arts ecosystem

Welcome to MMI’s Fellow Spotlight series featuring our amazing teaching artists. Not only do MMI Fellows lend their talents to supporting and engaging Memphis youth all over the city, but they also help build and sustain our arts ecosystem through their independent projects. Today, meet clarinetist and Renaissance woman Mersadie Wells! Mersadie has been with […]

Memphis is music. It’s a city inseparable from the creatives and musicians who have shaped its culture, changed its politics, and built and rebuilt communities across Shelby County, from Frayser to Soulsville and beyond. Memphis’ list of music bona fides is a mile long, and while we may not be the biggest city, our musical […]

Over the past six months, the COVID-19 pandemic has had an outsized and devastating impact on artists and musicians. Memphis creatives—whether student artists or professionals—have lost income due to cancelled gigs, lessons, and more. So, back in April, Memphis Music Initiative established an Emergency Relief Fund to provide some short-term, immediate relief for the individual […]

Welcome to MMI’s Fellow Spotlight series featuring our amazing teaching artists. Not only do MMI Fellows lend their talents to supporting and engaging Memphis youth all over the city, but they also help build and sustain our arts ecosystem through their independent projects.  Today, meet singer Calvin Barnes! Calvin is a producer, musical director, songwriter, […]

“Each year at Memphis Music Initiative, we have the honor of working with over 4,000 young people across Memphis, with a focus on improving black and brown students’ equitable access to high quality music engagement. In 2019, we continued to grow as a direct service provider, and as a funder, and as advocates for our […]

MMI is back in the news. This morning, our Executive Director Amber Hamilton appeared on Channel 24’s Local Memphis morning show via Skype. She spoke with anchor Kelsie Cairns about how COVID-19 is impacting Memphis artists, musicians, and young people, and how MMI is responding to the challenge. Click here to watch the full interview! […]

Thanks to a generous gift, Memphis Music Initiative (MMI) has established an Emergency Relief Fund to provide some short-term, immediate relief for individual musicians and young people who are part of our extensive network of programs. We recognize that creatives and the arts have been disproportionately negatively impacted by restrictions taken in response to the […]

The past few weeks have been a roller coaster—and that’s putting it mildly. As the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to spread across the country, we’ve all had to re-evaluate even the most basic aspects of our daily lives, from grocery shopping and visiting family members to, yes, hand washing. These are certainly turbulent times. But […]

On Friday, the Memphis Business Journal published an article on how COVID-19 is impacting local arts and community organizations. The piece featured insights from our very own Director of Grantmaking and Capacity Building, Rychetta Watkins, as well as Tonya Dyson, Executive Director at Memphis Slim House, and Sabrina Norwood of the Young Actors Guild. The […]

Welcome to MMI’s Fellow Spotlight series! Every other week we’ll be posting an interview with one of our amazing teaching artists. Not only do they lend their talents to support MMI and engage Memphis youth all over the city, but they’re also helping to build—and sustain—our arts ecosystem through their independent projects.  Today, meet Mike […]