Government Backs Aus-First Independent Live Venues Alliance

A group of venues in South Australia have banded together to form the country’s first Independent Live Venues Alliance (ILVA).

As explained this morning (September 22) in a press release, the grassroots initiative “seeks to incorporate collaborative strategies and awareness campaigns to contribute to a thriving and sustainable original live music ecosystem in South Australia”.

It unites the owners and operators of three Adelaide CBD venues – Jive, the Grace Emily Hotel and the Broadcast Bar – with those of inner-metro venues The Governor Hindmarsh and The Wheatsheaf Hotel, as well as the Semaphore Workers Club and the Murray Delta Juke Joint on the Fleurieu Peninsula.

ILVA have already won the support of the SA government, having secured funding from its bespoke Music Development Office to launch the inaugural Everyday Festival. Named to champion the “everyday” of SA’s live music venues, the 14-gig program will run from Thursday October 19 to Sunday 22, spanning all seven of the aforementioned venues. You can see the full lineup below, with info on tickets available here.

In a press statement, Andrea Michaels – SA’s Arts Minister and Small & Family Business Minister – says the Malinauskas Government is “proud to support” the Everyday Festival, which she vouched “celebrates our state’s iconic live music venues”.

She continued: “We are Australia’s only UNESCO City of Music and our state’s live music venues do an incredible job allowing us to experience grassroots music.”

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On behalf of ILVA itself, Jade Flavell – owner and publican of The Wheaty – added to the conversation: “As Independent grassroots venues we’re facing the toughest period in our collective memory. The stakes are high – if one of us falls, it hurts us all. I am proud to be part of this nation-leading alliance and work with some of the best in the business to build a stronger and more equitable music scene”