CLEVELAND — In the city that rocks, a conference taking place this week is proof that we can roll with the punches.
The pandemic may have put a lengthy pause on live music performances, but the industry is poised to bounce back.
Hundreds of independent venue owners and operators from across the country are in Cleveland this week celebrating their survival and mapping out their second act.
Among them is Sam Watterson, who lobbied Congress to pass the Save Our Stages Act.
"It's a $16 billion support bill," said Watterson.
Watterson's Happy Dog in Gordon Square, along with thousands of others, got a much-needed cash infusion to help keep independent live venues afloat.
"While we were able to do this incredible thing at the federal level, a lot of the work now is at the local level," said Watterson.
Watterson is joining hundreds of other members of the National Independent Venue Association, who also lobbied for the federal support, as they gather for the very first time in Cleveland.
"This is the first time we're able to celebrate that. This was just this magnet to pull all these people together who survived COVID and are now ready to get back and thrive," said Watterson.
While the Rock Hall may have given our city a leg up on the competition vying to host the conference, a long history of collaboration between local venues, especially during the pandemic, also elevated our status.
"Showing how we work together as a team here in Cleveland, and that's what NIVA has done with venues all across the country, but Cleveland has always worked together, and that's special," said Kathy Blackman, Grog Shop Owner.
Our community's continued support, like Cuyahoga County allocating $3.3 million of its American Rescue Plan funds for the arts, is another point of pride for Watterson.
"What's significant about that is half of that money is going to go to independent small businesses and individual artists. So, the musicians who play our stages and the small clubs and the art galleries and that kind of commitment to the arts is why Cleveland's a leader," said Watterson.
You might be thinking, why should I care that these venue owners, operators, and promoters are getting together?
Neighborhoods in Cleveland, and across the country, are anchored by these small venues.
Watterson said Happy Dog attracts 75,000 people a year to Gordon Square.
"For every dollar spent on a ticket at a live music venue, $12 in economic activity gets generated in that immediate surrounding area," said Watterson.
To make sure the entertainment continues, and the cash keeps flowing in our community, sessions over the two days of the conference will focus on topics like venue collaborations with nonprofits, selling more tickets and the changing nature of marketing.
"When you're an independent owner, you have your head down, focused every day on just survival. To go out and get some ideas you can use in your business right now, I think it's one of the most valuable things you can do," said Mike Miller, Music Box Supper Club.
