In response to the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the live music industry, independent music festival producers across BC have banded together to form the British Columbia Music Festival Collective.

The Victoria Ska & Reggae Festival is the sole Victoria representative participating in the collective. Other Vancouver Island festivals part of the group include Laketown Shakedown, Sunfest, Islands Folk Festival and Cumberland Wild.

The collective was formed during a video conference of more than 50 festival producers that addressed the challenges the industry is currently facing. The group consists of both small and large music festivals representing all regions of the province. They want to create transparency and dialogue to ensure festivals continue to thrive when normalcy returns.

“Ensuring the public is safe and remains healthy is our foremost concern,” said Deb Beaton-Smith of Victoria-based Beat Music Management and a spokesperson for the collective. “As a collective we look forward to and will follow the directives for public gatherings put forward by our respective health authorities.”

Beaton-Smith says their united voice will act as a vehicle for communicating with people in the music industry, the provincial government and granting agencies.

Each festival will independently decide their own course of action, but will stand together with the public in its desire to keep BC’s festival culture alive.

Festivals part of the British Columbia Festival Collective:
5X Festival
Arts on the Fly
ArtsWells Festival Of All Things Art
Bass Coast
Bella Coola Music Festival
Cumberland Wild
Electric Love Music Festival
Harrison Festival of the Arts
Islands Folk Festival
Block Rockin Beats
Kaslo Jazz Etc Festival
Kispiox Valley Music Festival
Laketown Shakedown
Midsummer Music Festival
Mission Folk Music Festival
Monashee Music Festival
Music on the Mountain – MoM Fest
Nelson International Mural Festival
NimbleFingers Bluegrass & Old-Time Festival and Workshop
Peace Valley Folk Fest
Ponderosa Festival
Q’emcin 2 RIVERS REMIX
Revelstoke Summer Street Fest
Rise & Shine FamJam Fundraiser
Robson Valley Music Festival
Rogue Fest
Ryga Arts Festival
Salmon Arm ROOTSandBlues
Shambhala Music Festival
Squamish Constellation Festival
Sunfest Country Music Festival
The Hornby Festival
ValhallaFest Arts and Music Festival
Victoria Ska & Reggae Festival
Wapiti Music Festival
Wicked Woods Music and Art Festival