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Live Nation announces it will drop merch cuts and pay $1,500 stipend to all club acts

The concert promoter is partnering with Willie Nelson for a new program that hopes to save artists and crew 'tens of millions of dollars.'

A partnership with Willie Nelson, the new program hopes to save artists and crew 'tens of millions of dollars'

CBC Music ·
Willie Nelson, an older white man with long, braided grey hair, looks ecstatic wearing a red bandana on his head.
The program is named after Willie Nelson's hit song 'On the Road Again.' (Suzanne Cordeiro/AFP via Getty Images)

Live Nation, one of the world's biggest concert promoters, has partnered with American singer-songwriter and activist Willie Nelson for a program they're hoping will save artists and crews millions of dollars.

Titled On the Road Again after the Nelson-penned hit, the program aims to support the development of artists and crew at the club level by dropping Live Nation's cut of any merch sales at participating venues, and giving both headliners and openers a $1,500 stipend per show in "gas and travel cash," according to the program's website. 

"Touring is important to artists so whatever we can do to help other artists, I think we should do it," Nelson said on the site. "This program will impact thousands of artists this year and help make touring a little bit easier."

The announcement comes not quite a year after the launch of the #MyMerch campaign, where the Featured Artists Coalition, Union of Musicians and Allied Workers and rapper Cadence Weapon called on North American music venues and festivals to end the practice of taking merch cuts, which can vary wildly venue to venue.

"Touring is a crucial part of an artist's livelihood, and we understand travel costs take one of the biggest bites out of artists' nightly profits," Live Nation said via press release. "By helping with these core expenses, we aim to make it easier for artists on the road so they can keep performing to their fans in more cities across the country."

The program's website includes a list of venues that are participating, including the following Canadian ones:

  • Midway Music Hall (Edmonton)
  • Commodore Ballroom (Vancouver)
  • Danforth Music Hall (Toronto)
  • Kee to Bala (Bala, Ont.)
  • History (Toronto)
  • Opera House (Toronto)
  • Velvet Underground (Toronto)

Cadence Weapon responded to the announcement via Twitter, saying that it's a "great start."

According to the press release, the program will also provide financial bonuses to local promoters, tour reps and venue crew members who have worked more than 500 hours in 2023.

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