GREAT SOUTHERN NIGHTS

Ms JODIE HARRISON(Charlestown)This year has been very difficult for the music industry, as COVID-19 restrictions have severely limited opportunities to perform and tour. Great Southern Nights is an effort to rebuild the live music scene after this tumultuous year. Live music, and the arts more generally, are so important for our community. The arts are how we mediate our relationship with the world and with each other, and this year has illustrated that importance all the morewhile we were in lockdown, we all turned to the arts, whether it be music, film, television or literature, to get us through long, monotonous days. Now that lockdown is over, I hope we can carry forward a newfound appreciation of the importance of the arts in our lives. Delivered by VisitNSW in partnership with ARIA to support the recovery of the live music, entertainment and hospitality industries in our State, I was glad to see a Great Southern Nights event held in the Charlestown Electorate. I applaud Kahibah Sports for hosting Midday On the Green on Saturday 14 November, one of the Great Southern Nights events. Local recording artists Lachlan Edwards, Jemima and Kazzie Band performed.

A Community Recognition Statement is an opportunity for an MP to give a short speech praising the work of an individual or group in the local community. If you have any ideas about people I can recognise with a Community Recognition Statement, please email and let me know!