Streaming Up to Boston live show

Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic , the band postponed their annual St. Patrick’s Day shows until September 2020. However, thanks to Cambridge, Massachusetts , based software company Pegasystems , they performed a special free live streaming show titled Streaming Up to Boston in Derry, New Hampshire at Studio Lab / Events United , on March 17, 2020, where they also previewed three songs from their upcoming album, including ” Mick Jones Nicked My Pudding”, “Queen of Suffolk County ” and “Burn it to the Ground”. Casey also said the band financially would take a hit due to their shows being postponed. “[We have] zero insurance. We don’t even carry cancelation insurance on our shows. We’ve been through this a few times before with festivals that were canceled because of hurricanes or storms. The cost of a band of our size, we’d be paying a third of our guarantee for every show for insurance. You gotta roll the dice at that point.” “Streaming Up to Boston” drew an audience of more than 13 million viewers and raised over $60,000 for the Boston Resiliency Fund, a nonprofit that provides essential services to Boston residents—including first responders and critical care providers amid the pandemic. On May 29, 2020, the band performed a full no-audience concert titled Streaming Outta Fenway at Fenway Park in Boston, which again would be sponsored by Pegasystems. The live-streamed performance featured a special appearance by Bruce Springsteen who appeared remotely and performed two songs with the band. The event marked the first music performance without an in-person audience at a major U.S. arena, stadium or ballpark. During the livestream, viewers were encouraged to donate to three charities: the Boston Resiliency Fund, Feeding America, and Habitat for Humanity, Greater Boston. Prior to the performance, the music video for “Mick Jones Nicked My Pudding” was shown. The two hour show attracted over 9 million viewers and raised over $700,000 (with Pegasystems donating the first $151,000). A few days later it was announced that the band reached a six-figure deal with Pegasystems. Pegasystems agreed to financially back all of the band’s in-person shows in Boston as well as a St. Patrick’s Day livestream for the next three years. The band’s manager Jeff Castelaz said the six-figure partnership includes an up-front payment to support the band’s 10-person road crew, to help make up for the sudden loss of the crew’s income with the end of live touring. Ken Casey said the only revenue for the band came from online merchandise sales during the two live streaming shows and that the future remains uncertain for rock bands and that he doesn’t necessarily see the financial sense in touring for crowds at venues that can only be half full, after they finally do reopen.”