Banding Together: A Concert for the Colorado Music Relief Fund is on Saturday, May 30, 2020, at 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM MT. This three-hour event, with a stellar lineup, raises funds to support the people behind Colorado’s vibrant music industry. Breckenridge Brewery presents the live stream hosted on CBS Denver, KBCO, and Nathaniel Rateliff.
Where did the idea bloom? “It was a conversation between music industry workers, Colorado Creative Industries, the governor’s office, and private businesses. We wanted to address the need to support our music industry, a 1.5 billion dollar economic engine in Colorado,” says Kari Nott, executive director of The Marigold project and head of philanthropy at 7S MANAGEMENT.
Kari acted as project manager on this effort, coordinating the working group, and managing outreach to artists, creating content for the live stream and social media. The Marigold project is a foundation established in 2017 by Nathaniel Rateliff. The Marigold project supports community and nonprofit organizations working on issues of economic and social justice. Nathaniel Rateliff is one of the many incredible, iconic artists who will perform for free to support his community.
The lineup:
- The Avett Brothers
- Big Head Todd & The Monsters
- Brandi Carlile
- Dave Matthews
- Grace Potter
- Isaac Slade
- Jack Johnson
- The Lumineers
- Marcus Mumford
- Michael Franti
- Nathaniel Rateliff
- Nick & Helen Forster
- Rodrigo y Gabriela
- Sam Bush
- The String Cheese Incident
- and many more…..
“I think anytime you face a crisis; communities have an opportunity to come together as never before. Musicians are always the first ones to step up and support issues-based advocacy work and nonprofits with their art and platforms,” says Kari. “They are collaborating in new ways, reaching out to each other to stay connected and to keep their community strong.”
All funds raised will be granted out through RedLine Contemporary Art Center. Anyone who works in the music industry in Colorado is eligible and are welcome to apply for relief funding. Touring musicians and crew do not make money when they are not touring.
“Musicians, crew and venues heavily depend on live events to generate revenue. These are likely the last industries to return from our current lockdown, and likely won’t happen until 2021,” says Kari. “We need to support art right now – it’s what we’re all turning to, to cope, to heal, to feel all the emotions that are coming up for us as a society while we are isolated.”
Other efforts curated by The Marigold Project is mask production. The organization sent 500 masks to Navajo nation, paying out of work musicians in Nashville to sew the masks. “We are messaging about the economic impact on various industries, especially how it pertains to people who were already struggling and how the pandemic has exposed the precariousness of our social contract.”
Banding Together: A Concert for the Colorado Music Relief Fund is a kick-off to a weekly livestream where there are more opportunities to give and support the Colorado music community.
“Some musicians contracted COVID, to begin with. But all musicians are trying to adapt to this new environment and figure out how to make money when touring represents nearly 70% or more of their income. Being gig workers, they are also unlikely to have health insurance and many of their ‘fall-back’ jobs are also not operational at this time. We are facing a crisis that mirrors many other industries, musicians are no exception.”
RSVP.
Watch the full event live:
–Nathaniel Rateliff’s YouTube page
Other ways to help:
Purchase merchandise from the online auction.
Text COLORADO to 707070 to support the Colorado Music Relief Fund
Buy merchandise directly from artists. On June 5 and July 3 (the first Friday of each month), Bandcamp is waiving its revenue share for all sales from midnight to midnight PDT each day.
Check isitbandcampfriday.com for more details on times.
