Newport Festivals Foundation launches Newport Festivals Musician Relief Fund to directly support artists during these trying times.

Artists are at the core of the Newport Festivals community. Their performances fill us with hope, bring us together in celebration and support us during the good times and the bad. Now it’s our turn to give back. The COVID-19 crisis has proven particularly devastating for musicians whose livelihood is dependent on congregation. As a result, we’re establishing the Newport Festivals Musician Relief Fund. This fund will provide financial relief to musicians experiencing a loss of income as a result of COVID-19 through rapid micro and full grants.

“It is with utmost hope that the Newport Folk and Newport Jazz Festivals will go on this summer, but in the meantime we feel the call to do more. We are in a unique position with our foundation, where we can go above and beyond and help provide support for our musicians community while other tours and festivals are cancelling due to COVID-19,” says Executive Producer, Jay Sweet. “In this dark time, we feel blessed to be able to provide some small comfort for those whose songs carry us through each day.”

Submission Guidelines:

• One submission per musician

• To qualify, musicians must be able to prove lost income from a performance or gig cancellation related to COVID-19

Grant Options:

• REVIVAL: One-time grant between $500 and $3,000 for artists to create educational content in partnership with Newport Festivals Foundation. Content will be sent free of charge to music education programs across the country. 
• MICRO: One-time grant between $300 to $500 to cover immediate financial concerns.
• RAINEY DAY: Supports BIPOC/LGBTQ disabled roots * musicians.  Amounts vary. To learn more, click here .
• COLOR ME COUNTRY : Supports BIPOC  country  musicians. Amounts vary. To learn more, click here .
• ROSETTA: Supports BIPOC/LGBTQ and disabled  media creators  (journalists, podcasters, photographers, etc). Amounts vary. To learn more, click here .