Those of you that read this blog, may remember that near the start of the pandemic I wrote a few posts about the impact of Covid-19 on the music industry – then it went quiet…. Just to explain that the reason for this silence was not because I had lost interest, but because in July I was commissioned by Senedd Research to document a report on this very subject. The resultant document is entitled ‘The Welsh Music Industries in a Post Covid World’. I am currently in the proofing stage and it is 36000 words long – so I have been busy. This report is written for The Culture, Welsh Language and Communications Committee, with a view that they will take on some of the recommendations and present them to Welsh Government.

I will be giving evidence to the Culture, Welsh Language and Communications Committee on November 19th, with the report being officially published just before then. However, as a taster, I thought I would publish some of the recommendations in the run in to publication. I have copied the first couple below – all of which are related to ‘reopening and recovery strategies. Feel free to offer any comments/observations.

For Welsh Governmentto develop a detailed and clear short-term reopening strategy for the Welsh music industries, which outlines what is possible now; what is not possible yet; what will never be possible and what support will be available for all of these outcomes. This strategy should closely consider how sub-sectors that are open for business can maximise income, in addition to considering closely how it can support the strategically important parts of the industries that are closed for public health reasons get back on their feet. 

In conjunction with relevant expertise from the music industries, the university sector and the Arts Council of Wales, for Welsh Government to develop a long-term three-year music industries recovery strategy, which takes the ongoing impact of Covid-19 into account. This plan should have a range of outcomes and consider via an action plan factors such as how it can sustain, retain and incubate talent; how public confidence can be re-established; how the various parts of the music industries can be supported and invigorated; how realistic alternative business models can be implemented; how industry training can meet the needs of the ‘new sector’; how alternative business models such as virtual music making can be implemented; and how the technical infrastructures of venues/rehearsal rooms/recording studios can become ‘covid-proof’.  

Thanks – Paul