The Union of Musicians and Allied Workers has published an open letter calling for higher pay for artists performing at SXSW. The letter says that over the past 10 years, showcasing artists have been paid either $250 dollars for a band, $100 dollars for solo artists, or get a free wristband for the festival. Letter organizer René Kladzyk (artist name: Ziemba) talks about the list of demands. Alaia D’Alessandro of the Seattle band Tres Leches talks about the prevalence of getting paid $250 at festivals, so much so, her band wrote a song about it called, “Two-Fifty.”

Meanwhile, two types of Visas that international artists use to perform in the US could cost around 250% more under a proposal from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Rosalyn Dennett, Executive Director of Folk Music Ontario, and Liana White, Executive Director of the Canadian Federation of Musicians talk about how these proposed changes could impact foreign musicians and U.S.-based venues.

A link for public comment: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/01/04/2022-27066/us-citizenship-and-immigration-services-fee-schedule-and-changes-to-certain-other-immigration#open-comment

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Morkeh Blay

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