'I went wheelchair crowd surfing and it was incredibleā
23 October 2019
Music is Josh Reeves's life, and he’s an avid gig-goer.
Disabled is just a label
But he's often shut out of the concerts he loves to attend because of poor accessibility at venues.
“What I love about going to gigs is the excitement, the thrill of seeing your favourite band perform. It’s breathtaking and it’s one of my favourite things to do!” he said.
“Best experience I’ve had in a gig... I went wheelchair crowd surfing, and it was incredible. I’ve always wanted to do a mosh pit but sadly that one never happened.
“I haven’t been able to attend several gigs due to the lack of accessibility: the lack of disabled toilets, the lack of spaces provided at the venue where they put you on the platform.
“I remember wanting to go and see one of my favourite bands - an 80s thrash metal band - and I couldn’t get to the venue because they had steps. Now that’s not on!
What Disabled Music Fans Need
Music is Josh's life but he's often shut out of gigs...
“I listen to music every single day of my life to get out of depression and anxiety. And when someone says to you you can't attend a gig because of your disability, because it’s got limited spaces when everyone without a disability can go on the standing ground… Why shouldn't there be a short amount of spaces for disabled people?”
And it’s not just accessibility issues that Josh faces. The seemingly simple act of purchasing tickets for gigs is itself a huge problem.
“When you’re disabled you [often] have to ring them first, which I really don’t get,’ he said.
“There should be a quicker way for us to get tickets like everyone else, online. It’s a fight for that ticket and it shouldn’t be like that! I pay to be part of the pre-sales. I access all that and I pay extra.
“I’ve been down to a lot of local pubs where they haven’t had platforms there for people with disabilities. They haven’t thought about people with disabilities attending the gigs.
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“I really think that I miss out on gigs and stuff I love doing because I have a disability.”
I miss out on gigs and stuff I love doing because I have a disability
Josh, a disability rights activist, wants to see a change in attitudes towards disability - from the venues to the musicians themselves.
“I think that bands and musicians should definitely think about who they are performing in front of, to say to the venues ‘we want more people with disabilities accessing our gigs’,” he said
“The truth hurts but I really want society to change and to get more venues to realise that people with disabilities should have access to more platforms across the venue.
“What makes me disabled is actually not putting the accessibility there in the venues, so people are actually making me more disabled.
“These venues are actually disabling us when we need to show society that we are not disabled, and disabled is just a label.”
