As Mask and Vaccine Mandates Fall, Covid Rates Soar Among Touring Musicians
variety.comJem Aswad Senior Music EditorFrom the T.S.A. to the Coachella festival, from your local supermarket to your local music club, mask and vaccination mandates continue to fall across the country, in the face of all credible scientific evidence that yet another coronavirus surge is not only taking place, but raging.
Given that, it is not surprising that touring music artists are continuing to postpone dates as bandmembers or crew test positive.While no definitive figures exist, all one needs to do is look at social media to see dozens of postponed or canceled concerts or tours due to a bandmember or tour staffer testing positive.
That has been the case since touring began to return in earnest last summer, but there’s little question that the situation has grown worse in recent weeks — as noted in robustly reported articles from Pitchfork and the New York Times to musician Damon Krukowski’s “Dada Drummer” substack and, sadly, comments from countless artists who have been forced to postpone dates.
And in the wake of last weekend’s Coachella festival — the largest music festival in North America — it remains to be seen how many artists will have to cancel appearances at the second of the two-weekend event.
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