Global Journal of Human Social Science, C: Sociology and Culture, Volume 23 Issue 2

“If you haven’t been exploited, you are not in the Live Music Industry”: Decent Work and Informality in the Live Music Ecosystem in South Africa Avril Joffe α & Florence Mukanga-Majachani σ having a strong system of governance for culture (Joffe © 2023 Global Journals Volume XXIII Issue II Version I 17 ( ) Global Journal of Human Social Science - Year 2023 C Author α : Cultural Policy and Management Department, School of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa. e-mail: avril.joffe@wits.ac.za Author σ : Principal, New Generation Initiatives Creative Consultants, Zimbabwe. e-mail: florflosywafarai@gmail.com 1 I. I ntroduction ive music is part of the larger set of activities, artistic expressions and creative practice that is part of the African cultural and creative economy (CCE). It is well accepted that the cultural value chains of the African CCE, and here live music in South Africa is no exception, pride themselves in strong creation and innovative artistic and collective creativity which is inspired by a rich heritage, strong traditions, and authentic cultural expressions. South Africa, unlike many of our counterparts on the continent (Joffe 2021), has a relatively well-functioning live music value chain with strong production technologies, efficient distribution mechanisms, appropriate infrastructure for exhibition and a few important support industries. It is unique in L et al. 2019) with albeit flawed or inadequate policies, funding systems, institutions, legislation and cultural infrastructure. Nevertheless, work in the Global South CCE is dominated by informality and COVID 19 has had an enormous impact on the work life and identity of cultural workers and cultural practitioners. This informality underpins the atypical nature of cultural and creative work which is characterised by insecurity, precarity and uncertainty. The CCE thrives on innovation and creativity so that in an environment where policies cohere with public and private funding and programmes, the youth would be poised to take full advantage of the opportunities to grow the African CCE. The poor organisation of Africa’s CCEs, the inadequate governance systems and institutional arrangements, and the lack of attention, regulation and support given to the informal economy impacts on these prospects for its contribution to livelihoods and sustainable development. This lack of attention extends to poor data on cultural occupation and work in the African CCE although the South African Cultural Observatory (SACO) has been making impressive gains in filling in missing gaps in the South African CCE through their bi-annual mapping reports amongst many others (SACO 2022). The high percentage of cultural production taking place in the informal economy has placed the spotlight on this fluid relationship between formality and informality for the live music sector. In South Africa this dominance is evidenced by forty-three percent (43%) of all cultural jobs being informal while the CCE has more freelancers and contractors than other non-cultural jobs – 32.5% compared to 8.3% respectively (SACO 2020). Even established formal CCE businesses are micro or small, characterised by precarious labour conditions with poor to no social protection coverage for cultural workers, whether fully employed or freelancers. Many artists, musicians, freelancers and own account workers move between the two economies as economic conditions dictate. The result is that much economic activity is outside the purview of the state, tax regulation, registration or measurement. Covid 19 has heightened awareness of the high proportion of cultural production in the informal economy as cultural workers were unable to access Covid relief from the state due to multiple factors such as not being unregistered, having no tax Abstract- This paper addresses how the predominantly atypical nature of cultural and creative work (CCW) (freelance, contractor, casual, once-off or part-time basis) is overlaid or impacted on by informality in the African context. The research presented here on Live Music is part of a larger study undertaken on commission from ILO, “Promoting Decent Work in the African Cultural and Creative Economy” which focused on 5 sectors (cultural heritage, dance, fashion, film and tv and live music) in all 5 African sub-regions (North Africa, Central Africa, East Africa, West Africa and Southern Africa) respectively. The paper offers a conceptual framework consisting of the triad of the atypical nature of work in the CCEs, precariousness and informality against the backdrop of a Decent Work agenda. The focus is on the views of musicians and practitioners about the nature of work in the live music ecosystem in South Africa. It concludes with a set of policy recommendations that are distinct for two reasons: first, rather than conventional measures to formalise the informal economy it suggests shining a spotlight on the specificities of live music work, understanding its unique value chain and adopting measures to engage more productively with the informal actors throughout the value chain; second rather than highlighting deficits, it suggests greater government support for associations, trade unions and employer bodies for the live music ecosystem to bring the decent work discussion into conversation with representative and organised stakeholders.