In 2010, Music Maker located Ironing Board Sam living in terrible poverty, having given up on his career. My first call was to Quint Davis, one of the founders of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. He was excited to hear that Sam was still alive. He immediately sent a donation to help artists […]

Photo by Tim Duffy Levon Helm, a Music Maker Advisory Board member and supporter, passed away yesterday at the age of 71. He will be missed by all of us, but his contributions to music will live on, and we will remember him fondly. Tim Duffy, Music Maker’s Founder, recounts their first meeting with Helm: […]