During the first couple of months of Russian aggression in Ukraine, we had no concerts in the country because of the obvious reasons: obscurity around and security. Over the course of summer, people were trying to build a ‘new normal’ in the current situation – trying to do the test events in the subway stations. Because they are safe deep underground and have great acoustics.
You probably have heard that U2’s Bono and Edge were playing a surprise gig there, numerous Ukrainian artists played solo concerts there and even the winter season of the local TV show ‘The Voice’ was filmed in Kyiv underground.
During the autumn of 2022 and the beginning of this year, local promoters and music enthusiasts started organizing small-scale gigs. Small, because when you have an event for 200 people, you have to have a bomb shelter right next to it for 200 people, so when the alarm siren starts, over the course of a couple of minutes you can evacuate all of them. The electronic community in Ukraine also found a way to continue their activities – the world-known Kyiv techno club ‘Closer’ even does music festivals – starting early in the morning and finishing in the evening. The reason for that is the curfew in all cities that we have during the nighttime, so no events are allowed then. So yes, you have got it right – rave parties during the daylight. It’s possible and still entertaining. And now you finally have an excuse to wear those fancy sunglasses while dancing to look cool.
Also, a lot of Ukrainian artists are trying to support Armed Forces of Ukraine and go to play acoustic concerts for our brave people. The frontman of one of the biggest Ukrainian rock bands, Svyatoslav Vakarchuk every couple of months goes to the frontline to make what he can best.
All of those events are taking place not because of the wish to have fun, but because of a clear humanitarian need – every single event happening now in Ukraine and abroad is not for business, but to raise donations to help those in need. Besides, it’s crucially important to keep the economy moving, keep the working places and own teams active. Not to mention such well- forgotten words as ‘mental health’, which does not exist in our reality anymore. It’s rather an important activity to stay sane.
The most extreme example of the bravery of Ukrainian artists we can see in the recent tour ‘Кортур’ (from Ukrainian: сontour), meaning playing along the contour of the frontline, therefore the name. It was prepared in the form of the concert by Stas Korolov and spoken word performance ‘war- някання’ by Anton Slepakov and Andrii Sokolov. They were the first people with cultural events visiting recently de-occupied regions of Ukraine after many months of Russian horrors. Extreme security measures, totally destroyed cities. But that was totally worth it at that exact moment when the old lady came to the artist’s team: “People, you are totally crazy that you have come here with the concert! It is insane! But finally, for the first time in many months, I feel alive!” – they shared in social media afterward.
Luckily for us, international acts are starting to come back to Ukraine: we just had The Tiger Lillies who dedicated an album to Ukraine and played 2 sold-out shows in Lviv and Kyiv, UK’s London Elektricity came to play a set in July, Luxembourg-born singer-songwriter Rome played a couple of times here and continuously supports humanitarian needs at the spot. All of that gives a good sign for the foreign agents, that promoters are at place, and the audience is active, so with the proper preparation concerts in Ukraine are possible.
Considering the role of the artists, it has definitely changed now. It is the logical social position of musicians to be active now – not depending on their status or the size of the audience. This situation united many of us. Some of the musicians went to the army (such as Andriy Khlyvniuk from Bombox band as the major artist on local scene or singer-songriter Sasha Boole from a super niche genre), some are volunteering or doing social projects like ONUKA, some are playing concerts home and abroad to raise awareness and money for the help such as live industry titans DakhaBrakha. It’s actually a very important public diplomacy mission as well. People are tired of news and war in general, but through music and personal stories ready to listen and support. Ukraine is well known for its massive volunteer movement. Artists are not an exception. Every single person can and should complement the mutual victory. This is exactly the mood we all have in the creative community.
All musicians and artists from Ukrainian are fighting at the cultural front now as well – against imperialism, against disinformation, for the opportunity to be heard for the very first time internationally and not let people forget about war crimes just around the corner. It’s vitally necessary now to be vocal and visible to survive. For instance, the social media of Ukrainian prog-rock band Stoned Jesus now are partly a war diary, because the band would like to raise awareness about current events and tell their side of the story. It pisses off some of the fans, who say that they would rather play music and shut up. But music is still political, you know?
DJ Daria Kolomiec is playing super rare Ukrainian music from 60s and 70s, which was banned and buried in history by Soviets, as an opportunity to dig deeper into the creative power of our cultural heritage and remind us about war. This year she played ESNS, one of the most influential showcase festivals in Europe and have been featured in The New York Times to make sure her message is heard.
Such emerging acts as Love’n’Joy, recording studio Shpytal records, promo agency kontrabass. promo founded a charity foundation Musicians Defend Ukraine. They play dozens of tours around the continent with their bands from the roster like Kurs Valut or Krapka;Koma to fundraise money
and buy the protective gear for fellow musicians, who are in the army now. So yes, now more than ever we have to be active internationally. As there can be no tomorrow.
Obviously, economically, the situation is extreme. People would rather donate some extra money for the security needs, rather than spend it on leisure. Therefore, pre-sales of the tickets are extremely low. The horizon of planning is for a couple of days in advance maximum as any time a new missile or drone attack can destroy another energy infrastructure. But we are ready for that as well now. The best present for the Ukrainian promoter is an electrical generator now. And yes, most of the concerts are played with them now. Even if the electricity is switched off, the audience will cover the artist anyway (just like at the famous concert of Ukrainian artists Artem Pivovarov).
Our organization Music Export Ukraine is an independent NGO, therefore we have much more flexibility than our foreign colleagues in state or business-owned export offices. We are helping to book Ukrainian artists to any festival or venue out there, who is interested in Ukrainian band (recommended list is here). We are talking to the sync agencies to help feature Ukrainian music in ads and films. Not only that, but we are doing numerous talks and concerts at the showcase conferences and festivals, we do exchange and educational projects with the international partners, fundraise money to support our team and pay scholarships to Ukrainian musicians, find jobs for Ukrainian music-related people all around the world via our network and trusted contacts.
Sometimes I feel that now we are kind of not-for-profit Mega-label and Ministry of Music altogether. Those are obviously not export office functions. But all those requests we are getting, show the need and interest in Ukrainian music abroad. Therefore, we are happy to be the contact point for the international community in their search for Ukrainian music for their event or project to make sure that our voice is heard.
To give an overview of the range of projects we do and can cooperate with, I’d like to highlight the most important ones for our team over the last 1.5 years:
“Music is an answer” project – a unique opportunity for Ukrainian musicians to run joint projects with their foreign colleagues. It was implemented within the framework of the EU-funded MusicAire grant program.
To participate in the Camp, Ukrainian non-academic musicians of any genre and scale submitted applications with an overview of their creative idea and budget. All who passed technical and creative selection have received 1,000 euros for the implementation of their projects. Overall, the program supported 25 international cooperations: joint songs and remixes, performances, and collaborations with foreign producers, music studios, and labels, which were well-covered both in Ukrainian and foreign media. As a result of these collaborations, Rolling Stone DE wrote highlighted one of the tracks, Spotify supported the premiere in “New Music Friday” playlists in 7 different countries simultaneously, legendary UK journalists included tracks from the collabs into their compilations, etc.
Presentation of Ukrainian artists at showcase festivals and conferences. Organisation supported and run the following partnership activations with the business focus: Reeperbahn Festival, WOMEX, Waves Vienna, Viva Sounds, BIME PRO!, Mama Music, Music x Media, Live at Heart, Andalucia Music Forum, ILMC, pop, but the most powerful presentation was at ESNS 2023, wrere:
7 Ukrainian bands and artists played fully-packed shows in front of professional audiences, media representatives, and music fans. Congratulations to Love’n’Joy, Chillera, Krapka;KOMA, JERRY HEIL, Kurs Valüt, Alina Pash, Daria Kolomiec for the great shows! We hope they will accelerate your career development in the upcoming years!
Besides that, Alina Pash hosted the award show of EU’s Music Moves Europe Awards, where Jerry Heil got the special Public choice awards from the audience.
Along with that, Всеукраїнська Асоціація Музичних Подій UAME received The Take A Stand Award on European Festival Awards as one of the best social projects of the previous year.
During the conference time, MEU had an opportunity to lead a specially devoted thematic discussion, «Undiscovered Ukraine: what do you have to know about the music scene of the brave nation?», get some insights and predictions during «Metal music in Eastern Europe: stronger than ever?», have a personal talk with Igor Sydorenko (Stoned Jesus) during the Beer Crate Session, participate in futuristic talks by IMMF, numerous meetings with colleagues, partner projects and educational events. Also now, Music Export Ukraine is a happy member of ESNS exchange network, which gives us the opportunity to nominate our artists as the highlights of the program. This would give them more opportunities to be featured in international media and have more chances to be booked for European festivals.
Eastern European Music Academy – is a collaborative effort between Music Export Ukraine, RAW Music (Romania), and Lala Slovak Music Export (Slovakia) with the support of “Creative Europe” program, which offers a transformative three-month hybrid project designed exclusively for independent music professionals from Eastern and Central Europe, as well as the Baltic countries.
This exclusive program is designed for talented individuals aged 18-30 who are eager to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to excel in the music industry. Backed by renowned experts and esteemed organizations like Live Nation, Global Records, and experienced DIY companies, EEMA ensures a comprehensive learning experience that covers every aspect of the music business, from creative endeavors to strategic marketing. Over the course of 12 weeks, selected applicants will embark on a transformative journey. Through expert-led classes, tailored consultations and immersive networking opportunities, participants will acquire invaluable insights into the music business landscape.
Cooperation with European Radio Plugger. Thanks to that, 12 Ukrainian artists’ tracks were pitched to European radio stations in 2022. These artists, including AKINE, Bjelle & Krapka, Bohdan Kuper, Disappeared Completely, FO SHO, I Hate Myself Because, KALUSH, Love’n’Joy, Sasha Boole, The Hardkiss, The Unsleeping, and YuYu, have seen a significant increase in airtime
on European radio with over 8200 plays across 80+ stations in 20+ countries. This is a huge step forward for Ukrainian music and we couldn’t be more excited for these talented artists to continue making waves in the European scene.
Music Export Ukraine was founded in 2018 to help Ukrainian emerging artists establish connections, promote their music, and develop a career on the international level. The main objectives of the organization include sustainable artist support, expanding cross-sector collaborations, organizing accessible international exchange programs and educational events for emerging artists and music professionals. Our vision is to ensure the sustainable high capacity of the national music market, and to get Ukraine to the agenda of all key music industry events and programmes globally. We are partners of British Council Ukraine Selector Pro projects and delivery partners of the Ukrainian Institute in terms of Extra Sound programs.
At the moment, Music Export Ukraine runs supported by Creative Europe hybrid capacity building project Eastern European Music Academy, which aims to professionalize emerging artists from the whole region and help them to compete on the international level. Besides, the organization is part of a research action supported by Horizon Europe program and works on the topic of data gaps in the music industry.
Full projects list can be found here.
By Alona Dmukhovska