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MUSIC CENSUS NEWSELTTER

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"A city on the move with a groove!"

The Greater Anchorage Music Census is a community-led initiative to gain a better understanding of the current needs of the Anchorage-area music community. This marks the first time that the music community will have standardized data - benchmarked across dozens of cities and regions around the US that are participating in similar efforts - from which to develop policy solutions and approaches. The Census captures key information about the Anchorage and Mat-Su area music economy to help the city and community to make more informed, data-driven decisions to harness the value of Anchorage's music ecosystem. The initiative is led by Alaska Creative Economies, the Anchorage Economic Development Corporation, the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce, and the UAA Center for Economic Development. The Census is administered with Sound Music Cities, a leading provider of music ecosystem studies and music census work.


Website photo courtesy of Jordan Ring, Pogue Media Company


 ”I am thrilled to see broad participation in the Greater Anchorage Area Music Census throughout our city’s diverse music community. We know that a vibrant music ecosystem drives value for cities in several important ways, such as fueling job creation, economic growth, and tourism, as well as strengthening a city’s brand. For this reason, we must be strategic in how we support our musicians, businesses, and industry workers in order to sustain and grow our music economy. The Census will help us do that and contribute to a sense of pride in Anchorage that increases our city’s livability and gives young people a reason to Choose Anchorage as their forever home.”

- Jenna Wright, President & CEO, Anchorage Economic Development Corporation

  "Recognizing and harnessing the creative economy’s power is vital to Anchorage’s economic and civic future. Building on an already robust music ecosystem, the Greater Anchorage Music Census represents a significant step forward in our journey to define Anchorage as a “music city” - a city on the move with a groove!"

- Assembly Member George Martinez, District 5, Seat I, Chair, Community and Economic Development Committee 

 “Musicians and artists here in Anchorage are a vital part of our musical ecosystem. Nurturing that culture will take support and a unified celebration of our vibrant music scene, which is one-of-a-kind. There are many players in the mix, and this census survey will help to make the creative landscape that much more equitable. I’m down for that."

- Kim Waller, Anchorage Resident

 "Anchorage has an opportunity to support and develop our local musicians, boosting downstream economic impacts for venues, promoters, hospitality, transportation, tourism, and more. The Greater Anchorage Music Census will provide us with valuable data to inform our path forward."

- Kathleen McArdle, President & CEO, Anchorage Chamber of Commerce 

 "A healthy economy rests on a foundation that includes quality of life. If you want a stable workforce, you need a population that's happy to live here. That includes music and other forms of entertainment and artistic expression that enrich our lives, and help form the bonds that make up a community."

- Nolan Klouda, Executive Director, UAA Center for Economic Development  

 "We know through experience in other cities and a wealth of data, that the creative class is a significant contributor in creating the conditions necessary to attract talent, business, and capital investment. This census will provide a new in-depth understanding of the individuals and businesses who are making music happen in Anchorage - and what we can do to support them. This effort will go a long way to supporting the community's wider quality of life and economic development goals."

- Mike Catsi, Board Chair, Alaska Creative Economies 

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PARTNERS

It takes a village to reach a village!

Community engagement partners are welcome to join this effort at any time during the duration of the census! Become a Community Engagement Partner and help us conduct the the first-of-its-kind survey of the Anchorage music ecosystem that will be carried out alongside dozens of other US cities. This ongoing survey work will produce a dataset that we will use to identify and prioritize Anchorage's needs and measure progress towards goals to better support our local music ecosystem.


What we're asking:

We will run our survey in May 2024, and we’re asking you to send the survey to your contacts in the music and live entertainment ecosystem, encouraging individuals to take the survey. We also will ask you to periodically make social media posts to announce the launch of the survey, and encourage participation. 


What you'll get:

Most importantly, representation in the survey results – we want to be as inclusive as possible, which means we want the folks you work with and serve to have their voices heard. We will give community engagement partners a sneak peak of the survey data results before finalizing and publishing our dashboard report. And we would love to add your logo to our list of engaged partners!


Please add your information in the form to the right  – contact name, email and organization, and upload your organization’s logo to add it to the list of partners working to reach every part of our music and live entertainment ecosystem, and help us show the world that Anchorage is a music city with incredible depth and diversity!




Become A Partner:

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In the news:

FAQ's

Music community leaders here in Anchorage and around the world have identified the importance of having measurable information about people who do music related work to provide them with better support. The results of this census will be made available to the thousands of music industry professionals, nonprofits, and government agencies in our area, as well as to the countless music patrons and consumers who are the lifeblood of our music ecosystem. 

The census asks questions specific to the realities of music workers, including general information about their demographics and occupation types as well as their perspective on issues such as diversity, equity, and inclusion. There are no questions in this census about personal identifiers, such as name, address. 

Yes. The census does not collect any personal identifiers or IP addresses. Any individual responses highlighted in the published results will be attributed as “Census Respondent.”

From 10-20 minutes, depending on your respondent category. (Creative, Venue owner, or Industry) and whether you type in lengthy comments. 13 minutes is the average time spent on the census.

Those working or students in the music industry in ANY capacity who are 18 years or older and living in the greater Anchorage metropolitan or Mat-Su area. You should participate in the census if you contribute any type of music-related work, with or without compensation, and you believe your skills and commitment are worthy of acknowledgement and support. This includes part-time work, rarely paid work, or volunteer work, and work that is more administrative than creative.

You should participate in the census if you contribute any type of music-related work, with or without compensation, and you believe your skills and commitment are worthy of acknowledgment and support. This includes part-time work, rarely paid work or volunteer work, and work that is more administrative than creative. 

To keep the data analysis manageable, we must limit the census to one entry per person, which means you must select one primary identity (creative, venue owner, or industry). That said, we know that most music people work in more than one area, so you will also have an opportunity within the census to provide info on work you do in other identity categories. 

No. You can use a desktop, laptop, tablet, or smartphone. Note that if you wish to leave and finish your response later, you will need to use the same device. 

We will release the results of the Census in late 2024. There will be three reports: Summary Report, Data Deck and a DEI report.

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