By DAN ARMONAITIS
As an outdoor gathering spot used extensively for live music, The FR8yard in downtown Spartanburg shut its gates for the winter just after Thanksgiving.
During the downtime, FR8yard partner Kenneth Cribb kept himself busy by putting together an impressive slate of concert events that were to have taken place throughout the spring.
Of course, only days after the fun started — most notably with a music-filled St. Paddy’s Day celebration billed as Yard Malarkey on March 14 — everything came to an abrupt halt. Social distancing measures connected to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic that took effect last week put an end to public events at The FR8yard and other Upstate music venues for the foreseeable future.
“Goodbye, spring. We hardly knew ye,” Cribb said. “There were so many good events, all of them musically driven, for March, April and May. (Now, we’re) hedging our bets for a good summer and fall, God-willing.”
The good news is that music will return to The FR8yard stage on Friday, March 27. The performances won’t be open to the public but will be livestreamed via www.facebook.com/FR8yard.
“Our gates may be closed, but our hearts and minds are open,” Cribb said. “Whether folks tune in or not, this is going to be serious fun. We’re just pleased to give our musicians an outlet.
“Andrew Cooke from Arken Media is going to help us do it in a pretty slick and professional way, too — a serious cut above my GoPro, to say the least. People need this right now, performers and (at home) audience members.”
The concert, billed as We are Family: Music for the People by Our People, starts at 6 p.m. and is a benefit for sidelined musicians and FR8yard staff who have been economically affected by the coronavirus crisis.
Performers include Drew Spencer, Mary Emma Norris, Clay Johnson, Ary Fleming, Taylor Miller and Ryan Ferguson, and there will be a Venmo and/or Paypal link posted to the Facebook feed for monetary contributions.
“Every little bit helps,” Cribb said. “The musicians appearing on stage this evening also work with us at Hub City Hospitality (FR8yard/Flock Shop/Willy Taco), so they’re being hit doubly hard by this crisis; canceled gigs left and right and extremely diminished (work hours) because of how the restaurants are being affected.
“Any monies received will go straight to the performers; hopefully enough for them to buy some beer, pay a utility bill, make a grocery run (or) who knows.”
Cribb said the livestream concert will last until at least 10 p.m. but there’s not yet a firm schedule of who plays when. No matter when people tune in, Cribb assures they’ll be treated to some “serious talent” and that it will be sylisitically eclectic.
“The cool thing for us, though, is we’re graced by this talent everyday in the restaurants and on our FR8yard stage,” Cribb said. “These folks are literally taking care of our guests everyday when they’re not in the studio or performing. We’re extremely proud to employ so many artists.”
Cribb added that The FR8yard, in particular, has been hit hard by social distancing measures.
“We’re doing takeout delivery at our other concepts,” he explained. “FR8yard, however, is a venue that is built on gatherings. We had to pull the plug on it for a while … how long, nobody knows.
“(That’s) another reason why we’re excited to fire up our stage and sound tonight; there’s been zero activity for (nearly) two weeks there. Who knows, me might do this sort of thing consistently during the hiatus.”
Like what you read? Want to support more coverage of the Upstate SC music community? Please consider becoming a patron of The Music Advocate. Find out how at www.patreon.com/themusicadvocate.