As virus mutes Dubai nightlife, Filipino bands feel the pain As the coronavirus pandemic mutes Dubai's live-music scene, the Filipino show bands that long have animated the city's storied nightlife are being disproportionately squeezedDUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- Eric Roman struts onstage in his torn jeans and grasps the microphone. Now, as the pandemic mutes the city’s live-music scene and clobbers its economy, hundreds of Filipino performers are struggling to survive. Dubai drew legions of Filipino cover bands to fuel its rapid transformation from a desert pearling port into regional party capital. “Agents promise you heaven and give you hell,” said AJ Zacarias, a singer-keyboardist and president of the UAE’s Filipino Bands Alliance, an advocacy group. The UAE’s Filipino Bands Alliance said some 80% of Filipino artists have had their visas canceled by their employers, a consequence of the UAE’s “kafala” labor system that links expatriates’ residency to their jobs.

Source: ABC News November 15, 2020 06:56 UTC