How To Host Socially Distanced Live Music Events

Musical friends, 2020 has been one heckuva challenging year for ALL of us involved in live events.  We can argue about just what the heck the truth is about this "pandemic", but ultimately that's not what matters when it comes to being a musician; what matters is how to keep the music flowing.  How to keep getting on stage, and keep entertaining folks ... and I ain't talking "virtual" here, that'll be covered in next weeks blog, I'm talking the real deal!  Let's talk about how one company, here in the Nashville, TN area has been able to keep outdoor festivals and concert series chugging along. 

2020 was a year of great disappointments for live musicians, music lovers, entertainers, venues, and concert promoters alike. But just when it looked like the entire industry was grinding to a halt, Mid-Coast Sound in Nashville came to the rescue with innovative private "boxes" provided as a seating alternative for outdoor festivals and concert events.

These "boxes", constructed from portable bike racks, not only allow the suggested distancing between non-household members, but also provide a uniquely profitable seating opportunity to promoters and venues.  The result:  Concerts that STILL happened even while tens of thousands of shows have been cancelled nationwide.

My challenge to all of you reading this:  How can you duplicate what this one company has started here in Nashville?  Or better yet, what NEW ideas can you come up with?  We all need to keep from just giving in and giving up, sentenced to a world of total isolation ... especially MUSICAL isolation.  For decades I have lectured and written about the multitude of benefits of musicians and fans getting together to harness and combine their collective positive energy.  This life-force must be protected at all cost!  So come on gang, let's all do our part to see to it that Live music comes back with new-found vitality in 2021!  Put your thinking caps on gang.  And, next week we'll talk about how to keep our personal chops up during this crazy time in history when "isolation" is actually being touted as a "good thing"!