The Impact of COVID-19 on Musicians

For many people, Covid-19 has caused some of their favorite activities such as sports and live performances to come to a halt because of orders put in place by the governor. One thing in particular that has been missed by many is live music. Live music is not only missed by audience members but by the musicians themselves. Going from performing and having an audience there to cheer you on, to not being able to perform at all would be strenuous regardless of the pandemic. Despite Covid-19, many musicians have been able to expand and continue building their music, including students at Dana.

Dana student Sage Escalante used to perform frequently before the pandemic, and when she had to stop singing live she was “heartbroken, but it was also a blessing in disguise because it gave [her] opportunities to work on [her] songwriting and produce [her] own music.” More time at home allowed her to spend more time creating music and improving her talents. Many musicians have had extra time to spend working on their craft, causing them to grow as artists and perfect their craft.

We live in an age of technology where we can live stream, post and share our music everywhere with a few clicks of a button. With these kinds of outlets, musicians are able to keep in touch with their audience and continue sharing music safely from home. Escalante says “[she] hasn’t done a lot of live streaming though [she] has done some, [she] likes posting music.” Sharing music in these sorts of ways helps keep people stay connected despite the physical distance apart.