Austin News

When Kydd Jones appears at weekly live performances, he’s accustomed to performing in the spotlight before large audiences. However, with COVID-19 on the scene and SXSW being canceled, everything has changed, and Jones has had to adjust.

“I still haven't gotten used to it,” the hip-hop artist told Austin News. “The live music scene in Austin is definitely slower, and I’m making way less money than before the pandemic. Musicians here depend on live performances because we don't have as many label, sync or publishing opportunities compared to cities like Atlanta, New York or Los Angeles.”

As a result of the coronavirus, Jones is mostly surviving off of scaled-down studio sessions and recording features for people.

“I have definitely slowed down with my live shows,” he said. “I have been booked for some live stream sets and I feel, especially during SXSW, that any place can become a venue if the production is right but the bright lights on me feel strange when there's not a large crowd. I still haven't gotten used to it.”

The coronavirus crept up on Texas when cases began to surge in June.

“We don't know how long this current situation will last,” Jones said. “I think a lot of musicians have moved out of Austin, a lot of venues have closed and that's going to continue to happen unless things change.”

Currently, the Texas Department of State Health Services reports 674,772 confirmed cases and 14,478 fatalities statewide. As of Sept.16, Austin listed 27,961 cases and 396 deaths on the dashboard.

Before SXSW 2020 was canceled, Jones thought the $200 million the city had earmarked to expand the convention center sounded great, but not anymore.

“Maybe now we should rethink whether that's the best use of public funds at this time,” he said.

Although Austin Mayor Steve Adler and the Austin City Council members have talked about the importance of local business and the local music scene to the famous college town, Jones says the local music scene doesn’t appear to be a priority.

“They are dealing with so much,” he said. “Musicians and people in the creative field are only one of the situations that government officials have to worry about. We were never a high priority to begin with and this whole situation has only made things worse.”

Jones graded the city’s efforts to provide financial help as a C.

“At least they've tried with several grant processes but the federal government screwed up the situation so bad that it's hard for anybody in America to say they did a great job,” he said. “Especially Texas.”

The Health Alliance for Austin Musicians (HAAM) and the SIMS Foundation are two organizations that are key for musicians and even more so during the pandemic, according to Jones.

“People in Austin who can afford to donate should definitely consider these two groups as well as others,” he said. “As a songwriter, producer and engineer, I diversified my streams of income to not have to depend solely on shows and it helps during times like these but other artists don't necessarily have that skill set to fall back on.”