Lauren Daigle’s The Price Fund Gives the Gift of Music

The Community Foundation’s Heart of Nashville series revisits stories of donors and active community residents who have stepped up to ensure that our region continues to be one of the very best places to call home.

Two-time GRAMMY© Award winner and multi-platinum selling recording artist Lauren Daigle spread some holiday cheer by giving more than $270,000 to the Ellis Marsalis Center, Young Audiences of Louisiana, Roots of Music and KID smART.

The funds, presented after each organization had an opportunity to perform at the Saenger Theatre in New Orleans, will be used to enhance music education programs in underserved communities located throughout Louisiana.

“Thanks to everyone’s generosity, through The Price Fund we were able to give the children of New Orleans much needed funds this weekend,” shares Daigle. “Seeing children have hope and a future is something I care so much about. When we surprised these kids, their faces lit up and I knew, we’re doing something good here!”

Through its partnerships and outreach The Price Fund, established by Daigle earlier this year at The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee, is designed to provide care for both children and the elderly, as well as those in need. She is committed to investing her time and actively works to heal through various means, including work with at-risk youth. While the impact of Daigle’s giving will evolve year to year, the focus of 2019 has been to bring music back to the classroom which has done through ticket sales and fundraising initiatives.

Recipients of The Price Fund include the Ellis Marsalis Center for Music at Musicians’ Village, which serves to broaden opportunities for underserved children, youth and musicians by providing a safe, positive environment to develop musically, academically and socially. They also provide resources to aid in the professional growth and offer opportunities for musicians throughout New Orleans.

Young Audiences of Louisiana was founded in 1962 to bring chamber musicians into local classrooms. They are part of a national network of 32 affiliates throughout the country under Young Audiences Arts for Learning. As the nation’s first and largest arts-in-education network Young Audiences Arts for Learning ensures the highest standards in arts education programs for over 5 million schoolchildren annually.

The Roots of Music marching band empowers the youth of New Orleans through music education, academic support, and mentorship while preserving and promoting the unique musical and cultural heritage of the city. Their program provides music history and theory as well as instrumental instruction and ensemble performance preparation to kids ages 9-14 from low-income households, and provide students with hot meals and round-trip transportation to reduce common barriers to participation. Over the course of a year The Roots of Music program provides over 2,500 hours of music education and other academic tutoring, over 30,400 nutritious hot meals, 1,400 bus journeys, and supplies over 150 instruments for student use.

KID smART partners with K-8 public schools to embed professional teaching artists in classrooms. They also provide afterschool and community-based programs which aim to increase art education throughout New Orleans.

Lauren Daigle is a two-time Grammy Award winner, five-time Billboard Music Award winner, and a two-time American Music Award winner. Her ability to connect with her audience has captured critical acclaim and recognition as the fastest-selling new artist for her genre of the last decade. Daigle’s Grammy Award winning and Double-Platinum certified single, “You Say,” has appeared in the Top 30 of Billboard’s Hot 100 chart and Grammy Award winning, Look Up Child, debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 Albums chart and has been certified Platinum. In 2020, Daigle will embark on her first all arena headline tour, the “Lauren Daigle World Tour,” which features an all new stage production, design and set list that will be highlighted by Daigle’s raw vocal power and stage presence. It kicks off January 18th in Melbourne, Australia and will include a performance at New Zealand’s Festival One. It will then launch in the US on February 20th in Pensacola, Florida and will include stops in New York, Nashville, Houston, Boston, Dallas and north of the border in Toronto and Montreal. Tickets and more information about the “Lauren Daigle World Tour” are available at https://laurendaigle.com/tour/.