Some UK bands given government subsidies for overseas tours
On the whole, US-based musicians aren’t conditioned to think about grants and subsidies when it comes to funding their music careers. Most of us don’t know where to look for them, and we don’t know how to apply for them. But as my interview with Rob Cimitile shows, there is some public (and private) money out there waiting to be claimed by US artists.
In many other countries though, musicians are more aware of opportunities to offset their recording or touring costs with government money. I’ve shared bills with a couple Canadian bands who were touring through the US with the financial help of the Canadian government, and I jealously thought to myself, “Huh, imagine that! If only…”
I’ve also met European artists at conferences and festivals who used public funding to get to the event.
But why would a nation spend money sending their musicians to tour in the US (or in any other foreign country)? Do they love the arts more? Probably not (though they may love spending money on the arts more). As this story from last night’s episode of Marketplace points out, music is an export — and bands, like any other business, are sometimes worth subsidizing.
According to Marketplace:
Music is an important export for Britain. The British Recorded Music Industry – a trade body – claims that one in ten of all the albums sold in the United States are by British artists; the figure for continental Europe is one in four.
Check out the Marketplace segment about Savage Messiah, a thrash metal band from the UK who was given $25,000 to tour in the United States:
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Source: The DIY Musician
