New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy announced on Monday, August 31 that indoor performance venues would be allowed to reopen, with reduced capacity, starting Sept. 4.
New Jersey Performing Arts Center pre-COVID.
Included in the executive order are music venues, performance centers and movie theaters.
Murphy’s rules are simple: continue to follow CDC recommended guidelines, and along with the recommendations, a capacity limit is in place at 25% or 150 people.
NEW: Today, I’m signing an Executive Order allowing for movie theaters and other indoor performance venues to reopen on Friday, September 4th. ☑️Face masks required ☑️Social distancing required ☑️Capacity will be capped at the lesser of either 25% capacity, or 150 people
Although for many artists this is good news, travel restrictions and capacity limits are still a concern as far as profiting off of the shows go.
Around 40 clubs and venues in New Jersey are members of the National Independent Venues Association, which made headlines last month when they started the #SaveOurStages Act. They continue to petition for nationwide financial aid to struggling music venues.
According to nj.com, some industry workers believe there will be a huge turn out with large-scale events, while others don’t think the country is even close to going back to any normalcy.
PearlPalooza Music Festival will go virtual for their 2020 celebration on September 19. It will feature exclusive performances, interviews, and more. PearlPalooza will be free and available to everyone via live-stream.
PearlPalooza generally takes place on Pearl Street in downtown Albany. The festival hosts musical performances, food, and more and organizers calculated that in 2019 over 10,000 people attended the festivities. This year’s Virtual PearlPalooza is presented by 102.7 WEQX – The REAL Alternative, Sugar Productions, Downtown Albany, New York BID, The Hollow Bar + Kitchen, High Peaks Event Production, and media sponsor Albany.com.
This year’s Virtual PearlPalooza will feature performances from some of Albany’s favorite musicians. The performances will start with a performance from MIRK at 1:00 PM. Then Victory Soul Orchestra will take the virtual stage at 2:15PM. The Wild Adriatic will then perform at 3:30PM. Then wrapping up the live performances Eastbound Jesus will take the stage 4:45PM.
PearlPalooza is teaming up with MVP Health Care to present YogaPalooza 2020 on September 19, 2020 at 11AM. People can join for a free, socially-distanced outdoor yoga class celebrating wellness and community at two Downtown locations. On the lawn at the SUNY System Administration Building at 353 Broadway and at Tricentennial Park at Broadway & Columbia Street.
For more information on the virtual 2020 PearlPalooza Music Festival visit Downtown Albany’s website.
CHQ Assembly announced their fall programming including lots of musical programming. The programming will start in September and will wrap up in November. The CHQ Assembly programming will be posted on the CHQ Assembly’s website.
The CHQ Assembly is a digital outlet of Chautauqua Institution which is a nonprofit organization that exists to explore the best in human values and the enrichment of life. The Assembly has some free content but also offers a subscription program for $3.99 a month or $45 a year after a 90 day free trial. People interested can subscribe here. Subscribers to the CHQ Assembly Video Platform will have year-round access to nearly all our 2020 broadcasts. People can revisit their favorite programs, or catch up with ones they missed over the course of CHQ Assembly’s jam-packed nine-week summer assembly season. The programs try to focus on exploring critical issues of the day through a range of experiences including lectures, artistic experiences, master and enrichment courses, and conversations.
The musical programming starts on September 15 at 12PM with a release of 2020 Piano Recitals featuring Gavrylyuk, Kobrin, Paremski, Buechner, Taylor, Zhu and many more. On October 1 there will be a Lecture by Grammy Award-winning Violinist Nicola Benedetti speaking on the impact of music education and to inspire us through music.. On October 6 at 12PM there will be an DEAs in Classical Music series. This four-part series of conversations on inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility will explore issues in the classical music industry. And then in November with a to be determined date and time there will be a premiere of Chautauqua Opera Company’s A Cappella Song Cycle. This is a three-month project featuring 2020 Chautauqua Opera Company Young Artists and created by Composer-in-Residence Frances Pollock and librettist Jerre Dye.
For more information on the CHQ Assembly programming visit their website.
Make Music Winter celebration will return in 2020 across the country on December 21. The celebration is free, outdoor, and will take place in different cities nationwide. Attendees of the musical event will not only be it’s audiences but also it’s participants into music makers.
The third nationwide rendition of the Make Music Winter takes place on winter solstice, December 21, while its counterpart the Make Music Day takes place on summer solstice, June 21. The the winter celebration first started in 2011 in New York City. Since then the celebration has grown and last year it took place in nearly 40 cities in the United States in 2019. The celebration will ring in the longest night of the year, and celebrate the end of 2020. Both celebrations are presented by The NAMM Foundation.
Most of the celebrations include parades. Unlike a traditional parade, most of the events for this celebration will stay on the sidewalks. Some march through a park or along an elevated rail line, or ride on bicycles, or take place on train cars and platforms. However you do it, being mobile brings music throughout your city, and helps you stay warm in the winter weather. The events are also participatory. Meaning that everyone is invited to be part of the music-making, whether by singing, playing an instrument, tap dancing, carrying a boombox, or whatever the event calls for. The whole idea of the celebration is for everyone to make music together in celebration of winter solstice.
This year’s celebration will be a socially-distanced event and will focus on keeping it’s participants as face as possible. People interested in participating should fill out this short form to register an event somewhere close to home.
For more information on the Make Music Winter celebration this year visit their website.
Lady Gaga, who was born and raised in Manhattan, NY, took home a total of four Video Music Awards (VMAs) last night at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center.
Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande’s “Rain on Me” won a VMA for “Best Collab” and “Song of the Year.” Lady Gaga also won a VMA for “Artist of the Year” and made history by becoming the first-ever recipient of the Tricon Award for her accomplishments in music, acting, fashion, and philanthropy.
“I know a renaissance is coming, and the wrath of pop culture will inspire you and the rage of art will empower you as it responds to hardship with its generosity and love,” Lady Gaga said during her acceptance speech for the Tricon Award.
https://youtu.be/5D4vjndnB0w
Not only did the VMAs focus on celebration, but also paid tribute to those who died during 2020. A poignant tribute took place at the beginning of the show for Chadwick Boseman. Halfway through the show, a montage of pictures appeared to remember others who passed, including Pop Smoke and Juice Wrld.
The world needs more superheroes, and we all deserve to see ourselves in them. Chadwick Boseman helped make that happen. Rest in power. pic.twitter.com/d05kkkQR6b
Even with eliminating in-person attendance, fans could still appear virtually on surrounding buildings to experience the live performances on the outdoor stage from The Weeknd, Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga, and Doja Cat. BTS, the South Korean band, made their VMA debut performing their hit single “Dynamite.”
The VMAs took time to address the fight against racial injustice. Host Keke Palmer’s opening speech addressed the need to end police brutality and systemic racism while The Weeknd used his acceptance speech to bring continued awareness to the deaths of Jacob Blake and Breonna Taylor. After H.E.R won the VMA for “Video for Good,” Pepsi announced it would donate $100,000 to the NAACP.
https://youtu.be/zJCdkOpU90g
Other notable VMA wins for the night included Megan Thee Stallion’s VMA for “Best Hip Hop” with “Savage,” Doja Cat winning “PUSH Best New Artist,” and Machine Gun Kelly’s “Best Alternative” win for “Bloody Valentine.”
Reggae legend Toots Hibbert has been placed into a medically induced coma. The Jamaica Star reports the 77 year old is being cared for at University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI).
“Toots is fighting for his life and his family is asking for prayers,” publicist Claude Mills said.
On Monday news broke that the singer was awaiting results of a COVID-19 test after having shown symptoms. While awaiting test results, Mills noted that Hibbert was showing signs of the virus, and the musician’s inner circle have self-quarantined while awaiting their test results. Hibbert had recently released his latest album Got To Be Tough.
Original story follows below:
Toots and the Maytals singer Toots Hibbert has been hospitalized in Kingston, Jamaica. He is currently in the intensive care unit at the private facility. According to a statement released by his family Hibbert has been tested for COVID-19 and is awaiting his test results.
Toots Hibbert. Photo by Robert Tellerman.
According to his family, Hibbert is in good spirits and is getting better day by day and receiving the best treatment possible. The family thanks everyone for their prayers and in particular the minister of culture Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange and the minister of health Christopher Tufton for their assistants in getting Hibbert tested. They also thank the medical professionals taking care of Hibbert around the clock.
Statement made by Hibbert’s family.
Toots and the Maytals are a Jamaican musical group that were formed in the early 1960’s under their original name The Maytals. They are widely known for their ska and reggae sound. Some of their most widely known songs “Pressure Drop,” “Funky Kingston,” and “Bam Bam.” They recently released their first album in over ten years titled, Got to be Tough. The album features many originals as well as a Bob Marley cover of “Three Little Birds” featuring Ziggy Marley. It also features a track with Ringo Starr on percussion and Ringo’s son and longtime Who drummer Zak Starkey on guitar. Hibbert is notably famous for coining the genre name “reggae.”
Music venues across the United States plan to light up in red on the evening of September 1, 2020 demanding the passage of The Restart Act. The red lights illuminating the venues across the country will symbolize being in a ‘Red Alert’ as part of the the #RedAlertRESTART as a call to action to help venues during the coronavirus pandemic.
The purpose of this demonstration is to try to convince Congress to pass the Restart Act. The act, if passed, would provide much-needed assistance for millions of Americans who have lost income due to the coronavirus pandemic sweeping across the world. The call to action is being spearheaded by the #WeMakeEvents coalition. The #RedAlertRESTART campaign’s purpose is to try to bring awareness to the fact that live music and venues are being disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and need support desperately.
In the recent Billboard article it explains why this act is so important. This relief bill, if passed, will offer, “up to 90% forgiveness for loans to companies that have high revenue loss and doesn’t penalize industries that rely on part-time employees. In addition, rather than basing loan amounts on payroll, the Restart Act includes grants that are made to eligible recipients in an amount equal to 45% of gross revenue from 2019, with a cap of $12 million” according to the article.
On Tuesday night from 9PM – 12AM PST music venues across the nation plan to light up in red to highlight that the live events industry, particularly music venues, are on red alert for their survival. This lighting up will involve venues physically lighting up their facilities in red light in any and every way possible.
Brad Nelms, director of WeMakeEvents North America, explained in a release reasoning behind the campaign saying, “The entire live events industry is on the brink of collapse. Without financial relief, many businesses stand to permanently close, and families risk bankruptcy and homelessness. We want to take this opportunity to show the world the scale of what it takes to make live entertainment events happen and demonstrate how much this crisis has affected our community. This is a human issue, not a political issue, and it requires immediate action. While we realize there are a lot of issues going on right now, and other organizations will be staging events on other dates, we feel very strongly we must act now to save our industry.”
People looking to participate and support the movement can follow these simple steps posted on the WeMakeEvents’ website. There is three steps to follow. First, contact your representatives below using the Action network widget. Second, post a red-tinted photo of your favorite live event to your social media with the following caption: “#RedAlertRESTART: the live events we love may never recover from the pandemic, we need to take action! Take two minutes to contact your representatives here, and post a red photo of you at your favorite event, too. You can turn your photo red here. And lastly, check out the hashtag #RedAlertRESTART and share/RT images of venues and live events workers you love.
For more information on this call to action visit WeMakeEvents’ website.
American pianist, song-writer, multi-instrumentalist, record producer Marco Benevento.
Benevento has been a well known pianist in the New York experimental jazz scene since 1999. His career lead him to collaborate with other musicians such as, Matt Chamberlain and John McEntire. He was nominated for the Jazz Album of the Year at the Independent Music Awards in 2008. His most recent en devour was creating his own record label called, “The Royal Potato Family,” along with manager Kevin Calabro. His latest studio album was created using his label, Let it Slide.
MASS MoCa is museum & performing arts center that highlights the work of contemporary artists in particular and has been open since 1999. It resides in an old factory in North Adams, MA and is considered one of the leading contemporary art museums. They host visual arts, performances, and educational programs year round.
Although he normally plays with band mates, Karina Rykman and Dave Butler, this performance is a solo act. The show goes on at 7:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m. Tickets are on sale now.
For more information on Marco Benevento and his upcoming performance at MASS MoCa visit their website.
High Holidays live-stream was announced by the Because Jewish organization. The High Holidays celebration series for 2020 will stream for two weekends starting on Rosh Hashanah on September 18 at 7PM and the 19 at 10AM and on Yom Kippur on September 27 at 8PM and the 28 at 10AM. The celebration will include performances from people like Jeremiah Lockwood, Armo, Eric Slick (Dr. Dog), and Reid Genauer (Strangefolk). All four events will be broadcast for free live from New York’s Brooklyn Bowl.
The event will be led by Rabbi Daniel Brenner with Antibalas Jordan McLean acting as it’s musical director. The festivities won’t have a live audience at the Brooklyn Bowl unfortunately due to COVID-19 but people can attend the via Fans.com where it will be live- streaming. This will be the ninth annual High Holidays, Because Jewish is hosting. The aim is to host a suite of musically and spiritually driven High Holiday services.
Eric Krasno, Disco Biscuits’ Aron Magner, Guster’s Brian Rosenworcel, Dap-Kings saxophonist Cheme and guitarist Bryan Grone are the latest additions to the lineup, part of the array of musical guests appearing throughout the services. Some will be live while others will be pre-recorded performances.
Some of the anticipated artists include Jeremiah Lockwood, Armo, Eric Slick (Dr. Dog), Reid Genauer (Strangefolk), Alex Bleeker (Real Estate), Stuart Bogie (Antibalas/Arcade Fire), Dan Lebowitz (ALO), Lenny Kaye (Patti Smith Group), Dave Harrington (Darkside), Adam Roberts, Aaron Diskin (Golem) Anthony Russell, Brian Chase (Yeah Yeah Yeahs) and a number of others. Each service will also include traditional prayers, a guided meditation, and instrumental offerings from a number of notable New York jazz musicians.
Because Jewish is an organization that promotes, “Emotional, intellectual, mind-firing-on-all-cylinders exploration of God and faith and Judaism in this crazy modern world we live in. We explore through ritual, we explore through Bible study, we explore through delta blues, we explore through art, we explore through meditation. We explore through offering ourselves to something greater than ourselves. We aim to unsettle you. We aim to challenge you. We accept no easy answers.” According to their website.
The event will be free to the public this year but donations are greatly appreciated from those in a position to donate during these difficult times. For information on how to make a donation you can Because Jewish’s website.To stream the service visit the Fans.com event page and input your email for access for streaming.
For more information on the event visit Because Jewish’s website.
Bandcamp announced their plans to waive their revenue on September 4, 2020 from midnight to midnight Pacific Time to support musicians facing hardships during COVID-19. The music company plans to keep waiving their revenue for these first Friday of the month days for the rest of the year.
According to the Crack Magazine when Bandcamp withdrew its fees for a day back in March as a promotional act people ended up buying $3 million worth of music in 24 hours. Since then BandCamp has continued these waved revenue days periodically including a 3 month stretch back in May, June, July of this year as a move intended to help independent artists and labels, who are being affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
According to Bandcamp’s website since the pandemic hit in March, people have bought more than $75 million worth of music and merchandise directly from artists and labels, and to date, fans have paid artists over half a billion dollars on Bandcamp.
Bandcamp started waving it’s revenue on the first of the month back in May saying, “To keep supporting musicians during the Covid-19 pandemic, we are waiving our revenue share on all sales this Friday, May 1, from midnight to midnight PDT. Let’s come together as a community to put money directly into artists’ pockets” via their Twitter page.
To keep supporting musicians during the Covid-19 pandemic, we are waiving our revenue share on all sales this Friday, May 1, from midnight to midnight PDT. Let’s come together as a community to put money directly into artists' pockets: https://t.co/hPhgm7WBR4pic.twitter.com/DG6KYI2IN5
Bandcamp announced plans to continue the first Friday revenue waiving until the end of the year considering the pandemic is far from over. The following dates will continue this first Friday tradition: September 4, 2020, October 2, 2020, November 6, 2020 and December 4, 2020.
New York favorites to check out and support on September 4
Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad are a Western New York favorite by reggae fans. They formed in 2011 and are based out of Rochester. Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad’s sixth studio album MAKE IT BETTER was released September 16, 2016 on Rootfire Cooperative and debuted at #1 on the Billboard Reggae Chart. Their newest single “Good Love” released on February 7, 2020 is available for $0.99 on Bandcamp along with more of their content.
Aqueous is another Western New York favorite hailing from Buffalo New York. They have a devoted following for their indie-jam rock sound. They have recently made it into the national music scene due to their unique way of performing where no two shows are ever the same. They enjoy blurring the lines between a multitude of styles and genres. Their latest live performance for the Live From Out There streaming performances are available on BandCamp for each song for around $5 along with more of their content.
Consider the Source is another favorite from New York City. Consider the Source is an instrumental trio formed in 2004. They are self acclaimed SiFi/ MiddleEaster/ Fusion sound that breaks normal genre concepts. The group has released five studio albums, two live albums, and one compilation album. They have become widely known especially by Radiohead fans for their Radiohead inspired performances. Their latest album You Are Literally A Metaphor was dropped in 2019 and is available on Bandcamp for $10 along with more of their content.
For more information on Bandcamp and their first Friday revenue waiving visit their website.
