The dates for next year’s Groovin The Moo festival were announced yesterday, no doubt delighting music fans around regional Australia, who are normally forced to travel to their respective inner cities to experience live music.
While Groovin The Moo stands as a shining example of the success promoters can have with staging regional events, an internal letter from the festival obtained by triple j’s Hack program reveals one particular town is proving a struggle.
As Hack reports, Groovin The Moo has been running for the last eight years in Townsville, Queensland, but has not made any money there for the last three. This is according to organisers, who blame the mining downturn, lack of tourism, and cost of touring regionally.
Seeking help, in October the festival promoters sent a letter to Federal MP Ewen Jones, the Townsville-based member for the regional Queensland seat of Herbert, asking if the government could fill a $300,000 shortfall.
“This is a carefully considered request,” the leaked letter reads. “We want to keep Townsville on the national GTM touring map. We do not want to compromise the quality of the event because of it happens to be in north Queensland and not near Brisbane.”
“GTM Townsville does not have a problem attracting international artists, but we need support to transport the artists to Townsville and to promote Townsville to our southern Qld and interstate audiences.”
Organisers also cited the small attendance of 15,000 people, cost of charter flights for bands and crew, and having to pay police $30,000 (a cost they don’t incur anywhere else) as contributing to the financial difficulties of running GTM Townsville.
Speaking to triple j, Mr Jones seemed optimistic about a government partnership with Groovin The Moo, saying he wanted Townsville “to become an organic music hub” and to use the festival as an avenue for youth outreach.
“How can we as government roll out good programs in mental health and safe sex and drugs without being the 55-year-old fat white guy handing out brochures saying, ‘You kids better be careful’,” he said.
[include_post id=”464234″]
“GTM would be the perfect partner for things like domestic violence, regional health. For me this is the genesis of where we’ve got to go.” However, he said he would prefer if the festival remained “pure” and accepted no corporate sponsorship.
Groovin The Moo currently receives no government funding and organisers Cattleyard declined to be interview by triple j, instead providing a statement in which they assure fans GTM Townsville will run as planned next year.
“Touring regional Australia is a costly exercise however as announced today all Groovin the Moo events for 2016 are going ahead and will continue to do so into the foreseeable future,” organisers wrote.
Groovin The Moo 2016
Saturday, 23rd April 2016
Maitland Showground, Maitland NSW
Sunday, 24th April 2016
University of Canberra, Canberra ACT
Monday, 25th April 2016
Oakbank Racecourse, Oakbank SA (ANZAC Day)
Saturday, 30th April 2016
Bendigo’s Prince Of Wales Showground, Bendigo VIC
Sunday, 1st May 2016
Townsville Cricket Grounds, Townsville QLD (QLD Long Weekend Monday Public Holiday)
Saturday, 7th May 2016
Hay Park, Bunbury WA
