NATIONWIDE — “If there’s anything that’s non-partisan, it’s music.”

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) wants to save live music venues across the country.

That’s why he and former Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) came across the aisle to help save struggling musicians and concert venues with the Save Our Stages Act.

Both senators spoke to Spectrum News about the importance of getting this bill passed.

“It’s about not letting the music die,” Sen. Klobuchar said. 

Many people fear that live music may not survive the coronavirus pandemic — with past due rents and no signs that the show will go on, Congress may be the industry’s last hope.

A survey conducted in June by the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) found that 90% of independent music venues will be forced to close permanently without government intervention.

The Save Our Stages Act would provide $10 billion in grant funding for independently owned music venues impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, allowing them to pay their bills for six months.

Insiders say that music venues are very different than other businesses — staff is often seasonal and the majority of expenses are tied to salaries and equipment.

Klobuchar says supporting venues is about more than finances, it’s about the artists — and blowing off steam.

“Right now you can't exactly go to a mosh pit in the middle of the pandemic. And these venues like First Avenue, where Prince really got his start in Minnesota … they’re closed down, and they were some of the first to close, they’re gonna be the last to open.”

Cornyn agreed, saying if the pandemic has done one thing, it has made people realize the importance of living:

“Part of what we're all missing as a result of the isolation and the lockdowns and the social separation, to me these are the sorts of things that make life worth living.”