Renee Benson Email and Phone Number

Renee Benson, Director of Access, Belonging and Strategic Partnerships, Young Audiences of Louisiana is a New Orleans-based singer, songwriter, poet and composer. Renee has performed internationally and has graced the stages of some of Europe’s and the world’s biggest festivals: Glastonbury Music Festival, Popfest, Eurovision and Life Ball. She has spent the last two years in residence at the Contemporary Arts Center in New Orleans and has recently released her album “LeeLah” to international acclaim with the Vogelberg Jazz Orchestra and composer Vincent Pongracz. In her role as the Director of Access, Belonging and Strategic Partnerships, she designs and executes comprehensive plans for growth and sustainability for YALA's 50 + community and national partners. Ms. Benson is a Nationally Credentialed Teaching Artist, having over 10 + years in the classroom as an ELA teacher and teaching artist. In 2021, she was part of the National Arts Strategies Cohort in The Executive Arts Administration program through UPENN and has earned her BFA at New York University. She is a founding member of YALA’s Transformative Change Initiative (TCI), a program to increase arts and education employment trajectories for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color artists. Ms. Benson has worked as either faculty or guest presenter with the BANFF Centre of the Arts, Hamilton Education Program, The Kennedy Center VSA facilitating workshops for Trauma Informed Practices and has led DEIA sessions for the Mississippi Teaching Artist Collaborative.