Music Grants In USA
Music students should definitely apply for music grants, which can provide you with free money to pay for your tuition, music equipment, and other expenses. This is cash that you can receive that never has to be paid back and any American citizen can apply for these funds.
As long as you are at least 18 years old, you can potentially get thousands of dollars in free money that you never have to pay back.
The government gives away billions of dollars in free money to college students every year. In addition to free government funding, there are also millions of dollars in free music grants provided by private foundations.
These are designed to help students who have a talent and want to pursue it but can’t afford college or music equipment.
Music Grants In America
Music Grants are an excellent form of support for musicians. There are dozens of music grants organizations in the United States that regularly award money to serious artists, allowing recipients to focus entirely on furthering their music careers in some way. And unlike loans, they don’t have to be repaid.
Sounds too good to be true? These financing options are available, but they are very competitive.
You’ll need to research which ones are right for you, find out when the deadlines are, and allow plenty of time for the application process, which can be intense.
Some music grants funding organizations exist to help young artists, while others support more established artists. Depending on the type of grant, the funding could be used to launch a new music project, record an album, or go on tour.
Some organizations place no restrictions on how you can use the money at all.
Here are seven of our favorite music grants available across the United States to get your wheels turning. But be sure to check out the local opportunities in your own city or state, you never know what you might come across.
There can be tons of pretty high expenses that a musician can have when pursuing their music career. Listed below are some examples of what I am talking about.
- Study time – $35-$100 per hour
- Music Lessons/Singing Lessons – $30-$100 + one hour
- Sound Equipment – $200-$1,000’s
- Studio Equipment – $1,000’s
- Instruments – $100 – $1,000’s
- Tour cost – $100’s – $1,000’s
- Promotional Items – $100’s-$1,000’s
These are just a few of the many examples of how expensive a music career can be, and this is precisely why music financing may be required to complete certain tasks related to your music.
Ways To Get Funds For Music Support
Here are some music financing methods you can try to help cover some of your expenses.
- A Stipend – This is one of the best ways to get music funding, as in most cases the stipend does not have to be repaid. Many musicians miss this opportunity because they don’t take the time to research and care about grants, but you should know that music grants are real.
- Loans – Another great way to get music financing is by using loans. A small personal loan is not that difficult to get. Make sure you are prepared and make sure you know your credit history. Let them know what your plan is for the loan and how you intend to pay it back.
- Small Business Loans – If you have started a business for your music career, you can apply for a small business loan. You can also qualify for a loan through the government, which has a very low interest rate. Visit www.sba.gov for more information about a small business loan
- Credit Cards – They can be a great way to fill short-term funding gaps. Try to find a credit card with a low APR, or even better, an introductory offer of 0% APR. This way you can get what you need and pay it off later with the lowest financing cost.
Top Music Grants Available For You
1. International Music and Art Foundation Grants
The International Music and Art Foundation awards music grants to organizations that promote the advancement and dissemination of the visual and performing arts, as well as research and preservation of art and culture.
The International Music and Art Foundation is based in New York City.
The Foundation for Contemporary Arts is a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of contemporary art. Artists established the Foundation for Contemporary Art in 1963 to promote the excellence of their fellow artists.
Today, they make significant grants and emergency grants available to select artists, ranging from $500 to $2,500, which can be applied for by any artist in urgent need of financial assistance.
2. LEAP Award
The LEAP awards gives $1000 stipend to a recipient who is a young artist in the field of modern craft. The donation is intended to fund the development of a new product line or plant for the recipient.
It has been agreed that the Contemporary Craft Society will sponsor the work for a year, with special pieces dedicated to the six finalists being published by the Contemporary Craft Society.
3. New Music USA Scholarships
New Music USA’s mission is to support and encourage all forms of musical creativity in the United States. They offer funding for music projects, support for small ensembles and DIY venues, and even arrange composer-in-residence positions in orchestras. Find more about New Music grants.
4. Foundation for Contemporary Art
The Contemporary Art Foundation was established in 1963 by artists to encourage the innovative work of their peers. Today, they offer generous grants to nominated artists, as well as emergency grants ranging from $500 to $2,500, which any artist in dire need of funding can apply for.
5. The Alice M. Ditson Fund
Since 1940, the Alice M. Ditson Fund has awarded over 2,000 grants in support of contemporary American classical concert music. They provide funding for recording projects with the specific aim of bringing the music of younger, relatively unknown American composers to a wider audience.
6. New York Foundation for the Arts
The New York Foundation for the Arts has a 32-year history of supporting artists at all stages of their careers. Unlike grants that fund specific projects, the $7,000 unrestricted grants are designed to “fund an artist’s vision or voice, regardless of the stage of their artistic development.”
7. Mid-Atlantic Art Foundation
Region: Delaware, D.C., Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, US Virgin Islands, Virginia and West Virginia
Established to support arts programs in several states, the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation has since expanded to include initiatives in other parts of the United States. The grants provide support for artists looking to create, tour, build an audience and develop their careers.
You can explore MAAF’s unique Artist Grant programs here, which include Creative Capital grants, funding for performances at international festivals, and even a Franco-American cultural exchange program for jazz artists.
8. Tennessee Art Commission
With a mission to “cultivate the arts for the benefit of all Tennessees and their communities,” the Tennessee Arts Commission offers a variety of annual grants for individuals, projects, arts education and more.
The Individual Artist Fellowship awards $5,000 to professional artists of all stripes, including composers. There are no specific requirements for using the money, but you must already be making a living from music to qualify for the music scholarships.
9. COLA Individual Artist Grant
The COLA Individual Artist grant is specifically designed for accomplished artists who either live in Los Angeles or have been presenting their work in the city for at least three years.
The Department of Cultural Affairs awards each artist $10,000 for the creation of innovative new works. Find out more about the conditions of participation and application guidelines here.
10. Music Grants From Pollock-Krasner Foundation
The Pollock Krasner Foundation Grant was created as part of Lee Krasner’s legacy to encourage and enhance the creative lives of emerging and established artists.
Since its inception in 1985, the foundation has awarded more than $65 million in awards to artists in more than 77 countries around the world.
This prize is a competitive grant for artists with many years of exhibition experience. It has a long list of notable alumni.
11. Fellowship For Visual Artist Awarded By The McKnight Foundation
Based in Minnesota, this fellowship is one of the oldest and largest organizations of its kind in the country.
The McKnight Artist Fellowship Program provides annual cash awards of up to $25,000 to exceptional mid-career Minnesota artists who have demonstrated excellence in their respective fields. Because the rewards are unlimited, they can be used for anything from learning to experimenting and exploring, among other things.
They are accessible to all performing musicians of all genres. They are co-funded by the American Composers Forum and the MacPhail Center for Music.
12. Help Musicians
Musicians in the UK can get music grant through Help Musicians, a non-profit organization committed to putting them in touch. Help Musicians offers a wide range of music grants and support, from those aimed at showcasing emerging musical talent to helping musicians cope with illness.
In addition to several grants, the Help Musicians website offers a Funding Wizard tool to help musicians find gifts and funding opportunities in the UK.
Apply For Music Grants Now.