ISOL-AID is on the way
4 April 2020 at 9:30 am
A new stay-at-home festival is hoping to keep Australia’s music industry afloat
Australia’s music industry has been one of the sectors hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, with gigs and festivals cancelled en masse across the country.
But a new festival is trying to revive the industry, raising money for charity by allowing people to see their favourite artists perform from the comfort of their own homes.
For the past two weekends, ISOL-AID festival has seen more than 70 artists perform live 20 minute sets on their Instagram accounts.
Artists including Alex Lahey, Courtney Barnett, Ali Barter, Big Scary, Camp Cope, Alice Ivy, and Sarah Blasko have performed for the festival, which is unleashing a fresh set of performances on 4 and 5 April.
Those watching are being encouraged to donate to Support Act, a charity helping music industry workers facing mental health issues and financial problems.
The first event raised over $12,000 for the charity.
The event was organised by Rhiannon Atkinson-Howatt (better known as the musician Merpire), along with Emily Ulman and Shannen Egan.
On the event’s Facebook page, the organisers encouraged people to continue giving to support the industry.
They noted the current losses for the Australian music community – including performers, production, crew, and hospitality workers – sat at $150 million.
“The impact of these cancellations is financial, psychological and emotional, and will undoubtedly be long lasting,” the organisers said.
“If they are in the financial position to do so, viewers are encouraged to buy music and merch from the artists’ Bandcamp and Patreon pages, their websites, as well as donating to a fundraiser like this one set up for Support Act.”
More details about the event can be found here.
