Artist Gives

Partnering with festival artists to bring music education to those who need it most.

Through our Artist Gives program, Newport Festivals Foundation makes grants on behalf of every artist on the Newport Folk and Jazz lineups to music education programs that they care about.

This is our way of supporting and raising awareness for music education programs doing exceptional work across the country. Through this initiative, we have funded programs that bring music into prisons, provide guitars for veterans, offer music education for refugee and immigrant communities, and more.

Since 2018, our Artist Gives program has made 197 grants totaling $414,787. Here are just a few of our favorites:

Tyler Childers – Instruments for Kentucky

“With Tyler, after he became successful, he didn’t forget where he came from”

In 2023, Newport Festivals Foundation and Tyler Childers made a surprise visit to the high schools he attended as a teenager. NFF and Tyler’s Hickman Holler Appalachian Relief Fund donated over $30,000 worth of instruments and gear to support their music education programs. A huge thank you to Tyler and Senora for understanding the importance of music education and for helping us build the next generation of musicians.

Hurray for the Riff Raff – Puerto Rico

“Music for us, is a healing process”

In December 2018, Newport Festivals Foundation traveled to Puerto Rico with Alynda Mariposa Segarra from Hurray for the Riff Raff to donate over $20,000 worth of musical instruments to public schools in rural areas still recovering from Hurricane Maria.

Chief Xian aTunde Adjuah – New Orleans Public Schools

Creating the next generation of musicians in the birthplace of jazz.

In 2019, we teamed up with Christian Scott Atunde Adjuah and Conn-Selmer Education to present a Master Class and donate $10,000 worth of instruments to McDonogh 35 High School, Christian’s alma mater. After a short performance and Q&A, students were invited on stage to jam – truly powerful to be in the birthplace of jazz, watching Christian engage and inspire the next generation of musicians.

2024 Artist Gives

Buck Meek

For his Artist Give, Buck asked Newport Festivals Foundation to provide a grant to Anthropos Arts, which hires top local professional musicians to teach and mentor at-risk teens through a series of lessons, rehearsals, and a large concert in downtown Austin. Newport Festivals Foundation’s gift will provide lessons for at-risk teens in the Austin area this spring.

NOvember Ultra

For her Artist Give, Newport Festivals Foundation will be providing free tickets to the Newport Folk and Jazz Festivals. The funds will allow local students from Rogers High School and nonprofits on Aquidneck Island to attend our festivals free of charge this summer.

MOLLY TUTTLE

For her Artist Give, Molly asked Newport Festivals Foundation to provide a grant to Thistle Farms, which provides free housing, recovery services, and job training to women survivors of prostitution, trafficking, and addiction. The funds will be used to offer musical sound blessings that help to provide relief from stress and trauma related responses

STEVE POLTZ

For Steve’s Artist Give, he asked Newport Festivals Foundation to make a grant to Nuçi’s Space, which uses music to help prevent suicide. Nuçi’s Space maintains a health and resource center for musicians as a safe space to seek support and guidance. Funds will be used to provide music lessons with a focus on positive mental health

ORVILLE PECK

For Orville’s Artist Give, Newport Festivals Foundation has made a grant to In The Band, which provides access to music education in underserved communities throughout Los Angeles county. The funds will be used to support a songwriting and production program in partnership with a nonprofit shelter in Hollywood, CA that provides sanctuary and support for youth overcoming homelessness and trafficking

MIGHTY POPLAR

For their Artist Give, Newport Festivals Foundation has made a donation on behalf of Mighty Poplar to W.O. Smith Nashville Community Music School which makes affordable, quality music instruction available to children from low-income families in the Nashville area. Funds will be used to provide a week-long summer camp for students to learn to play in a variety of genres including bluegrass, country, rock, pop, hip-hop, soul and R&B

WEDNESDAY

For their Artist Give, Wednesday asked that we provide a grant to Girls Rock Asheville, a music education and social justice nonprofit providing girls and transgender youth ages 8-16 with summer camps, after school programs, and other low- and no-cost music programs. The funds will be used to provide new instruments and stipends for their music teachers for their annual summer rock camp

LA LOM

For their Artist Give, LA LOM asked Newport Festivals Foundation to make a grant to Neighborhood Music School which provides low-cost, high-quality music instruction in Boyle Heights, California. Funds will be used to support their Student Scholarship Program, which provides students with 25-95% tuition coverage through financial aid.

Rhiannon Giddens

For her Artist Give, Newport Festivals Foundation will be making a grant to Decolonizing the Music Room, whose mission is to center Black, Brown, Indigenous, and Asian voices, knowledge, and experiences in music education and related fields. The funds will help bring a teaching artist specializing in American roots music to local orchestra students in Fort Worth, Texas

TINARIWEN

For their Artist Give, Tinariwen asked Newport Festivals Foundation to make a grant to Playing For Change Foundation – a LA-based nonprofit that offers music education for marginalized and at-risk youth in the developing world. Funds will be used to provide instruments for students in Mali, to help them develop as the next generation of artists in the Sahara Desert, where the desert blues style is very popular

SIR WOMAN

For their Artist Give, Sir Woman asked Newport Festivals Foundation to provide a grant to Kids In A New Groove, which provides central Texas youth in foster care with free, weekly in-home music lessons, instruments, and mentorship

PALMYRA

For their Artist Give, Palmyra asked Newport Festivals Foundation to provide a grant to The Handmade Music School, which teaches old time, bluegrass, and traditional music and dances from the Blue Ridge Mountains. The funds will be used to provide scholarships for several students at their Handmade Music School Youth Get Together Camp in July 2024

KILLER MIKE

For his Artist Give, Newport Festivals Foundation has made a grant to Music On The Inside which works with professional musicians to bring the transformative power of music education, mentorship, and hope to those incarcerated or facing the challenges of reentry. The funds will provide an honorarium for two formerly incarcerated musicians to perform at one of MOTI’s public performances

REYNA TROPICAL

For her Artist Give, Reyna asked Newport Festivals Foundation to provide a grant to Beyond the Bars, which provides music education for youth in Philadelphia who have been impacted by violence or the incarceration system. Funds will be used to support the 40 music labs they provide throughout the city to ensure that youth across Philadelphia have the space to be the artists that they are

SIERRA FERRELL

For her Artist Give, Sierra asked Newport Festivals Foundation to make a grant to The River House, a community-based arts and music program in her home state of West Virginia. Funds will be used to support their music and art experiences for under-served populations in their community, particularly youth and elders

GUSTER

For their Artist Give, Guster asked Newport Festivals Foundation to make a grant to Middlebury Community Music Center – MCMC, which provides affordable music education for the Middlebury, VT area. Funds will be used to offset the tuition cost for their summer camp, “Adventure into the Arts”, that will give children the opportunity to try out a range of art forms and activities like music, art and theater, all of which will be centered on self-expression and the joy of creativity

Adrianne Lenker

For her Artist Give, Adrianne asked Newport Festivals Foundation to make a grant to Brooklyn Music School which provides low-cost, high-quality music and performing arts education to the Brooklyn community. The funds will be used to purchase percussion instruments that are particularly suited for education due to their intuitive design and ease of play allowing our over 300 early childhood and after school students to explore different aspects of music, including rhythm, melody, and harmony

Gillian Welch and David Rawlings

For their Artist Give, Gill & Dave asked Newport Festivals Foundation to make a grant to Operation Encore. The Rhode Island based organization provides opportunities for veteran singer-songwriters to take their careers to the next level through artist development, professional recording, and industry-focused educational services. The funds will be used to support sending five veteran artists to attend a veteran music industry boot camp the week of Veteran’s Day 2024.

To see a list of Gives by year, click the links below:

2023 ARTIST GIVES

2022 ARTIST GIVES

2020 ARTIST GIVES

2019 ARTIST GIVES

NEWPORT SESSIONS

Explore our series of free lectures, tutorials, conversations, and performances meant to inspire the next generation of players and fans. Content grants have been provided to many of the participating artists.

WATCH SESSIONS

SHOW YOUR SUPPORT

Your donation to Newport Festivals Foundation will help ensure the future of our festivals and support musicians and music education programs across the country.