Text: Alberte Hyldgaard Prinds
There was a line to get into Saturday’s first Artist Talk in the SPOT+ calendar. And rightly so, because big topics were on the agenda.
Under the heading “Who is responsible for change?” the seminar’s four speakers explored how festivals, artists, and live organizers can be catalysts for change. Music indeed has both the potential and the responsibility to use its unique, community-building space to make a difference.
The moderators from ClimateLive, Louise Linden and Andreas Magnusson, had a solid foundation to speak from. As firsthand witnesses to the climate movement that started with school strikes in their home country, Sweden, back in 2018, they have since seen how music and artists have a very special platform.
One that even the big players turn to:
“When they want to make an influence, they turn to artists. They turn to festivals,” said Andreas Magnusson, co-founder of ClimateLive, who has himself organized a televised benefit concert and sung Rick Astley with Greta Thunberg in the name of climate and change.
This also underscored a key point that the seminar centered around: namely, that artists’ potential doesn’t lie in specific actions but in their influence.
Both Dayyani and KH Marie, who sat on the panel, could agree with this.
“Activism is not just one thing. It can be what you say, what you wear, what you do and don’t do,” said Dayyani, who, as a young musician, is in the process of finding her way to navigate the landscape of activism.
Balancing music, politics, and creative work can indeed be a challenge. At the seminar, ClimateLive described itself as a kind of climate consultant for artists who didn’t know how to approach these weighty topics and also touched on the anxiety that can exist when young artists are trying to find their place in the industry.
“Artists are becoming more brave. But transformation takes time,” said Andreas Magnusson, leading up to giving these big ideas some concrete examples.
The panel was replaced by three prominent figures from the festival world: SPOT’s own director, Rikke Andersen; Lollapalooza’s director, Fruzsina Szép; and Roskilde’s head of music, Thomas Jepsen, who all shared specific initiatives their workplaces had undertaken in the name of change.
SPOT, in particular, spoke about their social responsibility:
“We have a lot of big responsibilities being a showcase festival. We want to lower the pressure for the artists, which is why we say discovery is our headliner.”
For many, SPOT is their first encounter with the industry, and Rikke Andersen also talked a lot about the responsibility to give artists industry insights.
On behalf of Roskilde, Thomas Jepsen also spoke about particular expectations:
“The audience takes a whole week out of their calendar to spend time with us. That carries a responsibility.”
What all the festivals had in common was that these days they are working with many new initiatives and an open mindset to embrace the platform’s obligations. Everything is being tested, explored, and refined to balance artist care, green responsibility, and a great festival—because, as Thomas Jepsen says:
“Every idea counts.”
Photo: Stine Rosemunte
Tekst: Alberte Hyldgaard Prinds
Der var kø til at komme ind til lørdagens første Artist Talk i SPOT+ kalenderen. Og med rette, for det var store emner, der var på programmet.
Under overskriften ‘Who is responsible for change?’ kom seminarets fire aktører omkring, hvordan festivaler, artister og livearrangører kan være katalysatorer for forandring.
Musikken har nemlig både potentiale og ansvar for, at det helt unikke, fællesskabende rum, det baserer sig på, bliver brugt til at gøre en forskel.
Moderatorerne fra ClimateLive, Louise Linden og Andreas Magnusson, havde et stabilt afsæt at tale ud fra. Som førstehåndsvidner til den klimabevægelse, der startede med skolestrejke i deres hjemland, Sverige, tilbage i 2018, har de siden oplevet, hvordan musikken og artisterne har en hel særlig platform. Også én, som de tunge aktører henvender sig til:
“Når de vil skabe indflydelse, vender de sig mod kunstnere. De vender sig mod festivaler,” sagde Andreas Magnusson, medstifter af ClimateLive, der selv har stablet en tv-transmitteret støttekoncert på benene og sunget Rick Astley med Greta Thunberg i klimaet og forandringens navn.
Dermed understregede han også en væsentlig pointe, som seminaret centrerede sig omkring. Nemlig, at artisternes potentiale ikke ligger i deciderede tiltag, men gennem ‘influence’.
Det kunne både Dayyani og KH Marie, der sad med i panelet, skrive under på.
“Aktivisme er ikke kun én ting. Det kan være hvad du siger, hvad du bærer, hvad du gør og ikke gør,” sagde Dayyani, der selv, som ung musiker, er i gang med at finde hendes måde at navigere i aktivismens landskab på.
Det kan nemlig være en udfordring at balancere musik, politik og kreativt virke. ClimateLive beskrev på seminaret sig selv som en slags klimakonsulent for artister, der ikke vidste, hvordan de tunge emner skulle gribes an, og kom også ind på den berøringsangst, der kan eksistere, når man som ung artist skal finde sin plads i branchen.
“Kunstnere bliver mere modige. Men forandring tager tid,” sagde Andreas Magnusson, og ledte således op til, at de store begreber fik konkrete ben at gå på.
Panelet blev erstattet af tre markante aktører indenfor festivalverdenen. SPOT’s egen direktør, Rikke Andersen, Loolapaloozas direktør, Fruzsina Szép og Roskildes ‘Head of
Music’, Thomas Jepsen, der alle kunne berette om konkrete tiltag, deres arbejdspladser havde taget i forandringens navn.
SPOT talte særligt om deres sociale ansvar:
“Vi har et stort ansvar som showcase-festival. Vi vil gerne sænke presset for kunstnerne, og derfor siger vi, at det er selve opdagelsen, der er vores headliner.”
For mange er SPOT deres første møde med branchen, og derfor snakkede Rikke Andersen også meget om ansvaret for artisternes branchekendskab.
På vegne af Roskilde snakkede Thomas Jepsen også om særlige forventninger:
“Publikum hiver en hel uge ud af deres kalender for at bruge tid sammen med os. Det følger der et ansvar med.”
Fælles for alle festivalerne var, at de i disse år arbejder med en masse nye tiltag og i et åbent modus for at tage platformens forpligtelser til sig. Og alt bliver afprøvet, vendt og drejet, for at få artist-omsorg, grønt ansvar og en god festival til at gå op, fordi, som Thomas Jepsen siger:
“Alle ideer tæller.”
Foto: Stine Rosemunte
