Recommendation to receive and file a presentation from Catapult, a live-streamed concert for artists and creators in Long Beach.
Actually, actually, you know what, Madam Court, let me do I have a request from Councilmember Pearce, and it is it is her last meeting. So we're going to we're going to take items 31 and 34. Next item 31 recommendation to receive and file presentation from Catapult. Councilor Pearce. Thank you so very much. This is an item that was brought over from the last meeting that we had. So Catapult is a new organization that does livestreaming concerts for artists and creators in the city of Long Beach. They are new, newly formed and particular focus on these difficult times with COVID and trying to give a platform and be able to support artists all the way around. And so if they are here, I believe you have a location. That's correct. Yeah, I have a presentation on foot. Unfortunately, I'm not able to share my screen so I don't have a PowerPoint, but I will go into a brief overview of what we're doing. First, I'd like to offer my thanks to the Council and to Mayor Garcia for allowing me to speak today. I know we're all really tired and we've talked a lot, but I'll keep this as brief as I can. So my name is Donovan Brown, and I really miss live music. I miss the feeling of being on stage, the feeling of connecting a roomful of strangers in that profoundly temporary experience we call a concert. I grew up on the border of Compton and North Long Beach. I'm a District one resident, and I'm proud to call the city my home. I've been a working musician here for over a decade and it's led me to some of the most transformative experiences of my life. I like playing live after five at the Legendary Breakers Hotel before it closed down or putting on a Pink Floyd tribute with the late, great Josh Fishell. If you remember him back in 2016 or more recently competing in Busker Fest for the first time. And we did win that my band when that sounds kind of cool so those those names and places might not mean anything to you but to me they remind me that Long Beach has a rich history shaped by our diversity and our creativity, and I'm fortunate to be a part of it. First off, I'd like to thank the Health and Human Services Department for making the difficult decisions in the interest of public safety that save lives but often negatively impact our local businesses. It's a difficult position to be in, and I do not envy you, but my heart goes out to all of you and all the medical workers that are keeping us safe. COVID 19 has undeniably devastated the US economy and with it the live music industry. The harsh reality is that 90% of music venues nationwide will shut their doors for good within the next two months without a government stimulus. And Long Beach is no exception. As you know, bars and music venues are among those designated lowest priority, these reopening phases. And most don't have any idea when they'll be able to reopen or for how long. So as COVID cases continue to spike, venues all over the country are faced with an uncertain future, and the touring industry is at a standstill. On December 27th, all music workers receiving unemployment insurance will get their last check for pandemic unemployment assistance. And without an extension over 12 million, 1099 workers will be unable to survive. Now, there's already a strong national push to get the save our stages and restart bills through Congress to get much needed funds to these dying venues. But with PARTIZAN politics impeding the progress, a bailout is unlikely, leaving musicians with between a rock and a hard place pretty much once since a million streams on Spotify nets you about 30 $200, and opportunities for publishing and placements are very limited. In the absence of a government bailout, artists have been forced to find innovative ways to monetize their art and in some cases, increase their brand values by selling merch, partnering with brands, hosting virtual concerts. Artists are finding ways to weather the pandemic, whether signed or independent. All artists will ultimately need to find a pandemic proof way to translate their live shows into engaging virtual content that they can monetize. The unfortunate reality is that most don't have the funds or resources to do that effectively. I started researching this about six months ago when I realized that I'd lost all my gigs and a half of my income to COVID 19. I realized that the industry was changing and that I had to change with it. Catapult is both the answer and the future. What we're providing is a subscription based streaming platform for the creators, curators and consumers of live music. Visually stunning, highly curated virtual concerts will be filmed at traditional and nontraditional venues in both indoor and outdoor spaces and then streamed on the Catapult platform. Let's say my band, Black Boys, wanted to play a kind of full concert. We would choose our subscription level based on our venue needs and our budget, and we'd register a date for one of our quarterly concerts. We set our own ticket prices and we would split the ticket and streaming revenue with the catapult platform 70% to us, 30% to the platform. We could get access to free resources and workshops on how to learn how to grow our fanbase. We get additional perks as we hit different metrics. For example, we get $100 in Google ad credits for reaching a thousand subscribers or for referring a friend. After all, our after all our costs are covered, that 30% of profit will be right back into the catapult platform, will expand to new venues, add more artists and crew to the roster at cool new features to the platform, and add community driven outreach programs to provide support to the underserved. Because we're not profit driven, but people driven. Each concert we host in the platform will include a donation link so the viewers can directly support the venues and the artists that they love at the same time. If a venue is nontraditional, like a park or a public space, a portion of the proceeds would go to a local charity or community organization in need of support. Music has always been the great connector. It's the universal language unites us in a way that no other medium can. And that's why we love it. And that's. Spirit. We are going to build this platform to make every Catapult concert as interactive as possible. Artists will perform live and their fans will be offered unique ways to engage with those shows in real time. When venues reopen will stream socially distanced concerts and eventually full blown festivals to music lovers all over the world when things reopen. So far, we've partnered with Shannon's Corner to bring Its Lonely at the Top, which is an immersive virtual showcase series to the heart of downtown Long Beach. We've also linked up with Rand Foster, who owns Fingerprints Record Shop. So we're launching a tiny desk style series focused on stripped down performances and deejay sets. And as you might guess, we'll be shooting at Fingerprints Record Shop. Our biggest production would be a monthly drive in concert with the. So I've been talking with my friend Craig Hutchison, the president of the Beehive, and he's helped me to get the parking lot at the Long Beach Convention Center to do drive in concerts. So we have three flagship events that we're ready to launch, and we have a talented team of engineers, curators, set designers, and some Grammy Award winning artists who have expressed interest in helping out this platform to bring stunning virtual concerts. The Olympics will showcase venues like Alex's Bar and Piazza, along with parks and public spaces like Highland Park and the Museum of Latin American Art. We're going to continue to activate spaces all over the city new location based matching system to connect qualified engineers, stylists, set designers, session musicians and more with nearby Catapult Productions. All prospective crew would need to do is upload their resume a list of gear that they own and the equipment they're familiar with. And we'll find productions that master skillset will be able to get the people that make the touring industry run back to work in their own communities. The cost of operating and maintaining a platform like Catapult are significant, but we're taking a measured approach to our rollout, and we've set incremental crowdfunding goals to reach each milestone as we continue to activate Long Beach landmarks and generate buzz around the platform to unveil new features to the platform and introduce our first featured artists. Now, we've already got a few of these organizations that pledge their support, and I'm asking each of your offices to do the same. Any financial contribution you can give would be a huge help, and we'll gladly accept the contributions. But the average cost shoot one catapult concert at our current scale is about $2,000, and that's with all the staff and artists working on a pro-rated basis. We're asking each of your offices to sponsor just one catapult concert using funds from your divided by nine budgets to help ensure that live music lives on in Long Beach. If you're able to contribute more, we're glad they appreciate it and your generosity will have a tremendous impact. I'd also humbly ask that each of your offices reach out to your constituents via email, sharing our message and our mission to the residents of Long Beach. We love live music. I have a newsletter drafted and we can send it out and we really do have an opportunity to come together and show the world that Long Beach is a place where we innovate, the place we build sustainably and we take care of our own. It's a place where we hold each other accountable. We value our differences, and we know that we're stronger together than we could ever be apart. I believe the catapult is the future of live music in the face of a global pandemic. This initiative can and will revitalize the music scene in Long Beach and usher in a new standard in commerce and community building. With your support, we can not only save our stages, we can do a lot of good for a lot of people. So let's make the most of this moment in time and give the people a reason to hope again. Thank you so much for listening. If you have any questions, I'd be happy to take them. Thank you, Councilor Pearce. I just wanted to say thank you so very much. I know that music is important to so many of us on this council and we've all supported different music events. There is a PowerPoint that we will email out to each of the council members. I'm sorry that that didn't get up. But I encourage all of you to reach out to them and think about them. I know. Council Member Richardson. You always do your uptown, so possibly there's some partnership there. I ask for everybody's support for this presentation. Thank you. Control rooms and a house. Thank you, Mayor. And I am just so grateful to Councilwoman Pearce for bringing this item forward. Mr. Brown, I am so excited to hear about your catapult and so excited to hopefully partner with you and support your efforts. Like one of my nieces says, who who is also an artist, little Mary. She says that medicine. I'm sorry. That music is the medicine to our mental health. And right now we need that kind of medicine more than ever before. And so I thank you for your creativity and for your passion to be able to support our artists who are most definitely suffering and struggling more than ever during this pandemic. I just want you to know that I am absolutely committed to any effort by this council that can help those who are struggling. And I'm glad that we're looking for innovative solutions to meet our needs right now. So thank you again. Council Pierce Thank you, Mr. Brown, for that wonderful, uplifting presentation at almost midnight. I needed that lift. Thank you very much again. And I'm so very supportive of this. Thank you so much. Does your any public comment on that item? Yes. Our first speakers j u you sent us. Hello. Yes. Please begin. Is that. Right? Hello and good evening. Council members and Mayor Garcia. My name is Jamie Santos and I am a. Resident of Council District eight and I would like to express my support for catapult. The already fragile. Ecosystem of live music and entertainment venues are in even more. Peril. The opportunities for venues and artists to pivot into a sustainable. Business model to endure the pandemic are few and far between. The Catapult team is focused, focusing in on an overlooked section of Long Beach growing up in Long Beach. Are growing up in an. Artistic city like Long Beach. There are many venues that showcase the amazing. Talent that Long Beach has raised. What catapults will provide is a way to. Keep live music going. By utilizing technology with Catapult. Focusing in on this specific. Aspect of Long Beach. The city will be able to focus on other aspects of rebuilding and healing after the COVID 19 crisis. We must do what we can to catapult. These venues and artists in a position to. Live and thrive post-pandemic. Thank you for your time and I yield my time. Think your next speaker is Danielle Brown. Danielle Brown. Good people. Yes, I'm here. Good evening. I would also like to fully endorse the catapult. I think it's just an innovative solution to a very difficult and challenging problem as we enter the 10th month of the pandemic. We are still not quite seeing an end and the impacts are untold. I am an educator here in Long Beach and I grew up here as well. I just know that an initiative like this will have untold benefits for the youth as well as for the artists right now. And I think that we desperately need some support and some solutions for them right now. And I artists are just one small overlooked or one large overlooked portion of the the essential makeup and fabric of our city. Thank you. Thank you. That concludes public comment for the Senate. Roll call vote, please. District one. I district to. I. District three. District four, District five. District seven. District seven. Hi. District eight to get it. Yes. Taking. We recorded District seven, District eight. All right. District nine. By. Motion carries. Thank you. And item 34. Well.