Canadian Music Week recognizes two Vancouver venues and three B.C. festivals for overcoming COVID-19 adversity

Two Vancouver-area venues and three B.C. festivals are being recognized for their efforts in keeping the spirit of live-music alive during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As part of the 40th edition of Canadian Music Week in Toronto, the Rickshaw and Vogue theatres have been nominated for the Overcoming Adversity Award in the category of Medium Venue/Festival.

On the fest side of things, the Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival is also nominated in the category. Vancouver’s enduring TD International Jazz Festival and the Shambhala Music Festival outside of Nelson are both nominated in the Overcoming Adversity Award—Large Venue/Festival category.

When COVID-19 instantly shut down all music venues in North America, Rickshaw owner Mo Tarmohamed was one of the first operators in the city—and possibly the country—to change up his business model. An expanded line of merch gave fans of the room the chance to support the Rickshaw and its staff by purchasing everything from T-shirts and hoodies to bandanas and facemasks. Livestream concerts provided a source of income to local musicians, while tireless work with the Canadian Live Music Association helped secure funding for venues across the country.

The Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival was also quick to pivot to a new model after in-person shows were cancelled. A two-night and one-day virtual festival on September 4-5 brought 17 bands and nearly 100 musicians to an audience tuned in at home. As estimated 10,000 fans took in the shows and online interviews with artists.

The Fort Langley Jazz & Arts Festival conducted research to determine what fans wanted to see from the event, developing two comprehensive guides (one for event planners and one for technical crews) for virtual festival production. Those guides have been shared around the world, as well as providing a blueprint for a 2021 hybrid event which mixed in-person shows with live-streamed performances.

The Vogue in downtown Vancouver quickly returned to live-music events as soon as restrictions were lifted.

The TD International Jazz Festival has been lauded for being one of the only major festivals in all of Canada to present live programming during the pandemic, with 138 gigs in 2021, 64 of them free events. That was augmented by livestream performances that attracted over 30,000 viewers.

Shambhala meanwhile concentrated on behind-the-scenes work during its two-year forced hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic. The long-running B.C.-interior electronic music festival invested in a new stage and upgraded sound system, while working on the operations front to promote harm reduction, equality, and the importance of informed consent.

Winners in the categories will be announced at Canadian Music Week, June 6-11 in Toronto. You, meanwhile, can vote for your favourite venue or festival by going here.