When Michael Goodmon, the Vice-President of Real Estate for the Capital Broadcasting Company, drove past a billboard near downtown Durham promoting Music Maker’s 20th anniversary no one ever would’ve thought that this would lead to what has become one of Durham’s most dynamic and diverse music venues. After learning more about MMRFs work, Goodmon quickly joined the Music Maker board and had the idea to create an amazing space in downtown Durham that paired baseball, beer, and the blues with an astounding philanthropic vision. This space would become the Bullpen, located right behind left field of the Durham Bulls Athletic Park.

There is no shortage of winners at the Bullpen, from the musicians that champion American music every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday to the Durham Bulls who won the Triple-A National Championship last week — the Bullpen is shaping up to be one of those legendary places where you can still hear real music. When asked about what the Bullpen is doing for Pat “Mother Blues” Cohen, a 60 year old New Orleans musician who was displaced by Katrina, says, “It’s such a blessing to have something regular and I am extremely thankful for this gig. It allows me to do financial planning that I wasn’t able to do previously and gives me a sense of security. To build a following week after week feels great, having fans is one of the most important things to a musician”.

While artists like Pat Cohen benefit from performing at the Bullpen, there are other MMRF partner artists that are too old to perform, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t see the benefits of MMRF’s relationship with the Bullpen. For every draft beer that is poured at the Bullpen $1 is donated to MMRF’s programs, including our sustenance program that provides monthly stipends for food, shelter and medical care, supplies emergency aid for artists in crisis, and connects artists with non-profit and government resources. Artists like Algia Mae Hinton, Patrick Sky, Lee Gates and many others that played a critical role in shaping American music receive support through our sustenance program.

Check out the Bullpen’s full schedule – HERE

If you’re unable to make it to the Bullpen you can always watch Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night’s performance via Music Maker Relief Foundation’s Facebook LIVE feed – HERE

— Corn Lewis