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As the 2027 presidential election approaches, funding has become a central topic of discussion for those working in electronic music. Economic insecurity, dependence on public funding, uncertainty surrounding the future of broadcasting. Several proposals put forward by the National Rally (RN) directly raise questions about the future of independent creation.
Today, keeping culture alive is already a challenge. With the 2027 presidential election on the horizon, it is essential, indispensable, immensely important to question the future of the organisations and professionals who contribute to the richness of music in France, but also of all the other artistic fields that form part of our cultural heritage.
The economic difficulties facing the cultural sector (media outlets, labels, agencies, production companies) have been firmly established for several years, and their respective business models have changed considerably in order to adapt. But the political directions advocated by the far right, particularly regarding the funding of broadcasting (which will have a significant impact on the music industry), invite us to seriously consider what could change.
Music, just like cinema, is a living cultural heritage. It helps shape our collective identities, tells the stories of our societies and must not be pushed into the background. Faced with the climate emergency, the economic crisis and the crisis affecting public services, it is obviously not the top priority, logically speaking. But with the dangerous and phenomenal rise of artificial intelligence tools, forgetting music, forgetting culture, forgetting cinema and no longer supporting artists and their independence would mean erasing ourselves for good, and above all, making way for an even greater danger.
The CNC: An Independent Creative Economy at Risk
On November 21, 2025, an amendment submitted by National Rally MP Matthias Renault was rejected by the French National Assembly. Its objective was to end the allocation of taxes to the National Centre for Cinema and the Moving Image (CNC), with the aim of abolishing the institution and redirecting public support.
As a reminder, the CNC (French National Centre for Cinema and the Moving Image) is mainly funded through three dedicated taxes:
- TSA (Additional Special Tax): levied on cinema ticket sales.
- TST (Tax on Television Services): levied on the revenues of television service broadcasters and distributors.
- TSV (Tax on Physical and Online Video Distribution): levied on the sale and rental of physical and digital video content, as well as video-on-demand services (Netflix, Disney+, etc.).
In his explanatory statement, the MP criticised projects deemed “ideologically driven” (well, what a surprise?) and proposed that 50% of the revenue concerned could continue to fund productions considered “interesting and profitable” (what a surprise, again?).
The CNC supports cinema, but also audiovisual creation, particularly music videos and some independent productions. These funding mechanisms make it possible to finance projects that sustain an entire network of professionals, including directors, technicians, editors, sound engineers and producers. But what will remain of these creations if profitability becomes the main criterion for funding? Commercial productions, already capable of attracting investors, could be favoured at the expense of emerging artists and underground scenes, whose cultural richness cannot be measured in revenue.
This amendment was not adopted. But it provides a concrete example of the cultural policy defended by part of the RN parliamentary group, which would obviously have considerably more power if the party came to office in 2027. But that is only the visible part of the potential problem.
History has already shown us just how easily culture can become an instrument of propaganda when placed under the authority of a political power that has everything to gain from reshaping public perceptions.
A little historical context: in the 1930s, Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy used cinema and music to spread their ideologies, even going so far as to instrumentalise the Venice Film Festival in 1938. Without claiming that the situations are comparable, we are not living in the same era, and we are not officially at war. But we are living through an ideological war that many still struggle to recognise, and certain similarities should serve as a warning to everyone’s conscience.
Those who control funding and distribution conditions, even partially, can also influence the narratives that society is exposed to. Who would decide what deserves funding, and according to which criteria?
The National Music Centre: Another Institution in the Crosshairs
And it is not only cinema and broadcasting that are concerned. On November 21, 2025, another amendment, this time submitted by RN MP Jean-Philippe Tanguy, proposed abolishing the tax on music streaming, which contributes to funding the National Music Centre (CNM). In its explanatory statement, the party explicitly called for the abolition of the institution itself…
Yet the CNM supports an entire industry: music production, record labels, festivals, concert venues, international development and artist support. In 2026, that represents €133 million allocated to the music sector. Support that is sometimes vital for certain independent organisations.
In Paris, Le Trabendo (€29,100), Petit Bain (€40,000), Le Hasard Ludique (€22,000) and La Flèche d’Or (€25,000) are among the beneficiaries of funding awarded through the partnership between the CNM and the City of Paris. This support makes it possible to encourage artistic risk taking, book emerging artists and preserve jobs in the cultural sector. Calling these mechanisms into question could therefore directly affect the venues that keep alternative and electronic music alive.
The RN proposal, rejected by the National Assembly, was defended in the name of purchasing power and lower taxation. But in that case, how would the loss of these resources be compensated for those who depend on them?
Media and Broadcasting: Editorial Independence Under Threat
The RN also advocates the privatisation of France Télévisions and Radio France, as well as a reduction in public subsidies for the press. In its alternative budget presented in October 2026, the party plans to reduce public broadcasting funding from approximately €3.8 billion to €300 million by 2028.
For cultural media outlets, this budget revision will raise even more questions about the space given to less profitable content, a phenomenon that is already more than apparent today, especially since some media outlets receive no public support at all. The consequences are simple: greater dependence on commercial revenue and therefore a shift towards a system funded exclusively by it, which is already the case for many specialised media outlets. This is not a moral accusation. It is simply an observation that the media economy has changed and that many organisations are being forced to adapt.
As for privatisation, it could lead to ideological influence in the worst case scenario. In the best case, the indirect consequence would simply be the impoverishment of culture, and especially countercultures, sectors which, it is worth remembering, are already financially vulnerable. An underground scene does not need to be profitable, consensual or politically comfortable to have cultural value. Without this space for freedom, how can the musical movements of tomorrow emerge?
The Loss of Spaces and Repression: A Policy Already Underway
The freedom to organise and sustain alternative cultures is also at stake. Recently 2026, the French National Assembly adopted the RIPOST law, as we all know. A measure supported, unsurprisingly, by the National Rally MPs who took part in the
On the 18th of august 2026 RN affiliated MP Eddy Casterman described rave parties as a “criminal enterprise” during the debates. A policy and a way of showing contempt for these cultures directly borrowed from Meloni’s Italy. What comes next for our culture?
Electronic Music Under Threat
That being said, it would be a little too easy to attribute all the future difficulties facing the sector to a single political party that, moreover, has not yet been elected. Budget cuts, economic concentration and the growing insecurity of cultural professions are already well established realities, shaped by the parties that came before.
But the proposals put forward by the RN should spark a collective awakening, and not only when it comes to culture. How many jobs, how many projects will be sacrificed? What safety net will remain for creative professionals? What place will be given to art that does not conform to conventional standards? We can only speculate about the future, but we will not be able to say we did not know.
Loving art, loving music, also means questioning the material conditions that allow these scenes to exist. Questioning the consequences of their potential disappearance, the motivations behind using or suppressing a form of countercultural art. And questioning who will still be able to make a living from it.
Credits Cover : Rémi Noyon