Selma, AL, November 21, 2022 –(CarryOnHarry.com)– The Mortimer & Mimi Levitt Foundation, a social impact funder supporting nonprofits nationwide at the intersection of music, public space, and community building, announced that Black Belt Community Foundation (BBCF) in Selma, Alabama has been awarded a multi-year Levitt AMP Grant Award of $90K in matching funds to present a free outdoor music series at Riverfront Amphitheater in 2023, 2024, and 2025.
Reflecting the Levitt Foundation’s commitment that all Levitt projects be community-driven, the 2023–2025 grant recipients were selected following a public voting period and comprehensive internal review process. Combining 15 new and 18 returning grantees, the Levitt Foundation will award $3 million dollars to nonprofits serving small to mid-sized towns and cities across the U.S. as part of the Levitt AMP Music Series, featuring a diverse lineup of artists, music genres and cultural programming to create inclusive experiences that are welcoming to all members of the community.
“Since the Levitt AMP Grant Awards began in 2015, we’ve seen grassroots nonprofits inspire transformation in their towns and cities through free outdoor concerts—activating underused public spaces, ensuring access to the arts, sparking additional investments, and strengthening the social fabric of their communities. Positive change happens when people of all ages and backgrounds come together and we’re thrilled to support changemakers like BBCF,” says Sharon Yazowski, Executive Director of the Levitt Foundation. “The first Levitt AMP Selma Music Series will transform the Riverfront Amphitheater into a community gathering destination filled with music, food and culturally-inclusive arts experiences, while creating opportunities to support the local economy and fostering meaningful social connections.”
The Levitt AMP Grant Awards is an exciting, multi-year matching grant opportunity bringing the joy of free, live music to towns and cities with a population of up to 250,000 people. For the 2023– 2025 grant cycle, the Levitt Foundation expanded the Levitt AMP program from an annual matching grant of $25K into a three-year matching grant of $30K per year, for a total grant award of $90K per recipient. In April, the Levitt Foundation invited nonprofits to submit proposals that would reflect the three goals of the Levitt AMP awards: Amplify community pride and the city’s unique character; enrich lives through the power of free, live Music; and illustrate the importance of vibrant public Places.
From Main Street communities to rural towns in the heart of Appalachia to historic state capitals, the 33 Levitt AMP 2023–2025 grant recipients hail from across the country including rural towns with populations of less than 10,000 like Littleton, NC; Whitesburg, KY; Galva, IL; Earlham, Iowa; Shenandoah Junction, WV; Soldotna, Alaska; and St. Johnsbury, VT; to mid-sized cities like Selma, AL, Carson City, NV; Gallup, NM; Ocala, FL; Utica, NY; and Woonsocket, RI; to larger cities spanning the country including Fort Smith, AK; Springfield, IL; Green Bay, WI, Flint, MI; Trenton, NJ; and Baton Rouge, LA
About the Mortimer & Mimi Levitt Foundation The Mortimer & Mimi Levitt Foundation is a private family foundation that exists to strengthen the social fabric of America. Through its commitment to creative placemaking, the Levitt Foundation supports the activation of underused public spaces—such as neglected parks, vacant downtown lots, and former brownfields—into welcoming, inclusive destinations where the power of free, live music brings people together to create more equitable, healthy and thriving communities. The Foundation’s primary funding areas include Levitt venues and the Levitt AMP Grant Awards. Both of these programs present free concerts in outdoor settings featuring high-caliber talent in a broad array of music genres and cultural programming. Levitt venues and Levitt AMP concert sites attract people of all ages and backgrounds and reflect the character of their town or city, while benefitting from the framework and best practices of the Levitt program.
The Levitt Foundation invests in community-driven efforts that harness the power of partnerships and leverage community engagement. Levitt venue nonprofits and AMP grantees partner with other local nonprofits and community groups to inform programming, outreach and engagement.
About the Black Belt Community Foundation (BBCF) For 18 years, BBCF has worked tirelessly to help Alabama’s most challenged region realize its potential. BBCF has awarded more than six million dollars in grants supporting more than 500 community-led initiatives across its 12-county service area in the Black Belt. BBCF supports local efforts that contribute to the strength, innovation, and success of all the region’s people and communities. http://www.blackbeltfound.org https://www.facebook.com/BBCF2004/, Instagram, Youtube Channel.
BBCF will present the first Levitt AMP Selma Music Series in the city’s Riverfront Park and Amphitheater, a rarely used public outdoor venue which rests on the banks of the Alabama River and overlooks the Historic Edmund Pettus Bridge, a transformative site during the Civil Rights Movement. The concert Series will cultivate culturally-inclusive arts opportunities and further efforts to bring people together from all backgrounds through live music.
Fredericksburg, VA, October 31, 2025 –(CarryOnHarry.com)– Musician and author MD Abdul Ahad Shanto, widely recognized by his stage name AlwaysBeSmile, has announced the release of his latest eBook, “The Independent Musician’s Blueprint: From Distribution to Verification.”
This inspiring new release serves as a complete guide for independent musicians navigating today’s digital music industry. Drawing from his personal experience as an independent artist, AlwaysBeSmile breaks down every stage of the modern music journey — from distribution to artist verification — in clear and simple steps.
The book provides essential insights into how artists can publish their music worldwide, manage metadata, claim profiles on streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube Music, and understand the importance of music databases and lyric publishing platforms. It also sheds light on how digital verification helps establish credibility and build a professional artist presence online.
“When I started my music journey, I had to learn everything by trial and error,” says AlwaysBeSmile. “Now I want to make that path easier for others — to give artists the knowledge and confidence to grow independently and succeed in the digital world.”
Written in a friendly and motivational tone, “The Independent Musician’s Blueprint” encourages emerging artists to take full control of their creative careers. It’s not just a guide — it’s a message of empowerment for every musician dreaming of turning passion into professionalism.
Santa Clarita, CA, October 29, 2025 –(CarryOnHarry.com)– On Friday, October 31 Loveforce International will release a song about the greatest fear of many single men. The song is by Billy Ray Charles. The topic of the song will either strike fear in or trigger traumatic memories for many men.
Billy Ray Charles scary new Digital Music Single is entitled “I Don’t Wanna Be Like A Brother”. It is a powerful R&B song with intricate rhythms, a steady beat, and hook filled vocal riffs. Lyrically its about a guy who is not stuck in the “friend” zone, which is talked about a lot, but in the “brother from another mother” zone which is not often talked about but can be even more devastating. It is a situation many men dread, and those who have survived it, never forget. The song attempts to make the listener feel the torment but be too catchy to feel sad.
“This is the third of our Strange Halloween Trilogy of songs released in October,” said Loveforce International CEO Mark Thomas. “The first was Scary, by Anna Hamilton and second was Trump’s Biggest Fear by The Loveforce Collective.
Thomas clarified, “We call the releases “Strange” because they address fears that aren’t always obvious in public media. Anna Hamilton’s “Scary” is about the scary feelings some have about falling in love, The Loveforce Collective’s “Trump’s Biggest Fear” illustrates how even The President can have fears and Billy Ray Charles’ release, about a subtle fear that comes with any romantic relationship.”
Billy Ray Charle’s new single “I Don’t Wanna Be Like A Brother” will be released to Spotify, Pandora, Apple Music, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, Instagram, Facebook, Claro Musica, iHeart Radio, iTunes, Deezer, KK Box, Boomplay, Media Net, Touchtones, Soundtrack by Twitch, Snapchat, NetEase, Anghami, TikTok, Resso, Flo, Audio Mack, Kuack, Pretzel, Gio Saavan, Yandex and Pretzel.
For further information, contact Evan Lovefire at (661) 523-4954.
