Access All Areas, reported that the Black Lives in Music (BLiM), has presented evidence to the London Assembly showing that racial prejudice in event licensing remains a major problem and continues to significantly impact the night-time economy and create barriers for BAME artists and promoters.

BLiM has been commissioned by the GLA, Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime, and The Musicians’ Union (MU) to research the impact of policies and interactions with the police, councils, venues and promoters on Black, Asian and ethnically diverse music events. Charisse Beaumont, BLiM’s CEO, shared some initial findings with the Assembly.

Beaumont said:

“In one case a large venue called an artist on the day of the event to say they had researched them on the internet and they play hip hop. They feared they would lose their licence, so cancelled the performance. There are other stories of large venues receiving calls from the police advising them to stop a performance. Imagine a small venue or promoter receiving that call, who don’t have the contacts with police and councillors to object. This is what Black and Brown entrepreneurs, promoters and artists face every single day.

“There are serious barriers to being an entrepreneur for certain communities. There was a Bollywood event that was closed down by a licensing officer, just because they could. The organisers lost months of revenue and it destroyed their lives.”

“Black and Brown people have a right to work – how much are these cancellations costing the night-time economy?”

BLiM and the MU wrote to the Mayor of London last year to raise their concerns about barriers in the industry. In response, the Mayor, Night Czar, BLiM, the MU and LIVE established The Race Equality in Music Event Licensing (REMEL) project to take action. The research will be used by REMEL to develop recommendations and work with all partners as part of their London Race Action Plan to identify best practice, share learning and take action.