Since the beginning of time African-Americans have been shaping our society through “feel good” songs and also those that raise awareness in our communities. There are a variety of events happening all over the country in order to celebrate June’s Black Music Month, such as Apple’s Meet the Musicians intimate live shows, but we must not forget about our local scene.
Open mic nights have grown into something more than just entertaining a few audience members, it has helped the audience travel into a world of someone else’s words that give them a new perspective on life.
Douglas Morris founded Old Soul Entertainment shortly after his college years. The name Old Soul came from Morris’ experience in the “house party era” along with the DJs, boom boxes and breakdances.
“Old Soul Entertainment is just an extension of my childhood,” said Morris. “Once a lot of my friends began moving back to Indianapolis, we found there was a void for things we like to do.”
Douglass explains that in the city there are different types of events where specific people choose to entertain themselves.
“I have friends who are auto mechanics and friends who are doctors, but the point is there is no difference in the people. We are all the same people. People get caught up in titles and race, but we didn’t want it to be that,” he says.
Morris came up with the concept of their LocalMotion event because there was a void for the under 21 market.
“There was nowhere for those people to express themselves,” he said. “I wanted to welcome all ages and not just create an under 21 club.”
Almost any night of the week you can be a part of Old Soul Entertainment’s events where you can check out Indy’s local talent. Every Sunday, performers are invited to share their talents with the city through the event referred to as LocalMotion: Creativity in Motion.
This open mic experience celebrates the artistic community through music, poetry, dance, comedy and other visual arts.
Whitney Murphy, who came to Indianapolis in 2007 has attended the event a couple of times and says the atmosphere is very laid back, informal and has the feel of a lounge.
“I definitely liked the vibe that it gave off. It’s kind of like we’re all family,” Murphy said. “One of the things I love about LocalMotion is that they say if the audience doesn’t show up, then the talent doesn’t because we are the talent.”
Similar to a traditional open mic, the audience gets a chance to sign up and the talent portion begins. Murphy recalls an act that opened her eyes to the root of storytelling.
“One of the things I remember is the fact that I’ve never experienced storytelling,” she said. “I have before but it has been from an afrocentric point of view. However, one of the storytellers talked about his family and growing up and I thought that was pretty cool because I thought story telling involved ancient African history.”
Murphy says she has attended numerous open mics before but this one incorporated the closeness of family.
“It’s just something about this (LocalMotion) that screams ‘showcase your talent’ more than a simple open mic,” she said. “At some open mics no one signs up and it’s awkward but everybody came with the intention to showcase their talent or support those who were going up there. At some point they had to limit the amount of people.”
Murphy also says it has a reputation of being for the people, by the people. The host, Matthew Davis is an artist himself which gives it a different feel because it’s artists supporting other artists.
LocalMotion: Creativity in Motion is held at Fletcher Place, 642 Virginia Ave. located in Fountain Square 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. every Saturday.
