stress and fatigue

Next week on The BACK LOUNGE it’s ‘STRESS & FATIGUE’ with our long term beloved lounger Charlotte Mai Jacobsen 🦹‍♀️ music pro with well observed opinions on pretty much everything 😎How’s everyone coping? Any techniques helping you make it through the night… and the early mornings? DM for zoom invite We’re a peer support for anyone working in music & events 💜 Newbies to oldies, everyone welcome 🤘 Wednesday 10th August 6pm London

Whats changed

Next week on The BACK LOUNGE it’s all about “WHAT’s CHANGED”? Joanne Croxford is chairing. Production Coordinator midway through a Duran Duran summer, diversity & wellbeing advocate & an all round inspiring human being 😇 Most of us could say this summer has been the hardest ever. Plenty of downsides, but also some chinks of light? Join us to share how it’s been for you whether you’ve weathered all this before, or it’s your first time working in live music. Let’s face it we’re rolling together. Wednesday 3rd August 6pm London

check in

Next Wednesday on The BACK LOUNGE it’s a check in. How are we all? No theme, just a chat. How’s your summer? Good? Nice to be working? Chaotic?! Juggling? Simon Schofield – fresh back from a festival run with Muse- is in the driving seat. All welcome, we meet on zoom 😍 This is a peer group for music & event folks, things are better when you are connected with a community ⭐️ This is a place to talk it out or just connect and listen. Wednesday 27th July 6pm London ✌ #healthytouring #musiccrew #musictouring #musictourcommunity

feast or famine

‘FEAST OR FAMINE’ ❤️🖤 next week on The BACK LOUNGE.
What a summer this is turning out to be… With the odds stacked against us in so many ways what’s it like being back at work
Is it different? Are you different? COVID (again), Brexit, price hikes, flight chaos, lost bags & shortage of people, kit, stages & the rest. Welcome back eh! We’re nothing if not resilient. Join us for the discussion on zoom – This week only TUESDAY (not our usual Wednesday) 12th July 6pm London ✌️

2nd birthday

Happy 2nd birthday to The BACK LOUNGE community, we are 2 years & 1week old today. What began as a weekly zoom for touring & event folks to stay in touch & support each other through the pandemic & everything since, we’ve gone on to be a huge community looking out for each other in what can sometimes be a brutal lifestyle ‘on the road’. This is where you can find other people who understand that choosing freelance & following your passion can mean the best & the worst job in the world Come by say hi, whether you’re a regular or came once or twice way back when, or if you’re curious as to what can be gained from being connected with a group of amazing like-minded souls. And if back to work has been a bit crap – hey we’ve all been there -we’re there to lean on too. Wed 6th July 6pm London

Breathwork

Next Wednesday on The BACK LOUNGE, with stress levels rising and sleep deprivation a thing once again, we’re looking at ways to cope and ‘KEEP CALM & CARRY ON’. Our guest is Tracey Howes, champion freediver & breathwork trainer, you can look up her amazing work here https://linktr.ee/traceyhowes
If breathwork is something you’ve only vaguely heard of, as well as deep diving without an external oxygen source, it’s also a very transferrable method of restoring & maintaining equilibrium helping you keep your head when all around you people are losing theirs’. It can improve sleep quality, focus & reduce anxiety. Wednesday 29th June 6pm London BST

G week

The BACK LOUNGE are having a week off this week as most people are in a field somewhere, whether it’s the big G or wherever else the road takes you 🎤 Either way, hopefully it’s not via baggage claim at Heathrow…. We’re back next Wednesday 29th Jun 6pm London as usual. May the sun shine upon you and live music & festivals remind you why we do this ….remember this time 2 years ago we yearned for this ❤️🤘

Keeva

On The BACK LOUNGE next week our very own Keeva O’Shea, FOH engineer & fountain of wisdom on many of our calls 🔥 is leading the theme of ‘KNOW YOURSELF’. This came out of our recent bad behaviour discussion – on how important being in tune with yourself is in learning to step back from those escalating situations & catch yourself before you wade in & retaliate. And even more, how do you let it go as opposed to mull it over half the night not sleeping? As the summer hots up, flights cancel, arrangements…well, rearrange…this is a ‘back to basics’ check in on the fundamentals of you, and a discussion on staying true to yourself within an ever-changing landscape. DM for link Wednesday 15th June 6pm London BST

Get on with people

Next Wednesday our session is ‘HOW TO GET ON WITH PEOPLE’ on The BACK LOUNGE with guest Jonny Cragg, successful musician & now music industry DBT therapist. In touring given the nature of the job, you won’t get far if you can’t get on with pretty much anyone. We’re not always lucky enough to be with our tribe & that can make the job harder & life infinitely more miserable & stressful. But there are techniques that can help. Tools for life basically 😇 Wednesday 8th June 6pm London

Shadowing

Next Wednesday on The BACK LOUNGE, with a drastic shortage of crew & an opportunity for new crew coming in, we’re exploring how to encourage diversity in our workforce & back-stage. In particular we’re looking at ‘SHADOWING’. Our guest is amazing Tom Campbell – TPI Lighting Designer of the Year 2022 & one of the forces championing this initiative on Skunk Anansie’s tour. If you genuinely want to be part of the change & are in a position where you could offer someone a shadowing opportunity for the day to see what your job involves OR if you’re new to all this and want to get a foot in the door but are not sure what you want to do, this one’s for you. If the pandemic highlighted anything, it was a lack of understanding from Joe Public of the many different roles involved in making a show happen. Help can change that. Wed 1st June 6pm London