(Hypebot) — The non-profit Live Music Society has opened applications for their third annual Music in Action small venue grants thru February 14th.
Live Music Society opens applications for Small Venue Grants
Launched in 2023, Live Music Society Music in Action grants are designed to support initiatives that will improve the non-profit or for profit venue experience for musicians, audiences, and staff, cultivate an engaged and connected community, and achieve long-term health and business growth.
Applicants can request up to $50,000 in funding and grant recipients will be announced in June.
Music in Action grants empower small venues to develop strategies that engage local communities, expand audiences, and boost revenue. A particular focus is given to uplifting historically marginalized groups, including BIPOC, Latinx, LGBTQ+, and individuals with disabilities.
American Road Trip Series
To kick off the third annual grant round, Live Music Society is bringing back its American Road Trip series, celebrating grantee venues nationwide.
The latest installment, “American Road Trip: Music in Action at Cole’s Bar”, spotlights the 2023 grantee’s Open Jam project in Chicago—a bi-monthly event that provides emerging artists with opportunities to perform with other local musicians.
Success Stories
Since its inception, Music in Action has supported 41 venues in both major cities and small towns across the country, Recipients have included intimate spaces like Rebel Rebel Studio & Lounge in Berea, Kentucky, which hosts residencies for emerging artists, and Jalopy Theatre in Brooklyn, New York, home to the expanded Brooklyn International Music Festival.
Nonprofits like the Fogartyville Community Media and Arts Center in Sarasota, Florida, is using their grant to support the second annual Creative Nexus series while other recipients, such as The Spot on Kirk in Roanoke, Virginia, Devil’s Backbone Tavern in Fischer, Texas, and La Peña Cultural Center in Berkeley, California, are celebrating Latinx and Hispanic music in their communities.
The Blue Jay Listening Room in Jacksonville Beach, Florida, will host an emerging women songwriters series, while the Acorn Center for the Performing Arts in Three Oaks, Michigan, brought the JazzReach residency to their venue in November, offering free clinics and all-ages concerts to expand music education in rural Michigan.
Learn more about Live Music Society Music in Action grants here.
Live Music Society Webinars
Live Music Society will also host a free public webiner, offering small venue owners and operators valuable insights and strategies.
January 21 – Aaron Henderson – Grant Writing: Budgets; Supporting your story through the creation of realistic and funder-friendly budgets.
- Attendees will learn to build a solid, funder-friendly budget to support your grant application. This webinar will cover practical tips for how to link budget items to project goals and avoid common pitfalls in grant budgeting.
Sign up to attend free here.
Bruce Houghton is the Founder and Editor of Hypebot, a Senior Advisor at Bandsintown, founder of the Skyline Artists Agency, and a Berklee College Of Music professor.
