PETALING JAYA, June 19 — Live music livens up any pub.
But pubs and bars around Malaysia have been rather dull of late, with no live entertainment allowed in such premises since the start of the Covid-19 movement control order (MCO) on March 18.
That means that it has been a full three months since pub musicians have received any form of income, with many of them feeling that they have been sidestepped by the government as live entertainment is still barred now during the recovery MCO.
Among those musicians are stalwarts of the local pub scene — duo Zack and Lyia Meta — who told Malay Mail that they felt they were being let down for not being allowed to perform.
“I feel terribly cheated. It’s terrible, and not for myself alone, but for all the musicians out there,” said Lyia.
“We have invested so many years of our lives, some of us decades, crafting and honing our skills to become consummate performers to be reckoned with, but now we live in fear of losing our jobs.
“There were fewer jobs to begin with before all of this, and now, we have been completely cancelled out.”
Lyia, 49, is one of the few local pub musicians who has taken her career to the next level, as she gained international recognition with her first EP This is Lyia in 2015.
The Melaka-born singer has also won numerous awards for her musical endeavours, picking up the World Music Artist of The Year award two years running at the 2018 and 2019 Josie Music Awards in Tennessee, USA.
Lyia added that people often turn a blind eye when it comes to matters pertaining to music, and the arts as a whole, but musicians performing in establishments that serve alcohol get it far worse.
“Alcohol is a whole different thing together. Even if you take music out, people still find a way and gravitate towards alcohol,” said Lyia.
“In pubs when you have live music, yes, people do come and drink, but not everybody is coming to get drunk and fall off their chair you know?
“These are just the misconceptions of people who have never experienced the live music scene. They don’t want any place that serves alcohol to have music because they feel it suddenly is a nest for all the illicit activities you could possibly think of.”
Zack, Lyia’s effervescent partner — both on and off the stage — shared her discontent as he said that the local live music scene has been neglected for a long time.
Zack has been in the local music scene since the early 1970s, performing all over the country, and since the 1990s with Lyia as a two-piece band.
“Bands from Malaysia used to be playing in Japan, Taiwan, Thailand and Korea in the 70s. But we were never encouraged to do this, so now, there are hardly any local acts out there,” said Zack.
“More foreigners have come in and our pool has gotten smaller because of that. Most of the time, we don’t even have venues to perform in.
“So what’s the point of having people pursue music overseas and come back here? What are they gonna do? Sit at home and play?”
Earlier this week it was announced that the arts, culture and entertainment industries would receive RM225 million in funding via the National Economic Recovery Plan, however, pub musicians like Lyia, Zack and Vernon Steele said that they have not received any form of aid since the start of the MCO.
Former circuit musician Steele, 68, who left the local pub scene about five years ago and now plays at funerals with Norman Funeral Services, said that it isn’t just pub musicians who have been suffering of late.
“It’s at a standstill, even for us. No entertainment of any kind is allowed. So we can’t do anything and sort of just have to wait until all of this is over,” said Steele.
“If, by us not performing is really meant to stop the spread of Covid-19. I have no objection to it. But then again, when malls, LRTs and other more crowded places are allowed to run, as usual, it doesn’t add up.”
Steele, who started playing in pubs in 1972 and still performs with his band The Strollers, added that he feels sympathetic for all of his fellow local musicians who have been struggling without any income or aid during these past few months.
“I am fortunate enough to also be working at the funeral service and to be living with my family. So I don’t have to worry too much about my meals and all of that. But I do feel really sorry for the other musicians out there,” he said.
“They are going through a really tough time, with no possible avenues of earning an income. It’s really sad because it’s an honest way to earn a living.”
