GMF Establishes Georgia Music Relief Fund
The Georgia Music Foundation has established the Georgia Music Relief Fund to provide grants to professional musicians and technical crew who are experiencing financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Grants of no less than $500 each will be awarded to eligible applicants as long as funds remain available.
“No one could have ever predicted that almost overnight, musicians and crew members would lose their ability to play live or tour for a full year or more,” says songwriter and Georgia Music Foundation chair Dallas Davidson about the devastating impact of the pandemic on the music industry. “During a Zoom board meeting two weeks ago, Dinah Gretschurged us to step forward with a relief fund and pledged a lead gift to make it possible for us to extend a hand to our friends in Georgia’s music community.”
Donations to increase the Georgia Music Relief Fund, which kicks off with $50,000, are being accepted. “Every dollar that comes in goes to the Fund to be directly granted to musicians and crew,” says Lisa Love, who oversees the Georgia Music Foundation. “Donors who give $100 will receive a free Georgia Music hoodie with design by Art Satisfied out of Tifton, GA and screenprinting by the great folks at Satisfactory in Athens.”
Eligible applicants must be Georgia residents whose primary source of income is as a performing or touring musician, or as a technical crew member (sound or lighting engineer, etc.) employed by a live music venue in Georgia or by a touring musician or band based in Georgia. Funds are intended for food, rent, mortgage, utilities, medical or other vital living expenses. All applications and grants are strictly confidential. Applications will no longer be accepted when all funds have been expended.
The Georgia Music Foundation supports programs of music education, preservation and outreach. Its annual Georgia Music Grant program awards funds for music projects at deserving schools, after-school programs, summer camps and non-profit organizations. So far in 2020, the Foundation has distributed $100,000 in Georgia Music grants to 25 projects statewide in addition to providing access to the SmartMusic online instruction platform for 25 music teachers and their more than 1,100 students. The grant program is supported by the Foundation’s annual Georgia Music On My Mind benefit concert, which was presented virtually back in May with Brent Cobb and Amy Ray hosting a lineup of homegrown musicians and songwriters.
Apply for or donate to the Georgia Music Relief Fund here. For questions, email info@georgiamusicfoundation.org.