Austin’s Audio
Ezine Fall 2022
Ezine Fall 2022
TABLE OF CONTENTS
What it Takes to Get to the Next Level by Arya Kumar pg 8
Austin Artist 101’s by Arya Kumar pg 12
Live Music in Austin by Riley McKinley pg 14
6 Tips for Getting Ready for a Live Music Festival by Riley McKinley pg 18
The Football Game Experience by Brody Ravnsborg pg 20
People’s Opinion towards Marching Band by Brody Ravnsborg pg 24
Making Music in 2022 by Esme Barker pg 26
The History of Austin’s Music Scene by Esme Barker pg 30
Inside the Austin Music Scene by Xavier Castellon pg 32
The Rise of Vinyl by Xavier Castellon pg 36
MEET THE EDITORS
R. M.
I’m Riley McKinley. I’m a freshman at LASA High School, and I enjoy playing baseball, reading, skating, and reading books. I use a lot of my free time painting, and writing as well. I am in a council outside of school that focuses on fixing global issues like climate change and air pollution in the city.
Im Brody Ravnsborg. I like playing games and hanging out with friends. I am in the LASA Band Program and enjoy being at LASA. I take Latin as my language. I have two dogs that I love and one brother.
B. R.
I am Xavier Castellon. I am a freshman at LASA High School. I enjoy my free time biking with friends and making films for fun. I am in the LASA orchestra and have been playing the violin since 5th grade. I am also a black belt in TaeKwon Do and have been doing it since 1st grade. I view myself as an adventurous person outside of school and participate in many scouting activities (camping, canoeing, hiking, backpacking, etc.).
X. C.
E. B.
I’m Esme Barker. I’m a freshman at LASA High School. I enjoy playing piano and guitar, and I play tennis. I have two dogs, named Trixie and Crypto, and a younger brother.
I’m Arya Kumar. A freshman at LASA High School, I enjoy creating digital music, skating, and playing various instruments. I spend the majority of my time on homework, but when I have free time I watch movies, draw, and go outside with friends. I have one dog as well as an older brother who is in college.
A. K.
HOW TO BE A SUCCEFUL AUSTIN ARTIST IN 2022
Step 1: The basics
In order to start off as an artist, you need to get proper equipment, promote your music correctly, and have a “infectious” energy when performing. After talking to a couple of people in the music field and getting their opinions on the previous topics, I created this story in order to help people understand what it takes to be a successful artist.
As you may already know, Austin is a hotspot for live music and is recognized as the live music capital of the world. In order to thrive in this environment, artists should have good performance energy as well as a good method in order to
promote their music.
One of the first things that people think of when they hear the word “musical artist” may be songs, people who play specific instruments, or vocalists of various genres. If you have previous experience with recording music, go to paragraph 6. If not, keep reading.
The first thing you need to do in order to record music is figure out what you want to record. This could be something like drums, another kind of instrument, or your voice.
In the case of people I interviewed to gain information about the recording process, one of them was someone who is now a vocalist but originally a poet. His name is Charles Stephens, professionally known as Chucky BLK.
Something very interesting about his music is that you can still hear the “roots” and twinge of a poetic element that is showcased and heard in his songs.
Another artist, Greg Clifford, plays and records his drums. He makes drum
“loops” which are then sampled (used) in various songs that other artists record on.
Both of these artists record with microphones and interfaces that are routed to their computers. Clifford uses software called “Ableton” which he uses to record and produce music digitally.
Because Clifford needs several microphones in order to record the various sounds of his drum set, he uses a Tascam 16x08 which has multiple xlr ports (an electrical connector primarily found on audio equipment).
In the case of Stephens, he uses a Focusrite scarlet which is a great interface for its price.
Step 2: Growing as an artist
Now that you have a basic understanding of what equipment some local Austin artists use and what you could possibly use, I’ll get into the next step: how to grow as an artist.
Stephens said that the most important thing, especially as an Austin artist, is “building your community”. This is important not only because you open the options and opportunities you may potentially get, but also because you can grow your connections.
A good quote that Mr. Stephens said was, “the tide raises all ships, one person’s win is everyone’s win”. In the quote he gave, the tide would be someone in the community who gained popularity as an artist, and the ships would be the members of that community.
This symbolizes that if one person is able to gain popularity or blow up in the industry, they can help others in their community raise up to their level. He emphasized that communities were
definitely something you should start building. Another takeaway from the interview with Stephens was how to perform well as a beginner.
into performing rather than thinking. Whenever I perform, I always think about turning that nervous energy into stage presence and confidence”.
He said that the best way to get over nerves while performing for the first time is by “trying breathing exercises and just going straight to develop an
He also mentioned that once you get a grasp on being able to do this, you will start “infectious energy” which will have people coming back to your shows and admiring the confidence that you have.
into performing rather than thinking. Whenever I perform, I always think about turning that nervous energy into stage presence and confidence”.
He also mentioned that once you get a grasp on being able to do this, you will start “infectious energy” which will have people coming back to your shows and admiring
Part 3: Promotion
In this day and age, performing isn’t the only thing you can do to “put yourself out there” in the Austin music scene.
Although being great at making music is a great skill, not only being good at it will get you to the next level. You also need to promote yourself, especially if you aren’t signed or are independent.
There are many ways to do this, and performing at venues is one, but after talking to music licensing manager
Natalie Phan, my eyes were opened to the other routes you could take. She says that the first thing you should do is “Take a couple of business, marketing,
and social media courses online, and then once they get to a certain level, invest in either a marketing or social media manager would be a good idea”.
She also says that the more you start to perform, whether that be at something like an open mic somewhere, or a concert venue, will have an effect on your local presence.
Regarding how to get to the next level and possibly get record deals from well known records, Phan says that record labels want to see things like “How many Spotify plays an artist can make independently and what makes them special.
“Labels will also see your ability to capture an audience with something like a video on a social media platform, and then exceed their expectations
when they check out your music”.
In the TikTok-oriented music industry world that we live in now, people are attracted more towards individual songs than the artist’s brand as a whole.
Pham also mentioned that “In order to thrive in this new wave, you have to go onto TikTok and grow your following”.
This will help get more ears on your music and help you get more plays which will pique the interest of record label managers.
This wraps up the basics of how to start off as an artist in Austin in 2022, and the process you should take in order to thrive in the new wave of artists. Through the previous information mentioned here, you should have a basic understanding of what you need to get started, how to start performing, and how to promote yourself as an artist.
Great! Do you want to record music or be a live musician.
AUSTIN ARTI
Yes Live Musician Record
Do you have any prior experience recording music?
Are you willing to spend on the software and hardware you need for a home studio?
Yes No Yes
Reading my feature story would be a good start for beginners and intermediate people as well. Researching on your own from their would be a good step after that.
Do you want cal artist?
Depending on the type of instrument you want to play, you might fit into different genres. Which genre do you prefer?
Do you record at home or at studio?
Studio
Although booking a studio session may be good for the first time, buying equipmet would be much better in the long run.
Country Hip-hop
Nice! Pick what would like to the “country”
START No Home
Great! What you would like to do in the “hip-hop” genre.
Artist Producer
Watching youtube tutorials as well as livestreams of other producers will help you quite a bit. All you should need (depending on what software you want) is a laptop and headphones or speakers.
A great place to start is reading my feature story to see what you need to start and how to prosper as an artist.
Nice! Entry-level models for acoustic guitars are around 100-200$. Learning guitar is somewhat challenging, but once you learn guitar, you can pick up multiple other string instruments quickly.
Harmonica
IST 101’S
to be a musiartist?
Neither
None of the ones provided Rock
Cool! Pick what you would like to play in the “rock” genre what you play in “country” genre.
No START Harmonica
This isn’t the right ASF for you
The kind of musician you want to be is not focused on Austin in specific, I reccomend checking out other resources if you would like to be something different.
Your selected genre is not one of the popular ones in Austin, but there is information regarding it online.
Lead Guitar Banjo
Cool choice! Most beginner level Banjo’s are around 250-300$. Banjo’s are also one of the easiest string instrument to learn!
Drums
BassGuitar
Interesting choice! Most pro chromatic harmon icas are actually only around 35-90$ and are not that hard to learn, they sound great for country!
Get a bass guitar if you don’t have one and start learning how to play it (joining a class is highly reccomended for bass as well as lead)
Get a guitar designed to be a lead if you don’t have one and start learning how to play it. Once you do, try and join a band or start peforming
Get a drum set (perferably) in person so you can try them out amd ask recocmendations from shop owners. Start learning and doing gigs once you get good enough
Live Music in
The Evolution and Future of “The The Live Music Capital of the World”
Just imagine…. You have your wristband ticket on, walking into the hot baking sun with the huge crowd. You hear music in the background, people posing for the cameras, and the most extravagant outfits you’ve ever seen. All of the things you were
expecting to see in a live music festival, especially one like Austin City Limits. You have all of the artists you want to see prepared, and now it’s time to get into action.
In the 70s, Willie Nelson opened the Armadillo World, and many
By Riley McKinleypeople believe that this is where Austin’s live music scene took “root”, and when its popularity began to rise. The appeal for the Armadillo World venue was the cheaper admissions and its location of where it was in Austin. As more people went and more people had good things to say, the popularity grew in the media, and it was even mentioned in Time Magazine in September of 1974. And from this point forward, Austin’s live music reputation grew and expanded.
The small music venue plays a huge role in the uprising of artists and Austin’s live
entrance to austin city limits music festival
music scene evolution as a whole. Just like how Armadillo World helped pave the way to Austin’s success, the Saxon Pub is doing the same with upcoming artists, with the help of its owner and founder, Joe Ables. “We’re really well established, to begin with so many years
and very fortunate we have a good reputation of starting young songwriters, giving them giving everybody the first shot maybe and so that’s what we’re gonna, we’re gonna continue to do that.”, said Joe when asked on how the Saxon Pub helps boost aspiring artists into business.
When it comes to the COVID-19 virus, it doesn’t matter who, where or what you are, the effects are going to hit hard, and it’s no different with live music across the world. They got hit the hardest when it comes to the “live”
sign infront of the saxon pub in 2014 armadillo world headquarters in 1980
music industry, because the whole business is to fit as many people in one venue to enjoy the music as genuine as it can get, but when it comes to COVID-19, that’s simply not possible. Most venues had to ask themselves, “How do you run a live music venue when you can’t have a live audience?”
Short answer: You can’t. But that didn’t stop the venues from bouncing back from the years of solitude and isolation and keeping Austin’s reputation up to par and doing what they do best: being the home to the best live music in the world. Even though it’s 2022 and going to live concerts and venues is possible, the virus left a mark on everyone, making people hesitant to buy tickets to shows. But the reality is, the music venues rely
on their audience, and their audience relys on the music. Jacqueline Avila said that, “Music is a really important thing in my life. It gives me the motivation to do things that I wouldn’t normally do without music, like taking walks, working out, and doing the dishes to give you a few examples”.
The return of live music in Austin is a breath of relif for a lot of it’s residents, taking in consideration that live music is one of Austin’s biggest industry ever, and we expect to see it become bigger with due time.
3 Tips for Getting Ready for a Live Music Festival
These are a few tips to keep in mind for when you are preparting to go to a live music festival.
By Riley McKinley
never set high expectations
whenever you set high expectations, you are more likely to be let down, or not have a good experience compared to when you set lower expectations. if you set lower expectations, your experience might be better or meet your expectations exactly.
pack smart
make sure that you don’t pack anything of high value, or high sentimental value because 9/10, it’s going to get: lost, broken, or stolen. pack a disposable camera, fake jewelry, and a cheaper bag. if you lose one of those burner items, you wouldn’t be as upset as you would be if you lost one of those items that are of high value to you.
plan ahead
you have to prepare for big events like this because of the amount of people, the amount of space, and the amount of activity happening around you. have a map of the venue and mark down all of the places and artists that you want to go to that day, and stick to your plan. if you aren’t prepared and don’t have a plan in place, you are going to waste a lot of time and not fulfill all of your goals for the day.
The Football Game Experience
Marching Band’s Effect on Football Games
By:Brody Ravnsborg
Imagine you’re sitting in the stands at a stadium, the lights shining down on you, people yelling, and music playing. Now imagine it without the music, and it seems off. Without the upbeat music playing for the audience and the football team, it feels less energetic. There could be music playing over the speakers, but that’s not the same as seeing a band’s powerful energy when they’re playing.
When you go to a football game, you get to experience many things such as joy, excitement, sadness, pride. The band is able to augment these emotions and even add more to the overall game. Some people have gone to the football games because of the irreplaceable energy that the band brings to the games. Without the band to play at the games, there wouldn’t be any school or fight songs for the audience to listen to. The game would be dull without some tunes to lighten the mood.
Playing music over the speakers is a viable option, but it wouldn’t have the
same effect. Having a live band there to play music is different than listening to a recording of a song. Mr. Patenaude, the Austin High Band Director, had said, “I think it’s just in human culture. Whenever you hear live music, it’s different from when you feel music over a loudspeaker. Compared to when you hear actual instruments live, and you feel the thump of the drums when they’re playing along, and playing cadences and people dancing, cheering and going crazy in the stands.”
The band plays at football games every Friday night, to represent their school and the band. Anita Latham, a parent of a LASA
trumpet player, comment ed on the marching band’s importance, “Marching band performs in the stands when the team scores. So their presence is very important to the football team. Just like spectators are important. You need your fans, you need a little cheering squad to help motivate our players to do their best.” The band plays to get better at their instruments but also to have fun. The students in the band have a great time at the football games. These students have to put in a copious amount of time and effort to perfect their halftime show performance.
Some students at LASA high school were given a
The band’s really leaning to the music. Photograph from Isha Shethsurvey about their opinion on marching bands and most of them said that they wanted a marching band at the football games. When the students were asked if marching bands had an effect on the football games, one student wrote, “I think the marching band has a profound effect because they bring life and excitement to football games, and they also add to the overall hype and pride that football games are known for. Everyone looks
forward to the band.”
“It’s all about finding yourself, pushing your limits to be a better person and a better musician.”
When the marching band plays on the field, they project their energy and feelings. They send everyone a message that says, “This is our show, our field, our time. Let’s show you our work.” When the band is performing
their show, they’re showing off the result of all their hard work. Hard work that takes time away from schoolwork, relaxation, and family. LASA’s band has a three week band camp before the start of school where they work all day. They spend the morning working on marching technique, while their afternoon is spent working on music. After every show, they look back on what they did well and what needs more work so they can make
The band doesn’t need to march to be on this field. Courtesy of Mandy Menzer
their next show even better.
Marching bands can bring people together regardless of their background.
“What I like specifically about marching band is, it’s one thing that everyone in the band program is a part of, and we can come together as one unit, and all work together as a common goal,” said Mr. Patenaude. The people in the marching band are very accepting of new members and make them feel like they belong.
LASA’s 2022-2023 marching band show was called “The Manhattan
Project”, a project in the 1940s that was focused on creating the atomic bomb. The show focuses its themes on building, creating, and then using the atomic bomb. Its music helps to build and enhance the theme, and it’ll grab your attention and keep it. The football team isn’t able to watch the performance, but they can hear it.
When the two football teams play against each other, the bands are taking turns playing tunes. Both bands cheer for their team and pay their respects when someone gets injured. Even right after
someone gets injured, the band can get you back into an excited mood.
Marching bands have something called “cadences” that they do in the stands. The band doesn’t play during the cadences, but the drumline does. While the drumline is playing the music during a cadence, the rest of the band is dancing along to it. When the audience sees that, they might feel like jumping in or laughing at how silly it can be. No matter what they think, they feel positively about it.
Drumline’s preparing to do one of their cadences. Photograph from Amy ConstantThe band always goes to the game looking the same, whether they are in their uniform or their “summer” uniform. Everyone is in the same uniform to show that even one person represents the whole band and what they do reflects the band. The uniform helps give the band a sense of flair.
All in all, the band contributes many things to a football game. They provide different kinds of music and excitement. They provide an enjoyable halftime show for the audience, and they look cool while they do it. The band makes everyone else at the stadium have a great time, and the audience wants to come back to see it again.
7.1% 92.9%
Fourteen people participated in the given survey. Out of those 14 people, 13 had said yes and 1 person had said no to the question “Does marching band have an effect on football games.” This pie chart to the left shows the percentages of the people who answered the question. The blue in the graph shows the people who said “Yes” while the red in the graph represents the people who said “No”. With most of the people agreeing that marching band has an effect on the football games, it’s reasonable to assume they all feel something when the band plays on the field.
By Brody RavnsborgPeoples Opinion towards Marching Band.
A survey was held to see what people thought about marching band and if it has an effect on football games. 92.9% of the fourteen people asked in the survey had said “Yes, Marching Band does have an effect on football games.” 7.1% of people had said “No, Marching Band does not have an effect on football games.” As you can see, the majority of people had said that marching band does provide an effect to the games.
When asked how marching band gave an effect, some of the answers given were “I think that they are fun, and they are the core of everything positive that people talk about when they talk about going to the LASA football games.” and “It does have an effect, because they boost morale within the team when they’re playing, and give them breaks for halftime, even if some of the football team have beef with some of the band members.”
The marching bands have multiple different musical parts to their show and each one is made to create and deliver a specific effect. Each piece makes you feel certain feelings like suspense or drama. When these people say that marching band has an effect on football games and along with all of their responses, then marching bands effect is all but positive.
Marching bands create an atmosphere in the stadium that lifts people up and makes them want to really cheer for their team. Both competing schools bring their band to play in the stands because they know that people really enjoy and want the band at all the games.
Marching Bands Effect on a Football Game!
A marching band has many qualities. When a band walks up into the stands before a game, you’re either thinking “I wonder how good they’ll sound tonight.” or “Let’s have a great time!”
As soon as the band starts to march around and play, the atmosphere completely changes due to them. You can feel the energy being produced from each and every instrument. You want to know what the band’s going to do next. You’re drawn into their show, their performance.
Certain formations in a band like this one above can create certain feelings like striking or surprising.
When the audience is watching the band marching for their schools football team, they might feel encouraged to cheer even more for their schools team.
There are multiple formations in every bands show, each show usually has around 4-5 “special” formations.
The reason marching band was created might be just to encourage everyone in the audience to get hyped and have a blast. The bands provide a kind of vibrance that previously was not found at the football games.
Making Music
By Esme BarkerA look into the
Ben Kweller fell in love with music at a young age, when his dad introduced him to the
Beatles. As soon as he got his hands on his own instrument, he knew that music was his calling. He started his first band as a preteen, and
would call up music venues in the Dallas area looking for gigs. Eventually, his band produced a CD of an album, and sent it to his dad’s
Music in 2022
the life of a modern day musician in Austin, Texas.
friend, guitar player Nils Lofgren. Then, like a scene from a movie, a producer saw the album lying on Nils’s coffee table. He listened to it, and
at the age of 15 Ben and his band signed a record deal with Mercury Records. Ben dropped out of highschool and got a GED so he could
go on tour and pursue music full time. Now, he’s made a name for himself in the music industry, and produced many successful albums.
But what is it really like for most rising musicians trying to make a name for themselves?
For years, Austin has been a hotspot for musicians. From its early beer hall days to its massive ACL concerts, the Live Music Capital of The World has always had a thriving music scene. It’s the place where legendary artists like Janis Joplin and Willie Nelson got their start, and there’s
always a new name popping up, but that’s only a select few. For everybody else, making it in any music scene, even Austin’s, is a constant uphill battle. Even with hundreds of live music venues and huge events like ACL and SXSW, there’s just not enough room for everybody. The once small city has been growing rapidly,
showing over a 100% increase in population in the last 20 years. With the influx of people, the city itself has been changing, and the music scene has grown with it. As people and trends shift, new problems arise for musicians.
“An important lesson I’ve learned,” says Ben Kweller, a successful musician from the area, “is that you always have to stay true to yourself as an artist, and you don’t want to compromise who you are as an artist because you’re the only one who lives with the art for the rest of your life.” A smaller local artist, Alesia Lani, shared similar sentiments. “Don’t try to please everyone in your hometown… they’ll be way more impressed when you’re not even trying to catch their attention.” Thanks to modern technology, musicians no longer only have their appeal within their own town to worry about. As soon as you post something online, you have the whole world’s eyes on you, yet somehow, it can still feel like nobody is watching you.
Though social media allows musicians to reach an audience without the help of a record deal or a magazine article, giving everybody this ability makes it much harder to stand out. “It’s like the attention spans are just diminishing,” said Alesia. “Everything’s so quick and
Mural in Austin. Photo by Dale Cruse, courtesy of Flickr.fast. Everything’s so hot and ready. Everybody’s posting stuff. Everybody has the opportunity, the space to do anything.” Growing a social media following is a whole new skill that rising artists are expected to master. It’s not just fans who look at your social media, but people who can get you a gig. Margaret Galton, a talent buyer for ACL, looks at metrics like TikTok views to determine if somebody is right for the festival.
In Austin, one of the best ways for an upcoming artist to reach people is through ACL. ACL is a yearly music festival held in Austin that attracts around 70,000 people per day. According to Margaret, “ It could be an opportunity to gain new fans, meet someone in the industry that might take their career to the next level, or even provide a chance for them to meet a fellow festival artist that inspires them. Truly the opportunities are limitless as long as the artists are willing to put themselves out there and make the connections.”
But it isn’t easy to make it onstage. In 2022, only 24 Austin-based artists earned a spot. According to her, the qualities that stand out the most in artists are a “passion for music, stage presence, dedication to their fans.” Numbers can be important too though. The best advice
she could give to an artist interested in playing at ACL is to provide the talent buyers with as much relevant information as possible. Not just links to music and live videos, but also information like ticket sales, artists you’ve opened with or performed
Sixth street in downtown Austin. Image courtesy of iStock.
with, and other festivals you might’ve played in.
Despite all of the struggles musicians in Austin face, the community and music scene is a blessing. “I can say that Austin specifically has always been an incredible hub for musicians, and there is a strong sense of community
here where artists want to help each other out, and everyone’s rooting for everyone because we all know the grind of it and how difficult it is to make it in music,” said Ben. Nothing helps keep people going quite like a supportive comunity of those
with similar experiences. Though the music industry can be tough, music brings people together. As trends and people change through the years, musicians in Austin will always have the support and sense of community that comes with living in the music capital of the world.
“You don’t want to compromise who you are as an artist because you’re the only one who lives with the art for the rest of your life.”
The History of Austin’s
A Timeline of Austin, From
Information provided by Scholz Garten, Amateur Traveler, Austin History Center, NPR, Threadgill’s, KUTX, TSHA, SXSW, and Visit Austin.
Austin’s Music Scene
From Scholz Garten to SXSW
AUSTIN MUSIC S C E N E
In the heart of Texas, the ‘Live Music Capital of the World’ produces hundreds of shows every single week of the year. Live acoustic guitars, glimmering stage lights, bass felt all throughout your body, thousands of musicians playing their passion to the public. These musicians draw the attention of millions at Austin’s annual festivals like Austin City Limits and SXSW. Kelly Barnes, the lead singer of the band ‘Darkbird’, is in a local band and has been in the music industry for many years. They’ve brought hundreds of performances and several studio projects to the scene throughout her career. Kelly takes us behind the scenes on the music industry. She along with thousands of other musicians live for what they do on a daily basis. They are the powerhouse of Austin’s musical scene. This is an inside look into the Austin music scene.
BEHIND THE SCENES OF AN INDIE AUSTIN BAND
By: Xavier Castellon
Kelly Barnes is the lead singer of the Austin-based band ‘Darkbird’. Her along with her husband Brian, the lead guitarist. They both fill up venues throughout the Austin- metropolitan area with their unique style of music. She moved from Los Angeles to Austin after the disbandment of her former band back in California. “I was looking to start a new band here. I had a band back there but things kind of fell apart. People change. Pe-
ple move on from certain lifestyles.” Kelly states. It’s fairly simple to start a band. You need at least two or more people and a passion for music. The hardest part of being in a band is keeping it all together. It takes a lot of dedication and cooperation to be able to be in this industry and be successful. Kelly took a new step in her life by completely changing her environment and ambitions, “I didn’t really know a lot of people here. I just kind of blindly moved here to start new beginnings.” She came here to make music since Austin is most famously known for it’s live music friendly environment. She
had met her husband and future bandmate on a Craigslist meetup. “I just went on Craigslist, and I had no expectation of finding anything cool at all… I found Brian, and he had some demos of some of his music. I checked it out and showed him some of my old stuff… Then, I went into the studio, and we started playing around with songs.” Kelly explains. The beginning of a band was about to be established. It took two people with a love for music, some guitars, and a singer for Darkbird to be born. “It all worked out, and ‘Darkbird’ has been a band since.”
Kelly’s passion for music started a long time ago. She had grown up in a music studio as her mom was music studio owner. Since she was stuck in a music studio day in and day out, she had learned to dance. In order to dance, you obviously need some music to dance to. She had to incorporate music into her life in order to execute her dancing skills. “I grew up in a dance studio that my mom owned, so my first experience with music was really as a dancer… I started having to put music into practice as a dancer at a very young age.” Kelly explains. Her passion in dance ultimately shifted towards music as she
grew older. “As a dancer, I was always auditioning from music videos and musicals… I was a singer at the same time while dancing due to auditioning for musicals.” She’s had a lot of musical influence in her childhood growing up. It only takes a spark for anything to turn into something much bigger. In this case, it was a girl introduced to dance and theater, and it all ending up in a
yourself. You need the perseverance to stay in this competitive industry while doing what you still love. It takes a lot of hardwork and determination to be in the music industry. If you don’t have one of those three traits, it will be hard time competing in the industry amongst your peers. “I would say be really honest with yourself about your ability. If you know that you’re good and have got
Artists who live in Austin are fortunate enough to live in a city full of musical opportunities. Austin is one of the most musically driven cities in the world. It’s annual festivals and daily concerts in hundreds of different venues are very beneficial to these musicians. The shows these artists perform at are extremely crucial to their image. This how most Austin artists gain
music career.
A lot of what it takes to become a musician has a lot to involve with creativity, criticism, and perseverance. You need the artistic creativity to captivate people to your unique sound and help distinguish yourself from your peers. You need the tough skin to take criticism from strangers you don’t know and most importantly,
what it takes, you just don’t give up. It’s a very, very, very tough business, and you can’t do it for just the business aspect.” Kelly explains. She’s one of the many artists in the Austin area that’s had to put their absolute most effort into their careers. It’s a very hard business, but in the end, “It’s one of the best thrills of your life.” Kelly very strongly believes.
their recognition through these crowded events. Kelly’s band, Darkbird, has been very present in the music scene throughout Austin,“I’ve performed a lot of shows. It’s in the hundred’s of the amount of nights I’ve spent performing.” Musicians are a business people. They are a brand. They promote their brand. Their brand has it’s own reputation. Repu-
Brian Barnes, the lead guitarist of the band ‘Darkbird’, performing live at the ‘2022 SXSW Showcase for Artists’. Photograph taken by Derek Jonestation is everything in the music industry. Their career is in the hands of public perception and media. Darkbird had the opportunity to perform at the Austin City Limits this year, “This is a big moment, but I’m going to treat this show like any other show.” It takes confidence to be able to pull of a performance in front of a large crowd, “Your mind can really screw you up if you let
nearly a decade ago. They have had a lot of experience with both up’s and down’s throughout their music career. A lot that goes into being a musician is being self aware and very open minded. Many new musicians struggle to find out the formula of keeping up with themselves and their music. It’s common to make mistakes while being a new musician, and it’s common to
way you’d imagine it if you put in all your effort. It can be very tough at. The music industry is very tough. But at the end of the day, it’s all worth it… You do it all because you love it.”
In the heart of Texas, musicians work day in and day out trying to complete their dreams. It takes determination and the qualities of a very hard worker to make
it… I don’t know what shows can make or break the band, but I try my best to keep my confidence for every show.”
Local musicians have to learn to adapt the confidence in their daily lives, or else they won’t ever make the scene here in Austin.
Darkbird has been in the music industry for awhile now. Their first song was released in 2015 which was
learn from them both correctly and incorrectly. “Don’t sweat the small stuff. If it’s a good song, it’s a good song. Don’t worry about everything all around it. It’s the big stuff that matters. The lyrics and the core of the song is all that matters. If those things are there, then you could see it through. You will make mistakes along the way and very questionable decisions, but it all ends up the
it into the music scene.
Darkbird continues to play at venues every week and work hard to get the recognition they deserve. Music is one of the only things that can bring everyone from different backgrounds together. We use music for many occasions and will continue to do so until the end of time.
Kelly Barnes, captivating the audience with the performance of their song, “Heartbeat”. Photographed by Derek Jones
