Country singer Lisa McHugh has opened up about the devastating impact the coronavirus pandemic has had on the entertainment industry, admitting that she herself is struggling.
Speaking alongside fellow singers Nathan Carter and Mike Denver on RTÉ Radio 1’s Today with Claire Byrne, Lisa said that the impact the pandemic has had on her career and livelihood is worrying, and she feels the need to urge the Irish Government to support its entertainment sector.
Explaining that she took off last year to work on writing songs, Lisa said that 2020 was supposed to be one of her biggest years yet.
“I had this year filled with massive opportunities. I was supposed to be performing at the Electric Picnic for the first time, with Kaleidoscope [festival and the] Country to Country Festival in London,”
“And I was also supposed to be supporting Tom Jones. So it was a huge year for me, and I was more than ready to come back,” she explained.
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Going on to raise awareness for the Live Entertainment and Event Industry National Awareness Week, which runs until September 20, Lisa very personally opened up about her finances and income, admitting that she received a paycheck in 6 months.
“The thing is, that so many industries and so many sectors were able to and are able to work from home and continue to get that living and pay the bills… I personally have not had a single penny in six months.”
#ThisIsWhoWeAre pic.twitter.com/qejF0KKX28
— Lisa McHugh (@LisaMcHughx) September 15, 2020
Going on to speak about the future, Lisa added that she feels unsure what things will look like for her down the line, but she does know that things cannot continue this way for her and the thousands of others like her.
“That, you know, is worrying, because we have no indication whatsoever for the foreseeable as to when we can go back and do our jobs properly – and to the extent that we actually need to.”