How do you improve upon a standard on our music scene? The short answer: When you are talking about the Jammies Awards show, held each year at The Intersection Lounge and honoring the best of our regions' music scene, you don't tinker with a sure thing.
And why am I so sure?
A quick call to Kevin Murphy, station manager of the Community Media Center's WYCE, confirms what many of us have known for years; West Michigan's music scene is one of the best kept secrets in the U.S.A. with more than 100 nominations this year and awards in 20 categories. The Jammies are a big deal!
"What makes the Jammies fresh each year is that of the more than two dozen acts playing this Friday night, half have never played the Jammies before," says Murphy. "And it's a really good mix of different styles this year with some harder rock, African, funk/jazz, and hip-hop."
Murphy reminds me that, for all their successes (the Jammies celebrate their 15th year this Friday) many folks in our own city still have not ever ventured out to see a local act.
And that is a crime when you consider our ever-growing diversity of styles. It's not just that a 12-piece Afro-funk group can spring forth from Grand Rapids, but also because a host of other unique music styles are all cultivating a new image of our city to be shared with others who will place Grand Rapids on their radar for good music.
Murphy, a sort of Jacques Cousteau of local music, finds that those holding to a tired and lame old hackneyed reputation of Grand Rapids as an ultra-conservative, bland backwater have probably never been to any of the concert events that have been happening seven nights a week for some time now in all sorts of venues throughout the city.
"But every year I've lived here (which is ten years now), I've seen that image diminish more and more - to the point that people who recycle that old image reveal themselves as completely out of touch with the reality of the community today," says Murphy.
And this is where Murphy is spot-on. The Jammies gives those folks a chance to catch up with an annual music event that showcases the very best, plus a chance to sample so much music like a buffet. So load up the kids and head to the city, because the Jammies are back, family friendly, and while it may not hold any big changes, it does promise there will be an act for you.
Never forget that WYCE is a listener-supported and volunteer-run radio station that reflects not just the diversity of our music community but also the diverse faces of the volunteers who make this station, and ultimately our city, truly Grand.
Admission: Free, but if you bring a nonperishable food item or a clothing item or wear your "jammies," you will get a free CD!
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