Release: Tuesday, April 5, 2022 @ 10 am ET
OTTAWA ON -- The Rainbow Bistro, Ottawa’s legendary home of live music, has exceeded its crowdfunding goal to raise $37,000 in 37 days to celebrate its 37th anniversary.
The crowdfunding campaign came to a close on Sunday, April 3, having reached $41,359 in total donations. The money will be used to hire musical artists to perform at the Rainbow in 2022.
“We’re ecstatic that music lovers from Ottawa and beyond have demonstrated their passionate commitment to keep this live music venue going,” said Kevin Ford, chair of the Rainbow Bistro Business Amplifiers, a volunteer group of business leaders who have rallied in support of the Rainbow.
“We can’t thank people enough,” said Danny Sivyer, the owner of the Rainbow Bistro. “This clearly shows that people think Ottawa is a better place when it includes live music. This fills our hearts and makes us even more determined to succeed.”
The Business Amplifiers also plan to make an announcement involving a major Canadian act who will perform at the Rainbow in coming weeks. Major donors to the crowdfunding campaign will be guests at the much-anticipated show.
In recent months, the Rainbow has greatly benefited from both private and public support, including FACTOR’s Support for Live Concerts program.
The Rainbow now features a state-of-the-art sound system, new production lighting, video streaming capability and several stage and infrastructure enhancements. These investments were made possible thanks to corporate sponsors and a partnership with Long & McQuade.
The Rainbow has also relaunched its website -- www.therainbow.ca -- using the Ottawa-based Bandzoogle platform. The website has ecommerce for tickets and merchandise, an improved calendar of events, a blog and photo gallery.
ABOUT THE RAINBOW BISTRO AMPLIFIERS
The Rainbow Bistro Amplifiers include Kevin Ford (Calian Group), Jim Harmon (Boyden), John Jastremski (MDS Aero), John Sicard (Kinaxis) and Michael Curran (Ottawa Business Journal). Karim Rostom from the Ottawa Music Industry Coalition is also assisting the group. Primary contractors for the project were Dalco Construction and Chris Heilig of Media Design Concepts.