Hello Everyone,

I feel very fortunate to have been invited to showcase and participate in New Orleans, Louisiana USA - Folk Alliance International January 21-26, 2020. 

To be honest this was not something that I had planned to do but when I showcased at the Mundial Montreal World Music Conference in Montreal this past November, my performance left such an incredible impact that I was encouraged to apply for a private showcase spot at the International Indigenous Music Summit in New Orleans. 

I was told that my music and messages needed to be heard at the International Folk Alliance which is the world's largest gathering of the folk music industry and community. I quickly applied and was accepted. My performance spot is on January 25 @ 10:35 pm. I will be accompanied on piano and background vocals by my musical companion Brigitte Demeter from Enderby, BC. 

This private showcase opportunity holds the potential of advancing my career to an international level. 

So many of you reading this right now have been witness to my journey, my successes and my growth as an emerging artist into a professional.  Many of you have supported me over the years by purchasing my albums or by purchasing tickets to my shows or just by your beautiful words and compliments. I'm eternally grateful for each an every one of you. It truly is an honour to have such amazing people in my circle cheering me on. 

I have spent a lot of my own money over the past 5 years to growing my career which has resulted in a lot of personal debt. That comes with the territory. It's an investment and I'm okay with that. I've been extremely fortunate to receive sponsorships from angel investors and have been successful over the years with a number of government grants.

This past week I received a message that the government grant was deemed ineligible due to a guideline error which is really unfortunate and has left me in a bind. 

There's about 2 weeks left before departure and it was suggested to me by many fb friends to ask for support through this GoFundMe campaign. 

Your financial support will help pay for airfare, accommodations, ground transportation, baggage fees, instrument rentals, conference fees and meal per diems for myself and Brigitte. 

I am very happy that I still have the $1500 scholarship that I received from my recent Stingray Rising Star Award at the Mundial Montreal World Music Conference in November 2019. That has been earmarked for this New Orleans trip and will cover some of the expenses. 

I know that times are hard and I'm having a hard time asking for help to be honest but I'm going out on a limb here and hoping that we can raise enough money for my next musical adventure. I'm pretty sure that I was invited for a reason and I'm excited to see where this next journey takes me. 

This is an amazing opportunity that will make a huge difference in my life. As always, I will continue to share photos and videos with you on social media and will do my very best to make you all proud. 

I promise to donate any remaining funds raised through this campaign to the Australia Wildfire Relief.  My heart and prayers are with the people and the animals of Australia. 

With deep gratitude and humility. I thank you <3

snachalhuya - you have treated me well. 

With love and respect, 
Kym

You can learn more about me here https://www.kymgouchie.com/
You can listen to my music here https://soundcloud.com/kymgouchie