Jeeni Blog

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Let the Music Play and Save Our Venues

You may have seen the hashtags going around today

If you were wondering what it's all about, an open letter has been issued. THIS is what is happening ?

Some 1,500 acts including Ed Sheeran, Paul McCartney and The Rolling Stones urge the British Government to save the country's live music industry from collapsing because of coronavirus.

Coldplay, Eric Clapton, Sam Smith, Rod Stewart, Liam Gallagher, Iron Maiden, Dua Lipa, Skepta and Florence + the Machine were also signatories to an open letter warning that the ongoing shutdown threatens thousands of jobs. They cited new research showing that live music added £4.5 billion ($5.6 billion, 5.0 billion euros) to the British economy and supported 210,000 jobs across the country last year.

Live music has been one of the UK's biggest social, cultural, and economic successes of the past decade. But, with no end to social distancing in sight or financial support from government yet agreed, the future for venues, concerts and festivals and the hundreds of thousands of people who work in them looks bleak.

Until these businesses can operate again, which is likely to be 2021 at the earliest, government support will be crucial to prevent mass insolvencies and the end of this world-leading industry.

On July 2nd 2020, the Concert Promoters Association and a coalition of live music businesses including artists, venues, concerts, festivals, production companies and industry figures launched a campaign to highlight the importance of the sector to the UK’s economy. The campaign asked people to share on social media a film or photo of the last gig they played or saw with the hashtag #LetTheMusicPlay.

If you’d like to add your support, you can download shareable graphics and quotes from some of the country’s biggest artists here. Post them on your social media to show how important UK live music is to you, and don’t forget to use the hashtag #LetTheMusicPlay.

Read the joint letter

Dear Secretary of State,

UK live music has been one of the UK’s biggest social, cultural, and economic successes of the past decade. From world-famous festivals to ground-breaking concerts, the live music industry showcases, supports, and develops some of the best talent in the world – on and off-stage.

As important as it is, our national and regional contribution isn’t purely cultural. Our economic impact is also significant, with live music adding £4.5bn to the British economy and supporting 210,000 jobs across the country in 2019.

Like every part of the entertainment industry, live music has been proud to play our part in the national effort to reduce the spread of Coronavirus and keep people safe. But, with no end to social distancing in sight or financial support from government yet agreed, the future for concerts and festivals and the hundreds of thousands of people who work in them looks bleak.

This sector doesn’t want to ask for government help. The promoters, festival organisers, and other employers want to be self-sufficient, as they were before lockdown. But, until these businesses can operate again, which is likely to be 2021 at the earliest, government support will be crucial to prevent mass insolvencies, and the end of this great British industry.

Government has addressed two important British pastimes – football and pubs – and it’s now crucial that it focuses on a third, live music. For the good of the economy, the careers of emerging British artists, and the UK’s global music standing, we must ensure that a live music industry remains when the pandemic has finally passed.

Yours,

Leading UK artists, music professionals & venues (read the full list of signatories here)

Click HERE to visit or return to jeeni.com

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20
Jan

Ariana May, 'Suffolk Bay' Single Review

At just 16, Ariana May has reached a level of musical maturity that demands respect and attention. On Suffolk Bay, her vision is translated through her expressive piano playing and is then fully realised by her sweet, graceful vocals which glide as delicately as the accompanying strings. Ariana May has been an integral part part of Jeeni, from contributing unique and wonderful tracks to our pop channel, to being a part of our artist partnership programme with Daisy Chute. It seems as though our support has been well received too, according to some encouraging feedback from Ariana about her time with us, "I've felt so supported by Jeeni, it has been great to feel such a backing from a brilliant company!" Instead of just singing about an emotion-rich memory based in Suffolk Bay, Ariana opts to take you there instead. As well as providing atmospheric imagery, the audio of the waves creates a sort of organic alternative to a textured synth of filtered noise; the panning and treatment of which works perfectly to fill in the spatial gaps of the stripped back arrangement. Ariana’s vocal melodies are so delicate on this single that they sometimes flitter and almost evaporate before swooping back in and folding into the warmth of the reverbed piano. As light as her voice may sound, she doesn’t let that delicate element detract from any power or intended sentiment that it holds. The romantic imagery in the lyrics recounts a memory but can also be seen as a narration of the unfolding of the track itself, “When you felt the music go right through your bones”. The ethereal and spacey nature of Ariana’s high-register singing certainly does at times feel as though it cuts right through you. Lyrically, Ariana also references the mythical creature, sirens which mirrors an eerie and fantastical resemblance considering the nautical setting and Ariana’s enchanting vocal performance. Deceptively simple ‘Suffolk Bay’ actually has a lot to unpack, instrumentally. The theatrical piano takes precedence in the accompaniment and strings are used to tastefully embellish choice moments of the track. A sparing approach to the strings really lends to their effectiveness and impact; they cleverly swell and disappear periodically much like the waves do. Instead of flowing in long, held notes like Ariana’s voice, the piano chugs along in a steady, pulsing rhythm, creating a complimenting relationship between the two styles. This single came with an equally dramatic and stirring video which you can check out here: https://jeeni.com/suffolk-bay-by-ariana-may-2/ How can Jeeni support artists like Ariana May JEENI is a multi-channel platform for original entertainment on demand. We’re a direct service between creatives and the global audience. • We give creatives, independent artists and performers a showcase for their talent and services. And they keep 100% of everything they make. • We empower our audience and reward them every step of the way. • We promise to treat our members ethically, fairly, honestly and with respect. • Access to artist liaison and a supportive marketing team. Check out Ariana's Showcase here: https://jeeni.com/showcase/arianamay/

06
Jun

Meet The Curators Behind Spotify Playlists - the A and R Dictatorship

Landing on an official curated Spotify playlist is for many artists a holy grail. To provide some insight, we hear from a Spotify editor about how they find the songs which eventually make the cut. Spotify seems to be the opposite of Jeeni, where the process is democratic and those artists that start trending are based on real votes, and whilst technology has moved on they are still in the dark ages where their music is still decided and dictated by A&R agents. And unlike Jeeni.com, with Spotify if they don't like the look of you, then you're not coming in! Guest post from Spotify for Artists by Khalilia Douze A Spotify editor explains how they discover songs to include in their curated lists. Being added to a Spotify playlist remains the dream for most emerging artists, as it exposes their work to some of the most-clicked on playlists in the world. But for many musicians and their teams, the behind-the-scenes process still feels shrouded in mystery. While there’s no formula for scoring a coveted slot on Pollen or RapCaviar, there is rhyme and reason to how the massive team of editors curate tracks. We spoke with one Spotify staffer, who helps oversee R&B playlists such as the genre flagship Are & Be, The Newness, Soul Coffee, Soul Lounge the Black Lives Matter playlist and more, to learn about their process and tips on how musicians can stand out when pitching unreleased music through Spotify for Artists. Spotify for Artists: What strategies do you use to curate playlists? The strategy is based on the playlist itself. Each has its own hypothesis, theme, or audience that we’re thinking about. If it’s one of the genre-specific playlists, like Are & Be, that’s the home for the current, biggest songs in that space. The Newness is new releases or developing artists. Chilled R&B, Soul Coffee, those playlists have a mix of current and some legacy and catalog artists. It really all depends on what the goal of the specific playlist is. What are you listening for when you’re curating? I’m listening for lyrics. I’m listening for melody. A lot depends on the playlist itself, and sometimes that’s the filter that I have. When I’m listening, [I’m like] Oh, this song would do good in this playlist or, This song could fit here for this moment. A lot of it is based on the audience. You have the specific genres, but then there’s a lot of cases where those lines are blurred. The instrumentation and the beat can determine an audience, so [we think about] where we believe the audience is for that particular song. Does song length play a role in how you’re curating? It depends on the playlist. Soul Coffee is more of a relaxing [vibe]. In our minds, that’s one of those where you would just get up in the morning and that’s what you throw on while you’re getting ready, eating breakfast, or reading a book on Sunday. I know that the people will just have it on, so that playlist has a longer time spent listening as opposed to the flagship, Are & Be, and The Newness. For The Newness, when people are listening to that or one where it’s developing artists and new releases, that’s more about discovery. People may not spend a lot of time listening to that playlist—it’s about skimming and seeing what’s out. Can you walk me through how you use the submission tool to discover music? Labels pitch to us every week. We’re able to get their submissions through there, but they also communicate with our Artist Label Partnership team. We’ll talk to them [about] what their plan is for their priorities. There’s a ton of music—it’s countless. That’s pretty much the majority of Mondays and Tuesdays, listening to the pitches that come in for that week. It goes to our whole team. We listen to everything. The rest of the week is updating the playlists and finding the space for them, reviewing what songs are already in the playlist, looking at the performance, and things like that. When it comes to tags in the submission form, what advice do you have? People should be as specific as possible and fill out every single thing to make sure it goes to the right people. Different editors might have different filters to differentiate. I’m listening for if it’s a cool song first and foremost, but past my opinion of it, do I know if there’s a home for it? It’s about being able to find it and [seeing] where it can fit. I’ve seen entries where it would literally just be the artist name and their title—that’s how it gets lost in the abyss. We’re not omnipotent, so we don’t know what we don’t know. Are there any rules about how many times an artist can be playlisted? No. Every curator is different and has [their] own philosophy on what songs are in a playlist. There’s no concrete rule. Click HERE to visit or return to jeeni.com

12
Mar

Crunch Time for Festivals

January 2021 is going to be crunch time for festivals. In this still, uncertain time, the organisers of the UK's biggest events remain on a knife edge about festivals being able to go-ahead. Michael Eavis has pinned his hopes on mass vaccination of the country, so Glastonbury can still happen this year. He received his jab, just before new year. Whilst Emily Eavis has been countering claims their festival has already been cancelled and confirming tickets will be rolled over to 2022. Micheal Eavis at Glastonbury - Photo: Getty UK Music have shared a new report, Let the Music Play: Save Our Summer 2021, outlining their recommendations for how to restart the UK’s live music industry. As MPs on the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee open their inquiry into ‘The future of UK music festivals’ today (January 5), UK Music – whose CEO Jamie Njoku-Goodwin is among those set to give evidence to the inquiry stating the document “outlines a clear strategy to protect and support the multi-billion pound live music industry so it is ready to restart when safe to do so later this year”. Read the report below: https://www.ukmusic.org/assets/general/Let_The_Music_Play_Save_Our_Summer_2021.pdf “The music industry has worked hard to make event spaces as safe as they can possibly be,” UK Music said in a statement accompanying the new report. “This includes launching testing pilots to be able to hold mass events safely, working with government to develop guidance for how to hold events safely, and looking at new ventilation and air purification systems that would dramatically reduce the risk of transmission. “But there is no certainty about when the industry will be allowed to hold mass events once again.” The report warns that the lack of coronavirus cancellation insurance is “the biggest barrier to major events happening in 2021”, and calls on the UK Government to implement an insurance scheme as it has done for the film and TV sector. Key action points in the report are, “an indicative date for a full capacity restart” for venues and festivals, a government-backed indemnity scheme and targeted financial support for the live music industry. UK Music are also calling for an extension to the VAT rate reduction on tickets, a rollover of the paid 2020 Local Authority licence fees for festivals to 2021 and an extension to business rates relief. Up to 50% of the festival workforce faces possible redundancy if the 2021 season is cancelled and a report by the Musicians' Union stated 71% of musicians were considering leaving the sector or were unsure if they would continue. According to Steve Heap, the general secretary of the Association of Festival Organisers (AFO), major music festivals would have to make a decision about their 2021 editions this month. Smaller festivals, however, could put off cancelling until April. Though the pandemic is still wreaking havoc across the UK the crunch time is definitely, now. The industry and the fans need to know!