Beatport has announced the recipients of its second annual diversity and parity grants. Awards totaling $150,000 will be given to the organizations Change the Beat, Last Night a DJ Saved My Life, ONE OFF TRAKS, Other Village People, Saffron and We Are Moving the Needle.
Last Night a DJ Saved My Life works to empower young people from around the world via fundraising initiatives for grassroots projects. The organization will use the money to teach DJing and production to 32 young women over eight weeks in Leeds, U.K.
ONE OFF TRAKS, an Australian writing camp collaboration and platform for women, trans and non-binary artists, will use its grant to host and expand the writing camp in 2024.
Based in South Africa, Other Village People powers three queer-centered platforms. The organization will use its grant for its newest initiative Queertopia, a three-day festival celebrating South African contemporary queer nightlife culture and movements.
The U.K.’s Saffron works to foster equality in music tech by creating safe and inclusive spaces for people underrepresented in the space. The organization will use its grant to work with 20 Black creatives in the U.K. in endeavors such as community building, knowledge sharing and other educational opportunities.
We Are Moving the Need, based in the States, works to evolve the recording industry with the focus of gender equity and inclusivity. The platform will use its grant on its touring CTRL symposium, which aims to build community and evolve the recording industry via events in Los Angeles, Nashville and New York.
The fund, now in its second year, is awarding two kinds of grants: one that awards amounts between $3,000 to $15,000 to smaller organizations consisting of one to three staff members, and one awarding amounts between $15,001 and $30,000 to organizations with more than four staff members.
“The electronic music community is filled with vibrant groups of creative people who want to make our industry and world better,” Sofia Ilyas, Chief Community Officer of The Beatport Group, says in a statement. “The recipients of our second annual Diversity + Parity Fund exemplify the spirit of positive change, and it is our hope that their endeavors will resonate in powerful ways across our industry.”
