SUPERSTAR TAYLOR SWIFT PLEDGES $4 MILLION TO FUND NEW
EDUCATION CENTER AT THE COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME® AND MUSEUM
New Center Will Include Classroom Spaces and a Children’s Gallery; It Will Be the Home
of the Museum’s Flagship Education Program, Words & Music, and Much More
NASHVILLE, Tenn., May 17, 2012 – Six-time Grammy Award winner Taylor
Swift has pledged $4 million to fund a new education center at the
Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum. The more than
7,500-square foot space, which will encompass parts of two floors and
feature three classrooms and a state-of-the-art children’s exhibit
gallery, is scheduled to open in early 2014.
Swift’s gift is the largest capital contribution by an individual
artist in the museum’s 45-year history, prompting the museum to name the
new space the Taylor Swift Education Center. The gift was made in conjunction with Working on a Building: Country Music Lives Here, the capital campaign that will finance the Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum’s expansion from 140,000 square feet to more than 350,000 square feet.
Swift has for years been a generous supporter of the museum, performing for the institution’s 2007 All for the Hall New York, 2009 We’re All for the Hall and 2010 All for the Hall Los Angeles
benefits. She has also loaned the museum dresses, stage costumes and
instruments for display; a free-standing, Taylor Swift multimedia
exhibit has been one of the museum’s most popular attractions since its
debut in May, 2010.
“Taylor Swift represents country music’s best traditions,” said Museum
Director Kyle Young. “She is a gifted singer-songwriter whose deeply
personal songs resonate with music fans around the world, and a dynamic
live performer whose open heart and engaging personality allow her to
make even the largest stadium shows an intimate experience. Her many
accomplishments – including being the youngest artist to single-handedly
write and sing a #1 country song – have made music history, and she has
been an ambassador for country music, raising awareness of our genre
literally around the globe.
“Taylor is an artist who has always been ahead of the curve,” Young
continued. “By stepping forward to fund our education center, she has
once again demonstrated that she has an eye on our industry’s future.
We are deeply indebted to Taylor for this wonderful gift, which will
help us continue to fulfill our educational mission and serve our
worldwide audience. It is not an overstatement to say that the Taylor
Swift Education Center will have a profound impact on our museum, our
new campus, our city and even our country. It will truly be the heart
of our living museum, educating and inspiring young people and families,
teaching them country music history and helping them to make meaningful
connections between the music and their own lives.”
The new education center will increase the museum’s educational
capacity up to seven-fold and will include three classrooms and a
children’s exhibition gallery. On the third floor, two traditional
classrooms and one “wet” classroom space will be used by museum
educators for current educational offerings, including the museum’s
flagship program, Words & Music; distance learning programs; and
family programs such as the Musical Petting Zoo. The “wet classroom”
will feature a utility floor, lending itself to the museum’s Make
Letterpress Art with Hatch Show Print family program and similar (messy)
offerings. The additional classroom spaces will also allow the museum
to develop new educational activities, potentially including
after-school programs, teen-centric programs, multi-week workshops for
youths, adults and senior citizens, and more. Additionally, the
classroom spaces will be adjacent to a visible storage area and design
studio; this space will feature thematic displays of artifacts, e.g.
dozens of banjos, and allow students to observe museum curators at
work. The children’s gallery, situated on the second floor, will be a
dedicated exhibit space for young patrons and will be filled with
hands-on, interactive exhibits.
With Country Music Hall of Fame member Kris Kristofferson and Ford
Motor Company Executive Chairman Bill Ford as honorary co-chairs, the
museum launched its $75 million Working on a Building campaign
in July 2011 with $56.8 million in cash and pledges already secured.
Designed by Tuck-Hinton Architects, the expansion is expected to be
completed in early 2014.
Accredited by the American Association of Museums, the Country Music
Hall of Fame and Museum is operated by the Country Music Foundation, a
not-for-profit 501 (c)(3) educational organization chartered by the
state of Tennessee in 1964. The museum’s mission is the preservation of
the history country and related vernacular music rooted in southern
culture. With the same educational mission, the foundation also
operates CMF Records, the museum’s Frist Library and Archive, CMF Press,
Historic RCA Studio B and Hatch Show Print®.
More information about the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum is available at www.countrymusichalloffame.org or by calling (615) 416-2001.