One way to help local musicians? Pay them to tour.

In July, Marcella Simien and her husband packed up their SUV and headed to New Orleans for a gig at Tipitina’s, a bucket-list performance for the Lafayette native.

The show was a homecoming of sorts for Marcella, the daughter of zydeco legend Terrance Simien. But for her return, she was repping Memphis, as a paid brand ambassador for the birthplace of rock and roll.

A Memphis-based nonprofit, Music Export Memphis, kicked in $750 to help her gas up the truck and hit five shows outside of the city…

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