamran Haq, a promoter for Live Nation in the UK, who took part in the Manchester march alongside 1,000 venue managers, stage crew, tour managers, engineers, cleaners, bar staff and other event industry workers.
“It was amazing to see such a great turnout, everyone wore masks and socially distanced,” says Kamran. “Over 1,000 people in took part in the Manchester march and thousands more took part in events in various cities across the UK. For a lot of people it was great see friends and work colleagues, as many people hadn’t seen each other since the events industry shut down in mid-March."
So, Kamran, what was the demonstration yesterday all about?
“The demonstration was part of a day of action across the UK to raise awareness of the events sector, which is worth £100 billion and employs up to 1 million people in the UK. Every show relies on a complex supply chain involving hundreds of professionals – from sound and lighting engineers to touring techs, venue techs and stage crew – and without receiving support from the government, we will lose these skilled people that make events happen because they will have moved on to other jobs by the time our industry gets back on its feet.”