NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation, the nonprofit organization that owns the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell, has reopened applications for the Jazz & Heritage Music Relief Fund, a statewide relief fund to support Louisiana’s music community members who have lost income because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Applications are now open for both musicians and music industry workers.
The fund was first created in March 2020 to support Louisiana musicians whose livelihoods had been adversely impacted by COVID-19. During the past year, relief fund grants have been awarded to 2,500 musicians, music industry workers and Black Masking Indians with distributions totaling just more than $1,000,000. An additional $800,000 has since been raised with thanks to community partners and advocates.