Don't Kill Live Music rally sees thousands flock to Hyde Park in protest
NOT even the rain could keep away the thousands of Sydneysiders who descended into Hyde Park for the ‘Don’t Kill Live Music Rally’ tonight.
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NOT even the rain could keep away the thousands of Sydneysiders who descended into Hyde Park for the ‘Don’t Kill Live Music Rally’ tonight.
Much like the rebellion witnessed in scenes from Footloose, live music lovers would not be deterred from their festival fever on Thursday night.
The rally comes after the government’s crackdown on music festivals, following a number of drug related deaths at festivals recently.
From March 1, the government plan to implement a new license, where NSW Police and Health can enforce special conditions, including user-pays policing and on site ambulance requirements.
One of the most experienced festival organisers in the Country, Adelle Robinson said when planning an event, safety is always at the forefront of her mind.
She said she has never run a music festival that “hasn’t been a collaboration between police, ambulance, venues and security”.
“I’ve certainly never ran an event that hasn’t had a comprehensive safety management plan,” she told the audience.
“Festivals care deeply about safety.
“What the government is trying to do is not about safety, it’s about trying to control an industry through the liquor act.
“I support best practice, in fact, I support raising the bar for best practice in NSW.
“The music festival license is not doing that.”
Performers Dan Sultan and the Polish Club rocked out to Footloose, while other well known artists championed the need for music festivals and live music in Sydney.
Of those was The Presets Julian Hamilton, who said he was “realising how close we are to losing Australia’s live music legacy”.
“Music festivals have a cultural impact that continues long after the fans have jumped on buses to go home,” he said.
“This culture feeds itself year after year, its legacy gets bigger and brighter, it gets more rich and more diverse and its not built overnight.
“It takes decades to build this.”
He said the community need to be “under the stars, with their friends, with the music loud, jumping around to a band they love”.
21-year-old Mel Jolley attended the rally and said music was something that helped her get by the last couple of years.
“Attending music festivals, seeing live bands, it really means a lot and I would hate to see that taken away from me,” she said.
“I’m here to support the continuation for Sydney’s future, in regards to music festivals, live music and even lockout laws in general.”
Shadow Minister for Tourism and Major Events, John Graham told Central Sydney Magazine, his biggest concern was the governments war on music festivals.
He said it was “literally driving music festivals out of the state of NSW.”
“We have already lost hundreds of venues, thousands of jobs, we just cant afford to lose the festival scene,” he said.
“We know that music is fundamental to how people live.
“I think there is incredible political support across the spectrum. I can’t understand why the government wont sit down and talk these issues through with the industry.”
City of Sydney Deputy Mayor, Linda Scott said it was great to see thousands of young people out tonight “to celebrate their love of live music and to show how important the future of live music is to NSW,” she said.
“It’s so important that the Liberal government gets out of the way and lets our night time economy and particularly live music thrive.”
Event organisers demanded the government delay the March 1 implementation, until after the March 23 election.
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