Live Events Lift Up Festival To Stream From Ryman Auditorium

A free livestream benefit called Live Events Lift Up Festival will be held on Dec. 16 for the more than 12 million people affected by the shutdown of the live entertainment industry.

Scheduled to feature more than 25 artists and entertainers, LEVL Up Fest will stream from the historic Ryman Auditorium on the No Cap Shows platform. The artist lineup, sponsors and special performances will all be announced in the coming weeks. TOURtech, a Wi-Fi and public safety technology company is the supporting entity for the event. 

“We’ve seen depression and anxiety take hold across our community, loss of life due to suicide, families in fear of losing homes and generational small businesses closing their doors,” Shannon Cook, co-founder of LEVL UP Fest and CEO of TOURTech said in a statement.  “With large-scale gatherings not expected to return until mid to late 2021, workers across this industry face a very uncertain future.”

The event was organized by more than 30 industry professionals from organizations like Roadies of Color United, Event Safety Alliance, and We Make Events who formed an “Industry Council.” The nonprofit Show Makers is the philanthropic partner of the event and is facilitate all fundraising.

“In times of crisis, the entertainment and events industry have always stepped up with a call to action and so many incredible events like Live Aid and Farm Aid to the more recent Global Citizen events,” Eileen Valois, co-founder of LEVL UP Fest and Senior VP of Sports & Fan Entertainment told Pollstar.  “Behind the scenes of every one of those benefits are the millions of people in our workforce. The average concert requires nearly 500 people to make it possible, from concessions and security to tour bus drivers, technical crew and everyone in between. This is OUR crisis and now we need to take care of our own.”

The impact of COVID-19 on the live event industry – which normally has 12 million jobs – has been catastrophic, as the Department of Labor estimates 77% of the industry’s workers have lost 100% of their income.

Valois also participated in a Pollstar Live! Digital Session discussing the production industry’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.