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Meet The Savviest, Shadiest Pundits In The City: RVA Dirt

Wyatt Gordon | February 1, 2019

Topics: Francesca Leigh-Davis, Jessee Perry, Melissa Vaughn, Municipal Mania, Richmond city council, RVA Dirt, WRIR

The combination of a failed run for school board, a casual post on the Nextdoor app, and an NAACP meeting may seem like the add up to an unlikely origin story for Richmond’s most talked about new radio show. However, taking the mundane machinations of city government and injecting them with personality and civic spirit could practically be the mission statement of RVA Dirt’s Municipal Mania.

Two years ago, Melissa Vaughn — the volunteer coordinator for WRIR 97.3 — posted on the Nextdoor app hoping to start a community conversation about the 2016 elections in the River City. Northside resident and, at that time, School Board hopeful Jessee Perry immediately responded. By the time they were engaged in a mutually passionate diatribe against political signs on abandoned houses, the two ladies knew they were onto something; if the lack of municipal engagement in Richmond could get them both so worked up, then there must be other Richmonders passionate about improving local politics.

That’s when Francesca Leigh-Davis, floral designer and Twitter neophyte, found Melissa and Jessee. Fran launched her Twitter presence shortly after the ascension of the Black Lives Matter movement into popular parlance, and began weighing in on Richmond’s long legacy of racial injustice. When the three finally met in person at an NAACP meeting on local government, the chemistry was irresistible, and RVA Dirt was born.

The ladies of RVA Dirt don’t see themselves as revolutionaries. “Most of the stuff we say on our show, Municipal Mania, is already said behind closed doors. It just never makes it to the public,” explains Perry.

“Our goal is to vocalize non-mainstream opinions to make space for other people to take new and interesting positions on local issues, because there’s not enough of that in Richmond right now,” elaborates Vaughn.

A lot of the “dirt” they dish out would be easily available on the website of any other American capital city. In fact, the members of RVA Dirt frequently find themselves inundated with private messages from people — even sometimes city officials themselves — in search of official documents and plans. Richmondgov.com’s many broken links are a perennial source of frustration; all three cackle as they recount the numerous pages on the city’s website which still have former Mayor Dwight Jones’ name on them.

“I would’ve expected elected officials to be a lot more scared to meet with us, because a misstep while talking with us could theoretically hurt them,” explains Vaughn. “But the attacks we get are actually from members of the community, mostly white men.”

The solidarity of RVA Dirt’s triumvirate serves as a model for other community members looking to overcome Richmond’s deepest social cleavage: race. “As a black woman I find my voice has to be magnified to be heard,” explains Leigh-Davis. “I need the allyship of Jessee and Melissa, because I’m only allowed to be angry when it’s funny. Many things come off differently from her as a white woman than from me as a black woman.”

The three ladies’ diverse perspectives and backgrounds not only allow them to cover the city’s shenanigans from a wide range of angles, they have arguably made RVA Dirt into the epicenter of local political discussion. Since beginning to live-tweet city council sessions, they’ve noticed attendance and community participation climbing. Even those unable to or uninterested in going to the council meeting in person are able to follow all the drama of the week’s session via the group’s lively twitter thread. This week, they covered drier policy changes like the new scooter ordinance, the long-awaited approval of the Brook Road bike lane, and the expansion of VCU Police’s jurisdiction with as much gusto as the controversial comments by Councilwoman Trammel referencing “Hispanic-speaking” people and disparaging renters.

“We enjoy local politics — because it’s emotional for a lot of people, and they get turned off when we say something negative about people they’re supporting, but we just wanna talk about the facts,” explains Perry. Despite the criticism, “there’s a constant reaffirmation that this is needed in the city,” added Vaughn. “People are so starved for this information and don’t have time to pursue it themselves.”

Their dedication to encouraging civic activism and service as a new watchdog of local government earned them a spot last year on Style Weekly’s Top 40 Under 40 list of youthful Richmonders shaking up the city. In 2017, Melissa wrote on Jessee’s calendar under her own (38th) birthday: “just two years to make 40 under 40,” but when what had been nothing more than a long-running inside joke became reality, all three were taken by surprise.

The ladies of RVA Dirt hope to build off this momentum in 2019 and convert their brand into full-time paid positions. With Vaughn’s skills in administrative work and audio production, Perry’s expertise in messaging and communications, and Leigh-Davis’s experience in event planning, they hope to figure out a way to get paid to gather and share the critical civic information they currently do for free. In the meantime, those who would like to support their work are encouraged to contribute to the RVA Dirt Patreon, where different levels of support earn sponsors varying levels of access, ranging from blooper reels to extended original content and in-person, snack-fueled meet and greets.

For now the ladies of RVA Dirt are content with the positive impact their work is having on the city and the interesting opportunities it affords them.  “I love former councilman Chuck Richardson, and to have his number in my phone and him leaving me voicemails is just cool,” gushes Leigh-Davis. Perry’s favorite moment, when she coined Councilman Chris Hilbert’s nickname, “Chillbert,” after suggesting a “Netflix and Chillbert” campaign event, perfectly represents RVA Dirt’s goal: “We like to use humor to keep people engaged.”

You can learn more about your government through facts, interviews, analymaisis, and plenty of snark with the RVA Dirt girls on WRIR 97.3 every Wednesday from 11AM-12PM or check out past episodes on their SoundCloud.  You can also get tickets to join Francesca, Jessee & Melissa at WRIR’s 14th Anniversary Party on February 1st where they will be the emcees.

VA Shows You Must See This Week: January 30 – February 5

Marilyn Drew Necci | January 30, 2019

Topics: 30 Year Sick, Aesthetic Barrier, Alfred, Billy Neptune, black liquid, Boathouse Live, Boy Harsher, Brian Jones Trio, Capital Ale House Music Hall, Cold Choir, Colpa Mia, Doug Richards Orchestra, Fallout, Garden Grove Brewing, Gemini Love, Gothic Lizard, Illiterate Light, Joel Worford, JR Wolf, Khrundo, Loxias, Midlife Pilot, Minor Poet, Nightcrwlr, Piranha Rama, Rayland Baxter, Rebekah Rafferty and The Wakes, Renaissance Ballroom, Return To Sender, shows you must see, Sweet Potatoes Music, The Camel, The Canal Club, The Goodbye Forevers, The Heart Stompers, The Josephines, The Renaissance, The Vulgar Bulgars, Them Evils, Toast, Trapcry, Tyler Meacham, Unmaker, Vanilla Summit, WRIR, Zack Mexico

FEATURED SHOW
Friday, February 1, 7 PM
WRIR’s 14th Anniversary Party, feat. Unmaker, Black Liquid, Trapcry, Alfred, Minor Poet, Rebekah Rafferty and the Wakes, The Vulgar Bulgars, Sweet Potatoes Music, Jr Wolf, RVA Comedy showcase, and more @ The Renaissance Ballroom (107 W. Broad St) – $15 (order tickets HERE)
It’s kind of amazing to look up every February and realize that it’s been another year with the awesomeness of WRIR right here in our city. From one unicorn to another, we certainly must admit that the cards tend to be stacked against the kind of radio station WRIR is — a community-run, volunteer-operated radio station that manages, despite its low 42-watt broadcast power, to reach a wide range of local listeners and to connect strongly with the Richmond musical community. What’s more, it’s a great place to learn more about the issues of the day, from right here in Richmond to around the country and the world.

So yeah, it’s a little tiny miracle to see WRIR holding on for another year — 14 so far, and here’s to many more. It’s also a cause for celebration, and that’s what the station and its community will be doing when they gather once again at the Renaissance Ballroom this Friday night for the latest edition of a yearly party that never fails to deliver the goods. This year’s edition features all kinds of excellent music, covering the wide spectrum of local talent. Unmaker are at the top of the bill, and their dark, heavy, metallic postpunk is sure to bring down the house at the end of a long happy night — especially considering their always-active live performance style.

But that’s just the beginning, really. The music on offer runs the gamut from the cerebral hip hop of Alfred to the indie rock of Minor Poet and from the klezmer (jazz-influenced Eastern European/Jewish folk dance music) sounds of the Vulgar Bulgars to the melodic alt-rock of Rebekah Rafferty and the Wakes, this show has seriously got everything the curious music fan could desire. Plus, it brings the kind of adventurous programming you can expect from WRIR into real life before your eyes, as Black Liquid coordinates a hip hop showcase that’ll recreate the kind of improvised rhyming excellence that often graces his Saturday night radio shows, and Jameson Babbowski brings a talented slate of local comedians to his own non-musical showcase. And of course, all your favorite WRIR DJs will be in the house, spinning tunes and making friends. Best of all, your ticket price goes toward helping WRIR bring us another year of awesomeness. What could be more worthwhile than that?

Wednesday, January 30, 8:30 PM
Vanilla Summit, Khrundo, Return To Sender @ Vagabond – Free!
Now that we’re out here in the world moving on after the loss of Strange Matter, there’s definitely been some urgent searching (at least on my part) for another reliable local venue to fill in the mid-week holes in the Richmond live music schedule. What I’m fast learning is that on Wednesday nights, Vagabond is likely to deliver the goods. Their Jazz Wednesdays series is a great place to be pretty much every single week if you want to learn more about the community of excellent jazz musicians existing in Richmond. Their scene may not get as much attention as punk, metal, or hip hop, but that says nothing about what the local players have to offer — which, it turns out, is a lot.

Vanilla Summit are a five-piece jazz group who’ve been grabbing spots on live dates around town for a while now, and their 2017 Green Session EP shows exactly why — this dual-drumming quintet creates some excellent funky grooves while also bringing the introspective melodies we so often want from jazz. They may not be joined live by the ever-talented McKinley Dixon, who graces one of the tracks on their EP, but they will be performing along with a couple of intriguing ensembles, also hailing from the world of local jazz. Khrundo is a group led by guitarist Jake Adams, which is apparently going to feature nine members on this Wednesday night, all coming together to kick some ferocious grooves. Plus there’s Return To Sender, a bass-less trio led by Vanilla Summit sax player Nate Clark, to kick things off right. If you don’t know, you’re gonna learn.

Thursday, January 31, 8 PM
Zack Mexico, Piranha Rama, Billy Neptune @ Capital Ale House Music Hall – $8 in advance/$10 day of show (order tickets HERE)
Zack Mexico isn’t one guy, it’s a band — and a full one at that, featuring eight members, two of whom are drummers who each play full kits. And this group doesn’t hail from the country across our controversial Southern border; instead, they come to us from the much closer region of North Carolina’s Outer Banks, which must be a pretty wild place to be if you’re not a tourist or a vacationer. The music Zack Mexico makes is certainly wild, and hard to pin down as well; what sort of sound you get from them depends significantly on which track you listen to.

However, one thing can be determined for sure — there’s a psychedelic sensibility that underpins everything this band does, and an unorthodox approach to music that lands them pretty far outside of what we expect from “indie” in 2019, though it always seems to result in catchy tunes that get your feet tapping and put a smile on your face. In that way, they’re a perfect musical companion to one of the best new bands to come out of Richmond in the last year. I’m speaking here of Piranha Rama, of course, whose music can just as easily be said to be catchy unorthodox psychedelic genius — as you know, if you heard their excellent LP from last year. Openers Billy Neptune will get this show started right, and Piranha Rama and Zack Mexico will come together to take care of the rest. Get on board.

Friday, February 1, 7 PM
Midlife Pilot, Joel Worford, Colpa Mia, Tyler Meacham @ Garden Grove Brewing – Free!
Here in Richmond, the kids really are all right. This show is a good opportunity for all of you to find that out, assuming you haven’t already been paying attention to the many mini-waves of talented singer-songwriters bringing out excellent music around this wonderful city over the past couple years or so. Midlife Pilot are at the top of this particular list, and they’ve certainly shown sufficient merit to justify that position — this group, the brainchild of singer-guitarist Casey Graham, released an excellent EP of emotionally-oriented melodic alt-rock tunes late last fall.

While Midlife Pilot demonstrated an outstanding full-band sound on that EP, Ready To Be That Way, it’s hard to say exactly how it’ll translate live, since Graham himself played everything but drums on the record. Can we expect an Into It. Over It.-style solo performance? Or will there be a full band onstage? Either way, based on Graham’s track record, we’re sure to get some awesome songs out of it. Colpa Mia is more clearly a full-band effort, and recent single “Atlas” shows them dabbling in both the emotional melodies of the alt-rock world and dipping into synthesized postpunk/indie sounds. Live, their multi-layered sound is sure to captivate. More definitively solo singer-songwriters Joel Worford and Tyler Meacham will round out this excellent bill of up-and-comers, which you can partake of for no money down! How can you pass that up? Be there.

Saturday, February 2, 7 PM
Them Evils, Gemini Love, Loxias, The Goodbye Forevers @ The Canal Club – $10 in advance/$13 day of show (order tickets HERE)
I don’t know where we as a society stand on loud, noisy rock n’ roll in this day and age. It seems like if you check out festival lineups it’s the indie bands who get the most acclaim, and when the occasional band manages to rise above the fray and get a reputation for rocking hard, they draw more hate from the tastemakers than anything else. So are all y’all gonna think I’m a behind-the-times middle-aged lady for sending you to see Them Evils on a Saturday night?

You’ll be either frustrated or relieved to know that I really don’t care how you judge me on this one. I’m over here rockin’ out, blissfully ignorant of any judgment that might be coming my way. And you’ll be in much the same position if you make your way to the Canal Club Saturday night. Because while the hipsters may all be allergic to distorted guitars and hard-hitting good-time grooves these days, it’s always such a relief to cast off that albatross of manufactured coolness and let yourself enjoy something sincerely. Them Evils are primed to provide you with some sincere enjoyment, and in all seriousness, you cool kids who enjoyed Wolfmother and Red Fang at one time or another are gonna dig this just as much as your Greta Van Fleet-loving little brother will. Stop with the excuses and show up already.

Sunday, February 3, 8 PM
30 Year Sick, Cold Choir, Gothic Lizard @ Fallout – $5 in advance/$8 at the door (order tickets HERE)
30 Year Sick is a pretty evocative name for a band, even if any contemplation of the concept behind the name just makes you (or at least me) think, “There’s no way you’d stay sick for 30 years and not die.” I mean, unless we’re talking “siiiick!” in the modern-slang sense of the term, in which case we just end up down a rabbit hole of talking about which bands that have been around since the late 80s still legitimately rule (spoiler: not many, that’s for sure). But seriously, we’re not here to talk about that — we’re here to talk about the show that’s coming to Fallout, everyone’s favorite Shockoe Bottom fetish bar, on Sunday night.

30 Year Sick, the band, who hail from North Carolina, have a pounding synth-goth sound, which is definitely on the rockin’ end of things where that genre is concerned. Their 2018 EP, Postpunks, has an intriguing title that certainly invites rock-crit types like myself to use lazy genre terms, but I’m trying really hard not to take the bait. Instead, I’ll tell you that 30 Year Sick mingle a gloomy rumbling rhythm section with ominous guitar and synth melodies, all of which is topped by the true star of the show: Akmeraj Niroc’s incredibly powerful voice, which is strong enough to raise the tiny hairs on the back of your neck. And then the whole band will rock you out in a manner sure to thrill fans of Sisters of Mercy and Killing Joke alike. Don’t be afraid — explore the darker corners of Fallout for this one. It’ll do you no harm.

Monday, February 4, 7 PM
Boy Harsher, Nightcrwlr, Aesthetic Barrier @ The Camel – $13 in advance/$15 day of show (order tickets HERE)
It’s a good week for dark, gothic sounds. Spooky electronic duo Boy Harsher are releasing their latest LP, Careful, this Friday, and then on Monday, they’ll be here in town to play it live for us all. Careful was clearly born out of some pretty hard times, from loss of loved ones to difficulties in relationships, and singer Jae Matthews puts all of that into Boy Harsher’s music, combining as always with electronic musical genius Gus Muller to create an album’s worth of foreboding synthesized soundscapes.

Boy Harsher’s dark melodies and unnerving lyrical conceits have been compared (even by members of the group) to a David Lynch movie, and sonically, their work lands closest to a diabolical combination of Suicide and Yaz, with a strong dose of Nitzer Ebb-style severe European dance music. The kids in gleaming black Doc Martens will be stomping on the dance floor to this one, for sure; meanwhile, Matthews and Muller’s riveting presence is sure to keep you focused on the stage. Local electro-freaks Aesthetic Barrier will kick this all off, and we’ll get a bonus appearance from Nightcrwlr, yet another identity of the shapeshifting Kristina Esfandiari (King Woman/Miserable). It’s all going to be so amazing.

Tuesday, February 5, 9 PM
Brian Jones Trio, Doug Richards Orchestra @ The Camel – $10 in advance/$12 day of show (order tickets HERE)
RVA jazz really is a solid ticket for your midweek musical jones in 2019, and that’s probably why our week is bookended by shows that fall under that category. This one brings us the latest appearance of a Brian Jones-led ensemble here in Richmond, and as local jazz heads know, the presence of Brian Jones in any group is a sign of top quality musicianship. Of course, we’re not talking about the original Rolling Stones guitarist who died in the late 60s, we’re talking instead about the local drummer who has played with everyone from Agents Of Good Roots to Jandek to Randy Brecker.

The Jones trio on display this time will include fellow RVA jazz luminaries Daniel Clarke (piano) and Randall Pharr (bass), but one of Jones’s most frequent collaborators, saxophonist JC Kuhl, will also be on the bill — but performing with the other group. The Doug Richards Orchestra will contain around 18 different musicians on this Tuesday night, including local jazz luminaries like John D’Earth, Bryan Hooten, Stefan Demetriadis, and the aforementioned JC Kuhl, as well as all three members of the Brian Jones Trio. Doug Richards, who founded VCU’s Jazz Studies program in 1980 and recently retired after four decades at the university, has a robust pedigree of his own, and what he brings to this formidable ensemble is sure to be intriguing and delightful. Don’t miss a moment.

Bonus Hampton Roads Picks:

Friday, February 1, 7 PM
The Josephines, The Heart Stompers @ Toast – $10 (order tickets HERE)
If you like to rock but also identify strongly with the Southern sound with which all of us from this state are intimately familiar, the music of The Josephines is sure to call to you on a deep, primal level. This group — yet another in which a feminine name belies the all-masculine lineup — hails from Kentucky and will definitely remind you that that state, like Virginia, is very much a part of the South no matter what latitudinal parallel Bowling Green sits on. They’ve got loud rockers in their repertoire that are sure to have you stomping, raging, and headbanging, but they’ve also got a big dose of bluegrass in their sound, ensuring that you’ll never forget what state they hail from.

The Josephines’ 2017 EP Sober Up certainly lets you know the musical headspace where these guys are coming from. Likewise, Hampton Roads local country ensemble The Heart Stompers lets you know where they’re coming from right in their name. Formerly known as Gina Dalmas and the Cow-Tippin’ Playboys — certainly an evocative name in itself — this group taps into the outlaw country sound of the 70s and 80s with a modern punk edge and an amazing voice out front, courtesy of Gina Dalmas herself. If you can get down with some honky-tonk partytimes, Toast is the place to be for you on Friday night.

Tuesday, February 5, 8 PM
Rayland Baxter, Illiterate Light @ Boathouse Live – $15 in advance/$18 day of show (order tickets HERE)
You Tidewater residents are sure to have a fun Tuesday night at the Boathouse with Rayland Baxter. This alt-country singer-songwriter comes from a music family (his dad played on REM and Bob Dylan albums), and certainly has his feet planted in that tradition, as his more alt-country/folk-Americana tunes make clear. But on his latest album, Wide Awake, Baxter showed that he’s capable of the sort of widescreen pop that made the Beatles and the Byrds legendary figures that influenced a generation. Baxter taps into that psychedelic power-pop sound rooted in Americana dirt that is so au courant in 2019 United States of America, evoking the Beach Boys, the Grateful Dead, and other powerful musical touchstones with aplomb… and just a splash of post-Mac DeMarco slacker irony.

But we shouldn’t focus only on our headliner here — tourmates Illiterate Light hail from right here in VA, Harrisonburg to be exact, and have been making a powerful impact on the commonwealth’s music scene for a couple of years now. For a guitar-drum duo, they make strong, deep music, which connects power-pop, alternative rock, and the melody-uber-alles alt-country approach of My Morning Jacket or Band Of Horses. They show off all this and more on brand new EP Sweet Beast, which is an excellent calling-card to present to music fans of all stripes who find themselves wondering whether they should take the plunge on these local boys striving to make good. Message from us: dive in. You’ll be glad you did.

—-

Top Photo: Unmaker, by David Morton

Email me if you’ve got any tips for me about upcoming shows (that take place after the week this column covers -– this week’s column has obviously already been written): [email protected] [and yeah, there’s plenty more of my writing to read over at GayRVA — come say hey.]

Music Sponsored By Graduate Richmond

RVA Mag First Fridays Picks February 2018

Amy David | February 2, 2018

Topics: Artspace Richmond, Candela Books + Gallery, Endeavor RVA, RVA ARt, RVA First Fridays, Vagabond, WRIR

Richmond’s arts scene started 2018 off right with a wealth of new exhibits, emerging artists, and cool showcases in January, and RVA First Fridays Artwalk continues to keep it up this month with fresh and unique events for you to check out. Here are some of our top picks from the city’s February First Friday happenings:

Artspace
Megan Mattax’s “pər’peCHə, wāt’

Taking discarded books and dictionaries and then deconstructing them, soaking and burning them, and following that up by encasing them in an amber-like epoxy-resin, Richmond artist Megan Mattax aims to repurpose knowledge in a new medium in her new exhibit at Artspace,  “pər’peCHə, wāt. Over 200 books and two dictionaries are used in her mixed-media exhibit, and Mattax said preserving and giving new life to an often forgotten medium in our ever-changing digital world is something that she strived to do with her latest work.

“It’s the idea of preserving something of value to me, of value to society in general, but preserving in a way that is no longer functional,” she told RVA Mag in a recent interview. Her exhibit will run until Feb. 18. Artspace also several other artists displaying their artwork for First Fridays which you can check out here.

Gallery Edit
Hidden

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Five artists have come together to showcase work at Gallery Edit for an exhibit called “Hidden,” where they will explore formation and identity. The artists collaborating in the show, which opens today, are Rachel Land, Skye Young, Farley Sanderford, Jennifer Chetelat, and Katherine Pumphrey, artist-in-residence at Gallery Edit. 8 E. Broad St.

Candela Books & Gallery
 Science As Muse

You still have until Feb. 17 to catch Candela Books & Gallery’s “Science As Muse” exhibit. Eight Richmond artists are featured in this expansive and amazing photography exhibit who have incorporated an unlikely theme in today’s art world into their work.

Walter Chappell, Caleb Charland, Rose-Lynn Fisher, Pam Fox, Daniel Kariko, Michael Rauner, Robert Shults, and Susan Worsham are featured in the show with a total of 45 pieces of work that showcase how each of them interprets science and use it as inspiration in their artwork. You can check out our in-depth interviews with the curator and two of the featured artists, Fox and Worsham, here. 214 W. Broad St.

Gallery5
“We Are Here/Here We Are (In Space)”

Sculpture, photography, mixed media collages, and more will be on display at a new exhibit centering around the theme of space at Gallery5 tonight. Jeremiah Shriver, Brandon Hurtado, Kevin Johnson, along with other artists present their work in “We Are Here/ Here We Are (In Space)” which explores the meaning of the word in both a physical and metaphorical way. Whether its outer space, the space between musical notes, or the space between birth and death, all are elements that Gallery5 featured artists will present and examine in their works in one way or another. In addition to the exhibit, the art gallery is throwing down with live music by RAIC, Ceremonial Scissors
Book of Wyrms, Harry Partch Appreciation Society, and Thing2. Alexa Buchin will also a have a table of her prints, drawings, and paintings. 7 PM- 12 AM. Free. The exhibit will run through the end of February.

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Gallery5 Endeavor RVA
Ltd.-A Print-Based Exhibition

It’s been a bit since we’ve seen something from the gallery, but Endeavor RVA is back in the First Fridays action tonight with a new exhibit, Ltd., with work from 16 artists and music from four musicians. From lazer cutting to inkjet to screen printing and stencils, each piece has gone through some sort of physical crafting process. Endeavor RVA artists Wingchow and Ian Hess will be showing work, definitely check out their Instagrams if you haven’t, the two of them have some very different and captivating work.

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Along with them, you have the awesome Chase Beasley of Crud City. RVA Mag interviewed the slap tag or “sticker bombing” artist back in 2015 after seeing his PBR logo scattered all over the city. Crud City creates stickers, patches, prints, paintings, and more. You can check out his latest work here.

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Well-known Richmond muralist Nils Westergard and local vibrant-colored pottery maker Niki Buckley Crosby of Happy Clay will also be among the 16 artists displaying work. Check out our chat with her about her artwork here. Anthony Brazeau, Jeremy Neighbors, Shiv, and The Mark of Buddha will be spinning the tunes for the evening. 6 PM-10:30 PM.

RVA WRIR’s 13th Anniversary Party
The Renaissance Ballroom 

To celebrate 13 years of delivering some of the best local music and programming, independent radio station WRIR is throwing down with a huge anniversary party tonight featuring 10 bands, sets by local comedians, DJs and more.SLEEPWALKERS, FACESHIP, Secret Bonus Level, Piranha Rama, Angelina Garcia + Kenneka Cook, Zgomot, as well as an RVA Comedy Showcase from Sweetheart Comedy, along with The Sauerkrauts, and Gumming will also be performing and two DJs Stunted Development and Maya from WRIR will also be in the building.

In addition to the bands, there will be a photo booth and raffle. $15 gets you in the door for the fundraiser. Check out our interview with Shannon Cleary about the event over here. 107 W. Broad St. 7 PM.

Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Hot Sauce 

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Marc Cheatham and Gigi Broadway of local hip hop blog The Cheats Movement will bring ” RVA Hot Sauce” to the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts tonight. Hip Hop Henry, DJ Mentos, Dolomic, and NameBrand will be spinning jams, and there will also be a live performance by Z-Bey the Poet of Community 50/50, and two hip-hop cyphers, one of which will be brought to you by RVA Lyricist Lounge.

Hot Sauce first premiered in 2011 as an event series that showcased a wide range of art styles from spoken word, to improv, comedy, and hip hop. The event also introduces the community to Richmond-area non-profits who are working to better the underserved communities in the city. 6 PM-8:30 PM.

 Vagabond
Conservation Music’s Dark and Stormy Benefit

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This event at Vagabond isn’t until Saturday, but it’s for a great cause and features a killer lineup so we wanted to include it anyway so you didn’t miss out. Conservation Music, a non-profit organization that produces and promote musical media that educates listeners and viewers in conservation and sustainability, with an emphasis on rural developing communities, has partnered with the downtown music venue and restaurant to throw a music benefit with performances by Calvin Presents, Kenneka Cook, Lovely Losers, and Steven Boone.

Boone, a local singer/songwriter who dropped his debut album Soullow back in spring 2017, has been making moves in the Richmond music scene for a long time, and paired with the soulful funky sounds from singer Kenneka Cook, whose debut album Moonchild is due out in a few weeks, is all the more reason to head to the benefit.

Every Dark and Stormy cocktail served that night will benefit the Conservation Music and for an additional $5 at the event, guests can get enjoy a snack buffet. Tickets are $11.42 in advance, which can be found here, and $12 at the door. All proceeds go to helping fund Conservation Music’s efforts.

These are just a handful of the plethora of exhibits, art events, and performances going on around town this weekend. You can get the full rundown on RVA First Fridays here.

Top Image: DJ Dolomic

 

 

Ten Bands, Comedians, & DJs Unite Friday to Celebrate WRIR’s 13th Anniversary

Amy David | February 1, 2018

Topics: RVA bands, RVA live music, WRIR

Tomorrow, Richmond bands, local comedians, and several DJs will come together to help WRIR celebrate their 13th Anniversary downtown.

The all-volunteer independent radio station has pulled out all the stops for their throw down again this year and recruited a wide variety of local bands and musicians for one killer lineup. There will be live performances from SLEEPWALKERS, FACESHIP, Secret Bonus Level, Piranha Rama, Angelina Garcia + Kenneka Cook, Zgomot,  as well as an RVA Comedy Showcase from Sweetheart Comedy, along with The Sauerkrauts, and Gumming. WRIR DJs Stunted Development and Maya, host of Tuesday’s Breakfast Blend, will also be there to help keep the party going. 

Shannon Cleary, Music Director at WRIR as well as booking agent at Flora, and bassist in Clair Morgan was excited to have a well-rounded bill of artists and bands who represent the city play the event.

“Each year always proves to be an exciting opportunity to showcase the diversity of the Richmond music community,” he said. “Sleepwalkers have done nothing but take the Richmond music brand to new levels and elevate the profile of this community. I know that members of the group have had a long-standing relationship with the station and it’s great to see that type of history play out as we reflect on the thirteen years that WRIR has been around.”

Brothers Austin and Michael York blew up when they released their debut album, Greenwood Shade, in 2014 and it will be a nice homecoming for the group, who RVA Mag last spoke with last year when they dropped a fun new track ahead of their second full-length album.

Cleary mentioned other local acts that are sure to offer something for everyone no matter what their musical taste.

“I’m excited about the idea of having freestyle hip hop from Secret Bonus Level, one of our WRIR late-night programs, a dual set from Kenneka Cook and Angelica Garcia as well as a comedy showcase all in the same room,” he said. “And a German Oom-Pah band. Where else can you see all of this and more?”

Cook, a local soul/jazz powerhouse songwriter will drop her debut album Moonchild Feb. 16 so hopefully, we’ll get to hear some tunes off of that album at the show. And bluesy/folk songstress Angelica Garcia, who moved to Richmond in 2016 and graced RVA Mag with an interview after landing a deal with Warner Bros. and releasing her whimsical, yet haunting album Medicine For Birds will be a must-see as well.

The event is WRIR’s biggest fundraiser of the year, and proceeds raised from the bash go back toward helping the station produce music and fund programming. A $15 donation gets you in the door and a raffle ticket. You can snag your tickets here.

The 13th Anniversary Party kicks off this Fri., Feb. 2 at 7 pm inside The Renaissance Ballroom located at 107 W. Broad St.

With a costume contest and wicked good music, WRIR’s Monster Mashquerade is the Halloween treat you need next weekend

Amy David | October 21, 2016

Topics: Dazeases, Halloween, League Of Space Pirates, Pete Curry, rva music, RVA radio, The Camel, WRIR, WRIR Monster Masquerade

With a costume contest and frighteningly good music, WRIR’s 9th annual Monster Mashquerade on next weekend is the Halloween treat you’ve been craving.
[Read more…] about With a costume contest and wicked good music, WRIR’s Monster Mashquerade is the Halloween treat you need next weekend

Commonwealth of Notions Vol. 6 offers two nights to see some of RVA’s best bands

Brad Kutner | July 8, 2016

Topics: Commonwealth of Notions, rva music, shannon cleary, WRIR

Few are as intrenched in RVA’s music scene like local man Shannon Cleary, so who better to put on a weekend shows featuring some of the best our town has to offer?
[Read more…] about Commonwealth of Notions Vol. 6 offers two nights to see some of RVA’s best bands

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