The coronavirus is hitting the music industry hard. Between the deluge of cancelled festivals, closing record shops, and the prospect that live music may not return until Autumn 2021, even just coming to terms with the potential fallout is turning into its own challenge.

Fortunately though, it’s not all doom ‘n gloom. Yesterday, the good folks at Record Store Day gave us a break in the weather, announcing a grassroots initiative designed to help keep our independent music shops afloat.

The initiative, called ‘Fill the Gap’, urges music lovers across the UK to pledge to buy at least one record this Saturday, which would have been the date of Record Store Day 2020. Saturday’s event has (for obvious reasons) been moved to 18th June. But despite the reschedule, RSD are encouraging fans to purchase an album online via one of several participating independent stores, therefore ‘filling the gap’ in your record collection left by the music you would have bought on Record Store Day.

In a show of support, BBC 6 Music are programming a range of shows and interviews that will celebrate the ingenuity and passion of our independent music shops, whilst OfficialCharts.com have created an interactive map of the UK through which you can find over 120 outlets who will send records straight to your doorstep. 

To take part in the campaign, use RSD’s store locator to find your nearest participating store before tagging them on social media alongside your pledged record with the hashtag #RSDFilltheGap.