Rooted in Rhythm
The Louisiana Music and Heritage Experience, the host of NOLA Funk Fest, has exciting news: it now has federal funding from the state of Louisiana to back the building of their new 120,000 square foot museum.
This, along with the $18 million in private funding, is enough for the LM&HE to move forward in the construction process.
This accomplishment is a long time coming. Although Louisiana is known as one of the musical hotspots of the United States, it lacked a cultural and historical site to commemorate it. This is all changing with the forthcoming museum, which is expected to bring in about 150 million in economic impact to New Orleans annually.
The museum is set to be home to a 40,000 square foot exhibit space, as well as a performance space, education areas, and a restaurant. In addition to preserving history, the museum is dedicated to serving future generations of musicians, offering facilities and instruction to young, aspiring artists.
Giving Back to the City
The museum is projected to create many full-time jobs for local musicians, with annual salaries averaging at 64k.
Similar to the National World War II Museum, which has generated roughly 2.4 billion in economic impact since its opening in 2000, the Louisiana Music and Heritage museum is expected to increase tourism to New Orleans, further bolstering the local economy.
The museum also hopes to be a valuable resource to local schools to visit and learn more about the state's musical past.
A Powerful Team
The museum's curator, Robert Santelli, has an impressive resume. A Grammy Award-winning music historian, author, and producer, Santelli previously served as a founding curator of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland and the executive director of the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles.
The project is also overseen by Terry Stewart, the CEO of LM&HE, who also served as former president and CEO of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
LM&HE's board of directors boasts several highly accomplished Louisianans, including "Soul Queen of New Orleans" Irma Thomas, drummer and composer Adonis Rose, Zydeco musician Sean Ardoin, Maroon 5 keyboardist P.J. Morton, trumpeter Gregory Davis, lead singer of the Lost Bayou Ramblers Louis Michot, rapper Percy Miller, Cajun musician Joel Savoy, and Executive Director of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra Anwar Nasir.
Location
The museum will be located in the Lower Garden District, on the corner of the Convention Center Boulevard and Henderson Street.
The 2025 Funk Fest, taking place October 17-19 at Spanish Plaza, will be extra celebratory in anticipation of this new resource that is bound to preserve Louisiana's long standing musical culture and history, as well as herald in future artists.
