A2IM is proud to bring you the 10th Annual Libera Awards presented by Merlin, the world's largest independent music awards ceremony. They have announced the full list of nominees across 30 categories. Tune in June 17th 2021 on their YouTube page to celebrate the successes of the independent music community, from the artists that create the music to the labels that release and promote it. RSVP to the June 17th livestream HERE.

We're so proud to be A2IM’s official charity partner for the Libera Awards for the 2nd year running! 100% of proceeds raised during the show will be directed to career musicians and music industry professionals in need. ​

​#SweetSupporters Play It Forward is having their very first Virtual Concert Series Fundraiser! Featuring performances by 13 talented musicians/bands to raise funds for Play it Forward and Sweet Relief! March 29-April 3, 8-9 p.m. EST each night with a matinee performance at 3 p.m. EST on April 4. TUNE IN on their Facebook page!

Written by Rachel Grumman Bender for Yahoo Life
March 16th, 2021

Singer and songwriter Victoria Williams was living her dream — touring around the country with singer Neil Young — when her entire life changed suddenly.
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While she was touring in Cincinnati in the 1990s, Williams’ hands started to go numb. “I remember I’m trying to play guitar and suddenly, my hands don’t work,” Williams tells Yahoo Life. “And so then I just started singing acapella without the guitar. It was scary.”

What started, one year ago, as an innocent social media game, when Facebook friends and fans suggested artists they would like to cover Wesley Stace AKA John Wesley Harding’s songs, became a reality with the Community Coronation Covers Project, a community-curated playlist featuring a myriad of well-respected artists. These have now been gathered on Bandcamp as The Good Lyre: Songs of John Wesley Harding. 100% of the proceeds will benefit Sweet Relief.

From the hundreds of suggested artist/song pairings, Stace compiled a list: “Realizing that some of these wild ideas were tantalizingly within my grasp, I wondered whether the musicians in question might be willing to help out, to make someone’s day.

Our friends at Acoustik Attak are continuing to change the game! Introducing their latest in guitar picks, the BLADE. This new tool harmonically enhances frequencies between 1KHz to 5KHz, which is where clarity and punch sit for guitars.

Even better- When you purchase a Blade product, Acoustik Attak donates a buck to Sweet Relief’s COVID-19 Fund! ​

A HUGE thank you to Three Chord Bourbon and Neil Giraldo for their incredible support! Through their recent campaign, they raised $2,500 for Sweet Relief and our mission to help musicians and music industry workers. Several folks in our community will receive the grants they desperately need to make ends meet because of this. THANK YOU again to Three Chords, Neil Giraldo, and to all the customers and retailers that participated to make this happen!

Learn more about Sweet Relief and our efforts to help musicians and music industry workers through these difficult times.

By Gideon Waxman of Drum Helper.

Recording drums is widely regarded as one of the trickiest skills to learn for a studio engineer. This is because there is a lot of equipment to set up, specific techniques to grasp, and a lot of tuning involved!

The drum set is the most time-consuming instrument to record, so it’s important to take a thought out and structured approach. It requires patience and a clear vision of what you want to achieve from the recording session.
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I have written this guide to show you that by following basic principles you can obtain great drum sounds without having to rent a world-class recording studio.

Get into some intoxicating Latin, Caribbean and Brazilian rhythms courtesy of Philly ensembles De Tierra Caliente & Alex Moreno and Los Panas Band on March 11th, live from the Ardmore Music Hall!
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Tune in from Ardmore Music Hall's YouTube, Facebook, or via Nugs.net for a night you won't want to miss. The live stream will be FREE but donations will benefit Sweet Relief and our mission to help those in need.

Ways to donate:

• Via Sweet Relief Musicians Fund directly
• @Ardmore-MusicHall (Venmo)
• paypal.me/ArdmoreMusicHall (PayPal)

Virtual Front Row Access - Zoom Fan Party!

​Join the free in-show Zoom Fan Party! Dance with us and interact with the band & other fans in real-time. Head to Ardmoremusichall.com/fanparty to join during the broadcast and for more info!

​On the first Friday of every month since March, Bandcamp has waived their revenue share (15%) to help support the many artists who have seen their livelihoods disrupted by the pandemic. Over the course of these nine days, fans paid artists and labels $40 million dollars, helping cover rents, mortgages, groceries, medications, and much more. Nearly 800,000 fans participated.

Although vaccines are starting to roll out, it will likely be several months before live performance revenue starts to return. Bandcamp has decided to continue doing Bandcamp Fridays in 2021, on February 5th, March 5th, April 2nd, and May 7th. As always, isitbandcampfriday.com has the details.

A few notable artists and labels you should check out this Bandcamp Friday who support Sweet Relief -