‘Listen local’ and discover the sounds of the central west
We all hear the message to ‘shop local’ and have seen the success of campaigns like #buyfromthebush but regional music officer with Music NSW, Patrick Coomey wants people to ‘listen local’ too.
Patrick curates the Spotify playlist ‘Central West Sounds’, a showcase of original music being created in Orange and neighbouring communities from Lithgow to Dubbo. He’s encouraging music lovers and especially businesses to get behind our local talent by subscribing and giving the playlist a listen.
“The idea is for people to gain awareness of what local music is being created, written, performed and recorded here,” said Patrick.
“Just like supporting local food and wine that's produced here, by playing music that’s created here in your business, it’s getting them a listening audience… It also assists the musicians as playing their music feeds into the algorithms and that helps them then get suggested for other people to listen to.”
The playlist features over three hours of original music from local artists and Patrick adds new songs every month.
“It is a curated listen, it covers different genres, but it works and the songs flow. I don't put anything explicit on there, because it is something to be played in businesses and settings like cafes and restaurants, so it has got to be music that's targeted to a wide audience,” he said.
“We have a constant, steady stream of music coming out and I have never been stuck at any time with nothing to put on it. So instead of playing the golden oldies that have been played a million times, why not give this playlist a go? It’s something you can do to help local musicians.”
And if you do discover artists you like, make a point to buy music directly from them, he said
“Look up the artist and buy the music from them, because that is where they really make their money, streaming helps raise awareness of their music, but it doesn’t help them with making money.”
If any local musicians would like their music to be considered for the Central West Sounds playlist, you can reach out to Patrick in the ‘MusicNSW: Central West’ Facebook group.