Eighteen significant music organisations have joined together in their support of a proposal that calls for the creation of a new federal music development agency by the Australian Government, in order for the “Australian contemporary music industry to rebuild and realise its local and global potential,” as stated in the Australian Contemporary Music Industry Joint Submission.

“Despite the enormous contribution of Australian contemporary music to our national identity, to education, our sense of community and GDP, no national government has developed a long-term vision for the industry,” the Joint Submission argues.

Photo by Vishnu R Nair from Pexels

The Joint Submission also emphasises the need for the federal implementation of a framework for “long-term investment and strategic focus” to support contemporary music in the face of the vulnerability of Australian musicians and performers that became rapidly apparent within a “constrained domestic market” during the closure and restriction of live music venues during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Supported by groups such as APRA AMCOS, the Australian Music Centre, ARIA and the National Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Music Office, the Submission outlines the...