OffBeat Needs Your Help!

OffBeat, Louisiana's independently owned-music and culture magazine (and my first employer in New Orleans), is in dire need of help. Their Frenchmen Street offices were hit hard by Katrina and now the magazine is offering lifetime subscriptions for those who can help them thru this tough time of need.

from publisher Jan Ramsey...


OffBeat was never a business that made much money; it existed from month to month, and we were always trying to keep our music and culture editorial alive via advertising.

So we don't know what will happen to the magazine at this point. Right now, just to cover taxes and to make sure all of our staff, writers and photographers have been paid for their services), we need $3,000.00. This doesn't cover what we will owe our printer, not nearly.

We are going to attempt to keep OffBeat and the Louisiana Music Directory alive via the web for the time being. Our wonderful webhosters and webmaster have been very kind to us, but they can't support us forever.

So we're appealing to our readers for financial support.

We're looking for partners, investors, financial aid, volunteer writers, graphics and web people. We're hurtin', folks!

But only our livelihood--our business--is hurting. I feel guilty asking for anything, knowing how much heartache so many others are experiencing who lost love ones, their homes, their jobs--everything.

Please pray for all of us, and if you can see fit to help us out financially, please contact me or Joseph We will offer a LIFETIME subscription to anyone in the U.S. who donates $200 to OffBeat during this difficult time or $350 for anyone outside the U.S. who helps keep OffBeat afloat. You can also purchase copies of the September issue for $5 each. All of this will help us get back on our feet. Just email us at the contact emails below and let us know if you are interested.

To get in touch with us, contact jan_v_ramsey@hotmail.com or jl_irrera@hotmail.com. Sign up for updates from OffBeat at offbeat.com via OffBeat's newsletter, the "Weekly Beat.