As of mid-March 2022, we crossed the two-year mark of the worldwide shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. For one and a half years, our world of concerts and events looked pretty bleak, but thanks to the vaccine, things started to open up and the months of September through December of 2021 were filled with promise. Many of us were called back to work and a semblance of normality was restored as we were filled with hope and renewed energy. Then came the doldrums; a natural event that reoccurs every January and February in which our industry curls up and hibernates. Granted, there are shows and concerts that take place during these months but, for the most part, the time is usually spent in our respective shops fine tuning, repairing and replacing equipment as we gear up for the expected tours, concerts, graduations and weddings.
And Then…
March started off slowly, partly due to the time of year and in part because of the lingering coronavirus hangover, but it seemed that clients were already booking events for May, June and July, which gave us hope. Then Russia invades the Ukraine! Almost immediately the call comes in from one of our large New York corporate clients on 44th & Broadway that due to protests in Times Square their event would be postponed indefinitely. I don’t want to be “Debbie Downer” here, and as of this writing no other events crossing my desk have cancelled, but this doesn’t bode well for things to come.
Shortly after I bemoaned the loss of my show to my colleagues, bands such as Green Day, Iron Maiden, Franz Ferdinand, Iggy Pop and The Killers — to name a few — cancelled multiple dates in Russia, citing that they oppose the invasion and stand in unity with the Ukraine. It would appear that these bands are just the tip of the iceberg in regard to cancellations, since Live Nation has also condemned the invasion and is refusing to do any business in Russia. The Metropolitan Opera has also declared its solidarity with The Ukraine by cancelling ties with the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, conductor Valery Gergiev and star soprano Anna Netrebko. Companies such as Netflix, Warner Bros., Universal and Disney are cancelling releases in Russia and major corporations and sport teams are also standing in solidarity with the Ukraine by cancelling ties with Russia.
The Cruel War is Raging
A war is being waged and people are dying. 1.5 million people have been displaced from their homes and country, and there is a humanitarian crisis unfolding on a scale that’s been unseen in Europe since World War II. In light of all this horror, the cancellation of a few gigs and artistic events is of minor concern. In the grand scheme of things, this could be considered collateral damage (defined by Webster’s Dictionary as “civilian casualties of a military operation”). Unfortunately, the entertainment business has suffered a good deal of damage in the past two years, albeit non-collateral, and it has put many of us who have spent years in the business in a precarious position.
Trouble at the Pump
As with so many modern conflicts, oil and gas is an issue. The war in Ukraine is no exception, as Russia is a major oil producer that exports about 10% globally and 40% to the European Union. While the United States is the largest producer of crude oil and natural gas, it is also the largest consumer of said commodities, which means that after Canada and Mexico, it depends on Russia to fill the gap between production and consumption. We are already feeling the effects of the war with soaring gas prices at the pump and in our homes. Granted, not all of this is due to the war, as we have had a supply and demand imbalance for a while, but compounded by the pandemic and with the lack of staffing at refineries, the current situation is getting worse.
Truckin’
Not to sound overly self-absorbed during a time of a global emergency, but while a gas shortage affects us individually it also affects us as an industry by causing our trucking fees to rise to a point of not being able to move a tour without raising ticket prices. Tour buses and semi-trucks on average hold about 200 gallons of fuel, therefore touring the country in two buses and a few trucks can be a costly venture. Not to mention the cabs, car services and other transportation related expenses incurred by a tour. As far as gas related setbacks are concerned, the industry managed to survive the gas shortage of the late 1970s and early 2000s, but not without consequence. The high price of gas not only affects the tours, but fans’ travel to and from a festival as well. With the higher ticket sales to cover, many people attending festivals considered the outing to be their vacations. Regrettably, due to the higher price of travel, less money was being spent at the festival itself. As many bands rely on their merchandise sales to help cover the cost of touring, they discovered that without the proceeds from merchandise, it can be difficult to stay on the road.
Pricing us out of business due to a senseless war could be considered collateral damage, but the last thing we need in our industry is another obstacle blocking us from getting back to work. If this war drags on, or expands into Europe, the repercussions would only be worse for those of us trying to provide audio in a world gone wild.
As with wanting an end to the pandemic, I have my own selfish reasons for ending this war that Russia has brought to the Ukraine. I want to keep working in a profession that I have been a part of for many years and I would prefer that my vocation doesn’t end due to circumstance. I and many of my compatriots are exhausted from the last two years of sitting out a pandemic and worrying if our jobs would be coming back. The last thing we need now is to be the victim of collateral damage. The thought of another shutdown or even slowdown is unimaginable but, then again, so is waging war on a sovereign nation and displacing millions of people.
