EIA to compensate musicians performing at airport after online backlash

The Edmonton International Airport says it will begin compensating performers as part of its music program, after backlash online from artists.

The EIA revealed last week it was bringing back its music program – an opportunity for Edmonton musicians to perform at the airport.

The catch? They weren’t being paid by the airport. Their only compensation was the tips received while performing.

Musicians were never paid as part of the EIA music program, but that’s a major shortcoming in the industry according to Edmonton artist Vissia.

“Musicians and arts workers are constantly having to fight for what they deserve in terms of compensation, and it just seemed mind boggling to me that another big corporation would think that this is OK to request for artists to come and work for free,” said Vissia.

The musician was among those who received the email from EIA because she had taken part in the program in 2019. At the time she was looking for an alternative way to earn money.

“I knew it wasn’t paid but I thought I would give it a shot and see if it was worth it, if you can make enough money in tips then maybe I can do it a few times and take it from there,” she recounted.

Vissia left the program feeling unfulfilled.

“It kind of just went against my values, so I decided I didn’t want to do it… It felt like a chore and like people weren’t appreciating what I was doing anyways.

“I had to start out somewhere too when I was younger, and I played a ton of retirement homes, senior homes, and you do need a place to get experience but even so, all of those little places would always offer up some sort of honorarium.”

Hi @VISSIA_3. First, we want to thank you for being such a champion for the arts community. We have heard you & everyone else, and we will be compensating performers moving forward. We are taking the time to review and improve the program to best support artists in our community.

— Edmonton International Airport (@FlyYEG) January 23, 2023

After receiving the email last week from EIA, Vissia took to social media to shine a light on the compensation issues in the industry.

“I felt frustrated, a bit of rage even,” said Vissia.

“For sure, it’s your choice what sort of opportunities you want to take, but I think this is a much more deeply rooted issue than one instance.”

EIA temporarily pauses music program

Two days after Vissia’s tweet, the airport said it would temporarily pause the program before relaunching it with compensation for the artists.

“First, we want to thank you for being such a champion for the arts community,” EIA tweeted. “We have heard you & everyone else, and we will be compensating performers moving forward. We are taking the time to review and improve the program to best support artists in our community.”

“Stay tuned for the relaunch of the program.”

In a statement, the airport’s vice-president of operations, infrastructure and corporate communications confirmed the compensation decision.

“We value the artists’ contributions to our airport and recognize their music brings joy, peace and comfort to passengers,” Steve Maybee wrote.

‘Advocating for artists and musicians’

While EIA has yet to say how much artists will be paid, Vissia says the change of heart demonstrates the importance of artists sticking up for themselves.

“I think it’s difficult for individuals and independent artists to step forward because they might be worried that their reputation will be at stake or they might lose out on opportunity,” she said. “So I would really like to see some of our organizations step up and do a better job of advocating for artists and musicians.”

Prior to it being put on pause, there was a change as part of this year’s program: artists will no longer receive food vouchers. It’s not clear if EIA is backtracking on that decision.

Different from busking, artist says

Vissia clarifies it’s paramount artists get paid for their time and highlights a major difference between busking and performing at the airport.

“Busking is a public space, and you’re choosing to do it, and you might make some tips, you might not. But nobody is hiring you per se,” she said.

“It’s not busking because people who are going to see you are ticket holders – they have to go through security, so it’s not open to the public. So it’s not a busking gig.”