Report: Madison's music scene primed for growth if given needed support

MADISON, Wis. — Partnerships between local businesses and Madison’s music scene, paired with a dedicated music office run by the city, are among some of the recommendations included in a recovery plan shared by one of Madison’s chief music advocacy groups.

Greater Madison Music City — a group that works to make Madison’s music scene more equitable for each part of the ecosystem — released its Music Recovery Framework on Thursday during an event at Cafe Coda.

Rob Franklin, GMMC’s vice chair, said the group’s goal was to bring more public attention to the needs of artists and business leaders alike.

“How do we come to the city, how do we get enough support within the city to say, ‘Hey this is something that’s really needed.’ I think that’s kind of the purpose of the report in itself is to start to build that momentum,” Franklin said. “We’ve done the case studies, and we can prove that there’s a need for some of these things. I think the biggest thing is to start generating more communal support.”

Findings from a report analyzing the Madison area’s music scene point to several areas ripe for improvement, including more direct support from the city.

Franklin said a city office dedicated to supporting the scene — which would serve as a resource for entrepreneurs, venues, and local and visiting artists, among others — would greatly help everyone with ties to the music scene reach their potential.

Also included in the report’s findings were data points showing white workers in the music sector make more than twice as much annually as their Black and Asian American counterparts. Franklin said that’s in large part due to a lack of opportunity for those less represented communities. In order to do that, businesses with ties to the sector — bars and restaurants with music, music stores, educational spaces, and more — will need to be intentional about hiring people with diverse backgrounds.

“There’s huge potential to be more inclusive in this town,” Franklin said. “Let’s just say that to start. I feel that way.”

Franklin pointed to GMMC’s annual MadLit event — an outdoor music showcase that prominently features artists of color who might otherwise not have opportunities to perform in a public setting — as proof that making space for is possible.

There are opportunities to make space for local artists in existing spaces too, Franklin said.

While many larger acts that come to Madison bring their own tour support when playing at the city’s most prominent venues (most of which are owned by Frank Productions), Franklin said venues offering up space for local acts to perform in the time between doors opening and the scheduled show start would be a great way to connect artists with venues.

That, in turn, could give artists from underrepresented communities more chances to perform while further expanding the city’s music audience. That’s got added benefits for all who work in the city’s music scene, too.

None of that happens, though, if the city and decision-makers don’t take a chance, Franklin said.

“I think Madison has already come to the understanding that there is work to do,” Franklin said. “Now it’s time to do the work.”