Hi Jeff,
Despite my enthusiastic agreement last Thursday about launching Music Hamilton by August 31st I’ve had sober second thoughts and I must tell you that I can’t commit to this.
Yesterday I took the time to listen to the entire recorded session hosted by HCF where Tom Wilson and Kojo shared. I found Tom’s words telling. He basically said, “I don’t know what needs to be done.” Tom’s take on the situation is that artists must be the driving force; they make their own desperate way and they bring the songs and the stories to us. He wants us as “music industry people” to not forget the artist’s key role in being tellers of the city’s history.
I care and feel strongly about the music community and the music industry in Hamilton, but I can’t commit to forging a company with such lofty goals that seeks to become a significant force – in fact, the brand champion for Hamilton: City of Music – connecting people, producing events, achieving basic social justice steps and support for musicians, and boosting the industry. Not from zero. Not with two people and zero capital. If we are really talking about starting, funding, shaping and growing a corporation that is meant to be big in five or ten years, I don’t see how.
Maybe it’s too soon?
I am not looking for any more volunteer hours. None.
I know we have agreed that this will just start as a planting of a seed, with very small objectives at first. But, an August 31 launch would mean dozens of hours, and that would only increase constantly with time as you and I scramble around trying to do our corporate diligence. I’ve already given 4 hours to the NUANS search. I’m not able to commit to the years that building this business will require. Yes, we talked about getting funding for basic administrative and executive staff, but in front of that is likely a couple hundred volunteer hours. I just see a wall. No start-up capital for me means I’m out.
Thank-you for your undying enthusiasm, your confidence in me, and your friendship.
Best regards,
Glen
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Hey Glen,
Thanks for the email. Hope you’re having a good week.
No worry here either. I have been having the same thoughts about the initiative. You’re right and I agree that it could not be done for August 31 even if we worked everyday. It’s too up in the air and we would very much need start up capital of some nature. And I also agree that I don’t want to volunteer my life away anymore either. I’ve over-volunteered enough the past 20 years and burned out from it. I get you there. The initiative does need capital to get it off the ground and I don’t think that is impossible, but it would still take some time still as you said. I also thought that the Music Hamilton might’ve been better approached as a for-profit project.
I do think the Music Hamilton concept would work with specific goals and funding and the right partnership. Tom is right about the artists being the driving force but he also supports what Madeline and I and the music team wanted to accomplish. His view is that our city is incompetent and the wrong place for this kind of activity. And despite all the input from musicians, music business people, etc. the city didn’t listen (but we did). Other cities have done it right but they have progressive elected officials and staff, we don’t really at all. I’ve talked about this with Tom a lot over the past few years and the role of the city’s original music team was suppose to be that music community catalyst — Music Hamilton could be the catalyst that the music team was suppose to be. Tom saw that we were in fact part of the music community as business people and musicians/artists — and that is what Tom, Madeline and I talked about — we knew what to do or what needed to be done.
So the bottom line for me is I think it is still an important initiative for Hamilton, for our music community and for us. I’m just not sure what approach is most appropriate right now. But there’s no doubt in my mind that the advisory team is as lame as can be and will accomplish very little for the bigger music community. The economic impact study, if done right, should have a lot of data to review, analyze, etc. and perhaps we could wait for that to happen to see what the report reveals. But I am going to meet with Lou at TAH to see what his plans are for the bar, live music, him, etc. in Hamilton. Lou would be vital to any resurgence of the Live Music Venue Alliance.
It’s sad that nothing seems to work in Hamilton when it comes to supporting the music scene. It’s a track record of collapses — Hamilton Music Awards, the music strategy, the city of music project, the Blues Society, etc. I still think it can change but like you said, neither of us are willing to put in all the volunteer hours it would take on our own without remuneration of some sort.
Anyway, just a few thoughts. I think we’re on the same page. And we’ve both been frustrated with other initiatives we’ve been part of so it’s hard to jump up for another project when we are unsure of whether we can get it to happen without sacrificing our life. Lol.
See you when I get back. Let’s get together for lunch. And I you have the cover art for Brenda’s album - can’t wait to see (and hear) it.
Jeff
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These two emails reflect the end of a seven year long chain of events. Jeff Martin and I worked together on my three magazines. His enthusiasm and editorial skills were significant elements in the completion of those projects. For the Music Strategy Implementation Team, we served on it together from its formation in 2012. We were both on the team when it imploded. Jeff basically was thrown under the bus. Half the members left. I stayed on and resigned a year later. Jeff and I carried the idea of an alternate corporation called Music Hamilton which would become a brand champion for Hamilton's music community and industries – basically a service company that would help artists and groups seek grants, give them a leg up, create performance opportunities, produce a blues festival, resurrect the Hamilton Music Awards, etc.
These two letters represent Jeff and I agreeing to let Music Hamilton go, for now.
These two letters represent Jeff and I agreeing to let Music Hamilton go, for now.
