Mr. Anonymous Philanthropic Society launches non-profit music label for local artists

The Mr. Anonymous Philanthropic Society, or “MAPS,” a local music non-profit founded by the owners of Shakedown Bar in Vail Village, has launched a new music label called Go MAPS Music.

Using an in-house recording studio, production equipment and expertise at the Shakedown Bar venue, the label will enable local artists to record their music and distribute it on popular music platforms, while also assisting with marketing and business strategy.

Scott Rednor, the owner of Shakedown Bar, said that the non-profit label gives artists a greater cut of the profits from their music, since no percentage goes to executives like it does at a for-profit label, and that the money that MAPS gets from the music is reinvested in the non-profit.

“What we’re doing is just dumping all the money back in to help that artist and other artists,” Rednor said. “The artist gets a bigger share of the pie of the profits from any successes they have, and that can then go back in to perpetuate other artists and just more music coming out.”

The label has released three songs so far, all from musicians who are part of the MAPS society of artists. Over 60 local artists are currently part of this group, and Rednor said that their doors are open to additional musicians who want to get involved and take advantage of the non-profits resources.

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“We are looking for other artists around the state, anyone that needs help that has some talents and is looking for a path to kind of get their music out there without getting taken advantage of,” Rednor said.

Supporting local artists

The Mr. Anonymous Philanthropic Society was born out of the pandemic, when Rednor and his team realized that local artists were going to need support to get through the year. They came up with Shakedown Sessions, an outdoor concert series sponsored by the Town of Vail that put on 72 concerts during the summer of 2020.

“It was just about being able to get money into their pockets during the pandemic, which the town was very helpful in getting this whole thing going and creating an amazing summer out of what could have been terrible — for what was terrible — for a lot of people,” Rednor said.

After the summer ended, Rednor said he was approached by a woman who had lost her father and brother that year, and she told him how much the music had been a source of strength and relief during an extremely difficult time in her life. Together, they came up with the idea for a non-profit that would continue to support local artists, calling it the Mr. Anonymous Philanthropic Society in memory of her father, who made anonymous donations throughout his life.

MAPS has raised nearly half a million dollars since its inception, and is supporting a number of programs for artists including live sessions, outdoor concert series and a music institute for young artists to learn the technical and business aspects of being a professional musician.

This summer, MAPS is holding the 2022 Vail Youth Showcase from Aug. 12-14, giving artists between 10 and 20 years old access to workshop sessions with professional musicians, live performances in the valley, and the grand prize of their own recording session at Go MAPS Studio.

“It’s trying to get these kids that are really interested in doing this for a living, getting them up to speed as quickly as possible,” Rednor said. “It’s training and playing and singing and performance ensemble playing, all of those aspects as well as the business side of things.”

Applications are open through July 15 at GoMAPSMusic.org.

New music every other Friday

The Go MAPS Music label will be releasing a new song every other Friday. Rednor and his band, Brothers Keeper, released “Gypsy King” on May 6, followed by local artist Kory Montgomery’s track “Name Song” on May 20.

“During the pandemic, we all had plenty of time to be writing, and so these ideas were building up, and when Scott presented the idea to the team and to me, it just kind of enthralled me to finish these songs,” Montgomery said. “It’s just such a great opportunity presented at such a down time.”

The label’s latest release came out this Friday, June 3, and is “We Didn’t Come This Far” by Brendan McKinney & the 99 Brown Dogs.

All of the songs can be listened to now at GoMAPSMusic.org/music-label, where new music will be regularly released. Songs produced by the Go MAPS Music label can also be found on Apple Music, Spotify, Pandora and YouTube Music.

For more information about the Mr. Anonymous Philanthropic Society or the Go MAPS Studio, visit GoMAPSMusic.org or contact info@gomapsmusic.org.