Ten Years of the Canadian Live Music Association: A love letter to the live music community
Dear CLMA family,
Did you know that….
…on November 7th, 2014, the Canadian Live Music Association was incorporated. Originally known as “Music Canada Live” until 2019, it was the summer of ’14 when a group of live music leaders got together and decided it was time. Time for the business to start telling its own story in its own way… the story of clubs and venues, of festivals, concert halls and arenas, the story of agents and suppliers… to, ultimately, put incredible artists on stage for passionate fans. This gang of independents, non-profits, and large companies – some of whom had never met before – joined forces, threw money in the pot, and took the first steps to launch an association that would, for the first time ever, represent and champion their priorities, and their direct impact. They wanted to support the business development of the sector. They believed in convening the community. They wanted to influence policy – policy that didn’t just acknowledge their existence, but that appreciated how their own sustainability, health, and capacity directly affected the whole of the music industry ecosystem itself, not to mention the Canadian economy.
At the very first meeting of the founding board (which took place in a meeting room in Roy Thomson Hall, in Toronto), fifteen visionary live music leaders sat around a table and hammered out a mission statement, which remains the same to this day: to entrench live music’s economic, cultural, and social value and create the conditions for concerts to thrive.
They knew that to achieve that mission, the CLMA would need to be a big tent. That it had to welcome and represent the industry’s spectrum of companies and organizations, all of whom were situated somewhere on the continuum. They agreed that the “ecosystem” wasn’t just the story, it was the priority.
And so, it began. The CLMA team have been here since that day, telling that story - your story, inspired by the board (and those who have followed), and especially by you, our members, knowing that more live music doesn’t just make our world a better place, it can make the unbearable bearable. I used to say this all the time, “more live music good, less live music bad”. But… it’s more than that. It’s more than bottom lines and bums in seats. It’s about beauty, shared experience, and life-changing moments with our musical heroes. And that beauty is exactly what you facilitate.
We have been through a lot together and we are achieving what we set out to accomplish. But, as always, there is much, much more to do. Of all the lessons I have personally learned in this role, without hesitation, it is that this industry is stronger together. There is no way we would have survived the pandemic to the extent we did if we hadn’t spoken with a united voice – and this will always be true, no matter what challenge we are facing.
It’s like… the last ten years have set the stage for our first world tour… the CLMA is your road manager, and you’re the band. We’re not just going to sell a lot of tickets (because we are), we are going to change the world.
You already have.
Here is to the future…. Happy 10th Anniversary, #ForTheLoveOfLive.
- Erin Benjamin (President & CEO), and the team at the CLMA.