On Thursday, Nov. 5, Brick City Records will be holding its third Baker’s Dozen event from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The free event, which will be live-streamed through Brick City’s Twitch page, is part of a series that aims to highlight Brick City’s newly signed local artists.
Brick City Records is the capstone class for Ohio University’s music production program, offering students interested in music production a hands-on experience with the music industry.
Nate Hervey, the vice president of production for Brick City Records, got involved with the program as his capstone class.
“I got involved with Brick City Records this year because it is the ultimate culmination of the audio major’s skills,” Hervey said in an email. “It touches on all aspects of creating music in the real world, from production, to marketing, to A&R, and combines them all in a way that does more than just mirror the music market, because we are actually engaging in the industry from the products and events we create and distribute.”
Hervey, who is a senior studying in English literature and audio production and engineering, has helped put together the Baker’s Dozen events, showcasing Brick City’s 13 freshly signed artists by giving them an opportunity to perform virtually. The streams, which are filmed in the Baker Ballroom and then reach an audience of about 50-60 people, give a platform to new and old artists who have been unable to perform in public due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“The pandemic has left everyone tired, and with the lack of things happening anywhere is expected that there be a lack of engagement anywhere, not just within the music realm,” Hervey said. “However, we’d hoped that these Baker’s Dozen streams might zap a bit of life back into our vibrant art community and thus far we’ve felt a positive surge between artists and audiences that has been dearly missed during the long months of quarantine.”
Lexi Murray, a new Brick City artist production team member said Brick City developed Baker’s Dozen as an “innovative way to cultivate a live concert experience during life with COVID.” Murray, who is a senior studying strategic communication and music production, will be featured as an artist on this Thursday’s stream, alongside artists Bill $haft and Jojomber.
“Although COVID has prevented us from being able to put on live shows, I believe we have done as much as we can during this time,” Murray said in an email. “Finding artists for these events has been more difficult than I believe it would have been if we were doing these shows in person. However, I think our team has done a great job getting ahead of the game as much as possible.”
In just a few months, Brick City has showcased countless artists with frequent shows occurring at least once a week. While they may have run into issues involving engagement, Mitchell Rees, a production team member and the head of Brick City artist FiftyThree’s team, said events like Baker’s Dozen have helped Brick City remain successful in its goal of exposing music artists to the Athens community.
“It’s definitely harder to drum up a lot of engagement in a virtual environment, but with everyone’s help within the label and from the school of media arts and event services, it’s really easy for us to get these streams out to everyone who listens,” Rees, a senior studying music production, said in an email. “I can’t wait to be the co-host for our next show and debut our latest signed artist, Jojomber. The streams keep getting better and better, so this one should be the best!”
After Thursday’s show, Brick City will be hosting one more Baker’s Dozen event Nov. 19. Find out more about Brick City on its website, Facebook and Twitter pages.
