We all wish to be at a live concert right now basking in the glory of a live concert. But unfortunately, we are adjusting to our current situation.

Higher Ground founder and Co-owner Alex Crothers tells us that the performing arts sector is on a long and bleak road. Higher ground has been a staple in Vermont for several years, even they had to conform to the pandemic rescheduling more than 100 shows this year. Now they are hosting events from drive-in movies to concerts at the Champlain Valley Expo. And they’re helping build a lot more of the local scene with those drive-in concerts. Crothers says it gives them a platform to reconnect with their audience and also make a little bit of money.

Not only did venues have to reconfigure their 2020 plans, but so did artists. R&B group Dwight and Nicole played the drive-in experience at Higher Ground on the Fourth of July and they were very hopeful that the concert could eventually come together. But like almost all musicians during the current pandemic, Dwight and Nicole had to find ways to connect with fans outside of performing.
Dwight Ritcher says that the model has changed for how to be a musician. Especially getting streaming to be more of a viable way to express yourself and most importantly, to connect to the fans.

Virtual shows were the big thing early in the pandemic. Multimedia music conglomerate Electric Hawk has been leading the charge in providing live music and entertainment through virtual means, but they’ve also been helping artists and various other communities.
Electric Hawk CEO Dariel Levia says the donations of events like Harmony Music festival, go to the artists to supplement their income. Levia says the Electric Hawk team decided they wanted to help and support different communities like the LGBTQ+ community and the Black Lives Matter movement. So the team was matching every donation that was coming through to support the artists and giving those donations to reclaim the block which supports the black lives matter movement.

With the year 2020 basically going virtual. We really don’t know when we’ll head back to our stages. But the bigger question is will we ever head back?