A Year Of Pandemic: International Band Concerts Canceled, Local Musicians Are Hardly Looking For Food

Illustration (Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Today, a year ago, the rock band Powerslaves landed at Halim Perdanakusuma Airport, Jakarta after performing to open the Whitesnake and Scorpions concert at the Jogjarockarta event the night before.

As soon as all passengers activate their cellphones, notifications appear from a number of online media: the first case of COVID-19 was found in Indonesia! At that time, I never imagined that this discovery would have a bad impact on the entertainment industry, especially music.

But, that's where it all started ...

A day later, 88Rising announced the postponement of the Jakarta Head in the Clouds (HITC) musical event which was supposed to be held on March 7. Through its Twitter account, 88Rising announced the delay because COVID-19 was spreading in Asia. This decision was made for the safety of the audience. Entertainment industry players began to worry.

So far, Southeast Asia's biggest metal festival Hammersonic has yet to make a decision on whether to keep going as scheduled: March 27 and 28, or to postpone it. However, two bands made sure to cancel their tour and appearance at Hammersonic. They are Vulvodynia (South Africa) and Lacuna Coil (Italy).

This is due to the regulations of the band's country and the management of their respective artists which do not allow them to travel abroad. Soon, Slipknot also canceled a number of their appearances in Asia, including in Indonesia.

Two days later, Ravel Entertainment as the organizer officially stated that the Hammersonic event was rescheduled to January 15-17, 2021. However, in a further statement posted on their social media on December 28, Ravel set March 26 and 27, 2022 as the time for Hammersonic to take place. .

Still on the same day, the Babymetal concert which was planned to be held at the Senayan Jakarta Basketball Hall the day after Hammersonic was also postponed indefinitely. This announcement was made by the promoter of Nada Promotama through her Instagram account.

Babymetal then confirmed this news via the official Instagram @babymetal_official. Not a few fans were disappointed, but there were also those who were grateful because this announcement was only postponed, which means that there is a high probability that the concert can continue. However, a year passed, the pandemic was not over. The concert never came.

Entering mid-March, the COVID-19 outbreak was increasingly rampant. New cases continue to increase and make Japanese rock troops, One Ok Rock, postpone their Japanese and Asian shows, including in Indonesia. Originally, One Ok Rock will hold a concert in Jakarta on May 30.

Meanwhile, the Dream Theater concert The Distance Over Time Tour 2020 which was originally scheduled for April 16 was postponed to November 8. However, as soon as October entered, Rajawali Indonesia as the promoter stated that the aging band's concert from Boston, United States, had to be rescheduled. Do not know until when.

Then, the concert of the rock group from the United States, Boys Like Girls was also postponed due to the outbreak of COVID-19. Originally held on April 9 at the Kuningan City Ballroom P7, this concert was postponed to September 21 until finally it was postponed to 2021. But, until now, new news has never appeared.

"Sad to say, unfortunately due to the spread of COVID-19, we had to reschedule our Asia / Australia tour dates. We'd love to do it for you, but our priority is to keep everyone safe and sound. The good news is we have new dates for the show this ... we will meet you in September, "Boys Like Girls wrote on their Instagram.

A year passed, Jogjarockarta 2020 turned out to be the last major concert to be held in Indonesia before the Joko Widodo government acknowledged the existence of COVID-19. During that time, the entertainment industry players fluctuated to defend their lives. The rupiah coffers that should have entered the pockets by bringing in foreign artists suddenly disappeared.

Ironically, the list above is only partial.

Whose fault?

Apart from promoters or event organizers, local musicians and bands were no less affected. Among other things, musicians who usually appear in cafes or places to eat. The closure of a number of cafes and places to eat has made them unable to work. There is even a cafe band vocalist who has to be an introduction to a gallon of mineral water.

Meanwhile, well-known bands are trying to survive by holding streaming concerts. Is this type of concert really a solution? Can! It's just that the fees earned are much less than live concerts.

As for Powerslaves, which is the opening act of this article, has already held two streaming concerts during the lockdown of the pandemic. First on July 5 while performing at DSS Music's 7th Concert Hall. They are paid by a profit sharing system, between the organizer and the performer which is obtained from the audience's donation.

Second, on August 22, while holding an independent streaming concert at Javent Rooftop, PT Jasa Swadaya Utama (Jayatama) Building. Don't ask how much money they got. It is better to focus on the number of their streaming concerts during the pandemic. One year only concerts twice! How do they eat?

This is just one example. There are still so many musicians who have lost their livelihoods due to the pandemic. If they are not lacking in gratitude, they will probably continue to complain. Then, who is to blame?

It has been a year of corona in Indonesia, since March 2020. In March last year, the government officially released COVID-19 into Indonesia, mentioning cases 01, 02 and so on. VOI editorial team tried to rewrite when COVID-19 appeared in Indonesia. What and how confused this country is. Click here for more news