KATHMANDU: BTS and their record label Big Hit Entertainment are supporting music industry crews by making a donatio — the band and the company have joined hands to donate $ 1 million to a charity initiative aimed at supporting personnel of live entertainment sector who are impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.

According to PTI, the group who would be touring for many parts of this year have extended their support to this campaign by Crew Nation, Live Nation to help those staffers who would have played an instrumental role in making BTS' shows happen.

The K-pop group comprising Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jungkook said in a statement to Varieyt, "We are aware that a lot of communities need help due to COVID-19, and we wanted to support the music industry crews by making a donation. We hope to meet again on stage very soon."

PTI quoted Big Hit's Global CEO Lenzo Yoon as saying, "It is very unfortunate that the music industry has to go through such a difficult time at the moment. We hope our contribution to Crew Nation could help support many live concert crews around the world."

Crew Nation was launched in March with an $ 5 million donations, which the charity promised to match up to a further $5 million contributed by artistes, fans, and employees, informed PTI, and added, "The fund provides a one-time grant of $1,000 to crew members who make 50 per cent or more of their income from live performances."

So far, over 70 live concert crew members who were originally scheduled to work at BTS concerts before the postponement or cancellation due to the pandemic have received funding — 20 per cent of whom are veterans who have worked in the live performance industry for over 16 years, as per PTI.

This contribution will help aid 1,000 live concert crews to receive relief, as per the announcement. And all nationalities, including Koreans, can apply for the Crew Nation fund.