Thursday Night and a Sing-along ‘Sung Alone’: The Experiences of a Self-employed Performer During the Pandemic

Abstract

COVID-19 has had a devastating impact on those working in the UK’s creative economy, and particularly its entertainment sector. This article explores the experiences of Mark Godiva, a self-employed musician whose livelihood has been radically threatened by the virus and its associated restrictions. Mark’s story highlights both the continuities and challenges that have been created for those working on the front line of what is a dramatically altered cultural landscape. It illustrates the continuing precarity of his work, and how the need for additional entrepreneurial skills, beyond simply being a performer, have become more important than ever. At the same time, it considers some of the technical, affective, spatial, and even existential challenges associated with working over a range of social media platforms that performers such as Mark have experienced.

Cultural entrepreneurship in times of change and crisis

“…In many ways, these findings from our study confirm the results from early research on the effects of the pandemic on creative industries regarding the increased struggle of sustaining one's artistic practice given the new circumstances (Banks and O'Connor 2021;Hancock et al 2021). Thus, the precarity of working conditions for cultural entrepreneurs was arguably exacerbated by the pandemic, pushing an already strained effort for resilience to the brink (Comunian and England 2020;Haynes and Marshall 2018).…”

“…Moving to online performance meant he had to invest more time into learning new songs, along with the extra time needed to set up his house for his recordings and the extra money invested into new recording equipment, all while earning less than he did before the lockdown. Hancock et al (2021) further explain how these effects also influenced the musician's mental health because without his act he could no longer be his on-stage persona. This can be contrasted with the findings of Jones (2022), who showed that the newfound situation with cancelled shows also meant artists could slow down in their work process, opening up for a period of reflection and remodelling how to approach their work.…”

“…Thus, the short-term support offered to the creative sector neglects larger underlying issues regarding its unsustainable structures, which require long-term structural changes. Hancock et al (2021) give a more zoomed-in perspective of the situation through their article, coauthored with a self-employed musician, focusing on his lived realities as a cultural entrepreneur during the pandemic. They show how the pandemic pushed the musician to find a different way of monetising his music as live performances became impossible due to lockdowns.…”

“…The purpose of this chapter is to examine the effects of moments of crisis on creative industries, particularly regarding self-employed actors. More specifically, our study relates to the COVID-19 pandemic, during which selfemployed creative workers experienced heightened instability (Banks and O'Connor 2021;Comunian and England 2020;Hancock et al 2021;Jones 2022). Many cultural entrepreneurs found themselves in a situation of constantly trying to find new entrepreneurial solutions to maintain, as well as sustain, their artistic practice.…”

Challenges and Opportunities Experienced by Performing Artists during COVID-19 Lockdown: Scoping Review

“…The pandemic has brought major disruption to the performing arts industry – an industry known for already precarious, often freelance, employment prior to the pandemic [4, 5] with professionals in the industry often unprotected by employment regulations and unable to plan for the future [6]. In early 2021 the Actors Fund, a non-profit organisation supporting the entertainment community in America, surveyed 7,163 creators and actors during the pandemic and found that 76% reported loss of income, 62% lost part-time or gig employment, and 50% lost full-time jobs [7].…”