Play-without-pay deal angers musicians union

Most musicians don’t expect to get rich, but many expect to at least get paid for their performances.

Some, however, are simply grateful to be on stage, to play before a crowd and expose their music to thousands.

Performers at the annual Fourth of July celebration at Riverfront Park in Spokane no longer get money for the gig. Although the musicians on stage aren’t complaining, the practice has rankled Local 105, the Professional Musicians of the Inland Northwest.

Organizers of the event are “exploiting these young musicians,” said Tina Morrison, the union’s secretary-treasurer. “If Spokane and this area don’t support these musicians by giving them some sort of financial compensation, we’re going to lose them. They’ll have to move to Portland or Seattle to make any sort of living in the music industry.”

Bands and musicians used to get paid for their performances at Riverfront Park’s Independence Day festivities, she said. That came to an end last year, when Clear Channel Radio took over, and the Spokane American Music Festival turned into Neighbor Day.

None of the musicians in the seven local bands performing on the main stage is a member of Local 105, so the union can’t ask them not to perform, said Morrison. However, she and others believe Clear Channel is taking advantage of the musicians. Morrison, who has written e-mail to the media and local government officials, wants the city of Spokane – which contracts with Clear Channel to organize Neighbor Day – to force the company to pay performers.

But several musicians scheduled to play Sunday afternoon said the money doesn’t matter. Although most declined to be identified, they said they were thrilled to get the chance to sell their CDs and be exposed to such a large crowd.

“It’s an opportunity to play,” said Joe Welk, one of the three members of a reggae-jazz-funk band known as Melefluent. The band, which has a gig Sunday evening in Coeur d’Alene, is using the Riverfront Park performance as a warm-up. “It’s always nice to get paid for a show, but we don’t mind with this type of event. It’s the Fourth of July. There should be lots of people.”

The Sunday lineup, which begins at noon, includes Civilized Animal, a popular band in Spokane. According to one band member, the group agreed to perform free simply for the exposure. Later in the evening, the U.S. Air Force Band will be on the main stage.

Although the bands won’t get money for their performances, they’ll be compensated in other ways, said Kosta Panidis, general manager of Clear Channel Radio. Besides playing in an attractive venue, the bands receive promotional air time on six radio stations – advertising that’s valued at about $1,500 to $3,000.

Clear Channel was one of only two groups that submitted proposals two years ago when the city was looking for a new organization to take over the celebration.

It will cost Clear Channel about $50,000 to sponsor this year’s event, Panidis said.

The company has received sponsorship support from Pawn 1, Alton’s Tire and Tomlinson Black and about $6,500 from the city of Spokane. But the list of expenses is long, Panidis said. Among them is a $5,000 bill for security, an expense that the Spokane Police Department has agreed to share. Panidis said four of his 65 employees have worked full time to get the event together. Twenty to 25 more will be involved Sunday.

“We are 100 percent liable for putting on the event,” Panidis said. “Our company took this project on at a great risk to us.”

Panidis said Clear Channel looked to get as much help as it could get, and the musicians volunteered. Their assistance is no different from the work done by volunteers at Bloomsday or Hoopfest, he said.

Panidis, a musician who plays in a classic-rock band called Java Kola, said it’s not uncommon for bands to play free of charge for the sake of exposure.

Morrison said the practice shows that musicians’ talent and work aren’t valued. The union, which has existed for 104 years and has more than 200 members, wants to make sure that all musicians – even those who don’t belong to it – receive fair compensation.

According to the union’s guidelines, each musician should receive at least $75 for up to three hours of work. Other events make sure performers are paid, she said, and Neighbor Day should be no different.

“Any musician deemed to be of the quality to provide live entertainment featured on the main stage should be paid,” she said. “We cannot be silent while a major corporation and the city show such disrespect to musicians.”