Fender has announced the launch of a non-profit foundation which will see the popular guitar manufacturer team up with artists including Chris Stapleton, Avril Lavigne, Green Day’s Mike Dirnt, and more to raise money and awareness for music education.
Named the Fender Play Foundation, the non-profit will look to provide resources and education opportunities to equip, educate, and inspire young players, according to the announcement shared on Wednesday. Fender will donate $1 million of a proposed $3 million goal over the next three years to benefit educational institutions and organizations that provide youth with opportunities to learn and play music in Los Angeles, Nashville, and Scottsdale. Fender will look to expand the list of benefitting cities and programs by next year.
Artists including Stapleton, Lavigne, and Dirnt will also be joined by Ashley McBryde, Brendon Urie (Panic! At The Disco), and Pete Wentz (Fall Out Boy) as the Foundation’s Artist Ambassadors for the 2019-2020 year, with more to be announced in the future. The participating artists will help with initiatives that include local surprise instrument drops, meet and greets, donating signed gear and memorabilia, and other special appearances.
“When I was a kid, I picked up a guitar and found a whole new world at my fingertips,” Stapleton said in a statement of his involvement. “I’m proud to partner with the Fender Play Foundation to help kids from all walks of life find a whole new world of their own.”
Lavigne also added, “Providing instruments to schools, camps and others who don’t have access to music on a daily basis is both necessary and inspiring, and I’m looking forward to working alongside my fellow Artist Advisors to deliver what is sure to be a lifetime of exciting memories!”
Fender Play Foundation has already donated a mix of guitars, ukuleles and basses to organizations like Adopt the Arts, Notes for Notes, Musack, and Young Musicians Foundation to name a few. The organization will also team up with The Boys & Girls Club of Metro Los Angeles and Watts-Willowbrook Clubhouse to build a space equipped with guitars, basses, and amplifiers with e-learning stations for members to learn the stringed instruments.
Head to Fender Play Foundation’s website for more information.