MUSIC
ALL ALONE, ALTOGETHER Connecting to Music in an Era of Social Distancing WORDS BY M.K. KOSZYCKI There’s something to be said about the energy a live concert carries that no other form of live event can quite capture. The joy of being packed in with anywhere from dozens to thousands of other fans in anticipation of experiencing a favorite artist live, and the shared communal experience it creates, is one that’s particularly missed in our current era of social distancing and nonessential business closures. At the time of writing this, it’s been well over a month since said shutdown, enacted in the hopes of quelling Covid-19’s looming threat. While it’s obvious why this had to happen, many people reel in its wake, for personal and professional reasons. And while the nation eagerly awaits safely attending shows again, we spoke to three DMV residents who are all lifelong devotees of music and involved in the local scene about how they’re coping, what their relationship with music looks like right now and recommendations to tide us over until we’re all packed in at a show together again.
Jake Ramirez Freelance Music Writer
This D.C.-based freelance writer was set to cover SXSW this spring, before it became one of the first festival casualties of Covid-19. “I was set to travel to my hometown of Austin to cover SXSW in March,” Ramirez says. “I had been going to a lot of shows to ease back into writing and drinking and being awake past 11 p.m. As it turns out, I was training for quarantine – not SXSW.” All this prep did still come in handy, as Ramirez kept writing anyway. A contributor to the late, great DC Music Download and more recently Capitol Sound DC and Blisspop, he also runs a music blog and listening club podcast – both named “Critically Acclaimed.” “The weight of being labeled a podcaster is a heavy cross to bear, so it’s more of an on-again off-again thing,” he notes. Still, you can surf through archives of guests deep diving into their favorite albums alongside Ramirez for thoughtful analysis via his podcast website. [Full disclosure: I was a guest on an episode about Beach House’s Bloom late last year]. And in a period of self-isolation, Ramirez now puts together journals centering on what he’s watching and listening to right now. “I’m a critic by nature, but I’ve needed to turn off that analytical part of my brain for music,” he says. “I think I’m interacting with music like many people are right now. I’m listening to feel like my stress or restlessness is shared and understood. I’m not as interested in listening to music as some 28 | MAY 2020
intellectual thing at the moment.” Ramirez hopes that outside of selfreflection and music serving as an even bigger connector right now, that there is also a change in the way we talk about music and its monetization, as the lid has been blown off the problems of financial insecurity that many creatives are currently facing. “This is an important moment for music journalism to challenge the status quo. If our society gains so much value from artists, why do we let artists struggle to make a living? Wealth is highly concentrated with a few, and everyone else is struggling. I hope we see more journalism that connects those dots to show that when we let artists struggle, we’re only stealing from ourselves. That’s what I want to read, at least.” While the industry and those who write about it grapple with the fallout of social distancing on such a social medium, Ramirez admires the way artists have adapted and fans have shown up in digital scores to support them. “It’s really cool to see musicians recalibrate so nimbly. The idea of the live streamed concert became a household concept overnight. Instagram battles between hip-hop producers and musicians are must-see events. Fiona Apple. There’s a lot to celebrate.” Read Ramirez’s quarantine journals and listened to “Critically Acclaimed” on www.acclaimedpod.com. Photo courtesy of Jake Ramirez.
