Thisyear,forthefirsttimeever,attendingartistswillbetrainedincounterterrorismandemergencysituationsaheadthisSunday'sGrammyAwards.
TheUSStateDepartmentandEuropeanUnionficialswillgiveall-daytrainingthedaybeforetheshowtohigh-prilemusicians.
Thepivotaldecisiontotakesuchmeasurescomesinlightrecentattacksonlarge-scalemusicevents.Althoughvenuesandawardshowstypicallyprovidestandardemergencyresponseguidelines,Saturday'sf-sitesessionswillmarktheonlytimeStateDepartmentandEuropeanUnionficialshavegivennon-event-specificeducationstraighttoartists.
AttendeesincludingPink,LittleBigTown,RuntheJewelsandYoungThugwillreceivespecializedbriefsonsituationalawareness,identifyingvulnerablepointsandtimesincreasedrisk,avoidingtimeandplacepredictabilityandcreatingcontingencyplans.
ISISexpertandformerUSStateDepartmentDirectorAnalytics,Dr.AmirBagherpour,speaksonthematter:"Behindarms,musicandentertainmentarethelargestWesternexports,andmusiciansandentertainersserveasambassadorsaroundtheworld.Attacksagainstthemgeneratealotcoverageandsendapowerfulmessage.Itmakessensethattheywouldbetargeted".
Via:]
SydneyisMixmag'sUSDigitalContentEditor.FollowheronTwitter
