Entertainers say the absence of gigs has thrown them into a financial pit

Some of this country’s entertainers have found themselves in dire financial straits as they endure 15-months of little to no economic activity.

Artistes, managers, and other stakeholders have painted a bleak picture of an industry, in which Government assistance has been modest as lending agencies relentlessly pursue them for outstanding bills.

There’s also growing concern in the industry about whether this year’s Crop Over festival will be done in a way that can help make a dent in their increasingly dire financial situation.

Ingrid Holder, who manages the Krosfyah band, as well as artistes Leadpipe, Saddis, Hypasounds, Sanctuary and Marvay, described the ongoing situation as depressing for those whose greatest source of income comes from live performances. And, despite an increase in the number of virtual performances, she says the revenue is just not the same.

With overseas performances out of the question, the royalty payments that “trickle” in twice a year have done little to improve their situation.

“So the reality for people in entertainment, whether singer, songwriter, soundman, a décor person, a manager or whoever, is that they have bills like everybody else,” Holder told Barbados TODAY.

“Some people have mortgages, some people have car loans and insurance payments. Some people have house insurance to go along with their mortgages and some people have kids. Some entertainers I know have four and five kids. So at the end of the day and there is no money, how do you really function?

“I don’t think the lending agencies have shown any leniency. They call every week or month and whenever the bills are due. They are already aware that the sector is dead and the only way people in that sector survive is by gigs… I’m aware that they have to do their jobs and I understand that, but I haven’t been made aware of any entities being lenient. And given that there are no funds coming in, I don’t know what else they expect the entertainers to do,” she added.

Meanwhile, the dynamic Sweet Soca, Dancehall and Bashment Soca duo, Leadpipe and Saddis described the current situation as “pure ‘sufferation’”.

“It has been cruel. Not a show, not a nothing…With night life being dead in Barbados, a lot of people are losing money… Artistes still have bills and artistes still have children and artistes have to live,” Leadpipe, whose real name is Osvaldo Reid told Barbados TODAY on Thursday.

President of the Entertainers’ Association of Barbados (EAB) Rudy Maloney shared the sentiments of his colleagues in the industry. He added that promised financial assistance from government has done little to reduce the impact of the COVID-19 fallout.

“There are a number of persons who have not received any kind of help and that is unfortunate. I believe that the same way Trinidad and Tobago has looked at the industry as a whole in offering financial help, that is the way we should have approached it in Barbados,” Maloney suggested.

Carl Alff Padmore, who has been speaking about the plight of entertainers over the last few days suggests that in addition to the banking sector and government, Barbadians could take the initiative and adopt an entertainer.

“It may seem novel, but if for the next three months you decide to reach out to an entertainer that you know and you decide to help them. The entertainer would not want the publicity and the show, but you can do it discreetly, because some entertainers are receiving lots of letters from the bank, their properties are in danger of being taken up. Apart from that, some of them have really gone through moments of depression,” Padmore explained.

“You could even decide to support the child of an entertainer and that could mean providing a tablet. It could include assisting with school clothes and it could mean helping with free lessons. We need to reach out to them,” he appealed.

On Wednesday, Minister in the Prime Minister’s office with responsibility for Culture John King gave a glimmer of hope as he announced plans to host a Crop Over festival.

However, with few details on how the festival will look, entertainers are still uncertain about how much they should invest.

“Some productions cost two to five thousand dollars for one song and really and truly if there is no platform to make back that money then it makes no sense putting out any big lot of music,” said Holder.

“I really would love live events to come back. I know they are talking about online, but I’m not quite sure if the money is in online events,” the manager concluded. (kareemsmith@barbadostoday.bb)