For its 11th year, WYCE's Jammies is celebrating community with more than just music. For 2010, the event has expanded from a celebration of local music to a food and clothing drive.
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Jammies Lineup An Dro |
Like the year before, the Jammies will be at the Intersection, be a non-smoking, all-ages event, have two stages, feature performances by 26 bands, and attendees still get a free CD if they arrive in their pajamas - or they can donate food, clothing or money to Feeding America West Michigan or In the Image for their CD.
"We've done winter clothing events before, but this year we've decided to make it one big event," said Matt Jarrells, who is WYCE's program director.
The Jammies were created by WYCE Programmer Michael J, who originally intended it to be a celebration of national music with one best local album. As the demand for more local recognition increased, the Jammies did a flip-flop.
"It's really cool to perform," said Jared Wekenman, guitarist of Paucity, which is nominated for four Jammies. "Mostly it's really flattering that the community comes out to this and supports the local scene."
To give you an idea of the impressive lineup, WYCE recently asked its listeners to choose their favorite local artists of the decade. Three of the top five artists that were chosen - Drew Nelson, Seth Bernard & Daisy May, and Chance Jones - are playing this year and are all nominated in the Best Album category.
"This is, top to bottom, the best lineup ever," said Jarrells.
Musicians must be nominated for an award in order to perform, but not everyone that is nominated is playing. The number of acts and the different genres give the Jammies what Jarrells calls a "festival atmosphere."
"[My favorite part is] seeing all the bands interact," said Kevin Murphy, WYCE's station manager. "Bands are so busy playing gigs that they don't get to hang out."
Wekenman says he's excited to see Lazy Genius, The Fainting Generals, Nathan Kalish & The Wildfire, and Valentiger.
"I'm excited to see some of my friends play," he said. "We like to talk to people, we like talking about what we do."
For bands like Lazy Genius, this will be the first nomination and performance at the Jammies.
"We were surprised," said Patrick Wieland, who is the songwriter, singer, guitarist and pianist for the band. "I said, ‘Not bad for a couple of jerks.'"
