How business is stepping in to support Australian musicians, as radio stations drag their heels

A new wave of financial support is music to the ears of struggling Australian artists … but where it’s coming from may surprise.

Gym workouts, a dash to the shops or spending your precious time on hold will put more money in the pockets of struggling Australian musicians than turning on the radio or streaming a playlist in November.

As AusMusic Month kicked off on Monday, gyms, hotels and major Australian corporations answered the call to broadcast more homegrown music in their venues, adding a raft of new songs including hot tracks from Baker Boy, G Flip, Gang Of Youths, Jaguar Jonze and leading 2021 ARIA Awards nominee Genesis Owusu.

But commercial radio continues to drag its heels on adding more Aussie songs to its playlists, with only seven fresh singles from local artists on the Hot 100 most-played tracks as the month-long music celebration began on November 1.

Artists and industry advocates have all but given up lobbying radio stations for more airplay, switching their energies to encouraging big business to back new music.

Australian musician Jack River’s social media call-outs bloomed into the Our Soundtrack Our Stories campaign. Picture: Supplied

Social media call-outs initiated by indie pop artist Jack River during the Olympic Games asking the Seven Network and big business to play more Aussie songs inspired the Our Soundtrack Our Stories campaign, which has had huge results since it launched in August.

“In two months, businesses have increased their spending on Australian music by $3.5 million,” Holly Rankin, who performs as Jack River, said.

“The Our Soundtrack Our Stories campaign is about boosting the discoverability of local artists; you hear them when you are at the shops or on hold, you become a fan instantly, you might buy a ticket to their show and suddenly the artist has a new fan.”

Commonwealth Bank recently enlisted Confidence Man and Sycco for its StepPlay ad campaign, Nissan created a Spotify playlist customers could access via a QR code while browsing for a new car at its dealerships and Bonds pledged to only play Aussie music in-store.

ME Bank is playing 100 per cent local this month for anyone stuck on hold, with its playlist including ARIA-nominated new soul star Budjerah’s single Higher, First Nations rapper Birdz’s track Fly and Tones and I’s latest hit, Cloudy Day.

Australian rapper Birdz … taking the pain out of being on hold. Picture: Michelle Grace Hunder

“As we all know, Covid-19 has cancelled many tours, festivals and venues and put careers on hold, so we want to do our part in supporting this vibrant industry and brighten everyone’s day,” ME Bank CEO Martine Jager said.

“We know that hanging out on hold isn’t necessarily how you’d like to spend your time, but with awesome on-hold music, you might just wish to hold a little longer.”

7-Eleven partnered with Qsic, which programs instore music, to curate an all-Aussie soundtrack to broadcast in its stores during the month, making a quick shop for essentials a “welcoming experience.”

One of the biggest initiatives to drive more discoverability of new tunes comes from leading programming platform, Nightlife Music, via its innovative CrowdDJ app, which allows people working out in more than 1600 fitness venues around the country to choose which song they want to hear.

The app, which has more than 300,000 downloads, has an Australian Played feature, which encourages users to select local tracks during November.

Nightlife Music’s Leanne De Souza said last year’s campaign had resulted in a 40 per cent increase in the amount of local music played by users during November, with 156,149 tracks by Australian songwriters and recording artists picked on CrowdDJ.

But where the campaign really made an impact was the amount of money generated for songwriters and performers, which landed directly in their pockets rather than in the royalty pool administered by collection agencies.

Vera Blue on the set of her The Sound performance on a Sydney Harbour barge. Picture: Supplied

Vance Joy in La Paloma Hall, Barcelona. Picture: Clara Orozco

And that is a bigger direct income boost to artists than a play on streaming services or radio stations.

“Each time an Aussie track is played using the CrowdDJ app, an artist gets paid,” De Souza said.

“We provide data to (royalties agency) APRA about exactly which songs were played in which venues so that money stays in the pockets of Australian songwriters and artists.”

Frustrated by listening to a loop of generic background music after spending seven hours and 19 minutes on hold waiting for an airline, entertainment publicist Karen Eck kicked off the #HoldAussieMusic change.org petition to encourage business and government service agencies to switch to a homegrown soundtrack instead of “mind-numbing, royalty-free tunes.”

For AusMusic Month, she is targeting “30 Australian businesses in 30 days” to commit to the initiative, including Service NSW, Bunnings, Kmart and Telstra.

Sydney Airport responded via social media this week, declaring “We love and want to support Australian music. We’re in!”

“By having their music curated to an all-Aussie playlist, big business and all levels of

government are contributing to the livelihoods of local music creators through their OneMusic

Australia licence fees,” Eck said.

“Customers get a better experience, and with live performances slowly opening up, they may choose to go out and see a band they discovered while waiting on the phone.

“It’s a positive full-circle experience for everyone involved.”

The big supermarket chains have also upped their quota of Australian-made music, with Woolworths reviving its instore radio in partnership with IHeartRadio, while Coles Radio, the most listened to digital “station”, curated by Nova Entertainment, will play an all-Aussie playlist in their stores nationwide on November 30.

While the Seven and Ten television networks have also pledged support for the Our Soundtrack, Our Stories campaign, there remains only one free-to-air weekly program airing in November dedicated to showcase Australian music.

The Sound, the passion project of the late Michael Gudinski, which debuted last year during the pandemic shutdown of gigs, kicked off its third series last Sunday on the ABC with stunning performances by Vance Joy, Vera Blue, Spacey Jane and exciting newcomers King Stingray.

Mushroom Group CEO Matt Gudinski is determined to carry on his father’s vision for the Australian-made series, with first-class and expensive production values as evidenced by Vance Joy’s performance from a Barcelona theatre and Vera Blue singing her new single Temper on a barge in the shadow of Sydney Harbour Bridge.

“Giving artists a platform to perform on a national stage in the comfort of viewers homes has been a remarkable feat for The Sound,” Gudinski said.

“The third season promises amazing up-and-coming local talent as well as some big household names. As with the previous seasons, it’ll all be showcased via world class production.”

Rankin said “brands have fans too”, making the burgeoning relationship between musicians and big business a win-win for both sectors.

“It’s really powerful when brands and artists connect in a genuine way and particularly when there is such a spotlight on corporate values.”

Originally published as How business is stepping in to support Australian musicians, as radio stations drag their heels