By DAN ARMONAITIS
Like many other musicians throughout the world, Mary Emma Norris has spent the past couple of weeks in isolation and unable to perform in public due to crowd-gathering restrictions related to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
It’s a far cry from how the month began. On March 1, Norris and her bandmates in the Spartanburg-based indie rock outfit Salti Ray delivered a raucous set at the ceremony for the inaugural Upstate Music Awards that made it clear why the group had received a nomination for Best Live Act.
Held at Zen — An Elegant Space for Hire in downtown Greenville, the event brought together an array of talented musicians spanning multiple genres, along with music supporters of all stripes, for a joyous night of celebration that Norris won’t soon forget.
“Thank God we were able to have that,” Norris said. “I don’t know what I would have done if that was canceled. It would have been so upsetting.”
The positive experience of the awards ceremony served as a reminder to Norris of how special the Upstate music community is, and it’s a big reason she decided to put together a livestream music festival showcasing a half-dozen singer-songwriters from Greenville and Spartanburg.
The Alone and Scared Fest runs from 4 to 10 p.m. on Saturday, March 28 and can be accessed via www.instagram.com/aloneandscaredfest. Along with Norris, the featured artists are Darby Wilcox, Mourning Dove (aka Lisa Stubbs), J Stephens, Janeen Scott and Ary Fleming, each of whom will perform a solo set from their respective homes.
Mourning Dove is an Upstate Music Awards winner while Wilcox was nominated as a solo artist and Stephens and Scott were nominees as members of the folk-rock band Howl in the Valley.
“We really do have a music community here in the Upstate,” Norris said. “I don’t want it to feel like just because everyone has to social distance that our community is kind of on hold or lost. We’re still here for each other, and if we can virtually play music together, that makes it even better.”
While several other Upstate musicians have done livestream concerts individually, Norris believes bringing multiple artists together in one central online location adds a layer of solidarity and togetherness and that it could also provide each musician with an opportunity to gain new fans.
“Hopefully, by having multiple artists involved and making it like a festival, people might be inclined to check out other artists besides the ones they already know,” Norris said. “I figured if I made one Instagram page that (each of the performers) could log into, we could make it work.”
The name of the festival refers to the anxiety being felt by so many during a period of self-quarantine that has swept much of the world.
“We were trying to kind of poke fun at something that we can’t control,” Norris said. “That’s sometimes the most you can do. We were in a group chat, and I was like, ‘does anyone have any ideas for what to call the festival?’ and Darby said, ‘how about Alone and Scared?'”
Although the name was intended to be playful, Norris admits that there’s also a certain degree of seriousness to the Alone and Scared Fest as musicians and other creative types struggle to make ends meet during the coronavirus crisis. Those watching the Alone and Scared Fest are encouraged to make monetary donations to the artists, whose Paypal, Venmo, etc. information will be displayed during the livestream.
“Even if we don’t make a ton of money, we’re at least still playing music with each other and participating in our community together,” Norris said.
Fleming, who will kick off the Alone and Scared Fest at 4 p.m., was to have played a show with Norris on Friday, March 27 at The FR8yard in Spartanburg before it was canceled due to COVID-19 concerns. It was to have been the debut performance for their new side project My Brother Met a Murderer, which was slated to open for Wilcox and western North Carolina-based singer-songwriter Laura Blackley.
Norris formed her primary band, Salti Ray, with longtime friend Noelle Taylor in their native Charleston. They each moved to Spartanburg a few years ago to attend the University of South Carolina Upstate.
“We were originally going to move back to Charleston (after graduation), but then I was like, ‘I really love the music scene here,’ and she said she didn’t want to leave either,” Norris said. “So, we both made the decision for the band to stay up here. …
“I feel like everyone in the music scene here is so supportive of each other. People really make an effort to lift each other up, encourage each other and help each other get shows. It doesn’t feel like people are trying super hard to compete against one another, and I just love that.”
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