This month’s catch up…
Nile Rodgers will curate this
summer’s Meltdown festival,
the annual event at London’s
Southbank Centre.
The festival, which was founded
in 1993, has been overseen by
figures including David Bowie,
Patti Smith, Yoko Ono, and Scott
Walker.
The Chic singer will produce
a “hand-picked line-up of show-
stopping music, art and free
events” from 3 -11 August at the
Royal Festival Hall and other
Southbank Centre venues.
“To be able to curate and
produce nine days of live music
for the city of London, the UK and
music enthusiasts visiting from
all over the world is truly a dream
06
come true,” Rodgers said.
“Anyone who knows my career
knows that funk, disco, jazz,
soul, classical, pop, new wave,
R&B, fusion, punk rock, afrobeat,
electronic and dance music all play
a role and you can expect that to
be reflected in the performances
we are planning. It’s all about the
groove and this August everyone
in London will be dancing to
incredible live performances!”
Rodgers wrote tracks including
Chic’s Good Times, and produced
the hits He’s The Greatest Dancer
and We Are Family for Sister
Sledge, in addition to producing
the albums Let’s Dance for David
Bowie and Like A Virgin for
Madonna.
Burning Man blasts
commercial exploitation
After becoming a global phenomenon, Burning Man
is taking steps to protect its founding principles.
The festival’s ethos, originally, was that those
that make the trek to its home in Black Rock City,
Nevada contribute to the event. It lists ‘gifting’,
‘decommodification’, ‘communal efforts’ and ‘radical
self-reliance’ among its values.
As such, the increase in ‘concierge camps’ buying
blocks of tickets has been seen as antithetical to its
cause. Burning Man’s pre-sale, will now be moved
until after the directed group sale, which is for
attendees who are “key contributors to Black Rock
City.”
The application-based ‘Low Income Ticket
Program’ will also grow by 18%. Elsewhere, the
organisation is also reducing the number of high-
priced tickets available by 30%
“Higher-priced tickets will now be limited to two
per person instead of four per high-priced tier, and
buyers in what was formerly the “Pre-Sale” will no
longer be able to participate in subsequent public
sales,” Goodell said.
The limited sale will also be eliminated. For the
past two years, this allowed people to purchase
$1,200 tickets. Goodell also called out the increasing
numbers of social media influencers and sponsored
attendees who use the event’s image to commercially
gain through social media posts.
“Whether it’s commercial photo shoots, product
placements, or Instagram posts thanking ‘friends’ for
a useful item, attendees including fashion models and
social media ‘influencers’ are wearing and tagging
brands in their playa photos,” Goodell wrote in a
post. “This means they are using Black Rock City to
increase their popularity; to appeal to customers and
sell more ‘stuff’.”