Nashville Mayor Declares Special Day To Raise Awareness For Musicians’ Health Care

Music Health Alliance staff and supporters. Top (L to R): Kris Wiatr, Andrea Davidson, Tatum Allsep, Rodney Crowell, Justine Avila, Rory Feek, Jay Williams, Caitlin Crowell Bottom L to R: Shelia Shipley Biddy, Kimberly Dunn, Taylor Clay Photo Credit: Beth Gwinn

Nashville Mayor Megan Barry has officially named October 20, 2017 as the inaugural “Heal the Music Day” in support of Music Health Alliance, a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing music professionals across the nation with access to lifesaving healthcare services. The local fundraising initiative aims to enlist the participation of the Nashville music community in generating greater attention and resources to the more than 56,000 people working in the city’s music industry, 76 percent of whom are self-employed and living without adequate health insurance.

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Heal the Music Day will offer local businesses, performing artists, and all those who benefit from the Nashville music industry the opportunity to support their own through pledging a percentage of their October 20 proceeds to Music Health Alliance, whose free assistance has saved $16.5 million in medical costs and enabled more than 5,600 music professionals to seek invaluable medical attention since its 2013 founding.

“So many of our artists, entertainers, songwriters, musicians, and crew are self-employed and go without access to high-quality health insurance,” said Barry. “’Heal The Music Day’ is about giving back and showing we care about those who put the music in Music City.”

Early advocates that have committed to donating October 20 include Rodney Crowell, Chris & Morgane Stapleton, Dierks Bentley, Emmylou Harris, Gene Watson, Glen Templeton, Jerry Douglas, John Prine, Keith Urban, Lee Brice, Marty Stuart, Miranda Lambert, Peter Frampton, Ronnie Dunn, Rory Feek, Sam Bush, Shawn Camp, T Bone Burnett, Vince Gill, Dualtone Records, Nashville Musicians Union, Nashville Songwriters Association International, New Frontier Touring, Warner Chappell Music and Wiatr & Associates.

“No one in the music industry should ever have to choose between food and medicine,” said Tatum Allsep, founder of Music Health Alliance. “With the community’s support of ‘Heal The Music Day,’ together we can make sure that this is a choice that never has to be made.”

To learn more about how you can get involved in “Heal the Music Day,” check out Music Health Alliance’s website, and read our recent feature on the organization here.

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