Hear Fort Worth Invests In Artists To Draw More Tourism, Business To The City

Arlington TX

11 March, 2022

5:48 PM

Description

By Marcheta Fornoff, Fort Worth Report March 10, 2022 The Container Bar in Austin will feel a lot more like Funky Town as more than a dozen artists perform at the Hear Fort Worth showcase this weekend. Hear Fort Worth considers the artists to be brand ambassadors, but unlike the sponsored content that runs rampant on social media, musicians represent the city in much more organic ways than shilling vitamins or clothing. In fact, the relationship between artists and Hear Fort Worth is less about brokering deals and more akin to a gardener watering seedlings. Tom Martens, director of the Fort Worth Music Office, said the goal of the program is twofold: to create community and export music. "When they're on the road, they're ambassadors for the city. They tell people how great it is. They tell people where they're from," Martens explained, citing Leon Bridges and Grady Spencer & The Work as examples. Hear Fort Worth, an initiative of Visit Fort Worth, sprouted in 2016. They help cultivate the local music scene by offering small travel grants, of up to $500, to artists who have booked three consecutive shows outside of DFW. They worked with United Way of Tarrant County on a creative industry relief fund that doled out $300 microgrants to artists who lost work during the pandemic. And this weekend, they've programmed three days of local music to showcase at the SXSW festival in Austin. "That $500, we've seen, it's just been imperative to some musicians," Martens said. He recalled that the first artist to receive a travel grant had shows booked in Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana, but he was on the verge of being forced to cancel all three because a local gig that would have helped them pay for gas and hotel stays was canceled. Visit Fort Worth and its offshoots understand that a thriving cultural scene isn't just a nice amenity for residents—it also drives business to the city. A 2021 report from Visit Fort Worth and Sound Diplomacy estimated the music scene was directly and indirectly responsible for 7,555 jobs and $256.56 million in earnings in 2016. "We want to show that the city supports local music, but also we have so much talent that's out there spreading the message," Martens said. To read the full article, click here. Fort Worth Report is a nonpartisan, nonprofit news organization that produces factual, in-depth journalism about city and county government, schools, healthcare, business, and arts and culture in Tarrant County. Always free to read; subscribe to newsletters, read coverage or support our newsroom at fortworthreport.org.