The nightlife is just waiting for a glimmer of hope.
In an open letter addressed to Roselyne Bachelot, French DJ Laurent Garnier regrets that clubs and other nightclubs are not part of the world of culture.
“
After all, when I'm on stage, behind the turntables, like an actor, a musician or a dancer, I have the impression of delivering, me too, living performances
”, explains the disappointed artist.
While certain activities, such as cinemas or catering, were able to take advantage of moments of respite during the coronavirus pandemic, this is not the case for the nightlife and clubs sector.
"
For us the party is over, and it has been eight long months now
, regrets Laurent Garnier.
However, the clubs employ the same plethora of diverse and varied staff as in the rest of the cultural landscape.
The French DJ also highlights the diversity of jobs as well as the indirect economic impact through suppliers, restaurants and hotels.
“
The list is long, but above all very similar to that of live performance
,” he recalls.
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Officer of Arts and Letters, Knight of the Legion of Honor, the musician recounts his disillusionment by thinking that the turntables had won their places in the world of live performance.
In reality, the nightlife is not subject to the authority of the Minister of Culture, but to that of the Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin.
During her intervention on France 2, Roselyne Bachelot announced the injection of an additional 115 million euros to support live shows and cinemas.
Regarding the distribution of this amount, Laurent Garnier sees it above all as a flagrant imbalance between "
heritage and culture today, between Paris and regions, between classical culture and emergence, between the big houses of the capital and the territorial network of independents
".
As for the cultural space of the night, it has been "
totally ignored
".
Read also: One of Seoul's oldest nightclubs closes, victim of coronavirus
Be careful that disappointment does not turn into anger.
"
The blatant lack of consideration and ignorance emanating from your ministry towards the nightlife and clubs sector is clearly interpreted by many of us as a form of incomprehensible contempt
," notes Laurent Garnier.
The nightlife culture and the clubs are bubbling with “
creation, imagination and sharing.
Whether you like it or not
”.
The arrival of the Minister seemed to bode well for the nightlife according to the DJ.
“
I admit that today, not knowing very well if I am a
'dead performer',
an
'interior artist',
or
'not an artist at all',
I am starting to get serious doubts
”he reveals.
