Financial Reports (2019 - 2021)
2021
With the lockdowns being gradually lifted in 2021, we received a relief grant from SBA, partially returned to playing live engagements, and began producing virtual showcases. Our first in-person concert, originally halted a year prior due to lockdowns, was at the Reno Artown Festival in Nevada. The second date and first in the Bay Area was at the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival in San Francisco. This outdoor event marked the premiere of a three-piece commission, initially contracted a year before, by Yerba Buena Gardens Festival as a direct response to COVID-19’s disproportionate effects on marginalized communities. The compositions meditated on concepts such as finding peace in conflict, joy in sadness and freedom in confinement.
In August, we virtually showcased at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in the UK garnering multiple five star reviews including one from the BBC. As a direct result, we have been invited to perform in person next summer by theSpaceUK, a top 10 presenter of the festival. Additionally, we have been selected as the first ten artists to be part of the National Endowment for the Arts Performing Arts Discovery Program (PAD), a global initiative of the NEA promoting U.S. artists to international programmers, festival directors, and venue managers. As part of PAD, we will be a part of selected virtual showcases broadcast worldwide.
Lastly, we have begun production on a 30 minute documentary for film festivals delving into our creative process, Method Sampling. As we talk about EMN’s history and methodology, we’ll highlight like minded creatives that are doing something radically different in their field. The doc will be shot during our tour to Washington Feb 3 -12, 2022 doing performances and educational workshops in Olympia, Tacoma, Eugene, and Edmonds.
40% of our earned income of $60,000 went toward our virtual showcases and the production of our documentary. 20% went to musician fees; which included rehearsals, performances, dancers, choreography, and travel expenses. The remaining 40% went to our general operating expenses including 2 full time staff, office space, and marketing/PR.
2020
Due to the travel ban and lockdown, we lost more than half of our earned income for 2020. All of our tour and public programming were halted, including a week-long tour to Alaska, a concert and public lecture in Texas, a festival performance in Nevada as well as in Southern California. Luckily, we were able to sustain ourselves with grants from the Wattis Foundation, Center for Cultural Innovation, an SBA loan, and two substantial commissions, one of which was a Broadway musical. We pivoted to virtual programs by collaborating with the Boston Music Project (MA) doing remote workshops and Zoom outreach, a joint virtual event with Chandler Center for Arts (AZ) and Tempe Center for the Arts (AZ) discussing our underlying principle, Method Sampling. With Asian Art Museum (CA), we produced an online event on Method Sampling and the History of Hip-Hop Culture & the craft of rhyming. In addition, we recorded a live studio album and filmed five performance music videos featuring hip-hop inspired dance, set to the backdrop of collections at the Asian Art Museum and various locales around Oakland, Ca. The album and videos were supported by both Yerba Buena Gardens Festival as well as Asian Art Museum.
20% of our earned income of $100,000 went toward our new virtual educational workshop programs and 40% to musician fees; which included rehearsals, studio time to record, two dancers, a choreographer, and a film crew. The remaining 40% went to our general operating expenses including 2 full time staff, office space, and marketing/PR.
2019
In 2019, EMN embarked on an international tour to the West Koowloon Cultural District (HK) headlining Freespace Happening Festival. Headline performances continued at Vassar College (NY)’s Modfest, UC Santa Barbara Arts & Lectures (CA), Las Vegas Cultural Center (NV), and American River College (CA). We hosted educational workshops on Method Sampling, History of Hip-Hop Music as well as on the craft of rhyming alongside our concert engagements. As a BIPOC run organization we strongly believe Western European music aesthetics are not the only standard. In addition, by bringing Western European music and Hip-Hop together, we end up in a place that’s unexpected, refreshing as well as radically inclusive. We believe that inclusion of hip-hop aesthetics in the performing arts sphere emphasizing the artistry instills pride in BIPOC youth.
20% of our earned income $140,000 went toward our educational workshop programs and 40% to musician fees; which include transportation, room & board, instrument rental and per diem. The remaining 40% went to our general operating expenses including 2 full time staff, office space, and marketing/PR.