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KEY POINTS

Background: A diverse 7-piece band from Ann Arbor, Michigan, featuring vocals, guitar, piano, drums, bass, trumpet, trombone, and saxophone. Members include current college students and music professionals.

Musical Style: Folk/Groove/Singer-Songwriter blend, currently performing live with traditional band instrumentation but seeking to expand their sonic palette through studio recording.

Professional Experience: Active in live performances, with members involved in various musical projects including klezmer, jazz, musical theater, and church music. Registered with performing rights society.

Current Situation: Independent band managing all aspects themselves (booking, management, merchandise). Most members are completing undergraduate degrees, with some working in music-related professions.

Project Status: Have 10 original songs ready to record. Planning to begin studio work in May 2025 after graduation.

Technical Plan: 4-5 days of studio recording planned with identified recording/mixing engineer (Emelia Piane) and mastering engineer (Sam Uribe Botero). Currently finalizing studio location.

Marketing Strategy: 4-month release schedule planned: three single releases with one music video, followed by full album release.

Business Understanding: Well-researched in industry practices through resources like Ari Herstand's book, music industry publications (Rolling Stone, Billboard), and University of Michigan's Music Business Club.

Impact Potential: Grant would enable first professional recording, expand creative possibilities through studio production, and potentially attract label interest to reduce administrative burden and focus on music creation.

QUOTES

"Best case scenario would be being picked up by a small label. One of our biggest challenges as an indie band right now is lack of support. All of us are doing 5+ different jobs everyday from being the booking agent to the manager to the merchandise seller, all in order to maintain and keep the band running."

"When we perform our songs live, what we have is what you see and what you hear... However, when you get into the studio, once all the base instruments and the form of a song is recorded, you can dive deeper and overdub very interesting creative choices that help enhance the song."

"The biggest hurdle we have experienced in making music is getting our songs out and heard. We've written a lot of good songs and continue to create music that our local community has enjoyed and connected with over the past year and a half. However, we have yet to share it further with the rest of the world simply because we haven't had the ability to record and release our music."

"We all practice our individual instruments for at least 3 hours a day, targeting a range of teachings. From music theory to physical technique to delving deep into the sounds and styles of different genres, we are continuously working our brains and our bodies to be able to play anything and understand it all on a deeper level."