Former Beatles drummer Ringo Starr says no one is willing to help younger bands make it in the music industry.
And he says while he does his best to promote up-and-coming artists on the road, more needs to be done to help nurture new talent.
He tells Bloomberg Businessweek: “I go crazy, because if you want to open for a well-known band you have to pay – management makes you pay. Who is giving back?
“I did a Ringo tour once and had a local band at every gig open for us just to give them exposure. Nobody is helping anybody.
“For an artist starting off, there’s no clubs for them to play in. The venues have gone down. It’s very hard now. It’s easier to become a celebrity on a TV show as a band for four months than work solidly.
“People think it just happened – we just woke up one morning and were Beatles. That’s not true. We worked very hard with the venues and put in the time.”
And asked if the Beatles would play together again if they were still a functioning unit, Starr says: “We would. We would have gotten over our difficulties and gotten on the road again. We do it and get paid, but don’t do it to get paid. It’s all about the gig.”
Late last year, Starr’s drum kit that he played on Beatles hits including Can’t Buy Me Love and I Want to Hold Your Hand has sold at auction for £1.4million.
