Festival Evolution: FestEvo App

     With festival season approaching fast, we’re all in a scramble to find out what festivals we’re going to attend and who of our friends are going too. Well ease your mind and scramble no more, we’ve found the perfect app to assist you during festival season. Our dear friend, Tucker Gumber, and his team of dreamers have a passion for festivals and they are in pursuit of developing and funding an app called FestEvo.

Tucker’s quest of FestEvo spawned from spending the last three years of his life reviewing festivals from his website: www.TheFestivalGuy.com. His ultimate goal from the start was to find ways to improve the festival experience. His idea was to go to as many festivals as possible with the belief that eventually an idea to improve them would soon come into fruition.

Suddenly, the idea came to him after attending South By South West. After returning home and catching up with friends on Facebook, Tucker saw pictures being posted from many of his friends that had attended SXSW as well.  Missing the opportunity to connect with his friends because he didn’t know that they were attending the same festival, Tucker realized that festivals would be improved if everyone knew which of their friends were going to each festival ahead of time.  So he created a mobile app and website to diminish this problem, and he continuously added new features through the concept of “wouldn’t it be cool if…”

FestEvo makes sure you always have people to go to festivals with by showing you which of your friends are going (or want to go) to each festival. FestEvo makes it easier to know the entire lineup by giving you access to every festival lineup and letting you listen to each artist via Spotify and SoundCloud. The more artists you know, the more fun you will have. FestEvo also helps the festivals improve by having the users fill out surveys so they get real data on ways the festival can improve. 

The biggest feature in FestEvo is the Camp feature. Every member is encouraged to create a “Camp” with the people who they are going to the festival with. Having everyone in a group chat leading up to the festival will help everyone get to know each other leading up to the event. FestEvo will also work with the camp creators to encourage its members to stop bringing trash (plastic water bottles, glow sticks) to the festival and pick up their campsite once the festival ends. 

Fast-forward 10 months and FestEvo has everything you need to prepare for your favorite festival. The only thing FestEvo is missing is the funds to fully develop the application, so they need your help! They only have a few days left in the campaign to raise funds and you get awesome festival gear, tools, and accessories for your donations! You can help make FestEvo possible by donating and sharing this campaign with your friends!

Sharing is caring and caring is love, so show some love to FestEvo! Become a part of something much larger than the individual and change the festival going experience forever! And for that, we would salute You!

Check out the video below to learn more about the Festival Evolution!

The Laura Reed

 To say that Laura Reed can sing is a major understatement.

One could probably attribute all kinds of reasons behind Laura’s incredible voice---one that has the uncanny ability to sound truly distinctive while simultaneously being reminiscent of artists such as Erykah Badu, Nelly Furtado, and the late Amy Winehouse.

Perhaps it’s because she was born in the Motherland (South Africa, to be exact) or that she grew up in the Southern hospitality of Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina. Or maybe it’s due to the influence of some of her greatest musical inspirations; including Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Billie Holiday, Joni Mitchell, Bob Marley and Lauryn Hill. It also might be because of just how willing she is to be artistically vulnerable, both on the stage and off, as she strives to both learn and teach about love and life. All the while evolving into the artistic force she’s destined to become---something that translates very clearly in her voice as well as her lyrics. The Yacht Club Company got the unique opportunity to not only create here merchandise but also learn more about her passion for music.

When asked, Laura always says that she makes Soul music. To Laura, soul music is more than just a genre, but also a source and destination. She strives to create honest, uplifting, and soulful music that is relatable, empowering, and vulnerable when it needs to be. She writes very personally and often writes songs filled with advice that she needs to hear. All of the elements of her music have to be complimented by a solid groove and dynamic arrangement. The music Laura creates is often referred to as a Soul/Pop hybrid, fusing elements of both, in what can be catchy, soulful, anthems.

Laura’s mission for her music has always been the same, spread healing, love, positivity, and empathy through music. She wants people to leave her shows and listen to her music and feel inspired; feeling part of something bigger than themselves and feel joy. Music is one of the best medicines, and can often put our lives into perspective in a single song. That is what she strives for. And for that we salute her! 

The Peace Tour

Many forms of music originated as a form of expression
 meant to empower and educate its listeners. As the music culture evolved and diversified it took various paths, some positive and some negative, and many people today believe the core foundation of positive music no longer exists. However, like most forms of art, the music genre is steadily making a comeback to its original roots of positive expression. By bringing regions together to showcase their wealth of cultures through musical concerts, dance performances as well as arts and crafts exhibits, The Peace Tour provides an avenue to celebrate the true essence of music.

Created as a daylong festival, The Peace Tour was founded to extend positivity through multiple platforms to reach the community, primarily focusing on uplifting our youth. With our youth relying heavily on social media and other technology mediums, it becomes undeniably difficult to navigate through this already challenging period of life. As our youth face negative images via the media, music, and surrounding communities, it becomes our responsibility to give them ownership within their communities by creating opportunities for them to become involved in. The Peace Tour contributes to the local youth and families by providing internship, mentorship, and other opportunities for self-expression throughout the festival. In addition, The Peace Tour will proudly donate a percentage of the proceeds to not only local schools, but also organizations designed to uplift our youth such as Pretty Intelligent, NFL YET, The Boys and Girls Club and Upward Bound.

The Peace Tour is not only a day filled with music, art and fashion, but also a unique opportunity to celebrate the spirit of community. The Peace Tour will have something for everyone with areas such as "What's Goin' On", inspired by Marvin Gaye's powerful album which will feature artwork and photography from students and artists depicting life through their eyes. This year’s production is set to arrive in Nashville on June 29^th at Shelby Park and will feature nationally recorded artists, as well as local, independent performers that will illustrate the true essence of music of all genres. Get your tickets now!

Oh My Nosh!

Three years ago, Lindsey and Karman met as dietetic interns at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. After graduating from the internship and beginning full-time jobs as Registered Dietitians, the two found themselves looking for a creative outlet to bring in some extra cash. The duo shared a passion for experimenting with recipes and competed in several recipe contests, but still they wanted something more. With encouragement from family and friends, Karman and Lindsey decided to take a leap of faith and apply as a food vendor for the 2011 Tomato Art Fest. And they were accepted! Since then, Karman and Lindsey have continued to grow their small food venture and bring healthy, handmade, and delicious eats to Nashville.  


 

The ‘Oh My Nosh!’ name was thought up during a brainstorming session at a local sandwich shop, and is reflective of the reaction they strive for when people try their tasty, one-of-a-kind creations (because everyone says ‘Oh My Nosh!’, right?). Oh My Nosh! continues to offer a healthified food experience specializing  in handcrafted and healthy eats that satisfy and fuel their Noshers, such as Caprese Salad Skewers, Kamut Puff Granola Squares, Pumpkin-Chia Bread, and Chocolate-Cranberry Clusters.

Sharing their creations with others is what keeps them motivated to do more events in Nashville, the city they now call home. Since their debut at the 2011 Tomato Art Fest, the two have participated in Porter Flea last June, the East-Centric Music Festival, and the 2012 Tomato Art Fest, where an estimated 28,000 people attended. Oh My Nosh! plans to continue serving up Noshes at local festivals and events, as well as smaller gigs. They pop up at events and gatherings around town, so be sure to like Oh My Nosh! on Facebook for the latest updates or email them at ohmynoshnash@gmail.com. As the great Julia Child said herself, “Find something you are passionate about and keep tremendously interested in it.” Oh My Nosh! did exactly that in hopes to share their passion for healthy, delicious food with you soon! And for that, we salute them!

The Neighborhood

Before we know it, the fall and winter season will be behind us and the festival season will be upon us. We are all eager to discover the featured-filled line-ups, and we’re certain that you all have began planning your travel and buying your early-bird tickets. If you haven’t done so, we suggest you get a head start on everyone else to avoid running into any additional cost.

As we progress our efforts to bring you the latest in music, art, fashion, and action, we find it necessary and extremely beneficial to make an appearance in Austin, TX at the South by Southwest (SXSW) Conferences & Festivals, March 8-17, 2013. This unique festival is a melting pot for musicians, filmmakers, entrepreneurs, manufacturers, distributors, and designers. We all have a favorite music festival, but nothing is as sweet as the entertainment industry’s version of spring break.

South by Southwest dates back to 1987 when it was started as just a music festival, and since, it has grown to include film, technology, and interactive categories. As the interactive categories of the festival began to form, it was largely made up of technology start-ups, investment firms and agencies. Last year (SXSW 2011) sparked the first installment of Style X (pronounced “style by”), the first fashion element added to the festival. This year at SXSW 2012, Style X was held at the Austin Convention Center as an SXSW-official event that was free and open to the public.

Unfortunately, Style X has decided to go its separate ways and will not be included in the fashion segment of SXSW 2013. Fortunately, Style X has ventured out to form an independent, unofficial event during the SXSW festival. The founders of Style X, Joah Spearman and Jon Patillo, decided to take the concept for a style program into their own hands and formed The Neighborhood. At the moment, we don’t have many details to share on The Neighborhood; however, as March 2013 approaches, we’ll have more information to share.

We feel that is our opportunity to showcase our talents, gain inspiration, and progress towards setting the standards for our generation and industry. We couldn’t thank the founders of Style X and The Neighborhood enough for having the courage to leave their shores to discover new land (not literally, but metaphorically). And for that, we salute you!

“Opportunities of a lifetime must be seized within the lifetime of the opportunity.”