NMPA S.O.N.G.S. FOUNDATION, H&R BLOCK TO PROVIDE FREE TAX SERVICES TO SONGWRITERS

The NMPA’s S.O.N.G.S. Foundation (Supporting Our Next Generation of Songwriters) will continue to provide free tax services to songwriters through its partnership with H&R Block.

This year the partnership will also serve Los Angeles area writers in addition to Nashville writers. To make a free tax preparation appointment, click here.

“After seeing the success of the program in Nashville, this year we are excited to add LA as an area of eligibility for songwriters to take advantage of free tax preparation. We hope even more creators will utilize these services which hopefully will ease some of the burden of this stressful time,” shares NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation President David Israelite.

Launched in 2015, the NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation supports songwriters through funding educational programs, direct financial assistance, and through partnerships with institutions and organizations to enhance opportunities for music creators. The Foundation has provided grants and scholarships to universities including Belmont, LA College of Music, MTSU and Howard University, among others.

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NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation Announces Free Tax Preparation Services for Nashville Area Songwriters

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation (Supporting Our Next Generation of Songwriters) today announced that it will continue its partnership with H&R Block and again provide free tax preparation services to songwriters in the Nashville area this spring. The program is part of its effort to provide direct assistance to working music creators during the pandemic and beyond.

“We encourage songwriters to utilize free tax preparation this year as we know so many of them are suffering. The pandemic has put many burdens on creators and we are hopeful that the Foundation can alleviate this one. We thank H&R Block for their partnership and sharing our commitment to helping the Nashville songwriting community,” said NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation President David Israelite.

For more information and to make a free tax preparation appointment, please visit SONGSfoundation.org and fill out the form under the “Free Tax Preparation.”

About the Foundation: Launched in 2015, the NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation supports songwriters through funding educational programs, direct financial assistance and services, and through partnerships with like-minded institutions and organizations to enhance opportunities for music creators. The Foundation has provided over $250,000 in funding, grants and scholarships to universities including Belmont, LA College of Music, MTSU and Howard University, among others. The Board includes Steven Tyler, Jewel, Kara DioGuardi, Golnar Khosrowshahi, Lee Thomas Miller, David Israelite, Danielle Aguirre and Charlotte Sellmyer.

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NMPA SONGS Foundation Announces Partnership With She Is The Music

PRESS RELEASE  
For Immediate Release: June 13, 2019
Media Contact: Charlotte Sellmyer

NMPA SONGS Foundation Announces Partnership With She Is The Music
The Foundation is donating $100,000 to She Is The Music

NEW YORK— The NMPA SONGS (Supporting Our Next Generation Of Songwriters) Foundation has announced a new partnership with She Is The Music (SITM), a nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing the number of women working in music – songwriters, engineers, producers, artists and industry professionals.
 
SONGS is providing a donation of $100,000 to She Is The Music to be spread over four years in $25,000 installments. The announcement was made yesterday at NMPA’s Annual Meeting in New York City with SITM Committee Members Carianne Marshall and Ann Mincieli accepting the donation.
 
“She Is The Music founder Alicia Keys unveiled her pioneering new platform to promote female songwriters, producers, engineers and more at our annual meeting last year, so it was fitting that we announced our partnership on the same stage yesterday,” said David Israelite, President of the NMPA SONGS Foundation. “This $100,000 donation is critical in order to grow in-studio professional mentoring programs as well as other opportunities for women and we couldn’t be happier to be involved in this growing movement.”

SONGS Board member and Founder and CEO of Reservoir Golnar Khosrowshahi added, “She Is the Music is confronting the problems of underrepresentation and inclusion head on. I was proud to join the NMPA SONGS Foundation when it was founded four years ago, and I’m excited to continue its mission by partnering with She Is the Music.”
 
About She Is the Music: As an umbrella nonprofit, She Is The Music provides resources and support for female-focused initiatives that are working to create meaningful change – both through their own programs as well as external efforts around the world. Programs include an all-female songwriting series, an industry database of women creators and mentorship programs, to name a few. Their initiatives serve women in the industry today while fostering the development of future generations. A first-of-its-kind collaboration spanning the music industry, SITM is powered by creators, publishers, record labels, talent agencies, industry groups, media companies, streaming services, and more.

About the NMPA SONGS Foundation: Launched in 2015, the NMPA S.O.N.G.S. (Supporting Our Next Generation Of Songwriters) Foundation supports songwriters through funding educational programs, direct financial assistance and services, and through partnerships with like-minded institutions and organizations to  enhance opportunities for music creators. The Foundation has provided over $100,000 in grants and scholarships to universities including Belmont and MTSU, among other endowments and partnerships. The Foundation board includes  Steven Tyler, Jewel, Kara DioGuardi, Golnar Khosrowshahi, Lee Thomas Miller, David Israelite, Charlotte Sellmyer and Danielle Aguirre.
 

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NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation Announces Free Tax Preparation Services for Nashville Songwriters

NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation Announces Free Tax Preparation Services for Nashville Songwriters
 

PRESS RELEASE  
For Immediate Release: March 4, 2019
Media Contact: Charlotte Sellmyer

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation (Supporting Our Next Generation of Songwriters) announced a new partnership with H&R Block to provide free in-office tax preparation to songwriters in the Nashville area as a part of its effort to provide direct assistance to working music creators.

“We are thrilled to work with H&R Block to provide tax services to working songwriters. The S.O.N.G.S. Foundation strives to alleviate financial burdens placed on music creators and enable them to focus on what matters most— writing and creating the songs we love,” said NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation President David Israelite.

The Foundation is working with the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) in order to inform area songwriters about this service. For more information and to make a free tax preparation appointment, please visit SONGSfoundation.org and fill out the form under the “Free Tax Preparation” tab or contact NMPA's offices at 202-393-6672.

About the Foundation: Launched in 2015, the NMPA S.O.N.G.S. Foundation supports songwriters through funding educational programs, direct financial assistance and services, and through partnerships with like-minded institutions and organizations to enhance opportunities for music creators. The Foundation has provided over $100,000 in grants and scholarships to universities including Belmont and MTSU, among other endowments and partnerships. The Foundation board includes Steven Tyler, Jewel, Kara DioGuardi, Golnar Khosrowshahi, Lee Thomas Miller, David Israelite, Charlotte Sellmyer and Danielle Aguirre.
 

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NMPA creates songwriting endowments for Belmont, MTSU

The National Music Publishers Association's charitable foundation announced on Tuesday it has created endowments for songwriting scholarships at Belmont University and Middle Tennessee State University.

The $50,000 contribution to Belmont will be matched by the university to create a $100,000 endowment. The MTSU gift is for $25,000 and marks the first songwriting endowment at the university.

NMPA is a trade association that advocates for music publishers on an array of issues. The gift was from NMPA's foundation SONGS, which stands for Supporting Our Next Generation of Songwriters. The foundation was created specifically to help aspiring songwriters.

"We are thrilled to start the foundation’s work by supporting those who want to learn about the craft, and need and deserve financial help to do so," SONGS president David Israelite said. "We are grateful for Belmont University’s willingness to match our donation, and we are very excited about being able to launch the inaugural MTSU songwriting-specific scholarship program.”

James Elliott, who chairs Belmont's songwriting program, said the endowment is a wonderful way to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the university offering a songwriting major.

"We are thrilled to receive this endowment gift from the NMPA SONGS foundation as it will support the next generation of hit songwriters currently studying at Belmont," Elliott said.

Both universities have rich histories in the local music industry, serving as the launching pads for leaders in every facet of the music business.

The SONGS foundation's board of directors includes Steven Tyler, Kara DioGuardi, Jewel, Craig Balsam, Golnar Khosrowshahi, Lee Thomas Miller in addition to Israelite, Danielle Aguirre and Charlotte Sellmyer from NMPA.

"I am thrilled that the NMPA's SONGS foundation has created a new scholarship for our songwriting students," said Beverly Keel, who chairs MTSU's Recording Industry Department in the College of Media and Entertainment. "We are so appreciative of their investment in our students' futures. Their support means so much to our students, who will be encouraged to work even harder at improving their songwriting craft as they continue to be inspired by the work of the foundation's board members."

Reach Nate Rau at 615-259-8094 and nrau@tennessean.com. Follow him on Twitter @tnnaterau.

See the Final Presentation of the 2018 Musical Theater Songwriting Challenge

The finalists for the 2018 Musical Theater Songwriting Challenge convened in New York to participate in a weekend of workshops with musicians, singers, songwriters, and producers. The weekend ended with a live-streamed performance of the six songs, judged by a panel of musical theatre professionals on April 23. The competition received over 200 applications from high school composers in 36 states.

The finalists (five individual composers and one pair) will each have their songs published by Samuel French, and the national champion received a $25,000 scholarship courtesy of the National Music Publishers Association’s S.O.N.G.S. (Supporting Our Next Generation of Songwriters) Foundation.

Taking home the first place prize was David Volpini (2019) of Chippewa Valley High School in Macomb, Michigan. In second place were Eliza Corrington (class of 2018) and Braxton Gerald Carr (2019) of DaVinci Academy in Ogden, Utah. In third place was Tucker Donelan (2018) of Berkshire School in Sheffield, Massachusetts.

Partnering with the NEA on the second annual competition are the American Theatre Wing, Disney Theatrical Productions, Samuel French, Inc and Playbill.