Folk-punk singer Frank Turner is going to livestream his gig at a local pub in Huddersfield in support of a fundraiser. Pubs and clubs all across the UK had to close on March 20 due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, many of them have been struggling with this decision, just like independent bar and music venue The Parish in Huddersfield. On their crowdfunding page the pub announced that shutting down the venue for up to 12 weeks “is not something we would survive at all”, since The Parish doesn’t qualify for any government funding (yet).
On Thursday, at 8.30pm UK time, Frank Turner is going to perform a gig in front of the empty pub in order to raise money for the pub’s survival. In his announcement on Twitter he teases “a set of rarities and B-sides, lots of very deep cuts!”
This Thursday, 8.30pm UK time, #IndependentVenueLove Volume 6! Benefit for @ParishHudd in Huddersfield. A set of rarities and B-sides, lots of very deep cuts!
The fundraiser is here: https://t.co/hW4cwDckrR
Mark your diaries, see you there!#saveourvenues pic.twitter.com/YZTeN02Ul5
— Frank Turner (@frankturner) April 27, 2020
“My career exists because I was able to build it in these places and, given the situation that we’re all facing now, it seems like the very least I can do to try and repay that,” he said. Since the beginning of lockdown, Turner already played and streamed five benefit concerts from his home, each of them raising at least £10,000. Those benefits will go to venues in London, Southampton, Leicester, Winchester and Tunbridge Wells.
On Tuesday Turner announced via Twitter that he is now a part of Music Venue Trust’s Save Our Venues, an initiative, which aims to protect smaller UK venues from the coronavirus effects. With a heart-warming message on their website, Save Our Venues asks for help: “Without these venues the opportunities for artists and audiences to connect in a meaningful way at a local level will simply disappear in a lot of cases. And if they go they will never come back. Please help us to help grassroots music venues to survive this unprecedented threat to their existence”.
Come join us, raise a glass & celebrate all that everyone has achieved & a thank you to all of you who got behind us & donated. It's not too late to do so, link to CF here – https://t.co/CKcaQXWwXM
Frank live stream link – https://t.co/nLFtEuM1tXParish x
— The Parish (@ParishHudd) April 27, 2020
With a capacity of 170, The Parish is one of the smaller venues. Aaron Snowdown, a promoter for The Parish said that usually the pub would host about 200 shows yearly but given the current circumstances about 40 gigs had to be postponed or rescheduled. So far, the crowdfunding page has raised more than £30,000 but is hoping to gain more money with the support of the Frank Turner gig.
If you’d like to watch the live stream, tune in tomorrow at 8.30 pm UK time on Frank Turner’s Youtube channel. If you want to donate to The Parish check out their crowdfunding here.
