Concept: Donate A   Song

Concept Project “Donate A  Song” - DOS

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1.  Introduction:

The idea is that composers, singer-songwriters, and musicians can "donate" one of their songs to another musician. The goal is to empower young and upcoming artists to explore new markets, and styles and get greater exposure. 

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Currently, there is a pilot going on between Switzerland and Kenya. The goal is to find  5-15 Swiss artists who donate a song to a young and/or upcoming musician. We are currently looking for Kenyan musicians who are interested in collaboration. If the project becomes a success, an album could be recorded as a second step. 

 

The motivations behind the project.

• to foster intercultural exchange between Kenya and Switzerland

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https://www.afrodeitystudios.com/donateasong

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2.   Idea and Goals:

The idea is to rent a house on the outskirts of Nairobi with access to nature with enough space to house 2 hosts, 3 permanent guests and 3 additional “on-demand” guests who can spend time at the house for a certain number of hours per day.

 

Goals:

Primary Goal

• To achieve increased safety for vulnerable and marginalized people in Kenyan society with a focus on artists and creatives by providing a safe space, access to food, medical (including mental/emotional) support, and start-up support for artistic expression and commercialization.

Side Goals:

• Documentation: To document the effectiveness of the organization by psychological questionnaires/interviews to track the organization’s key performance indicators:

  • Number of human-days spent in a location perceived as safe

  • Number of human-days spent in a location perceived as creativity promoting

  • Number of human-days spent in a location perceived as empowering

• Advocacy: Any of the art created by guests can be utilized as means to promote inclusion and social connection, e.g., by organizing free exhibitions, movie nights, podium discussions, book readings, community activities etc. The goal is to produce narratives tell a story where faith in the positivity of the human being, access to the natural and spiritual world and the inter-human connection are fostered. Key performance indicators in this can be:

  • Number of positive feedbacks by the community because of community engagements.

  • Number of engagements in the environment including recycling, planting, nature walks and hikes (such activities would be performed in cooperation with local organizations)

• Community Safety Initiatives: The goal is to create safe and stabilized living situations for vulnerable creative members within communities. By providing access to resources required in the creative process and by supporting the process through conversation-based counseling. Personal growth, resilience building, self-acceptable, and self-expression are intermediate goals on the way to achieve self-determination, self-sustainability, and independence. Key Performance Indicators used to measure success are

  • Number of success stories such as sold art, exhibitions, film release, publications, etc.

  • Number of artists being able to generate a basic income through their artistic expression

  • Number of guests leaving the house due to self-sustainability

 

3.  Project Description

 

Support provided:

• Safe Shelter for 3 permanent guests (beds and living space). This also includes the certitude that no vulnerable person can be threatened or attacked by outsiders. This will be assured by:

  • Location of housing in a safe environment

  • Protection of premises according to the local standard necessary

  • Non-disclosure of any reason for the selection of the vulnerable and marginalized person.

  • Avoidance of unnecessary attraction by surrounding (low-key behavior) while assuring presence and networking in the community to avoid rumors. The impact of visits by foreigners needs to be assessed and possibly limited to assure this goal reached. Ideally, the location of the house is chosen in an area where visits and traveling from/to the house do not pose any risk to guests, hosts, friends, and relatives. This goal needs to be balanced with the available budget and access of on-demand guests to the house.

• Full-coverage health insurance for permanent guests and hosts. This can possibly be expanded to on-demand guests, depending on necessity and budget situation.

• Daily structure (routine): Household activities including cleaning, groceries, other errands, and cooking are shared between all members of the house. Tasks are shared according to the guests’ capabilities and skills always aiming for a fair share of tasks considered less attractive among all members of the house.

• Money to buy food and other personal and household products to a fixed budget per guest. The common budget and expenses are co-managed by all guests and supervised by the 2 hosts. The idea is to give guests as much freedom as possible taking into account the benefits of sharing resources and the necessity for limitations by rules for guests (e.g. concerning consumption of alcohol and other substances).

• Space for creative expression for 6 guests (3 permanent, 3 on demand)

  • Traditional arts (such as beading, pottery, fabrics, etc.)

  • Painting, drawing, etc.

  • Music & Dance

  • Photography & Video

  • Digital Art

  • Writing & (traditional) Storytelling

• Conversation-based voluntary counseling of 2 hours per week for all guests using the person-centered approach (PCA, according to Carl Rogers). This can be used for artistic coaching and/or personal development.

• Daily casual conversations with 2 hosts as per the guests’ needs. This can be used to address personal needs and urgent matters.

• Daily formal group morning, mid-day, and evening briefing. This can be used to discuss interpersonal topics, such as the need for support, ideas for improvement, and best practice-sharing. House rules are constantly reviewed and adapted to the guests’ needs. The organization’s values and practices are reviewed and challenged in conflict situations.

• Workshops for Art-Therapy and similar topics.

• Access to training (online and classroom) to enhance skills required for an economically sustainable artist, including software, creative techniques, marketing, and accounting.

• Support for artistic social media presence

• Provision of workstations, equipment, and consumables for the expressions of the chosen form of art as per a defined budget per guest:

  • Consumables: Brushes, paint, canvas, beads, etc.

  • 2 Laptop stations (second had or low budget) for writing tasks or similar

  • 2 computer stations with the power to render 3D-Art and Videos

  • 1 Darkroom to develop photographs or create 3D-Art.

  • Equipment to record voice and instruments

  • Equipment to play music to allow dancing, DJing, and sound engineering (loudness to be determined depending on surrounding)

  • Required electricity and high-speed internet connection

  • Required digital storage space (Photos, Videos, Digital Art).

 

4. Details:

Location: Eastern Africa – Kenya (exact location to be determined)

Geographic focus: Eastern Africa – Kenya (possibly wider reach due to digital & social media)

Planned Start and end date: April 1, 2023 – April 1, 2024

Budget: On request