Grimalkin started out as a passion project of Nancy Grim Kells. As a former public school special education teacher of 14 years and vocational counselor, benefits specialist and disability advocate of 7 years, Kells’ experience in mentorship and social service positions paired with their love of music, art, and community evolved organically into what Grimalkin is today.

Beginnings 

Around 2015/2016 Kells organized some local benefit shows in Richmond, VA and released two compilations under the name Friends For Equality. In 2018, they teamed up with (Eli)zabeth Owens and started officially using the name Grimalkin Records as they embarked on their first physical release (Owens’ album Coming of Age) raising funds for the Virginia Anti-Violence Project. From 2018-2020, we continued to produce a few releases each year and host benefit shows for local organizations, but since Grim worked a demanding and time-consuming job as a vocational counselor, it was still just a side project. 

Pandemic

When the pandemic hit in March 2020, Grim lost their job of 7 years. With no work available in their field and no financial dependents, they pivoted to investing all of their time and energy into making Grimalkin what they had always dreamed it could be, thus turning an incredibly challenging situation into a positive opportunity to live by their values and support others (a value at the heart of everything Grimalkin does). Though financially taxing, we were able to keep the label running with a combination of Grim’s modest savings and personal music sales, royalties and show profits alongside monthly supporters and one-time donations. 

In 2021 and 2022 prior to becoming a nonprofit, we received the Trans Justice Funding Project grant, which helped us create a business plan and pay for our accounting costs in 2022. Since then, we have continued to grow our grassroots fundraising through donations and monthly supporters on Patreon and Bandcamp. We’ve gotten as far as we have from grassroots support and we want to recognize that and continually work to grow that support further. 

Nonprofit Status and Today

Since gaining nonprofit status in 2022, we have also gained financial/grant support from the Virginia Commission of the Arts and the Abbey Fund. We have partnerships with Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) libraries, and have become an official internship employer for students VCUarts Kinetic Imaging department. 

We also would not have been able to accomplish how far we have gotten without the assistance and support of Grim’s friend and business partner, (Eli)zabeth Owens. They assist us with maintaining our website and creating our logos. They also assist with editing and formatting our newsletters. When needed, Eli also offers support with daily logistical tasks, promotion and outreach, managing our interns, and organizing shows. Additionally, they create exclusive content for our supporters. Their collaborative efforts with Grim and faith and support of Grim’s vision for Grimalkin over the years has been integral in our ability to succeed and evolve over time.

Carla Bennett-Pompey of CJ Strategic Solutions has helped us tremendously with our transition to a nonprofit. She maintains  our accounting and advises and assists us with grant writing. She has been an important confidant and supporter of Grim and Grimalkin as we continue to evolve as an organization.

Additionally, we partner with local LGBTQ+ nonprofits in Richmond, such as the Virginia Anti-Violence Project, Nationz Foundation, and Health Brigade. We host benefit shows and other events to help them fundraise and bring awareness to their programs and services, and we refer artists and community members to them when they are in need of the services and support. Building a network with other nonprofits locally and beyond has always been a critical part of our mission and we are passionate about helping people in our community access resources and services beyond art and music.