MusiCares' Help for the Holidays 2021 program artwork

MusiCares' Help for the Holidays 2021

Artwork: MusiCares

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MusiCares Launches 2021 Help For The Holidays Program

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For the second year, MusiCares is distributing aid to music professionals in need to cover essentials this holiday season via its Help for the Holidays program
MusiCares
Nov 15, 2021 - 9:00 am

Although music venues are scheduling shows again, the music community across the U.S. is still feeling the residual effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. To further help the music community this holiday season, MusiCares is bringing back its Help for the Holidays program.

Starting today, MusiCares is offering $250 e-gift cards from Kroger and Walmart to the first 4,000 eligible applicants. The gift cards will cover purchases of essential items like food, gas and prescriptions.

Applications for MusiCares' 2021 Help for the Holidays program are now available at MusiCareshelps.org.

Started as a response to the COVID-19 crisis in 2020, Help for the Holidays serves to provide music professionals with aid to cover essential needs during the holiday season when financial burdens increase. In 2020, MusiCares distributed 4,000 e-gift cards to music professionals in need.

Any music professional with five years of employment in the music industry and/or six commercially released recordings or videos is eligible to apply. Employment does not need to be consecutive in order to be eligible. All genres and music industry professions are eligible, including artists, musicians, production crews, technicians, business teams, and anyone impacted by the loss of income due to live music event cancellations and anyone who has experienced financial strain due to the pandemic.

"Even though live music is making a comeback, many in the music community are still struggling after months of lost income," Laura Segura, Executive Director of MusiCares, said. "We want to emphasize that our community is still in need of extra support to cover basic needs. We hope this year's gift card distribution will ease the burden and spur others to donate and support music professionals."

"Many, many thanks for your generosity!" one pianist said after receiving an e-gift card during last year's Help for the Holidays program. "This card will be put to good use this holiday season buying food and necessities for my family during this economically challenging time for those of us in the music industry."

Apply for MusiCares' 2021 Help for the Holidays program now.

If you are a member of the music industry in need of assistance or wish to support MusiCares' efforts to aid music professionals in need, learn more about MusiCares.  

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Giving Tuesday 2021

Photo credit: Andrey Popov/Adobe Stock

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How To Give Back This Giving Tuesday 2021: Create A Personal Fundraiser For MusiCares Now

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This Season of Giving, get involved with and support MusiCares by hosting a personal fundraiser in support of our second annual Help for the Holidays program
MusiCares
Nov 19, 2021 - 5:04 pm

In support of our second Help for the Holidays program, MusiCares is encouraging supporters to host personal fundraisers during this Season of Giving.

And we're making it easy to get involved with and support MusiCares early this year in four simple yet effective steps:

  1. Create your fundraiser now.
  2. Announce your campaign on Giving Tuesday (Nov. 30).
  3. Encourage your friends, family and network to donate to your fundraiser early. (You’re also encouraged to join forces with a partner or team for a group fundraising effort.)
  4. Keep your fundraiser going through the holidays and the end of 2021.

By launching your fundraiser now, you'll be able to encourage your loved ones and associates to donate early ahead of the Giving Tuesday initiative and Season of Giving this year.

 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by MusiCares (@musicares)

Hosting a fundraiser is a rewarding and powerful way to give back to the music community who gives so much to the world. Your personal fundraising appeals to your family and friends and can make a profound difference in the lives of those in need. 

When you inspire your community to donate, 100% of their donations will fund MusiCares’ Help for the Holidays, an annual program offering $250 e-gift cards to cover purchases of essential items like food, gas and prescriptions. Your community has the power to help music professionals still struggling from months of lost income. Just one of these e-gift cards can lift a member of the music community out of food scarcity and remove the pressure to sacrifice one basic need to meet another. 

By hosting your personal fundraisers, you can help to:

  • Lower food insecurity.
  • Provide essential staples for families.
  • Help with basic medical needs.
  • Give the gift of peace of mind.

Of course, MusiCares is also accepting direct donations on Giving Tuesday and throughout the year: Donate here. 

Start your fundraiser today, and watch your impact exponentially grow.

On behalf of all of us at MusiCares, thank you for supporting the music community this Season of Giving!

MusiCares Launches 2021 Help For The Holidays Program

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5 Reasons Donating Is The Best Holiday Gift This Year

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Taj Mayfield
MusiCares
Dec 9, 2021 - 12:24 pm

The holiday season is here, and with the holiday season comes a number of yearly traditions: Mariah Carey, festive sweaters and thoughtful gifts.

However, as we approach the two-year mark of a global pandemic, maybe it's time to embrace a new holiday tradition: donations.

Here's five reasons why you should welcome this new tradition.

More Impactful

As many put together wish lists, what's often forgotten is that there are people who don’t have food on the table and or the ability to handle basic medical needs. As a response to the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on music professionals everywhere, MusiCares brings back its Help for the Holidays program for a second year.

The program provides music professionals with financial aid to cover essential items like food, gas and prescriptions during the holiday season. In 2020, MusiCares administered 4,000 e-gift cards to those in need. Knowing you can help others with basic needs is a gift in itself.

Good For You and Others

Giving is scientifically proven to be good for you. In 2008, Harvard Business School professor Michael Norton and colleagues found that despite participants predicting they’d be happier spending money on themselves, their happiness actually scored higher after giving to others.

According to UC Berkeley, a 2006 study by the National Institute of Health found that when people donate to charities, the areas of their brains associated with pleasure, social connection and trust create a "warm glow" effect. Along with inner feelings of warmth, researchers at John Hopkins University found that giving improves physical health and longevity in givers by helping decrease stress.

Decrease Stress

From colorful lights to matching pajamas, there's plenty of joy that comes with the holiday season. But there's another element that's just as common, yet rarely mentioned: the anxiety that comes along with giving gifts. Bankrate’s 2018 Holiday Gifting Survey found that nearly half of all Americans felt pressured to overspend on holiday gifts.

Dr. Suzanne Degges-White of Northern Illinois University said, "If you let yourself forget that Hallmark had it right when their tagline became, 'It's the thought that counts,' you can be swindled into spending a lot more than you can afford in your efforts to prove your affection and devotion."

Donating allows you to discreetly stay within your means while still showing how much you care.

Expand Your Reach

Giving a traditional gift is a simple A-to-B transaction. Donating expands that A-to-B exchange from two people to potentially hundreds, if not thousands or millions. For example, hosting a fundraiser through MusiCares' Help for the Holidays program allows the organization to help as many music professionals as possible, while also influencing others to kickstart their own fundraisers within the program.

Several studies show that public donations go well past a person's initial giving, as there's a direct correlation between one person giving and their peers following in their charitable footsteps. Author Simon Sinek explains the process best, simply writing, "Don't give to get. Give to inspire others to give."

Tax Benefits

Most people view gifts and donations as one in the same. While the definitions of the two may be nearly identical, one form of giving has a much larger financial impact over the other.

According to Pocket Sense, when a person gives money to a qualified 170(c) nonprofit organization, such as a charity or church, they can deduct their contribution amount from their taxable income for the year. As long as the donor has proof of their charitable contribution, they can deduct up to 50 percent of their annual income all while helping to fund a good cause.

If you are a member of the music industry in need of assistance, click here.  If you wish to support MusiCares' efforts to aid music professionals in need this holiday season, read more below.

How To Give Back This Giving Tuesday 2021: Create A Personal Fundraiser For MusiCares Now

MusiCares' "Help For The Holidays"
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MusiCares Launches "Help For The Holidays" Initiative On Giving Tuesday 2020

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MusiCares, the leading music industry charity, is giving gift cards to music people in need to cover essential goods this holiday season
MusiCares
Dec 1, 2020 - 3:30 am

MusiCares, the leading music industry charity, is launching "Help For The Holidays," an e-card aid program, on Giving Tuesday (Dec. 1).

As part of its continued COVID-19 Relief, MusiCares is offering $250 essential goods e-cards to the first 4,000 eligible applicants. Applications open Tuesday (Dec. 1). 

Any professionals with at least three years of past employment history in music and demonstrated need can apply for the essential goods e-card from MusiCares. All genres and professions are eligible, including artists, musicians, production crews, technicians, business teams and anyone impacted by the loss of income due to live music event cancellations.

Additionally, MusiCares has updated its list of COVID-19 relief online resources, which now includes a food insecurity hotline (1-800-5HUNGRY) and Find Food search with WhyHunger, a leading organization working to end hunger and advance the human right to nutritious food in the U.S. and worldwide.

The "Help For The Holidays" initiative comes as life for those in the music industry remains uncertain as the pandemic continues to devastate their professional landscape and additional government assistance remains on hold. As we enter the holiday season, conditions are worsening for music people, including needs for the most basic of life's necessities.

MusiCares' COVID-19 Relief effort started in March 2020 with initial seed donations of $1 million each by MusiCares and the Recording Academy. To date, $20 million has been distributed to help more than 20,000 music people across a wide variety of genres and roles in the industry. However, more is needed to meet the demand.

"Layoffs have left bands, crews and music support people jobless and struggling to attain basic provisions, from food on the table to gasoline in the car," Laura Segura, Executive Director of MusiCares, says. "Despite the support we've been able to provide to date, the situation has yet to improve for the music industry and the need grows. We continue to encourage all music lovers to support impacted industry professionals, especially during this holiday season, one that we know will look wildly different than years past."

If you are a member of the music industry in need of assistance or wish to support MusiCares' efforts to aid music professionals in need, visit MusiCares.org.

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Painting of Jimi Hendrix by Joni Mitchell

Jimi Hendrix painting by Joni Mitchell

Photo Courtesy of Julien's Auctions

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MusiCares Charity Relief Auction Adds Exclusive Items From Paul McCartney, Keith Richards, BTS, Harry Styles & More

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The 64th Annual GRAMMY Week Event will also feature a never-before-seen painting of Jimmie Hendrix by MusiCares Person Of The Year 2022 Honoree Joni Mitchell
Taj Mayfield
MusiCares
Dec 8, 2021 - 8:07 am

Julien's Auctions announces additional marquee celebrity items to be sold at MusiCares Charity Relief Auction taking place live in Beverly Hills and online at juliensauctions.com on Jan. 30, 2022. The latest additions include exclusive memorabilia from Paul McCartney, BTS, Keith Richards, Harry Styles, Joni Mitchell, and many more. 

This Official GRAMMY Week event precedes the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards telecast on Jan. 31. Proceeds will benefit MusiCares, which provides the music community a support system of health and human services across a spectrum of needs, including physical and mental health, addiction recovery, unforeseen personal emergencies, and disaster relief.

Keith Richards signs a guitar

Photo: Jane Rose

Headed to the auction is an ebony Gibson ES-335, the cornerstone of the Gibson ES line-up, signed by Keith Richards along with a one-of-a-kind video authenticating his signature. With impeccable sounds across its wide-ranging tonal palette, the Gibson ES-335 has set an unmatched standard since its inaugural appearance in 1958 and can be found in the hands of jazz, blues, and rock players all over the globe. The item was donated by Gibson Gives and holds an estimate between $6,000 and $8,000.

Paul McCartney signs a guitar

Photo: Courtesy of Julien's Auctions

Another highlight hitting the auction stage comes from music icon Paul McCartney. The Beatles legend is offering a signed sunburst Hofner brand B-Bass Hi Series violin bass guitar that holds an estimate of $4,000 to $6,000. McCartney helped make the Hofner violin bass guitar famous in the 1960s, as it was one of his main bass guitars that he played with The Beatles, notably at the Apple Rooftop concert and the Let It Be album recording sessions.

A BTS-signed guitar

Photo: Courtesy of Julien's Auctions

BTS kicked off the initiative with the auction announcement of their custom-made ensembles (estimate: $30,000-$50,000) from their unforgettable "Dynamite" performance, which was filmed from Seoul, South Korea for the 63rd annual GRAMMY Awards. The septet will additionally be auctioning an Epiphone brand 56 Les Paul Pro ebony electric guitar signed by members RM, Jin, SUGA, j-hope, Jimin and V on the body, and Jung Kook on the pickguard (estimate: $4,000 - $6,000). Another previously announced BTS item on offer is a group of three unique rings worn by j-hope, holding an estimate between $2,000 and $4,000.

Painting of Jimi Hendrix by Joni Mitchell

Photo: Courtesy of Julien's Auctions

M​​usiCares Person Of The Year 2022 honoree Joni Mitchell's work will also be showcased in the auction with her offering of the artist proof print of her original oil painting of music icon, Jimi Hendrix (estimate: $2,000-$4,000). The proof will be signed and framed by Mitchell.

"I have always thought of myself as a painter derailed by circumstance," Mitchell said in 2000. "I sing my sorrow and I paint my joy."

Other notable items set to auction and their estimates include:

  • Bono's handwritten lyrics to U2's new song "Your Song Saved My Life" from the upcoming Sing 2 animated movie ($4,000-$6,000).
  • Gene Simmons' two limited-edition pieces of original artwork: Immortal ($1,000-$2,000) and Skull Candy ($1,000-$2,000).
     
  • A class white Gibson brand ES-355 Bigsby VOS electric acoustic guitar donated by Gibson Gives, signed by the late Tom Petty and accompanied with a limited-edition Tom Petty and the Wildflowers box set ($6,000-$8,000).
  • A gold Gibson ES-335 electric acoustic guitar signed by Harry Styles with the inscription "All my Love" and a heart symbol, along with "Watermelon Sugar" (2019, 2020) 7" pink-colored, inscribed record single signed by Styles, and three Polaroid-like photographs from the photo shoot for the song's music video ($3,000-$5,000).
  •  A black leather knee-length coat signed by Ozzy Osbourne four times in white marker on the back of the inside of the jacket ($1000- $2000).
  • Chris Stapleton's handwritten lyrics of "Broken Halos" inscribed on a polar white Fender Player Telecaster guitar ($2,000-$4,000).
  • A special item donated by the Chris Cornell Estate.

The star-studded pieces join a dazzling array of previously announced one-of-a-kind items being offered, including items from legendary acts like Dave Gahan, Depeche Mode, deadmau5, Demi Lovato, Dolly Parton, James Hetfield, Jason Aldean, Jeff Beck, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga, Lionel Richie, Machine Gun Kelly, Slash, Scott Weiland, Tim McGraw and more.

For more information on the auction and its location, click here. Take a look at some of the items below.

A colorfull skull painting by Gene Simmons

Photo: Courtesy of Julien's Auctions

Knee-length black leather coat signed by Ozzy Osbourne

Photo: Courtesy of Julien's Auctions

Chris Stapleton's handwritten lyrics on white guitar

Photo: Courtesy of Julien's Auctions

The auction will start closing in real time and in lot order for live bidding at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time on Jan. 30, 2022.

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