By joining us in this Initiative, I/we, [Individual or Company], pledge to strive toward these ideals:

Venues, Artist Management, Tour Personnel, Talent Buyers and Sellers; Producers and or Promoters of Concerts, Events and Festivals; Vendors, and others operating as businesses or corporations in Live Entertainment and Productions, please review the pledge below:

1. Initiate an honest assessment of my/our hiring and recruitment practices and keep accurate records of diversity at all levels of my/our organization, to the extent allowed by law.

2. Partner with my/our H.R. organization and/or senior leadership to assess policies, including training protocols and misconduct reporting, where applicable.

3. Partner with my/our H.R. organization and/or senior leadership to ensure there are reasonable actions to record, store and analyze my/our organization's internal data related to Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Accessibility (“I.D.E.A.”) assessments and utilize that information to address these Initiative steps more effectively, to the extent allowed by law. If my/our organization does not yet collect diversity data, then I/we pledge to direct designated hiring managers to evaluate the viability of collecting this information through simple procedures such as adding optional identifying questions through traditional application processes, to the extent allowed by law, and implement such measures where reasonably possible.

4. Use reasonable efforts to ensure that qualified persons from historically marginalized and underrepresented groups are considered and interviewed for open positions in a fair, equitable and legally compliant manner with an understanding of intersectional identities.

5. Consider matters of I.D.E.A. in determining qualifications for our positions.

6. Make reasonable efforts to increase the number of qualified persons from historically marginalized and/or underrepresented groups in leadership positions across all levels of my/our organization, including management, directors, and C-suite executives in a fair, equitable and legally compliant manner.

7. Engage in supplier diversity programs and monetary steps such as the use of banks, vendors, contractors, and suppliers who are owned and operated by members of historically marginalized communities.

8. Extend hiring and recruitment efforts to local underrepresented communities, including community organizations, trade and community colleges, HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities), HLSI (Hispanic and Latin Serving Institutions, AAPI SI (Asian American and Pacific Islander Serving Institutions), Tribal Colleges, community outreach programs, and programs that service formerly incarcerated persons.

9. Participate in apprenticeship placement programs alongside community engagement organizations that service marginalized and underrepresented communities, high schools, and/or college workforce placement programs.

10. Partner with my/our H.R. organization and/or senior leadership to distribute information on available resources that address the mental health and wellbeing of staff.

11. Create or expanding I.D.E.A. focused training at all levels of our organization, focusing on such topics as:

    • Appropriate responses or De-Escalation

    • A focus on the safety and security of historically marginalized and/or underrepresented groups

    • Unconscious Bias

    • Microaggressions

    • Racial Sensitivity

    • LGBTQAI2+ Sensitivity

    • Gender Bias

    • Disability and Access

    • Sexual Harassment Prevention

    • DEI

    • Angel Shot Protocols

If you are a hiring member of tour personnel, i.e., a tour manager, production manager, or tour director, in addition to 1-11, pledge to strive toward these ideals:

• Utilize the recommended staffing databases provided in the DTS Resource Guide* in addition to your current practices, hiring, recruiting, and contracting qualified staff and vendors.

• Support and encourage peers looking for employment to register to these recommended databases in and effort to widen the net of opportunities for all.

If you are a concert or festival promoter/talent buyer, in addition to 1-11, pledge to strive toward these ideals:

• Initiate an assessment of acts you are booking in a calendar year to determine if they include an equal and reasonable ratio of talent that feature members of historically marginalized and/or underrepresented groups.

• Commit to booking, billing, making stage assignments for, and highlighting acts that feature members of historically marginalized and/or underrepresented groups in a fair, equitable and legally compliant manner with an understanding of intersectional identities.

If you represent a venue or festival, in addition to 1-11 pledge to strive toward these ideals:

• Utilize the provided signage and post such where applicable, across your events, including dressing rooms, security, and artist's check-in areas. Post BOH/FOH sign(s) next to daily tour sheets to make available to all staff.

• Fill out the Venue Assessment and Achievability Worksheet. The purpose of the worksheet is to enable your management teams to identify (i) practices you either already have in place, need to expand on, or need to implement further, (ii) what steps (if any) need to be taken to achieve each practice and (iii) the achievability of each one.

• Assess the access for persons with all types of disabilities to your events, and make best and reasonable efforts to ensure access for all including physical access, ASL translators and captioning, and availability of accommodation information at point of sale, where applicable.

If you agree to the commitments above please fill out the form below. Upon completion you will receive a confirmation email with a Link to access your dedicated DTS Inclusion Initiative Packet including the following:

COPY OF YOUR PLEDGE

EVENT SIGNAGE KIT

DTS RESOURCE GUIDE (STAFFING DATABASES, HR & SAFETY RESOURCES, ADA RESOURCES AND MORE)

DTS VENUE ASSESSMENT AND ACHIEVABILITY WORKSHEET

DTS APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM INFORMATION (SUBMISSION LINKS AND MORE)

GUIDE TO I.D.E.A FOCUSED KEY TERMS AND DEFINITIONS

SOCIAL MEDIA KIT

The resources and materials provided have been gathered through the joint efforts of experienced music industry professionals. They are an initial step of an evolving process, which will result in future versions over time. You will be asked to register your name, email, and company affiliation for access to these resources. Usage of Diversify The Stage signage tool kits, logos, and trademarked materials will be licensed to you at a royalty free rate. Upon adoption of the DTS Inclusion Initiative Pledge you will receive a confirmation email to access these materials, and be notified whenever these tools are updated with new information and/or additional resources. Thank you for joining us in these next steps towards change.