by Dave Mainella
This past Friday, SoundCtrl teamed up with Hyundai to present the Re:Mix Lab at NYC’s Chelsea Market. It was a celebration of artistic collaboration, fashion, design, automobiles, music, and technology. A variety of speakers and performers, including New York’s own Action Bronson, ensured that the guests lucky enough to get into the free event had many reasons to celebrate.
Grammy-nominated artist and producer Ryan Leslie first took to the stage to kick off the evening with his keynote address. In his short presentation, he emphasized the importance of an artist’s honesty – an important message considering the vast amount of creative collaboration on display at the event. Leslie also spoke to that theme of collaboration, explaining its benefits in pushing artistic boundaries and showcasing his own collaborative efforts with Kanye West.
“Collaborate,” Leslise charged, “if you want to make something greater than yourself.”
As more event-goers trickled in, filling all empty space and any dead air with excited talk of Action Bronson and of the open bar graciously provided by 42Below Vodka, SoundCtrl’s Jesse Kirshbaum led the panel discussion on the growth of niche festivals in NYC. Panel speakers included VP of Marketing at Eventbrite Tamara Mendelsohn, Bamboozle founder Christian McKnight, Jelly NYC founder Alexander Kane, Bounce Music Festival’s Brandon Silverstein, and Jennifer Lyon of MeanRed Productions.
The panel discussed the recent explosion of niche festivals, especially as they pertain to specific genres such as Electronic Dance Music. “We’re going to see more intimate festivals,” Tamara Mendelsohn offered. “Less big ticket events.”
In regards to social media and festivals, as Bamboozle’s Christian McKnight explained, “When you have exuberant fans, they market the festival a lot better than you can.”
The excited fans at Friday’s event couldn’t wait for the star performers of the evening. They were eventually rewarded as Sound Remedy, RL Grime, and Action Bronson took to the stage throughout the rest of the night, enlisting the audience to dance and drink long into the morning.
Earlier in the day, the afternoon featured tech demonstrations by several promising music startups. Mixify, Songza, K235, and Beamz were all on hand to showcase some of the newest in the music tech industry.
The Re:Mix Lab presented an installation called “Exhibits in Collaboration” that featured specially designed sneakers, novelty Coca-Cola bottles, headphones, and other innovative pieces of art. The installation also showcased three vehicles that showcase the best in Hyundai design, performance, and innovation; the Elentra GT, Genesis Coupe, and Veloster Turbo were each on display.
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