Sofar Sounds Rebounds: Intimate Concert Company Books More than 1,500 shows Around The World, Rolls Out Additional Artist Services
Sofar Sounds, the company that stages intimate concerts for artists in nontraditional venues, announced today it has booked more than 1,500 shows in multiple regions around the world, after putting shows on pause in March 2020 because of the pandemic.
SOMERVILLE, Mass., Sept. 20, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Sofar Sounds, the company that stages intimate concerts for artists in nontraditional venues, announced today it has booked more than 1,500 shows in multiple regions around the world including the United States, Asia, Europe and Africa. The shows, which are already happening in cities from Los Angeles to Hanoi, mark an emergence from a 16-month pause due to the global pandemic. The company announced earlier this month that all artists, staff and attendees must show proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test to attend its events.
The pandemic shut down touring for artists at all stages of their career, but it was particularly hard on those who are new and developing. Over 30,000 artists have played a Sofar show, and 70% of them lost more than half their music income during the pandemic. During the 16-month live show hiatus, Sofar created a number of ways to support artists, including paying more than 3,000 artists for their cancelled shows, staging live stream performances with a donation feature where artists earned $500 per show average and creating a grant program supporting hundreds of independent touring artists around the world. Altogether, the company paid out more than $3 Million to Sofar artists during the pandemic. The company recently announced that they would not recoup any payments made to artists for cancelled shows.
"It's been a long road, which has been difficult for everyone at Sofar," said Jim Lucchese, CEO of Sofar Sounds. "We focused on ways to help independent touring artists during our live show hiatus -- they lost their main source of income for well over a year -- this work kept the team going. We're all here because of those artists. We're now back to live shows, approaching our pre-pandemic scale with a broader range of Artist services." In 2019, Sofar Sounds staged shows in over 400 cities around the world.
Driven by feedback and suggestions from touring artists, Sofar rolled out a new artist dashboard that provides a simple way for artists to tell Sofar how to best promote them to fans after the show, connect with artists they've played with and artists near them, all while easily managing their schedule of Sofar Shows.
Within the Artist dashboard, artists are also able to route a Sofar Sounds tour using a new tool developed over the last 12 months, which is now being piloted with an artist user group. Sofar uses their global concert infrastructure and marketing engine to put on the shows and fill the rooms with fans, as they do for all shows listed on their website.
For a list of intimate concerts happening in cities around the world please visit Sofar Sounds HERE.
# # #
About Sofar Sounds
Sofar Sounds is a global community of music lovers creating space where music matters. Through intimate concerts in unique locations, Sofar shows create lasting connections between artists and fans without distractions, pretense or crowds. Sofar shows transform everyday spaces - from living rooms and rooftops, to boutiques and museums - into captivating venues for secret gigs, creating inclusive experiences that bring people closer together.
Founded in London in 2009, Sofar invites guests to discover new artists, places, and people, whether at home or abroad, in more than 400 cities around the world. To learn more about Sofar Sounds, visit http://www.sofarsounds.com or follow the conversation on social media at @sofarsounds or using #sofarsounds.
Media Contact
John Vlautin, Sofar Sounds, +1 (818) 763-9800, jv@spinlab.net
SOURCE Sofar Sounds
Share this article