Tag: Ma Baker

Brotherly Love – The Rupple Brothers Host Third Handmade Music Festival Oct. 7-8 in Chesaning

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For The Rupple Brothers, a local music festival provides the optimal balance of creativity and community at the grassroots level.

The Chesaning, Michigan psych-folk sibling duo of Cole Rupple and Evan Rupple weave those elements together at their homegrown Handmade Music Festival, which runs Oct. 7-8 at Showboat Park.

“Some of our very first festivals in 2016 and 2017 were Farm Fest, Pond Jam and Dunesville. These festivals have a beautiful grassroots message,” said Cole Rupple, who started Handmade in 2018.

“They have taught us that if you book it, they will come. If you have a little stage, some electricity and some of the favorite bands that we all love, then that’s all you need to make things happen.”

For their third festival, The Rupple Brothers will recapture that magic with a stacked music lineup of bluegrass, psych-folk, Americana, soul and jam artists.

Sixteen artists will perform on two stages with funk-rock band Distant Stars headlining Friday night and prog-funk-jazz quartet Chirp headlining Saturday night.

Other featured artists include Fay Burns, Cosmic Knot, Monte Pride, Nicholas James, Ma Baker, Act Casual, Stormy Chromer and The Rupple Brothers.

“We love Chirp, we love Monte Pride … there are a few friends we can’t get by without, and so we actually only have about 10 slots,” said Cole Rupple.

“We like to do singer-songwriters during the day, and then we work up to the full-band stuff at night … those are our two vibes. We just hope that everyone can see and appreciate all the beautiful Michigan talent that we have.”

In addition to talent, festivalgoers will enjoy food trucks along with craft and music vendors at Showboat Park’s scenic riverside.

“It’s an absolutely gorgeous location right along the Shiawassee River with maple trees all throughout. There’s a beautiful village campground nestled back in the trees,” said Cole Rupple, who co-runs the festival with older brother Evan Rupple, mother Shelly Rupple-English and sister Savannah Rupple.

“Truly, my favorite part is bringing all these amazing bands and all my incredible friends together and all that they do to my little hometown. We want to show [everyone] the beauty that we get to see on the road every weekend.”

Outside of the festival, The Rupple Brothers perform live regularly throughout Michigan and share tracks from their growing catalog. In 2018, the duo released their emotive, 10-track debut album, The Rupple Brothers and Company.

“The tracks were kind of just cobbled together, but our overarching theme would definitely be the first song, ‘Sadtown,’ and that’s our brother-love song,” said Cole Rupple, who formed the duo with Evan Rupple in 2015.

“My best friend passed away when I was a senior in high school, and that song has been consoling me. That’s our whole kinda vibe, that’s our whole kinda message … ‘Sadtown’ is the most evocative of that vibe.”

The Rupple Brothers will carry that vibe forward on their next album, which is currently underway. The duo wants to collaborate with a Michigan-based producer to shape the album’s overall sound.

“We had a pretty prolific period at the start of The Rupple Brothers, so we are backlogged to the gills. We honestly have about two or three albums’ worth of material. I would like this second album to be a double concept album, and I would like for it to be called Rivers,” said Cole Rupple, who’s inspired by The Avett Brothers, The Beatles and Elliott Smith.

“I would like to do a ‘River of Life’ side and a ‘River of Death’ side with lighter songs on the first side and the heavier, more intense songs on the second side. Everything is written, and everything is arranged … we just gotta get in there and lay it down.”

Show details:

Handmade Music Festival

4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 7 to 11 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 8

Showboat Park, 805 S. Front Street in Chesaning, Michigan

Tickets: $30-$60

Second Stage – Fundamental Sound Co. Returns with Fun Fest ‘22 Aug. 6 in Ypsilanti

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Taylor Greenshields believes things are better the second time around.

The Ypsilanti audio engineer, producer and drummer is expanding this year’s Fun Fest ‘22 to include more activities and vendors along with some new artists. The second annual daylong music festival will take place Saturday, Aug. 6 at Frog Island Park.

“I think the first year of the festival is always the hardest. We got the first year out of the way, so this year we can work out any kinks and now people kind of know what to expect,” said Greenshields, who owns and operates the Ypsilanti-based recording studio, Fundamental Sound Co.

The festival will feature an all-star roster of local artists, including new guests The Macpodz, Stormy Chromer, Ki5 and Estar Cohen along with returning performers Dani Darling, Ma Baker and Al Bettis and a secret set featuring some familiar faces.

“This year’s artist selections were based on artists I worked with regularly in the live sound realm or in the studio. I didn’t want to have a complete repeat from last year’s lineup, but I still wanted to have a few of my favorite artists/friends to be involved,” Greenshields said.

“I am honored to have Dani, Al and the Baker boys back in the lineup this year. Honestly, these are bands I just selfishly love, and I am lucky enough to work with them again this year. I think as their second time playing Fun Fest they will know what to expect and bring the vibes!”

In addition to live music, Fun Fest ’22 will include more than 15 local vendors, ranging from Brennan The Bronze to Normal Coffee Co. to Top Dog, offering art, food and drinks. Beats, Brews and Points of View podcast hosts Emmanuel “E-Man” Bates and Neil Richter also will serve as festival emcees.

“This year, it has grown by having some extra activities, like we’re going to have a bounce house for the kids, have food vendors and other activities available in the soccer field. It’s basically just me putting all this stuff together,” Greenshields said.

Greenshields started Fun Fest last year after wanting to showcase local artists he engineers and records through Fundamental Sound Co. studio and stage projects. He’s currently working with Ma Baker on their first studio album, Na Bonsai on their debut EP and Dani Darling on her new single.

“I have been planning big things for Fundamental Sound Co.’s future. Some are bigger than others, and some are more realistic than others. I am just out here planting seeds and watering these ideas until they eventually start to grow really solid roots,” said Greenshields, who opened his studio in 2018.

“Maybe you’ll start to see them pop out of the ground sooner than later. This festival was one of those ideas years and years ago, and now it’s finally becoming a reality, which is crazy to me.”

Outside of other artists’ projects, Greenshields continues to run live sound for local shows with D.Cipher, a Detroit music mastermind collective, every Wednesday at Dequindre Cut and every Thursday at Detroit City Distillery. He’s also interested in recording his own album soon.

“This year, I have been lucky to be booked and busy all summer long. I have been honored to work with D.Cipher … they are amazing and book some of the dopest artists in the area,” he said.

“As far as personal projects, I have been kicking around the idea of recording a solo record. I love working on other people’s music, but sometimes I can get too far away from who I am as an artist. I think it’s time to make some of my own stuff again.”

Show details:

Fun Fest ‘22

Saturday, Aug. 6 | 12 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Frog Island Park, 699 Rice St. in Ypsilanti

Tickets: $20 (suggested donation)

Fun Fest – Fundamental Sound Co. Hosts Local Music Festival Aug. 7 in Ypsilanti

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Fun Fest will spotlight local artists who have recorded with Taylor Greenshields’ Fundamental Sound Co.

For Taylor Greenshields, a recent conversation quickly morphed into hosting a local music festival.

The Ypsilanti audio engineer, producer and drummer chatted with Ma Baker guitarist Guy Williams about putting on a daylong music event at Frog Island Park.

“Both of us have talked about how cool it would be to have something on the stage at Frog Island. We were sitting on the grass, and I said, ‘I’m done talking about it. Let’s do it for real. I’m going to follow through on this idea,’” said Greenshields, who owns and operates Ypsi-based recording studio Fundamental Sound Co.

“This year, I invested in a bigger PA system. After that, I thought, ‘We have to do this because I don’t want to have all this stuff and not use it. It’s meant to be used for the people and the community. I’m so lucky to work with so many amazing, dope artists that it’s like, ‘Well, why not?’”

That epiphanous “why not” quickly led to Fundamental Sound Co.’s Fun Fest, a one-day Ypsi music festival showcasing a star-studded lineup of local artists at Frog Island Park on Saturday, Aug. 7. The festival will feature ANA, Al Bettis, Ma Baker, Travis Aukerman, Jesse Clayton, Dani Darling, The DayNites and a secret set with some special guests, plus visual artists and vendors.

“It’s so eclectic with Travis and Al each bringing their own jazz vibes for you to bask in. Jesse’s set is going to be more electronic, and he’s going to take you on a roller coaster of all sorts of dynamics. They each will bring something different,” said Greenshields, who’s previously recorded, produced and performed with all the artists on the Fun Fest lineup.

“I’ll be playing with Dani, Jesse and the secret set, which will include some familiar faces. People might get called up from the audience to jam during the secret set.”

Continue reading “Fun Fest – Fundamental Sound Co. Hosts Local Music Festival Aug. 7 in Ypsilanti” →

Double Groove – Ma Baker Hosts 2-Set Blind Pig Show Saturday with Scüter, Sleezy Hamilton

Ma Baker blends elements of rock, funk, jazz and disco into their groove-filled sets. Photo courtesy of Ma Baker

For Ma Baker, Saturday’s Blind Pig headlining set will bring double the jams and twice the grooves.

The Ypsilanti jam fusion quartet will host their first two-set show at Ann Arbor’s legendary rock club with EDM artists-DJs Scüter and Sleezy Hamilton against an enchanting backdrop of live visuals and electronic vibrations.

“It will be the first of its kind in terms of a local show equipped with three interactive screens for live visuals controlled in real-time by visual artist Mark Samano and Scüter,” said Jordan Smith, Ma Baker’s guitarist and keyboardist. “Our goal as a group has always been to get to the level where our shows feature two sets. Our intent is to create a conversation between the band and the audience.”

Ma Baker also will feature different genres during each set – the first will spotlight funk while the second will capture a psychedelic-experimental feel. It’s the ideal setting to reimagine an EDM scene in Tree Town while sharing a mix of originals, new tunes and covers intertwined with improvisation.

“We chose to pair ourselves with two DJs to differentiate this show from the typical three groove-jam band bill the way we normally play at The Pig. All of us in the band love electronic music and rock and roll equally, and we wanted a night to really surround ourselves with more electronic vibrations and interactive visuals more akin to the ‘Movement’ or Detroit techno scene,” Smith said.

In 2012, Smith discovered a shared love of EDM and rock with a collective of community college students in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti. Together, they rented a storage unit two miles from school to jam, improvise and store gear while having deep philosophical discussions late into the night.

Those initial sessions led to forming Bearfoot with 10 rotating members who would perform based on availability with zero premeditated music. By Devil’s Night 2015, only four of the 10 members showed up and a new creative chemistry emerged. Six months later, the band’s original lineup played their first show on Earth Day at Ypsilanti’s Corner Brewery.

As a quartet, Bearfoot became Ma Baker (after the 1977 Boney M. disco track) and now includes Guy Williams (guitar), Jared Weimer (drums), Dylan Risinger (bass) and Smith in their latest formation.

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Groovin’ for Good – New Ann Arbor Charitable Organization Hosts Inaugural Benefit Show Friday to End Domestic Violence

Tetra Music Project will perform at the inaugural Groovin’ for Good benefit show Friday at The Blind Pig.

A new Ann Arbor charitable organization is ready to groove from the heart.

Known as Groovin’ for Good, the organization hosts benefit shows and creative events to raise funds for local people in need. It will host its inaugural event, “Break the Cycle: A Benefit to End Domestic Violence,” Friday at The Blind Pig with The Funk Factory, ZZvava, Ma Baker and the Tetra Music Project.

“We developed this concept to throw these benefit shows and have the shows go to a good cause. We found out October is domestic violence awareness month, and we were planning it in April and thinking a fall show would be good,” said Erika Ratliff, who co-founded Groovin’ for Good in April with Sara Adas, MSW and LLMSW, and Stormy Chromer drummer Amin Lanseur.

“We had the concept, and then we had the cause, and we started calling around. We made a list of different area nonprofits that focus on domestic violence and sexual assault, and we settled on First Step. We’re really excited that they’re involved, and they’re going to be at the event, too.”

All ticket sales from Friday’s show will go directly to First Step, a Wayne County nonprofit based in Plymouth that provides comprehensive services for victims of domestic and sexual assault. Services include a 24-hour help line, information and referrals, community education, transitional housing, temporary emergency housing, assault response, and children’s advocacy and prevention programs.

In addition, Friday’s show will feature a silent auction with creative items and services donated by visual artists and local vendors. All proceeds from the silent auction will go directly to First Step.

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‘Be Careful Be Safe’ — New E-Man Bates Album Honors Mother’s Memory, Addresses Inner Struggles

Emmanuel “E-Man” Bates releases “Be Careful Be Safe” today. Cover artwork by Leo James Willer.

Emmanuel “E-Man” Bates keeps the phrase, “be careful, be safe,” close to his heart.

The Canton hip-hop artist frequently heard that cautionary, heartwarming phrase from his mother while growing up.

“Every time I left the house, no matter what I was doing, no matter if I was going out with friends or doing some sports stuff or going out to shows,” he said. “It was ‘be careful, be safe, make smart decisions.’”

Bates decided to name his latest album, “Be Careful Be Safe,” which drops today, as a tribute to his mother, who passed away in January. He also timed the album’s release to coincide with his mother’s Oct. 6 birthday.

“The original title was going to be ‘Green Balloons,’ which is the theme for the whole album, but then my mom passed, and I decided to go with the quote she always said to me,” he said.

Throughout the eight-minute title track, Bates sings about heeding his mother’s timeless advice and the lasting impact it’s had on him.

The song speeds up and down against a jazzy sonic backdrop, courtesy of metro Detroit’s Honey Monsoon, to chronicle the rollercoaster of emotions he’s experienced since losing his mother. Bates also included the lyrics from the slower part of “Be Careful Be Safe” in his mom’s obituary.

Continue reading “‘Be Careful Be Safe’ — New E-Man Bates Album Honors Mother’s Memory, Addresses Inner Struggles” →