“The social and cultural dimension of ‘platforming’ live music : the case of the Hong Kong independent music scene during the Covid-19 pandemic”

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article explores the implications of the rise of digitally–mediated live music performances in the context of one marginalized cultural scene, the Hong Kong independent music scene, during the Covid-19 pandemic. Combining observation of live-streamed events with interviews of key actors in the scene, this article analyses the processes by which the partial ‘platformization’ of live music activities has led to the deterritorialization and reterritorialization of the scene - through collaborations between some Hong Kong and international indie music actors and the reaffirmation of the ‘local’ via the use of visual represesentations of the city in online concerts, as well as to forms of digital disengagement. In turn, the article argues that analyses of the platformization of culture music must take into consideration the socio-cultural effects of digital platforms on specific localized contexts of cultural creation and consumption such as cultural scenes.