Music industry coming together to determine future of Central Okanagan scene

14 Sep 2020, 02:38 by Sydney Morton

Members of the music industry are coming together to determine what the future of music in the Central Okanagan should look like.

“There’s actually a lot of music industry people here and working and how do we get them together and working together to get the scene up,” said Kristapher Hargrave, Central Okanagan Music Strategy public relations.

For almost a year, they have been working to find realistic ways to elevate the reputation of the Central Okanagan’s musicians and become more of a concert destination with the help of Creative B.C., the Foundation Assisting Canadian Talent on Recordings (F.A.C.T.O.R.) and the City of Kelowna and the Government of Canada as part of the City of Kelowna 2020-2025 Cultural Plan.

“Whether you are a busker, a music teacher or in the opera, we see all those parts (of the music industry) flourishing and actually people coming here for not just the wine in the summer but for the music and the artists,” said Hargrave.

To make their dreams a reality, they have been conducting interviews with industry leaders, venues and focus groups.

“With COVID, we are now looking, how can we get the industry out of that and we are looking five years from now. We are looking at the bigger picture and identifying who’s here and what’s working well and what isn’t and what are the barriers and then we are going to tackle those right away,” said Hargrave.

Tega Ovie, frontman for Kelowna’s genre-defying Post Modern Connection, was brought on board to represent younger musicians.

“They are not known because they can’t get into any venues because they are not old enough but they also don’t know any people outside of their small high school and their small community,” said Ovie.

The group of virtuosos hope that they can bring the music scene back to Kelowna safely after the pandemic and create a scene that’s better than ever.

“What I want is that deeper appreciation for the music that goes on in this city. There are great bands in Kelowna and the Okanagan but we don’t have that culture,” said Ovie.

“What I want is the greater cultural shift and focus on all the cool people we have here.”

To deliver a well balanced live music strategy by fall next year, they are asking the public to complete a survey by Sept. 15 to fill it out visit www.creativeokanagan.com