New Survey Reveals How Music Helped the UK Through Lockdown

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New Survey Reveals How Music Helped the UK Through Lockdown

New Study Reveals How Music Helped the UK Through Lockdown

UK Music has published a new survey that reveals the crucial role music played in helping people through Covid-19 lockdowns - and how the public are craving the return of live music.

The survey is the largest of its kind since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, which decimated large parts of the music industry across most of the planet in 2020. The key findings of the survey revealed:

57% of adults said music had helped them cope with lockdown
Around one million adults say they have taken up an instrument during lockdown
71% think music makes them more productive at work/studying

Additionally, the survey reveals how the public are keen to flock back to live music and believe music helps them cope with stress and anxiety.

“Music has been vital not only in helping the public cope with the impact of the Covid-19 lockdowns and improving mental health and wellbeing, but also in making people more productive while they work. Combined with the huge economic contribution the music industry made pre-Covid-19, this is further evidence that the UK music industry is a key national asset that should be protected and supported by Government. With the right support, music can continue to play a vital role in improving people’s health and wellbeing in the months ahead as we look to recover from this pandemic." Said UK Music Chief Executive Jamie Njoku-Goodwin.

The findings are a huge boost to the UK music industry, which has been devastated by the ongoing impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The sector contributed £5.8 billion to the UK economy pre-Covid-19 and supports around 200,000 jobs. Furthermore, it clearly shows how music has helped the UK through lockdown and proves the importance of the national music industry. Artists should be supported during these turbulent times, and Jeeni does that, by supporting creative talent using an ethical approach. On Jeeni, artists and creatives keep 100% of everything they earn, and thousands of performers are already on board, with an audience outreach that has grown to over two million. The growth of Jeeni has been so fast that they marked Government promises by turning to crowdfunding to expand their capacity to meet demand, raising over £46,000 in a few hours.

Check out their campaign HERE and join the list of supporters and celebrities who are flocking to the cause.

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17
Dec

Weekly Round-Up # 6

The latest news on all things Jeeni, music and entertainment. BRITs Rising Star Award, 2022 Announced: Last time on Weekly Round-Up, we spoke about the three female stars nominated for the ‘2022 Rising Star’. Lola Young, Bree Runway and Holly Humberstone were all up for the chance to earn the prestigious honour. Last Thursday, much to her disbelief, 2019 ‘BRIT Rising Star’ winner, Sam Fender personally handed Holly Humberstone her well-deserved trophy during a recording session together. Humberstone couldn’t quite believe her achievement at first and had to be reassured several times by Fender, “That is yours, that is definitely yours, you’ve won it!” he clarified. Holly was still looking around to the surrounding BRITs crew, caught off-guard, “There’s loads of cameras on me, how am I supposed to react?” she laughed. “It just doesn’t feel real. This year has been a wild ride and a year of firsts, and I am so grateful and thankful for everyone who has helped make this happen!” Holly is also the first confirmed performer for the 2022 BRITs awards, taking place at the O2 Arena on Tuesday, the 8th of February. Rising Cases of the Omicron Cases not Currently Risking Future Plans for Live Music: An overshadowing feeling has been hovering over the heads of live music fans lately, which feels all too alike to the same sensation from mid 2020 when our light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel plans were slowly but surely getting postponed one-by-one. Everyone however, not just music fans are keeping their ears to the ground for any information about the newest variant of concern, Omicron. One or two gigs have been cancelled recently so if you're an artist, make sure you check that your gig can still go ahead and for music fans, keep your ears open for news around gigs you're going to. Some good news; The UK’s, Health and Social Care Secretary, Sajid Javid said that “A record 548,039 booster vaccines were administered yesterday as we ramp up our vaccination programme and bolster our defences against the virus.” (Referring to Tuesday, the 14th). However, in the US, experts predict a ‘perfect storm’ this Winter as Omicron, Delta and seasonal flu will create a pandemic trifecta that will overwhelm hospitals. Details are currently unconfirmed about the transmissibility, and severity of symptoms from the Omicron virus and so many are still holding their breath for their future plans such as gigs, festivals and holidays. So far, they are largely untouched, it’s just difficult to say for how long. Top Albums of the Year Lists Released: Each year, every major music publication curates their own summary of the past year of music with a carefully positioned list of the ‘best albums’ the year had to offer. December tends to be a good time to release such lists as this is when releases tend to dry up, slow down and recharge for the new year. In the world of hip-hop, Grisleda’s Mach-Hommy appeared on lists like CRACK, Esquire, Pitchfork, Paste and Fader for his gritty, truth-telling record, ‘Pray For Haiti’. Tyler, The Creator featured on much of the same lists for his 'IGOR' follow-up ‘Call Me If You Get Lost’ as well as hitting number 4 on Rolling Stone’s list. Madlib’s Four Tet-arranged record, ‘Sound Ancestors’ also made a splash on the lists considering its nature as a hip-hop instrumental album. Perhaps unfairly but not surprisingly, Kanye’s ‘Donda’ was certainly a rare occurrence on the lists. ‘Promises’, the mesmerising collaboration with Floating Points and John Coltrane partner, Pharoah Sanders justifyably made a lasting impression with the majority of publications for its ground-breaking achievements in structuring, genre-blurring and pure emotion provoking. Reaching number 1 on Paste and 4 on Pitchfork, the time-altering project certainly got the respect it deserved. Jazmine Sullivan’s ‘Heaux Tales’ made a massive impression on publications, finding its way on the top ten list of Rolling Stone and Fader and becoming the champion top spot of Pitchfork and Vulture’s lists. The album was an RnB empowerment for women, everywhere and resonated with many a music critic this year. These lists often conjoin to form very similar and topical elections for the best of what the year had to offer, however, the lists are such a great tool to pan for gold and find those precious, hidden gems that make their way on the lists. This year, amongst the gems hid albums like ‘Daddy’s Home’ by St. Vincent, Squid’s ‘Bright Green Field’ and ‘Cavalcade’ by black midi, however many more obscure features on these lists are still waiting to be explored fully. Jeeni News: New Artists Join Jeeni’s Mission: This week, we introduced three new, exciting artists; Lennox Campbell (aka Biggz Manifest), Giack Bazz and Khole Baldeo. We can’t wait to see what they do next and what we can do for their blossoming careers! New blogs on Jeeni’s newest artists: Earlier this week, we featured four new Jeeni artists as a part of our Artist Focus blog series; the South-coast soulstress, Amba Tremain, pop-funk trio, Barbudo, indie experimentalist, Giack Bazz and Portsmouth rapper, Baby Panna. We also released reviews of Amba Tremain’s ‘Baby You’re Gold’ single, Giack Bazz’s ‘Childhood Dream’ album and DarkStarGraver’s ‘Gohan’ single. Check out the showcases of these excellent artists: DarkStarGraver: https://jeeni.com/showcase/darkstargraver Giack Bazz: https://jeeni.com/showcase/giack-bazz Lennox Campbell: https://jeeni.com/?s=lennox+campbell Amba Tremain: https://jeeni.com/showcase/amba-tremain Barbudo: https://jeeni.com/showcase/barbudo Baby Panna: https://jeeni.com/showcase/baby-panna Khole Baldeo: https://jeeni.com/?s=khole+baldeo

12
Mar

Bowie Vinyl, is Heaven Sent

New David Bowie vinyl is heaven sent, for fans and collectors alike. We all have phones and computers bulging with playlists or demand 'Alexa' instantly plays a chosen track. However, the buzz around vinyl is real, after years of being cast off to the world of the geeky collector. If you have never sat next to a deck and placed a needle on a record, you've missed one of the joys of life. Record labels are now taking vinyl more seriously than they have probably done for 30 years and production is now seen as key to any new release. January 8th 2021 would have been David Bowie's 74th birthday. To mark this occasion, Parlophone/ISO are offering two previously unreleased cover versions, pressed onto a limited edition, double-sided 7" single. This heaven sent vinyl offers the tracks, 'Mother' by John Lennon and Bob Dylan’s 'Tryin' to Get to Heaven'. David Bowie - new double-sided release The 7” single is limited to 8147 (Bowie's birth date) numbered copies, 1000 of which will be on cream coloured vinyl, available only from the official David Bowie store and Warner Music’s Dig! store (the remainder will be black). Both tracks will be available to stream and download. Bowie's version of 'Mother' was produced by Tony Visconti in 1998 for a Lennon tribute, that never materialised. It was originally recorded by Lennon for his 1970 album John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band. Bob Dylan’s original 'Tryin' to Get to Heaven' was released on his 1997 'Album of the Year' GRAMMY winning 'Time Out Of Mind'. David’s version was recorded in February 1998 during the mixing sessions for the ‘LiveAndWell.com’ album. As if this wasn't enough for the die-hard Bowie fans and vinyl collectors, Parlophone are also marking the 45th Anniversary of Bowie's 10th studio Album, 'Station To Station' with a limited edition pressing in red and white vinyl, to be released 22 January 2021. David Bowie - 'Station to Station' anniversary release Originally released 23rd January 1976, it has remained a classic among fans and critics alike. The album was unusual as it contained just six tracks, but still offered at a little over 38-minutes of music. 'Station to Station', was the first David Bowie album to become a bigger commercial success in the USA, than in the UK. It reached #3 on the Billboard 200 and #5 on the official UK album chart. Four of the 'Station To Station' tracks were released as commercial A-sides by RCA, with 'Golden Years' being the pre-album hit on both sides of the Atlantic. The song scored Bowie yet another top ten just in time for the Christmas UK chart in 1975, where it remained right up to the release of the album in January 1976. 45 years on from its release, 'Station To Station' is now seen as a musical bridge between the ‘plastic soul’ of 1975’s 'Young Americans' and the start of Bowie’s Berlin era with 1977’s 'Low'. For more information go to: www.davidbowie.com

19
Jan

Artist Focus: Respite

This compelling five-piece formed from an amalgamation of previous bands, mindsets and connections and arose in 2020 as a formidable and commanding alt-rock/pop-punk force known newly as ‘Respite’. Respite joined forces with Jeeni earlier this year and since then, Jeeni has been hard at work trying to elevate, uplift and support this fantastic group by providing an ethical worldwide platform for their hard-hitting and refreshing craft. Respite is: Andrew Vaughan & Euan Macqueen as guitarists, Ross Crawford on the bass, Reiss Mcleod on the drums and Sam Nicholson on the vocals. Hailing from Glasgow, the group once known as ‘Finding Argyle’ committed to a brave yet necessary brand change as their sound and creative habits organically shifted and evolved over the major lockdown in 2020. The group formed as the five-piece they’re known as now back in 2015 as a result of recurring opportunities and coincidences and so, the band’s current synergy took shape as a perfect act of fate. Their days as ‘Finding Argyle’ were decidedly grittier with tracks like ‘Spit’ and ‘Love Like Violence’. Their newer form, ‘Respite’ made a subtle, yet noticeable adjustment in their tone. The lightheartedness was slightly increased as a result of the more melodic and pop-punk inspirations for writing choruses. Vocalist Sam Nicholson is the primary conveyor of their new-found catchiness, held mostly in the anthemic choruses that parade accross most of their spirited songs. The change in vocal style is at times, reminiscent of the much more pop influenced rock style of ‘Deaf Havana’. Although Respite generally embraces slightly less dark style of songwriting and performing, that doesn’t account for exceptions such as the deeply compelling and hard-hitting ‘Chemical Sleep’. The music video for which is simple, yet genius; contained in a cramped, red room, the group’s performance energy is barely contained and fills the space to the brim, matching the mood and vigor of the piece to a tee. Another noticeable and welcome advance in style came from the increased use of synthesis, thanks to guitarist, producer and mastering engineer, Andrew Vaughan. Sam Nicholson put it simply yet aptly that Vaughan is “quite the wunderkind”. On top of mixing and mastering the tracks, Andrew also manages all of the recordings for the group, effectively doing the work of about 6-10 people when compared to a standard studio set-up. Speaking of, the sound achieved from Respite really is that of a fully-fledged studio arrangement. Clear, concise and tight to a fault, the production and overall contribution from Vaughan is nothing other than remarkable. As a Glaswegian act, I was interested in the band’s opinion on how the impressive lineup of Scottish rock groups break the mould when compared to that of English or American rock efforts. After conferring with the other members, Sam told me that “I think there's something about the vocals which usually sets them apart, whether that is just the accent, or the way it hits the ear, it does stand out more often than not.” As obvious as it might sound that the iconic Scottish voice plays a major role in differentiating this specific Celtic brand of the same genre from others, it’s nevertheless a profound point that voices from different tribes will react with the ear in different ways. It implies a fascinating discussion about how different ethnicity's natural voices can induce different subconscious responses in listeners. Sam also voiced a tentative concern with lumping acts into the non-genre of Scottish rock and how it can at times be presumptuous, “I personally sometimes wonder if it's too easy to be lumped into "Scottish Rock" and then you're trapped there. It's a double-edged blade though, because, who wouldn't want their name next to bands like Biffy and Fatherson?” It certainly is an under-considered issue of generalising and connecting Scottish acts purely for being Scottish. It unintentionally strips individuality from these fantastic acts like Respite. Although, as Sam points out, it’s not exactly a bad thing to be mentioned among the greats of Scotland. A double-edged blade indeed. Careful not to mention something the group isn’t ready to divulge just yet, Sam did allude to the future of Respite, “We're currently planning our second EP after a great response to the new tracks, and we're hoping to follow that up with a tour of Scotland, and potentially head down south.” How can Jeeni support artists like Respite? 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 Respite’s Jeeni showcase here: https://jeeni.com/showcase/respite-band/

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