Dance music platform Resident Advisor defends ‘unfathomable’ £750k government grant

Site co-founder released statement explaining that the coronavirus pandemic had caused ‘95% loss of revenue’

Crowd at Fabric nightclub (Rex Features)

Resident Advisor, a dance music platform that will receive a £750,000 government grant, has defended itself after the sum of money was described by critics as “unfathomable”.

Known as RA, the company is an online music magazine and community platform dedicated to showcasing electronic music. It is receiving the money as part of the government’s arts support grant scheme.

The government’s decision to award RA such a large amount was widely criticised. DJ and producer Mint Royale tweeted: “£750k of government support for Resident Advisor is really unfathomable.”

Techno DJ Dave Clarke, meanwhile, said: “Perhaps you should be upfront and clear and publicly announce how happy you must be getting much more than other applicants....... how many jobs the Arts Council have saved in your organisation should be for all to be seen.”

DJ Paypal added: Yo lol @residentadvisor so maybe everybody who did a RA mix / unpaid content for yr platform should get a check. We see yall sittin on that slight 3quarters.”

Defending the grant, RA co-founder Nick Sabine released a statement explaining that the coronavirus pandemic had caused a “95% loss of revenue” and he expected “no meaningful recovery for at least the next six months”.

He added that 75% of the grant will go towards saving jobs and continuing to support “critically important causes”, which includes a pledge to diversify its staff and coverage. The remaining 25% will support its “network of creative freelancers”.

The government announced £257m of arts support grants on Monday, which have been split between more than 1,300 organisations.

An Arts Council spokesperson told The Guardian that RA’s application was successful because of its large readership and because it gives “people the opportunity to discover new music including grassroots and mid-career artists through uniquely curated podcasts, features, reviews and films”.

They added the grant money would also “support artists and other organisations that rely on Resident Advisor as a source of income”.

RA’s grant was much more substantial than that of other music sites, including Crack Magazine, which received £125,320.