Live Music Society to Announce Next Round of Grant Recipients for Small Music Venues

In 2020 the Live Music Society was founded to provide a lifeline to small, independent venues forced to close their doors due to the COVID pandemic. Last year LMS disbursed their inaugural round of individual monetary grants of up to $50,000 to 20 venues across the United States.

In 2021, LMS supports independent venues as they struggle to reopen in a challenging post-pandemic landscape. LMS will announce the recipients of the second round of relief grants on Tues, May 18th, on the Live Music Society's Website: www.livemusicsociety.org.

2020 LMS grantees included a wide spectrum of independent venues from all over the country, from the coasts to the heartland. Based in 14 states across the country, the initial grant recipients boast strong connections to their communities and run the gamut of genre orientations.

The venues included such noted music stages as Club Passim (Cambridge, Mass.), the famed 85-seat folk club founded as Club 47 in 1958; the Jazz Showcase (Chicago, Ill.), the 170-seat Windy City landmark opened in 1947 by the late Joe Segal; Hotel Café (Los Angeles, Ca.) the intimate performance space featuring acoustic-based songwriters; and Caffé Lena (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.), the 110-seat coffeehouse where Bob Dylan performed in his folk-singing days. Locations stretch from Maine to Washington, and from Michigan to Texas, including Mercury Lounge (Tulsa, Okla.), The Bowery Electric (New York, N.Y.), The Royal Room (Seattle, Wash.), Club Café (Pittsburgh, Pa.) , The Word Barn (Exeter, N.H.) , and Levon Helm Studios (Woodstock, N.Y.).

Last year Live Music Society granted over $800,000 to applicants. LMS is committed to giving $2 million in grants in its first two years of operation to support the live music ecosystem around the United States. LMS Grants supply philanthropic aid to music venues that have been in operation for three years or more with a sellable capacity of 250 occupants or less, with maximum one-year individual grants ranging from $10,000 to $50,000.

The Live Music Society also supports "Empty Spaces", a video series highlighting small U.S. venues; and the stories of their experiences before, during, and after the pandemic. Tune in June 3rd for the premiere of Empty Spaces: Hi-Dive, which focuses on Denver, Colorado's beloved the Hi-Dive, an institution in the city's historic Baker neighborhood, an incubator for local talent, and a vital stop for touring bands.

LMS believes that music is at the center of what it means to be alive. Live Music Society seeks to support initiatives that promote and preserve the performance and experience of live music in our society.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year's grants will prioritize small music venues - to help them survive through this crisis and to thrive once again when they can re-open their doors. Small music venues play a vital role in the music industry. They offer an intimate experience between an artist and their audience that remains unrivaled by any other platform.

These spaces are also where musicians develop their craft and connect with their fans. Yet, these invaluable venues are threatened by large corporations, economic challenges, dwindling audiences who are consuming music digitally, and now extended closures due to a global pandemic. Live Music Society will be awarding grants to small music venues to assist them through these challenging times of closure, and to support their creative ideas in re-opening, so that they can once again do what they do best - connect musicians and their community.

To post a comment, you must register and login.