ARTIST GRANTS – What they are, and 5 ways they can help you in your career!
Many musicians overlook the idea of pursuing grants and funding for themselves, because they assume those things are what administrators in arts organizations do. It’s true, of course. Most every nonprofit organization has dedicated staff or volunteers for grant writing and fundraising for their organizations.
If musicians think about individual artist grants at all, they quickly dismiss these opportunities as inaccessible for one reason or another. Either they assume the application process is too complicated and will take too long or the funder will not be interested in their particular musical endeavors, or that they are not far enough along in their careers to apply for grant funding. Of course, the other big reason many musicians do not pursue individual artist grants is that the whole activity seems dreadfully tedious and boring! Musicians want to make music, after all. Administrative tasks are not the focus for most of creative people. Having to file taxes every year is bad enough without seeking out more online forms and paperwork to manage.
Fortunately, the “many musicians” I am describing do not have to include you or me! The truth is that many grant applications are deliberately designed to be fairly simple to complete. And every grant-making entity has staff available to help answer questions. Many even encourage you to submit draft applications, which they review for you. They give you tips and suggestions, so that you can submit an even stronger final application. Grant-making agencies and foundations want to distribute money to artists. Most work very hard to make it possible for people to apply for and receive it.
Grant funding is generally awarded through a competitive or noncompetitive review process.
Competitive grants require detailed applications, which are evaluated by the funder by established criteria. Applications are then scored. Applications receiving a certain score or higher receive funding.
Noncompetitive grants generally require a simple application. Grants are issued directly to the applicant, once eligibility is verified. The applicant does not have to compete with other applicants for funding.
What if I told you that being the recipient of a grant can boost your career you in five important ways? I’ll go further by saying that the activity of applying for an individual artist grant can benefit you, even if you are not approved for funding.
Let me explain, starting with the obvious…
1. An Individual Artist Grant can get you money – duh!
Depending on the funder and the program to which you apply, the grant award may be a few hundred dollars or several thousand dollars. But money is money, and it is always useful, unless you are receiving a hefty, monthly stipend from your wealthy great-uncle. (If you are, you are probably not reading this blog post.)
2. A grant can provide you with leverage to acquire ADDITIONAL money.
This is when it starts to become fun! When you approach other funders with the information that you have already secured a grant from an arts council, foundation, or reputable business, they understand that you have successfully demonstrated your worth for artistic investment. It then becomes much easier for “General National Bank” to invest in you when they can see that another funder has agreed to award you funding.
This, in turn, may encourage smaller donors, like friends, family, and neighborhood businesses, to join in that investment effort. Before long, you could have a real financial support system underneath you, helping you to achieve your artistic goals.
3. A grant will affirm that you are a professional artist.
Most public funders require that you make a public announcement of your grant award from them. This works to your advantage as well, because it validates your artistic work. The requirement also gives you a reason for self-promotion, which is often welcome for artists who are a bit shy about tooting their own horns.
Get as much mileage out of this self-promoting announcement as you can. Use social media, but be cognizant of what a fleeting means of information that is. People will see it for a second, and then perhaps never again. So, put that grant award announcement on a static web page that has your photo and biography, so that it is always seen when people visit that web page or site. Include a line about it in your email signature, etc. Be creative!
4. A recent grant award is proof to your stakeholders that you are currently active as a musician.
This can be extremely helpful if you have had a dry spell of a few months, in terms of performances or other professional work. Being the recipient of a grant award means you likely were asked to submit evidence of your artistic work over the past year. The grant award can help to bolster your professional image, even if you had a spotty year.
5. Merely applying for a grant can help you to organize your music projects and artistic goals.
Let’s say you apply for funding to tour with a new concert program, but the grant program to which you apply was competitive. This year, the competition was quite stiff, and you do not receive an award, this time.
After you get past the disappointment of not receiving a grant this time around, you realize that your application materials are nonetheless considerably useful. Why? Because while filling out the grant application, you most likely were asked to:
· Flesh out exactly what you intend to do and why, including what music you intend to perform, who will be involved in all aspects of the project, which venue/s you will use, etc.
· Identify your goals and objectives for this concert tour. This process leads you to make decisions about what is achievable with the amount of time and resources you have.
· Identify who your audiences will be, where they will be coming from, and how you will publicize the event to all of them.
· Provide a detailed timeline of your activities, which makes you think carefully about the sequence of your tasks, and the amount of time each would take.
· How you will know whether you have achieved your goals and objectives. This requires you to decide how you will measure the success of your concert program, and by what means you will measure that success.
· Provide a detailed budget showing all your anticipated costs as well as all your anticipated sources of income.
By the time you have thought through and documented all of the above, you are ready to apply to another funder with ease and efficiency. You are also ready to embark on this great musical project with clarity of vision and organized planning. Who doesn’t want more of that?!
How to find grant and funding sources
Most major cities and states offer grants through arts councils or arts foundations. A quick internet search under “artist grants near me” will usually yield results that tell you where to begin looking. Do stick with local and state arts agencies, rather than national or federal funders, as you will have a greater chance at being approved for a grant. Public or private foundations at the national level, such as the National Endowment for the Arts or Kresge Foundation will be exceedingly competitive, and should be approached only by seasoned, experienced grant writers with a successful track record.
How much money could I expect from an Individual Artist Grant?
Grant amounts vary greatly, as you might imagine. For an artist applying to a state or local arts council, grant awards might range from a few hundred dollars up to $5,000-10,000. The higher the grant award, the more complex and detailed the application requirements tend to be for the applicant.
Grant and Funding Sources
Generally speaking, grants are made from three types of funders:
1. Federal, state, and local government agencies, which are funded by public tax dollars;
2. Private Foundations, often created by families with wealth, who want to create a philanthropic legacy by funding causes that are of particular importance to them; and
3. Businesses, such as national banks, which establish foundations to issue grants to communities in which they do business.
It is important to thoroughly read through all grant guidelines and instructions provided by the funder. And pay close attention to eligibility requirements. When you have questions, it is not a good idea to make assumptions about the answers. Consult the guidelines and reach out to the grant staff to make sure you get correct information. This is an appropriate rule of thumb even if you have applied to the same funder several times. Guidelines change from year to year, so you must always check them.
Hopefully, this blog post will have dispelled some of the mystery about grant funding for individual artists. I encourage you to investigate the possibility of applying for funding to support you in your artistic work.
So, happy grant writing in 2025! May the year bring you increasing support and prosperity as you fill the world with your music and artistry.
Warmly,
Susan
Do you have questions or need coaching? Send me an email: AnahataMusicProject@gmail.com