THE “gig economy” is a ubiquitous term bandied about in the past couple of years and even more so now in the midst of the pandemic.

To the average person, jobs categorised under this umbrella term may include the most ubiquitous we see on our roads now: front-liner delivery riders, our two-wheeled (some on foot and in cars too) who deliver hot meals, goods and whatnot come rain or shine, the two most visible ones being the green GrabFood and pink Foodpanda.

Of course, prior to that, these same “giggers” slowly but steadily replaced the humble taxis that dot our landscape before expanding into micro economies. I was touring the region regularly in the 2010s – ahh the good ‘ol “old world” – and I had many conversations with the Grab drivers who ferried me to the airport and back. 

Like most, we benefited from the convenience and also the reassurance that at least the income now rests squarely on the industriousness of the driver themselves, well at least until the powers-that-be swooped in as a regulatory big piece of the pie as usual.

Most of the drivers I spoke to relished the independence that the “gigging” accorded them, as a major side income or ended up quitting their day jobs. It warmed my heart that the rakyat now could take advantage of this platform and this was further cemented when such services encompassed deliveries.

On some trips, I would take the ticketed airport taxis for a change and hear what their take was. Naturally they were mostly angered since it took away their income while some relented that “times have changed” and one must adapt.

Some of the Grab drivers were themselves former taxi drivers. But before I delve further into this “gig economy”, which is now delivering our desires to our doorsteps, let us swing over to the university students’ last minute essay deadline best friend – Wikipedia – to clarify the definition of someone in the gig economy:

Gig workers are independent contractors, online platform workers, contract firm workers, on-call workers and temporary workers. Gig workers enter into formal agreements with on-demand companies to provide services to the company’s clients. In many countries, the legal classification of gig workers is still being debated, with companies classifying their workers as ‘independent contractors’ while labor advocates have been lobbying for them to be classified as ‘employees’, which would legally require companies to provide the full suite of employee benefits (time-and-a-half for overtime, paid sick time, employer-provided health care, bargaining rights, and unemployment insurance – among others).

Of course, the biggest enabler of the gig economy is digitalisation – without which the speed and efficiency of commerce would not exist in the first place – although digitalisation hasn’t really benefitted the profession in which the term “gig” originated from: live music.

The professional practice of delivery riders and musicians parallel each other in terms of time and space: more time spent gigging across different places equals more earnings. In fact, some musicians have adapted food delivery to sustain themselves too – just a different kind of gigging. Mind you, no musician calls themselves a “freelancer” – the more common term before “gig” became a buzzword.

The term “gig” itself was coined by jazz musicians at the turn of the 20th century. We musicians have been gigging way before the term became co-opted into corporate capitalist lingo.

As live musicians – not pop star “artist” – we ply our trade from one venue or event to another – sometimes several in the same night – to accumulate earnings to get by.

Sometimes it might be a big paying gig, sometimes it’s a stream of smaller ones, but the gigging must go on. It still tickles me as much as it distresses me that a majority of the Malaysian populace are clueless and ignorant about how live musicians earn a living – as certain as money doesn’t grow on trees, it doesn’t grow from applause (or “likes”) alone.

Eighteen months or so into this pandemic and there’s no end in sight to the lockdown on live arts. More than half of live venues have closed shop, since it’s quite obvious there is no income coming, while those that adapt still struggle to find ways to stay afloat, notably through the food and beverage arm of their business.

No venues means no opportunities for musicians and artists to ply their trade. As for online concerts, it’s still finding its funding footing and lacks the experiential physicality of watching a live performance that is irreplaceable with staring at your computer or flat TV screen.

Even busking depends on the high number of human traffic in public spaces – spaces that are still limited and need to be standard operating procedure-compliant.

Most glaring is the obvious lack of political will of those in charge and the political culture that has been detrimental to not only the arts but wider governance.

The ubiquitous practice of Malay politics where pandering to piety brownie points rule the day maintains its snide demonising of live music in bars in its simplistic association with “sin” because alcohol is served.

If Islam is the compass to this so-called moralising, of course lies and slander are bigger sins than a mug of beer.

The broader paternalistic political culture merely fans the fire of dysfunction of the bloated cabinet who probably have never been to a gig in their life, let alone understand the ecosystem of gig economies and its workers.

But if we’ve become accustomed to hypocrisy masked by the veneer of piety, then the battle has already been lost for us giggers.

This is because along with the blind eye, the insistence of excluding gig workers (deliveries and live musicians alike) from the usual benefits and protections that come with full-time work is worrying: it’s a clear sign that The Man isn’t ignorant – he just doesn’t care. – July 23, 2021.

* Azmyl Yunor is a touring underground recording artiste, and an academic in media and cultural studies. He has published articles on pop culture, subcultures and Malaysian cultural politics. He adheres to the three-chords-and-the-truth school of songwriting, and Woody Guthrie’s maxim “All you can write is what you see”. He is @azmyl on Twitter.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.