Embracing the “New Normal” with Canadian Musician Chris Zimmerman

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By Ashley Joanisse

COVID-19 has been particularly hard on the bar industry in Ontario, most bars were forced to close for months, leaving them with little to no business. With the bar industry closed, this has left most full-time musicians out of a job, with no options for financial assistance, as many do not qualify for government relief funding or unemployment.

Chris Zimmerman, a full-time musician in Ottawa, Ontario, was forced to enter a new work industry, as a delivery driver to keep up with his finances.

Chris has worked tirelessly his entire career to make a name for himself in Canada as a full-time musician. Chris started out in the music industry as a drummer and later took it upon himself to learn the guitar and practice singing so he could book more gigs. This practice made him very successful, landing him daily gigs throughout Ottawa, and later allowing him the opportunity to tour throughout Canada with his band, Chris Zimmerman & The Weather.

After months of not playing a live gig, Chris is excited to play his first live show at Live on Elgin, on August 2nd, a popular artist venue in Canada’s Capital City. To ensure everyone’s safety, the bar has implemented strict new measures to keep both their guests and their artists safe. At Zimmerman’s upcoming show, they will not be selling tickets at the door, all tickets will have to be purchased online in advance. Tickets for the show are not being sold individually, they are being sold by the table. Guests are asked to purchase a table at $24 for 2-3 people or $40 for a 4-person table. Guests also must attend with people either in their household or within their 10-person social distancing bubble. Additionally, once guests purchase a table, they will be contacted with more information regarding the COVID-19 guidelines at the bar as well as given an individual time to enter the bar, to ensure there are not too many people entering the venue at the same time. They are requiring non-medical cloth face masks and are told that if you show up without a mask one will be provided for you. They will also not be accepting cash at the bar.

Chris Zimmerman, said, “I think this will be the new normal for live music for some time.” He is encouraging his fans on social media to embrace the new measures, as he fears without these strict measures, full-time musicians will be left without a venue to play in again and forced to work in another industry. For Chris, music has always been his greatest passion, he has toured all throughout Canada, and has played in every province in the country, so the thought of doing anything else permanently is a very scary thought, one that has become a lot of full-time musicians greatest fears.

Chris Zimmerman is the lead of a folk-rock band called Chris Zimmerman & The Weather. Since, Chris was unable to play live music anywhere, for so long, he decided to start working on re-recording an old song he wrote that had not been released yet amid the pandemic. The new song is a collaboration with various Canadian Artists including Brandon Fry, Canadian Singer-Songwriter, Eric Eggleston, Canadian Musician and Music Producer, and Brigit O’Regan, a popular Electric Violinist in Toronto. The track is out now on various music streaming platforms, if you would like to listen to Chris’s newest release, please click the following link.

You can also follow Chris on Instagram and Facebook @chriszimmermanmusic

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