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Our application is accessible and open to professional musicians across all genres

Get the Help You Need

In a time when artists experience more instability than ever before, Musicians Foundation serves as a vital safety net for those who have given their lives to music. If you are a professional musician in a specific time of need, please explore below to see if you might qualify for a grant to pay an essential bill.

Basic Eligibility Guidelines for Applying

  1. You must be a professional music performer, composer/songwriter, or educator in a specific time of need.
  2. You must have worked as a professional musician in the United States for five or more years and currently reside in the US.
  3. You must have filed taxes as a musician for five or more years and be able to provide a copy of a recently completed tax return.

Check Your Eligibility Now

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Are you a professional music performer, composer, or educator in a specific time of need?

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Have you earned the majority of your income as a musician in the United States for five or more years?

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Do you file taxes as a musician, and can you provide a copy of a recently completed 1040 tax return form?

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Have you been impacted by a medical or dental situation, housing emergency, family crisis, or natural disaster?

Your score is

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Examples of Situations that Qualify for Assistance

  • You have a medical bill for an injury that has made it difficult or impossible to perform, write, or teach music.
  • You have been served an eviction or lease termination notice and have past-due rent caused by an unexpected hardship.
  • You need help paying for a dental procedure or treatment in order to comfortably work as a musician.
  • You have been assisting an ill family member with essential bills, and now need help paying your rent, as the costs involved with supporting your family have resulted in a personal financial crisis.

Please note: We do not provide grants for situations caused by COVID-19 related loss of work (cancelled gigs, venue closures, etc.). Musicians Foundation grants do not serve as unemployment benefits.

Additionally, we do not provide grants that pay for travel, credit card bills, personal loans, or educational expenses (tuition, scholarships, etc.).

If you have any questions, please contact us at

Ready to Apply?

If you are pre-qualified for a grant based on the questionnaire above, click “Apply Now” to access the online application.

Apply Now

The Application Process

  1. Click the link above to create an account and complete the Pre-Application.
  2. If you are initially eligible based on your Pre-Application submission, you will receive an email notification inviting you to complete Part 2 of the application. Part 2 is more detailed, requiring additional information and document uploads.
  3. After submitting Part 2, your application is typically reviewed in 3-5 business days. Additional information or documentation may be requested in response to your Part 2 submission.
  4. If you are approved for a grant, you will receive an email notice which includes the amount and pay-to information. Grants are mailed out the same day you receive the approval notice.

Our grants are sent as vendorized checks made out to the biller (doctor, hospital, dentist, landlord, mortgage company, utility provider, etc.) directly. The grant is mailed to your home address, and then you must deliver it to the biller (who the check is made out to). This way, you know when the grant arrives and can be sure it is properly applied to the bill being paid.

Musicians Foundation has provided thousands of grants over the past century. Find out more about the musicians whose lives we’ve impacted.

Lives Changed