Visionary, music fan and owner of the Mishawaka Amphitheatre in Fort Collins, Colorado Dani Grant founded the grassroots non-profit organization SpokesBUZZ in 2009 to showcase musical artists in her region. The following year, SpokesBUZZ presented the first Fort Collins showcase at the famed South by Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin. Grant was able to receive backing from the City of Fort Collins and provide sponsorship for the event. Upon returning to Colorado, it became clear that developing local talent would be beneficial to the community in more ways than by simply showcasing at a large national conference. Grant enlisted talented and enthusiastic board members to create a program to really help these artists build their fan base, not just at home or at an annual show but around the country.
BandSwap and SpokesBUZZ are giving artists these gifts now and hopefully other programs will follow suit to enable other musicians to follow their dreams of sharing their sonic vision. It takes a village as no indie musicians are islands.
http://www.spokesbuzz.org
https://twitter.com/SpokesBUZZ
