Tag: Memphis Nonprofits

Categories
News News Blog News Feature

KitKat Partners With Memphis Music Initiative For Black Music Month

(Credit: @heymiasaine via Instagram)

Fans of KitKat bars might spy a touch of Memphis style on their candy wrappers soon. The Hershey-owned brand recently partnered with Black illustrators to design wrappers that “depict Black Music in six cities across the U.S.” In addition, they have also decided to partner with a nonprofit in each of those cities to celebrate Black Music Month.

The nonprofit chosen for the city of Memphis is the Memphis Music Initiative, and for the month of June, customers will be able to buy KitKats with artwork inspired by the city of Memphis, created by Memphis artist Mia Saine. Saine also designed the wrappers for New York City and New Orleans.

In an Instagram post, Saine explained that as a Memphis native, they grew up loving legends such as Carla Thomas, Ann Peebles, and Ruby Wilson, and that the design is “heavily inspired by its historic rock’n’roll and soul era.”

According to KitKat, these cities “bring positive change and opportunities for Black youth through music.” This is the second time that the company has partnered with the Memphis Music Initiative.

Last year, the wrappers were only available in Target stores. But this year, Brianna Harrington, program manager for Memphis Music Initiative’s Institute for Nonprofit Excellence, explained the candy will be in places like Walmart, Kroger, and Dollar General.

Harrington said Hershey was looking to find a way to connect more with their Black audiences, and to elevate and engage that audience in a way that was authentic.

“It wasn’t something for Black History Month. Everyone does some sort of campaign around Black History Month,” she said. “That’s not necessarily what they wanted to do. They wanted very authentic, true engagement, so they decided to focus on Black Music Month to elevate the contributions of Black music throughout history.”

Harrington explained that Hershey is very intentional about the way they engage Black artists through their partnership. The campaign released a “Sounds of Soul In Memphis” video that not only showcased the work of Memphis Music Initiative, but also featured Memphis artists Kirby, Tyke T, and Evvie McKinney. Honoring current artists, in addition to musical legends, was another big focus.

“That’s really what helps us in terms of making sure the partnership is aligned with what we do,” said Harrington. Along with “very bold” grant making practices that elevate the network of Black artists in the city, the Memphis Music Initiative hosts an in-school program that allows artists to work as fellows in schools. The organization also runs an internship program focused on helping young people confidently step into careers in artistry.

“We teach them how to negotiate compensation, understand contracts. That’s what’s really unique with us, because you don’t really see that,” added Harrington. “We make sure that these young people are really set up for success in terms of having a fruitful career. We don’t want the adage of being a starving artist to be the expected experience, because it doesn’t have to be.”

Through the partnership with KitKat, Memphis Music Initiative has been able to expand its mission nationally. Harrington explained that they have been able to partner with Urban Word in New York, DC Strings Workshop in Washington, D.C., the Trombone Shorty Foundation in New Orleans, We Are Culture Creators in Detroit, and the Harmony Project in Los Angeles.

“It has been truly wonderful to see how much amazing work has taken place all over the country in the work of elevating and bolstering creative youth development, especially Black and brown youth,” said Harrington. “Each of these organizations also has a focus on workforce development. It’s really important for us to prepare young people who are interested in being successful in any realm of the entertainment industry. That’s something we share with all of these organizations.”

Categories
Music Music Blog

Call it the Overton Park Shell: More Than a Name Change

The Overton Park Shell (Credit: Alex Greene)

Casual passers-by in Overton Park may have noted a recent change in its fabled band shell, first built in 1936 at the behest of the Works Progress Administration (WPA). Since 2005, when the Levitt Foundation stepped in to renovate and sponsor the iconic Memphis landmark, it’s been known as the Levitt Shell.

But the lettering over the stage has changed this past week, in preparation for a major overhaul in the Shell’s administration that officially begins today. Once again, it will be known as the Overton Park Shell.

This decision was made by the Levitt Shell’s board of directors after months of discussion. With the name change, control of the Shell also passes to a new local nonprofit to be known as The Overton Park Shell. The restructuring will allow the organization more freedom to launch a new outreach strategy into underserved neighborhoods and ZIP codes of Memphis and Shelby County, making the Shell more accessible for all of Memphis.

Overton Park Shell executive director Natalie Wilson says, “We’re grateful for 17 years of partnership with the Levitt Foundation, who helped us save it. Now we can take the stage back to its historic roots and live our mission even more. We as the board made the decision that we could truly lend more sustainability to the community by bringing in more local investment. With local partners supporting us. Families. Foundations. Individuals. Businesses that believe in the work we do. We wanted to build our sustainability locally. Since I came in in 2019, we’ve been working to find local sustainability, and we have now. We’re grateful for it.”

As Wilson notes, while the Levitt Foundation works with several open-air stages across the country, the band shell in Memphis has special needs. “The other venues are all new venues,” she says. “We’re the only historic venue. The other ones were all built in the past 16 years, but we have major deferred maintenance that I have to continue to focus on, on behalf of the citizens of Memphis. There are so few of us that were built by the WPA. The round band shells, there are very few of us.

“We’re owned by the city, by the citizens, so we have a responsibility for the continued preservation of the Shell. So on top of managing it and the mission, I’ve got to renovate it. I’ve got to preserve it. So, that’s how different we were from the others. When you have an old girl like the Shell, sometimes the largest things you can do, you can’t see, like renovation. Also, the city depends on us as a nonprofit for the money to renovate it. We don’t get that support from the city. It’s up to us to make sure it can stand, that it’s safe, and that it will be treasured another 85 years.

“I told Liz Levitt Hirsch, ‘You helped save the Shell. You will always have that legacy. And we’ll always have a special marker on the lawn that speaks to the Levitt era.’ They started with two years of renovation money — a million dollars. And then 15 years of programming support. And that’s why I say they saved the Shell. Because if it wasn’t for their initial support, we wouldn’t be able to create what we do today. It would not be here.”

For her part, Hirsch celebrates the change. “Coming to the Shell for the first time to meet with local community leaders nearly two
decades ago, we knew the magic could, and would, return. Music is a universal language that we all speak and delight in, especially in public spaces where we can celebrate our shared humanity. The Levitt Foundation is incredibly proud to be part of the Shell’s legacy — supporting its rebirth as a cherished gathering place for the entire
community,” said Hirsch, board president of the Levitt Foundation, in a press release. “Levitt Shell Memphis has been a beautiful reflection of the Levitt mission, bringing people together from all walks of life to experience acclaimed artists in a free, open lawn setting. The Shell team has built a strong foundation to continue creating a warm and inclusive environment with accessible arts experiences at its core. We’re excited to watch them soar to new heights.”

Wilson also notes that the local support that started in the Levitt era will continue. “We’re grateful for NexAir, who’s been an integral partner for many years, and will continue to be our venue presenting sponsor. And we’re grateful for others, like the Orion Federal Credit Union, who’s the official music partner of the Shell. They’ve rallied behind our nonprofit from the beginning.”

Ultimately, she says, this is a way of bringing it all back home. “It’s not like it’s a name that people are not familiar with,” she says. “The Overton Park Shell has a history, and that history is amazing. The new Overton Park Shell will be just as incredible.”

Right out of the gate, a schedule of live music at the venue is already taking shape. “Starting this summer, at the end of May, we’ll kick off the season with our Sunset Symphony, which we’re thrilled about bringing back, in partnership with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra. And that will be the last Sunday of May. Then through the summer we’ll have Thursday through Saturday night concerts that will be free, and then fall concerts on Friday and Saturday nights. And in between, we’ll have our Shell Yeah! concert series, our ticketed shows.

“We’ll also have other partnership events. The Shell is a home for lots of events in the city, and we want more people to think of the Shell as their home for great community events. Dreamfest will be in May this year. There will be the Tri-State Black Pride event and the Tambourine Bash and nonprofit fundraising events. There’ll be all types of events through the year.”

Overall, Wilson reflects, it’s about balancing such activities with historical preservation. “We believe going back to the Overton Park Shell speaks to a name that’s been treasured for many many years here,” she says. “More than ever, the Shell’s name speaks to being rooted in community. And we want to make sure that with this name change, our mission isn’t going to change. It’s even going to grow even more.”

Categories
Music Music Blog

The Tambourine Bash: Showing Music Export Memphis Some Love

Talibah Safiya

Ah, the embarrassment of riches in a music city like Memphis. To see artists of the caliber of Nick Black, Marcella Simien, Talibah Safiya, Daz Rinko, the Unapologetic Crew and Future Everything, on two stages, is a stunning night out. The line up represents many of the latest contenders for carrying this city’s torch of genre-bending, groundbreaking music. And they’re just a sample of local artists who have benefited from the efforts of the relatively new nonprofit, Music Export Memphis, whose annual fund-raiser tonight features such artists and more.

Since last July, over two dozen bands or performers have received tour support and other funds from Music Export Memphis  to up their profiles. The nonprofit tallies that as 60 individual musicians from the heart of the city’s scene, all thankful for gaining a little more momentum in a precarious life on the road. As one of MEM’s beneficiaries (full disclosure), I should know. Having toured with the Ultrasounds, I can well appreciate the words of my boss, James Godwin, who was named one of MEM’s Ambassadors last year. (All told, MEM Ambassadors have played more than 140 shows in more than 100 U.S. cities, plus 10 countries in Europe and Asia).
Richard Schut

James & the Ultrasounds in Liverpool, 2018.

“Touring is very stressful on a person’s overall well-being,” says Godwin. “So just knowing that we had a decent place to stay after the gig rather than sleeping on someone’s floor or in a seedy motel provides a good deal of comfort and assurance. We couldn’t have done the tour without the grant. We could’ve, I suppose, but we would’ve more than likely frozen to death somewhere between London and Norwich.”

So tonight’s fund-raiser for the nonprofit feels more like a celebration of what they’ve already done. Sure, they would like music fans to stoke the fires for future work by attending their event, but this is also a good time for everyone to just give the nonprofit a hand.

When the Flyer first profiled organization founder Elizabeth Cawein’s vision in 2017, little did we anticipate the group’s success rate on the ground less than two years later. Beyond tour support, the organization is stepping up and speaking out in other markets far and wide. As their own information sheet touts:

  • MEM’s third annual showcase at AmericanaFest in Nashville, The Pure Memphis Happy Hour, drew 250 music industry attendees to see five Memphis bands and landed Talibah Safiya in NPR Music’s Best of AmericanaFest coverage. It also paid out $2,500 to Memphis artists and featured Memphis brands and culture bearers like MemPops, Old Dominick Distillery, Memphis Made Brewing, and IndieMemphis film festival.

  • For the first time, we attended A3C hip hop festival in Atlanta, where we produced a showcase featuring an all-Memphis line-up and supported three artists and one producer to attend the affiliated music industry conference, totaling more than $6,000 in support for travel, lodging and conference access.

  • In 2019, MEM will produce surprise pop-up events in key markets (including St. Louis, this Saturday, April 20) in addition to our beloved Memphis showcases at industry festivals

  • In 2018, MEM launched its Export Bank, expanding opportunities for Memphis musicians through strategic partnerships and ensuring that wherever the Memphis story is being told, music is at the center. MEM has already committed to more than $1,500 in artist payments for Export Bank partners this year.

Ultimately, no endorsements or numbers can say it quite as directly as Memphis’ own John Paul Keith, who’s just completed a massive tour of Europe to great acclaim. “For years people have been trying to figure out how to help Memphis music,” says Keith. “But this is a real, tangible, and welcome help. I can breathe a little easier about the economics of this tour now.”

The Tambourine Bash benefiting MEM, Thursday, April 18, 7-10 pm, at the Century House, 151 Vance Avenue. $50 ticket includes food from The Majestic Grille, cocktails featuring The Spirit of Memphis Music by Old Dominick Distillery, a rock star photo booth, and a silent auction featuring Memphis music items, from private house concerts to signed rare vinyl and more.