The Golden Mic Artist Accelerator aims to grow and keep musical talent in Corpus Christi with a free recording and video production.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A new initiative in downtown Corpus Christi is aiming to help young musicians turn their passion into opportunity.

The Golden Mic Artist Accelerator Program, launched by local nonprofit Raps and Apps, is accepting applications for the next month from emerging artists across the Coastal Bend. The program will select 15 musicians to receive professional production support — free of charge.

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Raps and Apps Executive Director Jeremy Wells, who performs under the stage name Jeristotle, said the idea stems from his own struggles as a young artist more than a decade ago.

“We ended up getting a grant for $20,000 from the Coastal Bend Community Foundation, and that is going to help us bring 15 artists in an original professionally recorded song,” Wells said. “We’re going to do an artist interview and create a professional music video for them.”

Wells said that level of production can be life-changing for independent musicians.

“So this serves as a digital business card for these artists,” he said. “Because a lot of times, whenever you’re trying to get a gig, you have to send them something. You have to send them some material. So this will be like a very polished, high fidelity digital representation of that artist.”

Beyond helping artists book shows, Wells said the experience can reshape how musicians see themselves.

“Some of these artists have never heard themselves — what they sound like when they have a professionally produced recording,” he said. “They’re comparing themselves to these artists out here who have millions of dollars going behind their production. What we want to do is let them hear what they sound like when they have professionally produced recording, what they look like when they have professionally produced videos, and then use that to get them gigs out of town.”

The program is designed to remove one of the biggest barriers young musicians face: cost.

“Making original music is very expensive — that’s the hard part for musicians,” Wells said. “They get paid to play their gigs, but they have to pay rent as well. So it’s either sometimes, do I pay rent or do I pay for this music video?”

By covering production expenses, organizers hope to not only elevate individual artists, but also strengthen the region’s music scene and keep talent in the Coastal Bend.

Applications for the Golden Mic Artist Accelerator Program are available at rapsandapps.org.