Paul Heaton and Jacqui Abbot, formerly of the Beautiful South, have announced they will play a free show for NHS staff (UK's National Health Service) working on the frontline of the coronavirus pandemic. According to the BBC, the duo are giving away 9,000 tickets to "doctors, nurses, support workers, porters and cleaners" for the show in Nottingham in October. "We are just musicians, so there is little we can do but sing for you", Heaton and Abbot said.

The National have announced a merch-sale campaign to help out their road crew while everyone’s grounded due to coronavirus. "We will direct all profits from merch sales through our webstore, new Cherry Tree fan club enrollments, and sales from the Cherry Tree members-only store to support our crew members throughout this crisis to the best of our ability" - the National announced. Soccer Mommy did a similarly generous thing - Sophie Allison took to Twitter to announce that she would be selling T-shirts and posters and giving all the proceeds to her band and crew while they aren’t able to work.

Gibson Guitars announced they’ll be paying hourly factory workers $1,000 each to help get them through the time on uncertainty caused by coronavirus pandemic. As of March 22, the iconic guitar manufacturer has been forced to halt production at its Nashville factory, Loudwire reports. Despite no government request, Gibson have also closed their factory in Bozeman, Montana.

Last Friday (March 20), Bandcamp waived its revenue share on music sales for a 24-hour period to help artists impacted by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and music fans reacted generously to generosity. On a typical Friday, as Bandcamp explained, fans buy about 47,000 items, but this past Friday fans bought nearly 800,000, or $4.3 million worth of music and merch, more than 15 times Bandcamp's normal Friday. In the last 30 days, fans have paid $15.3 million to artists via Bandcamp.

Manu Dibango, popular and influential Cameroonian musician celebrated for his blend of jazz, funk and traditional west African styles, has died aged 86 in a Paris hospital after contracting Covid-19, according to BBC. Born in Cameroon, he moved to Paris, then to Brussels, Dibango blended the cosmopolitan styles from Africa and Europe into his own fusion.

A clever and optimistic thought in the Guardian, about humans in the time of stress: "Faced with the stresses and difficulties of the coronavirus outbreak, it should come as no surprise that so many people have found a response to the pandemic in music. Our bodies may be doing the right and responsible thing by remaining at home, but our minds are not so easily locked down. Things eternal still need to burst forth somehow, and in the face of the Covid-19 virus, music has become one of humankind’s most defiant public assertions that life must continue in harmony".

With tour and festival cancellation all over the world, at least five months’ worth of job prospects have dried up, virtually overnight. Streaming technology could bring a bit of money back to musicians and performers, but it won’t help the backbone of their industry: the roadies, tech teams, tour managers and riggers who set up the shows that sustain their careers. “It’s the first industry to stop dead” - CrewCare director Tony Moran told the Guardian.

Rihanna has donated $5 million through her organization, the Clara Lionel Foundation, to help aid countries affected by COVID-19, CNN reports. The donation by the singer, businesswoman, and philanthropist will support local food banks serving at-risk communities in the United States, the acceleration of testing and care in nations such as Haiti and Malawi, and essential equipment for healthcare workers and facilities. It will also assist with healthcare training including virus prevention and containment. Barbados will also be receiving $700,000 worth of ventilators.

There is no cure for coronavirus, but there's help, LA Times suggests: "I have no interest in knitting. Same with sewing, embroidery, crocheting. I’m beyond bad at anything involving illustrations. What I really need right now is to belt out the comfort food music of my youth... One reason singing feels so good is that it releases endorphins, neurochemicals similar to morphine that bring about feelings of euphoria and general well-being... Singing also releases oxytocin, a hormone that can alleviate anxiety, stress and depression, the unholy trinity presiding over these uncertain times... And make sure the window’s open. The neighbors will be happy to know you’re OK".

New York singer-songwriter Torres was playing in Berlin when travel ban from EU to USA was announced, which almost got her stuck. Eventually, she drove with her band to Amsterdam, flew to Moscow, and then to New York. The thing was she couldn't afford those expenses so she asked fans to donate money to help her and the band get back to the U.S. "The response was pretty overwhelming and immediate" - she told Pitchfork after they returned - "oh my God, people were so generous! I’m still trying to figure out what my plan is for thanking people because it’s the reason I made it home quickly and safely". So, the people are good, but she's afraid about the artists now - "musicians need to learn how to channel their energy so that they don’t lose their ability to keep making things. I guess that’s my fear, that artists will burn out because it just doesn’t feel possible anymore".

Musicians are calling on Spotify to triple its royalty rates following the coronavirus pandemic causing tours cancellations all over the world, the Guardian reports. An online petition posted by musician Evan Greer asked Spotify to triple its rates permanently - it is widely believed that Spotify pays artists about $0.00318 per stream, meaning that a rights holder would receive $3.18 (£2.74) per 1,000 streams.

Actress Gal Gadot took to Instagram on the sixth day of her self-imposed quarantine, for a star-studded sing-along to John Lennon's 'Imagine'. Gadot enlisted fellow superheroes Natalie Portman (Thor) and Mark Ruffalo (Hulk), as well as Will Ferrell, Amy Adams, Kristen Wiig, Sia and Cara Delevingne and others to sing a line from Lennon's classic. Gadot said she had chosen the song for its "powerful and pure" message of unity during the coronavirus pandemic.

When the coronavirus started people "didn’t talk about it - in Chinese tradition, discussing bad things during the New Year is bad luck" - Liang Yi, singer of the Chinese band Stolen said in a Pitchfork interview. But when things got worse, they all had to stay indoors, and "given that we had nothing to do, we decided to all write songs and think about the next album". He lives in Chengdu and is allowed to go out now, but people in Wuhan still have to stay at home. Yi describes it as "a very good performance city because it has a lot of college students. People in Wuhan are like people in Sichuan in terms of their personalities: They are more open, not like people in Shanghai or other southern parts of China that are more reserved".

Former The World We Knew singer Frank Fanelli has started a crowdfunding campaign on GoFundMe to help those whose livelihoods have been severely impacted by coronavirus – including roadies, sound technicians, booking agents and tour management. Fanelli, who owns CAT Clothing, has released a line of T-shirts labeled ‘Merch Daddy’ and he plans to split the money between anyone with proof that they’ve lost income as a touring crew member due to the coronavirus. The page was down for two days, now it's working again. By Thursday morning $15,160 was raised of $20,000 target.

Online retail giant will temporarily cease stocking discretionary items, including vinyl records, to make room on its shelves for more essential items like household staples and medical supplies, Variety reports. Amazon will continue to sell whatever vinyl records are already in stock at their warehouses, once those are sold vinyl-buyers are gonna have to wait. Vinyl sales were up by 19% in 2019, accounting for a total of in $504 million in sales, the highest such number since 1988. Amazon is the largest seller of vinyl in the U.S. with a quarter of the overall market share.

Bandcamp announced that this Friday (March 20) from midnight PST to midnight PST, they’ll be waiving their revenue share from digital sales and merchandise in an effort to support artists during the coronavirus pandemic (the company typically takes 15% on digital sales and 10% on merchandise). Bandcamp co-founder and CEO Ethan Diamond said in a statement: “It may sound simple, but the best way to help artists is with your direct financial support".

American violinists Bonnie Von Duyke and Emer Kinsella have performed the 19th Century hymn 'Nearer My God to Thee', known to many for its use in the film 'Titanic', dressed in lifejackets, in a toilet paper aisle at a California supermarket. Their intention was to bring people hope and a laugh, as well as letting others know they can, as self-employed artists, offer their services remotely.

Organizers of the Glastonbury have cancelled this year's edition fo the festival after the UK government advised people to avoid mass gatherings, Metro reports. Taylor Swift, Paul McCartney and Kendrick Lamar were due to appear end of June at the muddy British fields, but they won't this year. Organisers took the decision to call off the event before 1 April, when festival-goers were expected to pay the remaining balance of their £270 tickets. Fans who had already paid the £50 deposit will be allowed roll over that sum to next year, guaranteeing "the opportunity to buy a ticket for Glastonbury 2021", organisers said. Refunds will also be available for those who want them.

John Legend hosted a virtual concert on Instagram Live (watch it below) in an effort to bring happiness and content in a time of, well, bleakness (Chris Martin started it quite nice). Legend played 'Stay With You', 'Good Morning', 'Bridge Over Troubled Water', 'Beauty and the Beast' (his daughter Luna wanted to hear it), while his wife Chrissy Teigen was sipping some rose wine sitting on a piano. So, a lovely evening in the house of Legend.

Of course there's light at the end of corona-tunnel, and Mark, My Words sees it: "Personally, I’m not dreading the lockdown. I’m lucky that I can do most of my job from the comfort of my own bed mess. I’ve got a novel to finish, a million records to listen to, a virulent online poker habit to feed and Dry Januarys backdated to 2005 to catch up on. I’m actually looking forward to the convenience of watching major bands livestreaming their gigs rather than trudging to an ice cavern in North London to watch them from half a mile away with a 12 quid Coke".

Vulture talked to dozens of artists about what the mass-cancellation of tours will mean to them. Frazey Ford summed it up pretty well: "The U.S. tour isn’t a huge financial loss to us, but we have a big tour in Europe scheduled for May that will be a big loss, especially to my band members, who rely heavily on touring. It’s also a loss of joy. Times are so tenuous already that an evening of music can be healing and bonding".

Kranky made a great meme out of their release, Godspeed You! Black Emperor's cover for 'Lift Your Hands Like Antennas to Heaven', a post-rock classic about, well, end of the world, more or less. It might be coming now with coronavirus. Or maybe not, if we wash our hands properly.

Cherie Hu has made virtual music events directory, a comprehensive, up-to-date resource for anyone seeking guidance on how to stage alternative music events in this moment of significant upheaval for the industry. Slightly smaller, but it deserves a sentence - Boston Globe has put together a list of classical live streams. Similarly, Music Scholarship at a Distance offers daily free lectures at 4 PM EST.

Enrico Monti, guitarist for Italian death metal band Skulld, played a bit of Slayer's classic 'Raining Blood' from his balcony to spread some devilishly good vibes in the time of government-mandated quarantine. The audience wasn't that big - an elderly woman, looking slightly perplexed.

Coldplay's Chris Martin made a lovely show from his home, where he's closed due to coronavirus, in order to lift up everybody's spirits, which he managed to do actually. He made jokes, played several songs - 'Viva la Vida', 'Clocks', 'Yellow', 'Green Eyes', well, parts of them really, and sent messages regarding the virus. He passed on the torch to John Legend to play the next show, which he agreed to do - Tuesday (March 17) at 1pm Pacific time.

The That's Not Metal podcast made a really gallant job of creating a Google Spreadsheet with a list of over 100 (metal) artists who have had to either postpone or cancel their tour due to growing concerns over the coronavirus pandemic - Sheets includes links to their respective merch stores.

Organizers of this year’s Record Store Day have postponed this year's event from April 18 to June 20, due to coronavirus, Forbes reports. In a statement, the organizers say - “RSD acknowledges the need to be good citizens of both the local and worldwide communities while still giving our participating stores around the world the best chance to have a profitable, successful Record Store Day”. Check out this year’s list of exclusives here.

The Metropolitan Opera has announced that it will stream operas for free on their website in the wake of coronavirus. The stream will occur nightly at 7:30 p.m. ET via the homepage of metopera.org and will be available to stream for 20 hours, reports Vulture. The schedule for this upcoming week includes classics like 'Carmen', 'La Bohème', and 'La Traviata', as well as 'La Fille du Régiment', 'Lucia di Lammermoor', and 'Eugene Onegin'.

Organizers of the Vive Latino Festival in Mexico City chose to move forward with the event last weekend because “authorities are telling us that we are in Phase 1 [of the Coronavirus epidemic]” and “suspending mass events is not necessary”, according to Billboard. Nevertheless, many of the festival’s scheduled artists dropped out of the event, but not Guns N' Roses - they played a 22-song set that was highlighted by the first live performance of the 'Use Your Illusion II' track 'So Fine' in 27 years. Festival-goers were subject to intense measures upon their entry into the grounds - all attendees had their temperatures taken prior to being allowed access, Consequence of Sound reports. Guns N’ Roses intend to play all concerts in areas that haven’t limited public gatherings - in Ecuador, Peru, Guatemala, and the Dominican Republic.

Both Moog and Korg, two of the biggest names in analogue synthesizers, have each made one of their popular synth apps for a free download for a limited time to encourage creativity while people are staying home due to social distancing, self-quarantine and other preventative measures during the COVID-19 outbreak, Engadget reports. Moog is offering up it’s Minimoog Model D for iOS, and Korg is offering up its Kaossilator app for IOS or Android for free for a limited time.