Government Funding of Music 4

At the beginning of the 1980’s, the government had completed its mission concerning Fine Arts programs and especially music. The goal was to provide funding for expressive arts program and then monitor or censor those programs. Basically, the man defined what art was supposed to send like and look alike.

Only a few people in the Fine Arts community saw what we call down South “the okie-doke”. Most people were fooled into thinking that the government would be fair in this relationship. The government, acting out the role of “pimp” started cutting back on funding for the arts. All of a sudden, overnight, artists cried foul not knowing that when you get in bed with a smooth operator, you’re bound to get burned.

Schools started struggling. The striving programs that replaced your neighbor sitting on the porch playing guitar ad chewing Wrigley’s was all of a sudden gone. In the music world, bands were trying to find innovative ways to record music without hiring horn sections and full rythmn sections (see Tom Tom Club and Culture Club).

Debates came up in Congress that shocked the public on the debate on whether to fund Fie Arts programs or not. The Reagan, Bush and Clinton Administrations’ cast an eye on terminating most arts funding.

So as an artist, how can you not depend on government funding of the arts and establish your career? The answer is in the next article.