How Our Mental Health Is Impacting Live Music, For Better And Worse

Live euphony is booming successful arenas and stadiums, but grassroots euphony venues proceed to beryllium challenged. How we process trauma from COVID offers a logic why

Live Nation, nan world’s biggest unrecorded euphony company, is having 1 of its champion years. Over 650 cardinal tickets person been sold successful 2023. Yet, grassroots euphony venues are struggling, truthful overmuch truthful that a authorities enquiry is being launched successful nan U.K. to understand how champion to support them. However, from Ed Sheeran to Beyonce, nan occurrence of large-scale unrecorded touring has demonstrated that unrecorded euphony remains an integral portion of galore of our lives. And this is happening contempt living standards falling and nan mean summons value for an established creator in nan United States astatine $252, according to SeatGeek. All successful all, we’re paying much to spot less artists. And I deliberation there’s a logic for this that isn’t solely astir economics. I deliberation it’s down to nan pandemic and what it has done, and continuing to do, to our intelligence health.

The pandemic has near an indelible people connected each of us. More group are successful therapy than ever before. Suicide rates proceed to rise, from Korea to nan United States. The lockdown, which abruptly changed really we communicate, congregate and prosecute pinch each other, is still being dealt with. At nan aforesaid time, arsenic we’re each dealing pinch these scars - and nonaccomplishment of life - inflation and liking rates proceed to rise. Yet, we’re each buying much performance tickets - astatine higher costs - to spot gigs successful arenas and stadiums, while not doing nan aforesaid successful bars and clubs.

I judge this tin beryllium amended understood by exploring nan domiciled of unrecorded euphony arsenic a benignant of societal medicine to trauma. We are each yearning for safe spaces to congregate, and for spaces to beryllium safe - aliases perceived arsenic safe, they must connection support some our beingness and intelligence health. Outdoor concerts and festivals are, successful general, safer than those indoor if sold retired and much abstraction (i.e much capacity), often makes america consciousness safer, moreover if it is an illusion. But much than that, nan pandemic has changed our listening habits. As epidemiologist Dr. Kate Innes from nan University of West Virginia remarked in a VICE article: “during times of crisis, individuals are much apt to attraction their power connected endurance and maintenance, alternatively than maturation and exploration.”

GLENDALE, ARIZONA - MARCH 17: Editorial usage only and nary commercialized usage astatine immoderate time. No usage connected ... [+] publication covers is permitted aft August 9, 2023. Taylor Swift performs onstage for nan opening nighttime of "Taylor Swift | The Eras Tour" astatine State Farm Stadium connected March 17, 2023 successful Swift City, ERAzona (Glendale, Arizona). The metropolis of Glendale, Arizona was ceremonially renamed to Swift City for March 17-18 successful grant of The Eras Tour. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management)

And this is driving each of america to arenas and stadiums and distant from smaller euphony venues. More of america are choosing to perceive to much euphony we’re acquainted with, because this familiarity is, successful effect, a shape of medicine. And arsenic a result, we each person little clip and abstraction for discovery, because find takes clip and effort, while familiarity is much comforting.

Because we’re each turning inward musically to nan familiar, to nan comforting, to what we know, erstwhile we’re fixed an opportunity to spell and spot what we cognize live, it is acold much charismatic and worthy nan cost. Taking clip - and nan intelligence headspace required - to unfastened one’s mind to thing caller past becomes little charismatic because it whitethorn not respond to and soothe nan trauma from nan pandemic arsenic well.

But we’re losing arsenic overmuch arsenic we’re gaining here. While unrecorded euphony can beryllium therapeutic, this is shrinking nan pipeline that is responsible for initially creating that familiarity and arsenic a result, we spot manufacture readers for illustration Taylor Swift being mentioned each nan clip while attendance astatine smaller venues - that big our adjacent superstar, suffers.

This should make america deliberation astir why grassroots euphony matters and really we tin champion support it moving forward, because nan trauma of nan pandemic is going away. Nor are nan swath of established artists - and their promoters - recognising nan rate cattle that unrecorded euphony is. But if we proceed to prioritise our walk connected euphony we already know, nan assemblage will suffer long-term.

We will beryllium dealing pinch nan effect of covid for years and erstwhile it subsides, if it does, I interest that different trauma specified arsenic nan ambiance emergency will return hold. We will each proceed to gravitate to what comforts america and for a batch of us, that’s Taylor Swift. But she wasn’t calved famous. She started somewhere, successful a grassroots euphony venue.

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