Since I’m not attending SXSW myself this year, I thought I’d bring you a real life, in the trenches, on the road, slice of life post about three female artists I met through Madalyn Sklar’s GoGirlsElite and #ggchat.  I’ve met two of them In Real Life, and have watched  two of them perform on ConcertWindow – which feels almost like IRL I’ve read their blog posts and listened to their music, and they are all such positive and energetic women, doing all the right things to market themselves in this crowded place we call indie music.

Meet Rorie Kelly, Mary Bue and Alex Winters. [Full disclosure, Mary Bue is a music marketing client of mine, but Rorie and Alex are not. All three women are also being represented by my friend Stacey Sherman of RSP Entertainment Marketing while they are at SXSW.]

These three talented musicians got together (completely unbeknownst to me) and booked themselves an unofficial showcase gig tomorrow, Thursday March 19, 2015, at 8 PM at the Waterloo Ice House in South Park Meadows.

I love this story because:

• It’s a bunch of women getting together to make their own gig happen – community, not competition!
• It’s social media at its best – helping people meet their business goals. Rorie, Mary and Alex met and got to know each other via the GoGirlsMusic network, which is a great virtual networking tool. The public Thursday Twitter chats at the hashtag #ggchat at 3 and 9 PM EST are well-attended by both male and female indie musicians and are always lively and informative. You’ll note below that they have some mutual male musician friends as well who are also frequent participants in the #ggchat Twitter chat, and helped encourage this group gig at SXSW.
• They all have great stories in addition to great music. I know some good PR will come from this for some deserving indie artists just trying to get heard above all the SXSW noise.

On to the interview.

Where are you are in your career?

Rorie: I am a rising independent singer songwriter with one studio album (Wish Upon a Bottlecap) and one live album (Sincerely Live) under her belt, about to embark on recording a second studio album. I play throughout the northeast regularly, especially in my home base region in and around NYC. As a songwriter, I am making waves, placing top 10 in the Solarfest Songwriting Contest in 2013, and getting an honorable mention in 2014. My song “If You Teach a Bird to Sing” has become an unofficial anthem, adopted by women’s groups both locally and around the country. My next move is a new album and more touring, as well as a new project called Songs to Start a Fire which is a performance/workshop combo aimed at inspiring and empowering smart women.

Mary: I’ve been performing and writing original music since 1998 and just self-released my 6th album called “Holy Bones.”  In love with the troubadour lifestyle,  I’ve toured to almost every state,  mostly doing my own booking and app promotion.  Recently embarked on a national college radio campaign and local publicity blitz which caught the attention of the Minneapolis Star Tribune who “highly recommended” my new album.  My last two albums were funded via Kickstarter and I also received a Career Development grant from the Arrowhead Regional Arts Council of MN.  I’ve been an artist in residence in two organization in Florida and sit on the board of directors of the Duluth Homegrown Music Festival.  I keep very busy!

Alex:    Currently performing around the Central Texas area – performing mostly at vineyards and wine bars. I love the community that’s forming around wine, it’s like the coffee shop after dark. I’m also writing material for my next release. About to embark on an album creation course starting in May. It’s all about coming up with the album concept first, then writing the songs around that concept. Completely different from how I’ve been working to date.

How did the showcase come together?

Rorie: I joined GoGirls on a recommendation in early 2014 and it changed the trajectory of my career in a big and beautiful way. For the first time in my life I had an amazing supportive musical community around me facing exactly the same struggles and successes that I was. We connect every week with the Twitter #ggchat. When a few of us realized we were all going to be at SXSW at the same time we decided to band together and book a showcase even though GoGirls was not doing an official one this year. I’m so excited to be playing with both Mary and Alex. Women are underrepresented in music and it’s a thrill to share a bill with two fellow ladybeasts.

Mary: I was hoping to secure a few showcases this year at SXSW and was chatting with Alex Winters, whom I met on the GoGirls twitter chats, since she lives in Texas and I thought we could meet up and do a show together when I was touring down. She recommended a few venues she knew of in Austin and I reached out to them. One of the venues booking agents responded via email and said “Call me right now.” I thought that was intriguing so I called him right then. Turns out, he grew up in Duluth, MN (where I currently live) and much of his family still resides there. He gave me the night at Waterloo Ice House – Southpark Meadows to book as I wished. I invited Alex as she recommended the place and then as I was scanning a GoGirls chat as all the comments were flying by, I saw that Rorie was traveling down as well. I had been chatting with Rorie’s friend Olav who was a Kickstarter supporter of mine, and he mentioned that when I come to NYC this fall I should book a show with Rorie. Since I saw she was planning on being in Austin during SXSW, I thought that would be a nice opportunity to meet! She’s also offered to do some harmonies as well.

Alex: I’m performing in the showcase because, after talking with the guys and Rorie (who’d worked with them in the past), it seemed like a really great bunch of folks and I wanted to work with them. Mary and I were talking online one day about how she was coming down for SXSW and we decided to do a joint show – she ended up talking with the booker and they hit it off. Turns out he lived real close by where she lives now so that got us the show. Then when we found out Rorie was coming down we had to add her in too!

What are your expectations for SXSW and why are you doing the showcase?

Rorie: This is my second year doing “SXSW on a Shoestring” — no badge, low budget, just getting my butt to Austin and playing at every opportunity I can find. I’m not hoping to “get discovered” but to meet and support as many fellow musicians as I can, especially female musicians. I believe that the power of community is going to blast my career upwards in 2015 — so building up my community here and getting my songs to new ears is my goal.

Mary: I’ve been in Austin during SXSW a few times and everywhere in town is hopping. This is an unofficial showcase, but there are so many visitors and music lovers checking out shows that I don’t think there is a bad slot in town. I hope to connect with some new people and share my new tunes with a potentially national and international audience. My hopes are always high but I’m trying not to have delusions of grandeur – I try and practice non-attachment in my yogi mindset and just follow my bliss, go with the flow, and have fun! SXSW has a vibrancy and energy – everyone is amped up – and I think it can be a meeting of the minds, and a great opportunity to exchange ideas and inspiration. Really looking forward to it!

Alex: This year, I’m hoping to get to spend some time with my fellow GoGirls and meet some new folks who share my vision of music community.

Can you tell us a little more about you and your music?

Rorie Kelly is a small red headed tornado of sound and her aggressive acoustic guitar style complements her raw powerhouse vocals. People often wonder how “that sound came out of that body.” Rorie has been making music since she was a teenager and was strongly influenced by the stream-of-consciousness songwriting of the 90’s. Over the years, she has been compared to Janis Joplin or Alanis Morisette for her high powered vocals, and Joni Mitchell or Sarah Bareilles for her catchy, confessional brand of songwriting. Rorie’s debut album was released in 2010 and she is currently working on her second studio offering while playing numerous shows in the northeast, especially her homebase in and around NYC.

Singer/songwriter Mary Bue’s songs crackle with her ferocity of spirit, mixing piano, guitar, folk and pop. Her voice has been described as “marvelously sultry and cool” and those qualities lend themselves to her vivid lyrical style, inviting the listener in. Currently living in Duluth, MN, Mary has toured the country – studying yoga in Seattle from 2008-11 and attaining a BA in Psychology along the way. Over the past 16 years, she has played in countless venues – from coffee shops to large outdoor festivals – covering 38 states and logging hundreds of thousands of miles. Mary has 4 studio albums out, the most recent “Apple in the Ocean” funded 100% by Kickstarter. She is currently working on her next record with career development funds awarded to her by the Arrowhead Regional Arts Council.

Alex Winters may sound the part of a sweet singer/songwriter, but under her high shimmer vocals and lithe acoustic guitar melodies are the true tales of dreamers and risk takers. Alex began her musical journey as an introverted 12 year old guitarist in Washington State. She was shy and never even thought of being in a band, although music was always part of her life. One day she shared some of her jotted notes with a friend & the next thing she knew she was in the band! The band recorded one EP and one full length record before heading out on her own in 1999 to a new life in Austin, TX. Austin felt like home to Alex and she has since recorded her first solo stuio album and continues to play many shows in the area.

For more information, you can reach any of as on our websites or via Twitter.

www.roriekelly.com     @roriekelly

www.marybue.com     @marybuemusic

www.alexwintersmusic.com   @alexwintersband

www.RSPEntertainmentMarketing.com   @RSPEntMktg