When drama strikes the East Coast Music Association, artists feel they're caught in the middle
The East Coast Music Awards set to take place in St. John's on May 8
Musicians in Newfoundland and Labrador have grown tired of swirling controversy ahead of the East Coast Music Awards, and say they feel like they're taking the hit as calls for boycotts continue.
When Jing Xia started working as an education and outreach co-ordinator for the East Coast Music Association (ECMA) last year, she said it was "like a dream come true."
Xia's contract with the organization ended in December. Now, the Paradise-based guzheng player and ethnomusicologist is overwhelmed.
"I just feel like this shouldn't have happened," she said in an interview in her home's music room, referring to the January firing of previous CEO Blanche Israёl.
"I do understand why people are upset, because I'm upset as well."
Xia said her previous position as an outreach co-ordinator planted a seed for future community programming. Without Israёl there, she doesn't know if those efforts will continue.
We're the ones making the music. None of this would happen without the artists.- Kelly McMichael
The ECMA published a six-point action plan Tuesday to address growing concerns about the association's direction. Xia was frank about what she saw.
"I was kind of pissed off reading that," she said.
Xia was specifically upset with the equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility section of the document, which originally lacked mention of the Asian community and other racialized groups.
After she sent an email pointing that out, it was quickly amended to say, "the board will create an advisory committee on equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility (EDIA) with members from all equity deserving groups (i.e. Francophones, Indigenous, African Canadian, BIPOC, 2SLGBTQAI+ persons with disabilities and those who identify as women)."
But it still rubbed the artist the wrong way.
"I feel like there are deeper issues at play and they should be more aware and be more informed about these things," she said. "I especially want to speak for all these new immigrants … the landscape is just different. It's not just the violin, guitars anymore."
Improvements to the organization, Xia suggested, would ideally include better communication and engagement from the ECMA's board of directors to its members and those in the music communities it represents.
It's a point St. John's-based musician Kelly McMichael echoes.
Jumping through hoops
McMichael spent much of last fall touring her latest album, After the Sting of It.
The 2024 record saw critical acclaim from publications like Exclaim! and Riddle Fence, but no East Coast Music Awards nominations.
That's an issue that many independent touring musicians ran into this year, said McMichael, because of a lengthy application process that seemed impossible to complete without a team on hand.
"I was surprised to find that it was a very long-form, demanding application that would have required two days of my time, which is not really possible when you're on the road," she said in an interview.
"I find it really frustrating to be judged on my music through writing essay questions," said McMichael, adding that having to jump though administrative hoops can result in barriers for many artists.
On top of that was the increasing amount of drama the ECMA found itself in this year. Keeping up with rapid developments is exhausting for an artist, according to McMichael.
"I don't have time to, like, dig into the administration and how it works … and I just don't think it should be on artists to get dragged down with this controversy," she said.
Increasing pressure
As award nominees like Jeremy Dutcher pull out of the show, calls to boycott the May 7-11 events continue to grow.
McMichael said action is needed to bring up important conversations, and artists shouldn't be punished for making a choice to either boycott or participate — especially with the consideration of the financial burden many island-based artists face.
"I really had hoped that this would be a great year to celebrate at home and include my band and not go way out of pocket for it," she said, citing travel expenses that come with performing in other provinces.
The artist, who won an ECMA for best rock recording in 2022, has not yet decided if she's attending this year's events.
Going forward, she hopes the East Coast Music Association takes musicians into account when making big decisions.
"We're the ones making the music," she said. "None of this would happen without the artists."
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