No one needs reminding of how huge the past twelve months have been for Australia’s music industry. We’ve continued to lead the way with some of the finest hip-hop, electronic, folk and rock music (to name just a few), fostering a hub of talent ripe for international exposure.
The news that Australia’s live performance industry is continuing to make a large contribution to the Australian economy then comes as no surprise. However, the issue we now face together is how we should work to support this imperative, yet struggling sector of Australian culture.
Although Australia’s Live Performance Industry was responsible for $43.6 million in revenue last year, revenue fell with a 6.7% decrease and a 0.9% decrease in attendances compared to 2014.
LPA Chief Executive Evelyn Richardson notes that these survey results highlight the critical importance of a more strategic policy approach from the Turnbull Government for the live performance industry:
‘These figures underscore the economic and cultural value of the live performance industry for millions of Australians – but the Turnbull Government hasn’t always matched this with policy direction or commitments.
Instead, we have seen cuts to Australia Council funding for small to medium organisations, and more recently massive and unjustified increases in visa fees for large international touring groups.
As per previous years, annual reports show Contemporary Music and Musical Theatre to be the two largest contributors to the industry, generating 34% and 23.8% of revenue respectively, with a combined attendance rate of 47.9%.
To further investigate the effect of ticket sales, The Ticket Attendance and Revenue Survey supported by Media Super looked at the popularity and success of the high-quality local and international performances we host in Australia year round. Unfortunately, without adequate support, performances like The Big Day Out and Soundwave have suffered and impacted overall revenue.
As cliched as it sounds, we gotta hold on to the good things we’ve got going on in Australian music. We have to celebrate and be loud about it, tell our friends about it, tell our colleagues about it. The more demand we can prove is out here, the better our chances are at increased Government support for the industry.
The Ticket Attendance and Revenue Survey 2015 can be accessed as an interactive document HERE, and Supplementary Data can be accessed HERE.
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