Two equity-oriented nonprofits in Memphis received a donation from novelist and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott. Scott announced June 15 that she had donated $2.7 billion to 286 nonprofit organizations.

In Scott’s third round of spontaneous, no-strings-attached, major philanthropic gifts, Memphis Music Initiative received “a significant seven-figure” gift and Collage Dance Collective received $3 million.  

Both Memphis Music Initiative and Collage Dance Collective aim to uplift young artists by creating equitable opportunities for Black and brown youth in the arts. 

As the largest Black-owned dance studio in the South, Collage Dance Collective establishes itself as a fixture in Memphis’ arts scene with a mission to “increase access to outstanding ballet training, increase diversity on professional ballet stages and increase participation by people of color at ballet and other fine arts events.”