Small music venues ask Congress for special consideration in coronavirus aid

A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
In an open letter to Congress sent Wednesday, National Independent Venue Association Board President Dayna Frank requested that independent venues have special consideration in acquiring Paycheck Protection Program loans to cover expenses during the coronavirus pandemic, reports Billboard.
More than 800 U.S. venues are members of the association, including the historic Orpheum Theater in Flagstaff, Arizona, and comedy club The Stand NYC.
The letter asks for the PPP to include industry-specific provisions, like increasing its loan cap to cover multiple venue locations and allowing tax relief for refunded tickets. "Our businesses were among the first to close as COVID-19 spread across the country and, unfortunately, are also likely to be among the last to reopen," the letter reads.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Frank, who owns a music venue in Minneapolis, says the coronavirus pandemic has resulted in ticket refunds for more than 100,000 concerts. She argued the importance of small venue stages not only in local communities but also in the music industry as a whole. "The world could be without the next Lady Gaga, Kenny Chesney, Chance the Rapper, or Bruce Springsteen if we cease to exist," Frank wrote.
Members of the music industry have also turned to other measures to get by. Rather than waiting for federal relief funding, artists like Moksha Sommer have sought aid from nonprofits like MusiCares, which launched March 17 and has already raised more than $10 million, Billboard reports. Sommer is one of 9,000 who received a one-time aid check of $1,000. Sommer said the funding will help her pay bills and plan for the future, but Frank told congressional leaders the industry at large is in dire need of a larger "lifeline." Read more at Billboard.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
The daily business briefing: September 22, 2023
Business Briefing Rupert Murdoch steps down as Fox, News Corp. chair, Cisco to buy Splunk in $28 billion cash deal, and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
Mini-budget one year on: how the Truss-Kwarteng growth plan lingers
The Explainer Commentators say 'moron premium' has subsided but UK 'still stuck in first gear'
By Chas Newkey-Burden Published
-
Hail Mary
Cartoons
By The Week Staff Published
-
Exodus begins from Burning Man after desert mud trapped tens of thousands
Speed Read
By Peter Weber Published
-
'Margaritaville' singer Jimmy Buffett dies at 76
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
American Airlines suing website that offers tickets via price loopholes
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Federal agencies investigating near miss between Southwest jet and private plane
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
'Euphoria' star Angus Cloud dies at 25
Speed Read
By Catherine Garcia Published
-
Pee-wee Herman actor Paul Reubens dies at 70
Speed Read
By Brendan Morrow Published
-
Trader Joe's recalls 4 products in a week amid reports of rocks and insects inside food
Speed Read
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Emmys to be postponed for first time since after 9/11 due to strikes
Speed Read
By Brendan Morrow Published