|
Whether you play in a local band, or worship one, I hope rocknroanoke.com
will become your new home. There
are few things in this life that I take very seriously, but
making music has always been one of them. And like
every other kid who's ever picked up a guitar, I’ve dreamt
of being a rock star, and have given my all in bands that I
was sure would take me there.
But fortune and fame is a dream.
That doesn't mean it's not possible, but it’s not
what's happening today.
Today, you want something else.
You want someone else to care about what you care
about, and that is why I've created this site. |
|
|
Everything on rocknroanoke.com is designed for you,
the local musician and the local music fan. You
already know what your friends and family think of you and
your "very special" talents. Of course your
girlfriend likes the new song you wrote about her - she's
liked the last 5 you wrote, too. But this site is a
news source for everything in the Roanoke music scene,
external of a single band or genre. A resource for
musicians who want feedback on their music - good or bad -
and a place to have your work celebrated or slammed with
real levity. An opportunity for fans who want to see
their favorite band(s) get real media exposure and
legitimate coverage. A place where the music in
Roanoke gets taken seriously. |
|
| |
|
To do this, we follow a few very simple guidelines: |
|
| |
|
> The first guideline you've probably already
figured out - no made-up BS. Hype is for fansites and
MySpace pages. If you're the "Next Big
Thing," then people will know it without our
input. Likewise, if you're the opposite of that,
people are going to get that too, and we'll look stupid for
acting like we don't know you sing off key. |
|
|
> This is a site for local music in Roanoke.
We live here too. Expect the perspective of people who
know exactly what it's like to make music on the same stages
you do, in the same city, trying desperately to make an
impact to the same population. |
|
|
> The last guideline is a little more intangible,
but very important. Everything that we do here is with
the understanding that there are people in the community who
aren't as passionate about local music, probably because
they assume it lacks the credibility or quality of something
they'd buy at the music store in the mall. Rather than
write those people off, we work to bridge
their imaginary gap between local artists and “real”
artists – to combat a pointless distinction made by fans
and record-buyers who need a label to tell them what to
purchase. |
|
| |
|
Of course, to truly be of value to local musicians and their
fans, we operate on two fundamental rules: |
|
| |
|
Rule 1: Musicians shouldn’t have to do anything but
make music |
|
|
Yes, we realize that is entirely untrue – but not here!
The way we see it, you take enough time in finding
the right people, forming a band, writing music, rehearsing,
booking, promoting, performing, and living to waste your
time looking after us.
On top of that, this site is run by musicians, so we
know better than to count on them.
Everything that we do here is self-motivated, and is
discovered by actively participating in the scene,
connecting with fans and artists, and keeping ourselves in
the loop. Not
that we don’t like information, of course, but we think
you should only have to meet one eligibility requirement: be
in a local band. |
|
|
Rule 2: You shouldn’t have to pay to play |
|
|
So long as this site lives and breathes, musicians won’t
be charged for its services.
Ever.
Despite the happiness that turning a profit would
give us, charging a fee for anything immediately limits our
content by dividing artists into two groups: those that can
pay and those that can’t.
Besides, you’re in a local
band, which means you’re broke most of the time anyway. |
|
| |
|
All we can do now is hope that you enjoy the site, or give
us free publicity by complaining about it very loudly.
If
you like what you see so far, stick around.
It’s only going to get better from here. |
|
|
