Australian Musician Moving to Canada to “Escape Discrimination”
Larissa Tandy, a Melbourne-based musician known for work in a local group called Strine Singers, says she’s giving up on Australia and moving to Canada because her home country doesn’t recognize her marriage to her girlfriend. The other issue is that she recognizes the generous help Canadian musicians get when it comes to funding. From theMusic.au.com, she says:
“The odds are better [for a Canadian artist],” she said. “Funding opportunities are greater. The Canada council funded 6,000 artists last year, compared to about 1,700 funded by the Australia Council. That’s three, nearly four times as many, in a population about one-and-a-half times Australia. Commercial radio is more accessible for independent artists, and there’s a culture of ‘discovery’ on commercial radio that doesn’t exist here.“I look at the Australian music industry and see a huge divide between where I am now and where I’d need to be in order to make a living. My current position in the Canadian music industry is the same, but there are several bridges between both sides of that huge divide, and life as a professional musician seems like it’s actually possible.”
Larissa has applied for permanent residence and has been told that her status will be granted very soon. And before you make any judgments about her, make sure you read the full article here.
