Famed venue The Forum facing rough times, inquiry told
The line-up at one of Melbourne’s iconic live music venues all but collapsed in July.
The Forum went from 23 almost-confirmed shows in July to staging just three of them, venue program director Sally Mather has told the federal inquiry into the live music industry.
“People are leaving their ticket purchasing until much later, which means it’s more likely that shows cancel,” she told the inquiry sitting in Melbourne on Monday.
“It becomes this self-perpetuating cycle which is just becoming harder and harder.”
The Forum is not just any Melbourne venue – it has hosted artists including Harry Styles and Katy Perry and a top-secret show by Madonna.
But the recent cancellations of festivals Splendour in the Grass and Groovin the Moo have likely contributed to a loss of confidence from both artists and the public, Mather said.
The 2000-capacity venue, which aims to break even on hire and make a profit from bar sales, has been hit by insurance cost increases of 330 per cent across three years, as well as hikes in land and payroll tax.
“We have had probably the roughest month since COVID this July,” Mather said.
The Forum’s owners, Marriner Group, have called for government support, especially at the grassroots of the industry, where other witnesses have explained things were also difficult.
Fitzroy’s The Old Bar hosts gigs seven nights a week and gives many bands their earliest shots at performing.
“We are just living a little bit more hand-to-mouth than what we’re comfortable with,” said co-owner Liam Matthews, who also blamed rising costs.
“Even though we want to stay in this business doing what we love, it’s getting harder to go home and justify that to our families.”
Stakeholders in Brisbane, Canberra and Sydney have shared similar stories at the federal inquiry, which will hold sessions in Adelaide and Perth in the coming days.
Potential solutions included tax breaks for live music venues, a national concert insurance scheme, a levy on tickets for big international touring acts (dubbed the Tay Tay tax) and requirements for touring artists to book local support acts.
An initiative implemented in Canada, that requires platforms such as Netflix and Spotify to deliver local content in their search results, could also work in Australia, Music Victoria chief executive Simone Schinkel said.
Also on Monday, the federal government opened applications for the $8.6 million music industry grants program outlined in the 2024-25 budget.
“This funding will help to address the challenges contributing to cancellations and closures among the live music scene,” Arts Minister Tony Burke said.
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