PPL has today announced it is donating £700,000 to three of the music industry’s hardship funds set up as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic: the Help Musicians Coronavirus Financial Hardship Funds (£500,000), the Musicians’ Union Coronavirus Hardship Fund (£100,000), and the AIM COVID-19 Crisis Fund (£100,000).
The Help Musicians Coronavirus Financial Hardship Fund, which in its first phase provides individual grants of £500, offers support to alleviate some of the immediate financial pressures being faced by professional musicians. Help Musicians initially made available £5 million for 10,000 applicants, has received over 17,000 applications and continues to welcome donations from companies across the music industry. PPL joins Amazon Music, Arts Council England, the Royal Society of Musicians and Spotify in donating to the fund. More information on the fund can be found here.
The Musicians’ Union Coronavirus Hardship Fund is offering grants of £200 to members of the Union experiencing pressing and genuine hardship from loss of work due to the pandemic. Full details on the Fund’s eligibility criteria and how to apply can be found here on the organisation’s website.
The AIM COVID-19 Crisis Fund, launched in early April, is aimed at contractors and freelance workers in the independent music industry whose source of income has been severed without warning due to lost work in April and May. It is open to any contractor due to work with new and developing artists currently signed to AIM member labels who has lost committed income because of cancelled projects and who does not qualify for other music industry hardship funds on offer. This critical part of the music industry ecosystem includes tour crews, studio producers, mixing engineers, radio pluggers, graphic designers, stylists, photographers, and publicists. Full details can be found here.
Commenting on PPL’s donation to the Funds, Peter Leathem, chief executive, PPL, said: ‘At PPL, we recognise the role of these Hardship Funds in providing a lifeline to those in the music industry who have been most impacted by the current crisis and we are delighted to be able to contribute to the funds established by Help Musicians, The Musicians’ Union and AIM to ensure financial support reaches those in need. This funding is vital for those who have lost their regular means of income and find it challenging to sustain their livelihood.’
If you would like to apply for PRS for Music’s Emergency Relief Fund, head here. If you would like to donate to the fund, you can do so here.
