AUSTIN, Texas — Austin’s music community gathered Sunday at Antone’s to celebrate blues singer Lavelle White’s 97th birthday while raising funds for Housing Opportunities for Musicians and Entertainers (HOME), a nonprofit that provides housing assistance to aging local musicians.
The birthday celebration honored White’s contributions to Austin’s music scene and served as a fundraiser for HOME, a 501(c)(3) organization that helps musicians facing housing insecurity.
According to HOME, the organization assisted White during a period of housing instability, an experience that helped shape its mission to provide housing stability for aging Austin musicians.
Nancy Coplin, HOME’s president and White’s legal guardian, said rising living costs and fewer performance opportunities have left many longtime musicians struggling to remain in the city.
“Over the course of the years we’ve discovered that so many of Austin’s musicians, who’ve put Austin on the musical map, are now in trouble because of the cost of living and not enough gigs … and they are unable to live here,” Coplin said.
Coplin said HOME currently supports more than 50 Austin musicians.
Organizers said proceeds from Sunday’s event will help fund HOME’s housing assistance programs for aging musicians in Austin.
