Colorado’s Music Industry Has Lost Over $300 Million Because of COVID-19
We've seen the pleas to #saveourstages since the COVID-19 pandemic caused nationwide shutdowns of our independent music venues, with some announcing their doors are already closed forever (RIP Hodi's).
We miss going to shows as much as everybody else does right now, but how much are venues suffering economically since gatherings got banned in March? ...A lot.
Margaret Hunt, Colorado Creative Industries Director, along with Lisa Gedgaudas, Program Administrator for the Create Denver Denver Arts & Venues, City of Denver, and Dr. Michael Seman, from Colorado State University LEAP Institute, have compiled a study called 'Initial Impacts of the COVID-19 Crisis on the Music Industry in Colorado and the Denver Metropolitan Region.'
According to the study, the 'Estimated Losses for Colorado’s Music Industry' starting in April (after 30 days) were 4,236 jobs and over $76 million in sales revenue.
At the end of July, the study found Colorado's music industry had 8,327 job losses, and loss of revenue was $344,654,842. Most of the jobs lost were musicians, managers, agents, and those working in the live events sector.
You can see the full report here.