Get the latest gossip

Land Acknowledgements In Live Music Are Increasing — But Are They Enough?

Land acknowledgments are becoming more commonplace in live music thanks to Portugal. The Man, boygenius and others — but is awareness alone enough?

While accepting the Amplify Award at the 2024 Billboard Power 100 event in Los Angeles in February, the members of boygenius began their speech the same way they had started most shows on their 2023 tour. Lucy Dacus, standing alongside Julien Baker and Phoebe Bridgers, dedicated the moment to the elders and descendants of native peoples and also asked for action from the crowd — which happened to include the music industry’s most powerful executives. The Man was one of the first acts to make this its norm — where the group literally passes the microphone to local community members for a few minutes at the start of every set — Lynn noticed an increase in interest following the boygenius tour in particular.

Get the Android app