Mississippi Blues Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
205453462
IRS 990-EZ coverage
2021–2025
Forms available
Form 990-EZ 2025, Form 990-N 2011
Location
Jackson, MS, USA
Phone
6019539240
Rating
69
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Music

Reported finances

Revenue
$39,410
Expenses
$18,694
Assets
$197,701
Liabilities
$0

Source: IRS Form 990-EZ. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

People named in this filing

  • Aven Whittington (Director)
  • John Sistrunk (Director and Vice Chairman)
  • Wilma Wilbanks (Director)

Selected names, not a complete roster or a statement of current roles. Open leadership details for the complete filed list.

Source: IRS Form 990-EZ. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

The Mississippi Blues Foundation provides benevolent assistance to individuals. Many of Mississippi's blues musicians live in extreme poverty and are in need of food, shelter, medical, dental and other assistance. The Mississippi Blues Foundation provides this needed assistance and promotes, aids and advances the understanding and appreciation of the musical culture of Mississippi.

What it reported doing in 2025

Total grants in the amount of $7,600 for payment of medical services or for general benevolent assistance were made for the benefit of 7 individuals unrelated to the grantor.

Operating model

Revenue model
Other-operating. 66% of the money available for current operations came from other operating revenue.
Distribution model
Grant intermediary. The nonprofit sent 100% of its reported program spending out as grants.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of total spending goes to programs. A relatively small share of available resources goes toward mission work and revenue has declined or grown slowly.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 60
  • Transparency & Controls: 82
  • Sustainability: 84
  • Growth: 40

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 42.4%; rating input score 42
  • Program expense ratio: 89.3%; rating input score 89

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 51st percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Limited

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 52.6%; rating input score 91; 91st percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 10.58; rating input score 92; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 0%; rating input score 56; 56th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 7.2% per year; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: -0.5% per year; rating input score 0; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: -0.4% per year; rating input score 0; 36th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 42.4% of revenue deployed · 89.3% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: Filed governance answers
  • Accomplishments: 2 filed program accomplishments · $17K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $0 · 12 people listed
  • Consistency: 9 of 9 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 2 filed schedules
  • Filing history: 5 filing years from 2021 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: Resolved incoming and outgoing counterparties from filed money flows.
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • Moderate — Financial Efficiency: Mission deployment rate scored 42/100.
  • High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
  • High — Growth: Asset growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 56/100.