2,000 Ireland creative residents will receive the weekly income of €325, including musicians and visual artists, courtesy of the Irish government.

2,000 creative residents in Ireland are getting some financial assistance. The Irish government has kicked off a weekly "basic income" for select artists — many who are musicians — of €325 weekly, the equivalent of $325.16 USD. The Basic Income For The Arts was announced in January of this year but has recently sent out payments to creatives, as applications for the  were accessible from April 12 to May 12. The plan was designed for artists to be supported following the pandemic's impact.

“Over 9,000 people applied to the scheme and the 2,000 receiving the income were selected anonymously and at random,” the BBC reported. The Irish government is expected to spend €25 million ($25.3 million USD) on the plan for three years.

Ireland's capital city of Dublin has the most recipients with 746, followed by Cork with 212, and Galway with 148. Although a majority of qualifying recipients were visual artists (700), 584 musicians received grants, followed by 204 people working in film, 184 writers and 170 actors.

Minister Martin said in a statement: “Today is an historic day for the arts in Ireland and a significant change to the way Ireland recognises [sic] and supports her artists. The Basic Income for the Arts pilot scheme is a once-in-a-generation initiative. It makes a strong statement about the value Ireland places on the arts and artistic practice, both for its intrinsic value and in terms of our personal and collective wellbeing, and also in terms of its importance to our identity and cultural distinctiveness on the global stage.”