New Touring Grants Unveiled For WA Artists

It’s well established that WA’s musical talent pool runs deep, and while it’s become easier for upcoming artists to score national and international praise from Perth, touring costs still stop a lot of great talents from truly making their mark.

That’s where Otherside Brewing Co come to the rescue, with the announcement of two annual touring grants under the banner Tapped By Otherside, which has already helped Fremantle rising stars Koi Child get to SXSW earlier this year.

The significant grants include the Australian Touring Grant ($5,000) and the International Development Grant ($2,500), the latter of which Koi Child picked up.

“These funds were essential in getting us to SXSW and the US, giving us a platform to take our career to the next level,” Koi Child frontman Shannon Cruz Patterson said.

It was the success of Koi Child’s US trip that saw Otherside Brewing Co. formalise the program and add the national aspect.

“Having been a part of the music and culture business for many years, we recognise the decline in funding available to musicians in Australia,” Otherside Brewing Co.’s Julian Tompkin said.

“The biggest obstacle for emerging bands and artists today is the prohibitive cost of touring – which is now the most essential means in developing a viable music career. Otherside is committed to backing emerging talent and helping them to take their music to wider audiences.”

While its inaugural year will be exclusively for WA artists, Tapped By Otherside has plans to expand applications Australia-wide in 2018 with a vision to fund other creative platforms.

Entries for the 2017 National Touring Grant for West Australian musicians close in just under a month on June 16 at COB, with the recipient, as decided by a panel of music industry professionals, revealed on June 30.

Otherside Brewing Co. came to life in 2015, established by the founders of Sunset Events - the same team that operates Southbound, Laneway WA and more.

Head to the Tapped By Otherside website for more details.