–$9M will be invested to secure this arrangement for 12 months
–construction of state-owned studios on the cards, President Ali says

GUYANESE creatives have been making waves in the local music industry, reaching the eyes and ears of persons from all walks of life through studios and even their social media pages.
This raw talent exuded by the country’s artistes has not gone unnoticed, with President Dr. Irfaan Ali himself stepping up to support local musicians.

The President, during a recent engagement with persons who performed at the 56th Independence Anniversary ceremony in Region Two, said that $9 million will be spent on studio time for Guyanese artistes to record their music.

Dr. Ali related that the plan is to cover studio time costs for the next 12 months at three local studios, allowing musicians to record their music at no charge to themselves.
He said that this is a direct investment that will afford local musicians the space to explore their craft in a more magnified way.

The government, the Head of State affirmed, is aware of the financial challenges artistes face when it comes to developing their craft, and has been taking steps to alleviate some of those burdens.
Addressing the proposed initiative regarding free studio time, President Ali said: “For the next 12 months between these three studios, we are going to set aside $9 million to do all the recording in the country.

“So, the agreement that we will have between the three studios is that if any artiste turns up at any one of the three studios, you must allow them to record, and we’re going to share the resources with all three of the studios at one level.”

The Head of State, who has been leading the charge in promoting local talent, noted that this initiative would not only be for artistes residing in Region Four, but will also be extended to musicians from all areas including, but not limited to, Linden, Essequibo, and Berbice.

President Ali said that the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport will undertake a process of compiling a list of musicians who are interested in benefitting from the initiative.
He advised all musicians to take the opportunity seriously and noted that while the space is there for any Guyanese creatives to utilise the studio time, he does not expect to see any misuse of the system.

“We have to be conscious too, we can’t have everybody who believes they can sing coming in and want to record, because that is just making a mockery of the system…. So, we have to be responsible, I’m trusting you to be responsible,” President Ali said.

Further, in addition to this initiative, the Head of State also disclosed plans for the construction of several state-of-the-art studios across the country.

He opined that it was in keeping with the government’s vision of providing a platform for the growth and visibility of local artistes, and committed that the government would begin mobilising resources for the construction of a studio in 2022 should that be a priority of creatives.

“We can’t build a studio in every corner of the country now; we can examine building studios or investing in studios across different regions. From this budget, I can tell you if that is the priority, I can tell you now we will do one this year, and you decide where, and the government will build continuously,” President Ali affirmed.