News

Live DMA is a European non-governmental network representing 20 live music associations in 16 different countries. This report is an update of the Live DMA Survey report published in May 2023.

Firstly, the report presents new figures for 2021 and 2022 for the venues and clubs, showing the pandemic effects in those years, as well as the initial recovery and inflating costs during 2022. In addition, it presents the key figures from 2019 for the 2,280 music venues and clubs that were part of Live DMA in 2023, to provide a useful picture of the last year without pandemic effects. Finally, it presents an overview of the available figures from 2019–2022 per Live DMA member.

The report shows key information about the artistic, social, educational, and economic value of music venues and clubs across Europe, displaying their diversity.

2019 was a vibrant year for live music venues and clubs, and so was the start of 2020. The venues and clubs programmed more artist performances and attracted more visitors than ever before. This created many jobs and had a huge artistic and economic impact.

From March 2020 until March 2022, COVID-related restrictions imposed by governments had a disastrous impact on the live music sector, especially for live music venues and clubs as key players in the ecosystem of artists’ careers. The effects were devastating: artists could no longer perform, audiences could hardly enjoy live music or night culture, and a significant part of the venues’ workers no longer had a job in the sector. Artists, hired workers, suppliers, and the venues themselves lost a lot of income.

Governments across Europe supported the venues in their region with funds, especially for employees’ wages and housing costs. This was very helpful and necessary for the venues and clubs to survive the pandemic financially, but it did not prevent the artists, workers, and suppliers in the sector from suffering enormous damages.

The figures in this report show that most venues and clubs survived the pandemic and managed to regain workers and audiences afterwards, but the pandemic also left many in a weaker financial position. Furthermore, the 2022 data show a sharp increase in costs. Rising fixed costs, such as employment and housing, were not automatically compensated with more income (such as increased subsidies or more ticket sales), leaving venues and clubs with financial deficits.

Although data for 2023 and 2024 are not yet available in most countries, current observations indicate that in 2024 it is still a major challenge for most venues and clubs to generate sufficient income, maintain their activities, and fulfil their missions.

When venues are at risk of negative financial results, they are often forced to cut back on staff, but also on talent development and programming diversity. Diversity in programming often entails risk-taking, in contrast to more mainstream music which can easily guarantee income. Therefore, sufficient support for the live music sector by governments remains essential to ensure inclusive and innovative programming.

Read the report here.