By SaskMusic

First to close. Last to open.

Saskatchewan’s live music venues need and deserve immediate support.

Oct 5, 2020 | 9:22 AM

SaskMusic is proud to release the second set of t-shirts in support of the Sask Venues Project. We have once again partnered with an array of artists, designers and music venues across the province to create a series of special limited-edition T-shirts with 100% of the proceeds going directly to the venues. Now available to purchase via [www.saskvenuesproject.com]www.saskvenuesproject.com.

We sincerely thank everyone for their support during the first round of shirt sales. We were completely blown away with the number of orders, with first runs selling out in days. We thank Motif Marketing and Mortise & Tenon for their gracious help with the movement of this project, as well as those who ordered and waited patiently for shirt deliveries.

Crew Support: Support Live

In addition to t-shirts directly supporting venues, we have created two special Support Live Music options, with proceeds going into a fund to support live crew workers, including sound and lighting techs, tour managers, and riggers. While venues re-open in various capacities and scattered locations across Canada, many highly skilled live workers will not be able to resume regular work until large scale concerts and festivals return. We hope to raise enough funds to offer a number of bursaries to individuals in this sector.

We recently participated in “Light Up Live”, a day of visibility for the live event community across Canada. On September 22, the live event community involving technicians, artists, suppliers and venues across the country lit buildings and spaces related to live events in red – raising awareness for an industry that is still dark. Further international #lightuplive days are in the works.

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Our venues come in all shapes and sizes, and it is our hope that the enormous value they bring our province can be recognized and celebrated. Venues are cultural spaces. Venues build community and drive tourism. They contribute significantly to our economy. They are also the fundamental bedrock of the music industry.

Supporting this project allows you to directly support your favourite music venues and the people who work behind the scenes during this difficult time.

Below is a short list of additional ways you can help support the return of live music:

1. Purchase gift certificates or merchandise directly from venues.

2. Support Gofundme or Patreon campaigns, or other fundraisers.

3. Consider donating what would have been your entertainment budget to your favorite venue.

4. Save up for when the pandemic is over, and put those dollars into the pockets of artists and venues.

5. Buy music and merchandise directly from the artists (or from bandcamp.com).

6. Donate to the Unison Benevolent Fund (www.unisonfund.ca).

7. Purchase tickets for or donate to live streaming concerts.

8. Share and promote music via your social media.

“Bands like ours and countless others don’t exist without independent performance venues. Having a supportive place to hone your craft and connect with others in the community is an integral part of an artist’s development and growth. The Beatles aren’t the Beatles without the Cavern Club and Joni Mitchell isn’t Joni Mitchell without the Louis Riel Coffee House in Saskatoon. These spaces, while servicing artists, also simultaneously enrich the local community and procreate creativity and harmony to all those around them.” – Ryan Gullen, The Sheepdogs

For more information on this project, please visit [www.saskvenuesproject.com]www.saskvenuesproject.com.

Second round participating venues and their shirt designers:

Coors Event Centre (Saskatoon) – Emily Only Design
Harvest Eatery (Shaunavon) – Work in Limbo
Mae Wilson Theatre (Moose Jaw) – Nebulus Entertainment
O’Hanlons (Regina) – Raquel Vigueras
Range Line Tavern (Cadillac) – Mitchie Dagger
T + A Vintage (Regina) – Jaye Kovach
TCU Place (Saskatoon) – Myron Campbell
The Fat Badger (Regina) – Bryan Neufeld
The Grand Theatre (Indian Head) – Black Atlas Creative
Support Live Music – Chad Geran
Support Live Music – SaskMusic