Support for Kalamazoo Lively Arts is provided by the Irving S. Gilmore Foundation, helping to build and enrich So I really paired up with different... Michigan music ambassadors to really support this as a whole.

so that we can start to create what would be like a music city.

And I want to see that grow throughout our whole state, so that all communities are going to start supporting music.

sounds of the zoo is here to plug that in.

All right, here we go.

Jennifer Hudson Prenkert.

You are described as, get ready.

Dynamic, influential.

Festival director, renowned for your exceptional skills in a lot of things.

I think this was my destiny.

I mean, when I look back, I have definitely felt this passion for doing having my own voice out there in a really unique way.

And so sometimes when I look back, it makes perfect sense of where I landed.

And here we are, seeing what’s on your T shirt.

Sounds of the zoo.

Let’s get right to what this is all about.

Essentially, it’s a music festival, but it’s a mission based in an artist driven music festival.

I have a background in booking music.

The idea of having a week long festival It actually came out of COVID.

the fact that there was nothing going on, and I wanted to show that you could have something from Monday through Sunday.

Is this an annual event that happens in the fall, right?

Yes.

So... It’s a week long festival that takes place the last week of September.

And I have seven days, eight locations, and 52 bands, to be precise, that’s all free for the community.

And how can that be?

How can it be free?

Well, that’s a good question.

I’m working on that.

No, it’s free because I do get sponsorships and raise the money myself.

And I like to look at myself like a kind of a one dollar at a time.

It’s a very community grassroots driven way to think of money.

Behind everything for me, it’s truly about the art.

One of the things I do also is I do bring a celebration to diversity and inclusion, and my pillars are bringing awareness to mental health and sustainability.

And so I think this was another way for me to open that.

Those doors... When I was in school, I went to Western Michigan University, and our music scene was just thriving.

Every day of the week, there was something going on.

I joke and say, I don’t know how I graduated.

Because I was always out seeing live music.

It was the culture.

No, that was your education.

It really was magic.

You’re right, absolutely.

And I remember thinking as 18 year old here in town, like... You know, if I owned a music venue, you know, what could I do, or if somebody would buy it, I could run it.

So I think somehow I planted that seed from the beginning.

And that was even before I knew that Gibson... Guitar factory was born here.

I really didn’t know that, which is interesting.

And I also want to pay homage to the history of Kalamazoo music.

In school, like I said, we would have music, you know, every day of the week.

So that was sort of paying homage to club soda, and Harvey’s were big, two big places.

There was so much talent, and there still is.

It just, things have shifted.

So this really has grown out of something extremely organic, kind of phoenix rising from the ashes.

What is it about Kalamazoo that makes this all work?

Number one, our location.

We are centrally located to come into Michigan.

You got to get through us to go to a lot of places.

But really, our history in arts is, it goes very deep.

So we’ve always been known as an artistic community.

Culturally, we have all the ingredients are here.

You know, my larger goal is to make Michigan a music destination state.

How does one take advantage of this week?

If you can, um, get on.

My website.

We have all of our bands on there, so you’ll find out, like, what place each band is playing.

Then you can start to figure out where you need to go.

And the times, and you can basically just show up for free for all the things.

I’ve got four days at live music venues in Kalamazoo, and on the weekend, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, we then move into Bronson Park.

And that is where a, I call it, like, the mini fest for the weekend is birthed.

but we do have social district drinking available, which is really exciting to be able to walk around responsibly with a cocktail and support different businesses and bars and restaurants that participate in that program.

But then also to go have, you know, we have food trucks, I’m really excited about, but we also want... to make sure that the restaurants are being supported as well.

So it really is this... You can bring a chair down to the park, hang out, go grab dinner, come back.

There’s... other things happening in the community as well, but this is... just another stopping point.

You mentioned early in life pretty much destined for this, but... Have you gotten more passion over the years?

Definitely.

I think so.

I think, honestly, I look back at my, I think, influence, just being in theater.

I was raised in theaters since I was little.

running around the Ramsdell Theater in Manistee with my grandparents.

Um, yeah, and just my parents are really, really into music.

I mean, I really, I tell my parents all the time it’s their fault.

We joke about it.

And we’re actually really big fans of PBS and NPR and public radio and TV.

I was raised on it.

Is there a favorite part of your creative process?

I mean, obviously, the end result of seeing it come together, when the shows are happening, and I can see all the pieces and the people and watch how people react.

I think that’s my very favorite, but I’m learning the collaborations are really important, so it’s different than just throwing a concert together.

How do you know after your zoo festival is finished that you’ve done a good job?

For me, it’s just having somebody come and enjoy themselves, seeing someone smile, looking over and seeing someone dance.

That’s how I measure success.

Do we see you on stage?

Usually just as an MC, and then you’ll see me running around like a crazy person.

Usually, I’m running down the streets, running over here.

I have a great team this year.

Each year it builds a little more.

Talk to me about the importance of venues.

Thank you for asking that.

I think that has become a very important component to music.

That’s really one of the reasons I decided to have it not just at a park, but really support the live music venues that we do have left in Kalamazoo.

A lot of venues are still closing.

It is really hard right now.

So, I think changing the trajectory of, like, where we put our focus and understanding what goes behind putting a show on, not just the stage of light sound by a ticket and go, but we’re trying to cultivate a new understanding to people, to really support the culture.

And I think what I didn’t mention before is really, I am building a music culture here, that’s rooted in history, and more supportive and more collaborative.

I think that’s an important thing for people to know.

Tell me about, are you bringing in different aspects of world culture?

Absolutely.

The part of this whole experience, for me, is supporting as many genres as I can, which is why I have 52 bands, because I want to support all the different genres, and you’d be surprised as to, there’s a lot of them.

But I think one that doesn’t get enough attention is really, like, world music.

And I think that really, for me, needs to be a main focus, so that people, I think, can recognize themselves in music.

Music is a healer.

I actually have a group called the Bahar Ensemble.

I’ve had Nalangira Samuel, who’s from Uganda.

Zion lion, which is our reggae group, local in Kalamazoo.

I just think it’s really important to put the emphasis.

And again, remind us of the importance of the arts, of being able to listen to song, watch a dance, see a play in these times.

I mean, it really is mental health.

I can honestly say that this was born out of some, uh, my family had some health issues that happened, and it really inspired me to keep going, and doing something where I could put my energy and feeling frustrated, and there are lots going on in the world, but I love when I can sit and talk about sounds of the zoo, and music, and it really is a healer.

I’ve always felt that way.

I just think it really makes people feel good.

So to have this a free festival that’s accessible to all, then it takes away the money, the boundaries.

It’s just about the healing and feeling good, and music is a vibration.

So it really is a healer.

And I think it should be, you know, run in the world.

Again, Kalamazoo based the zoo, but are you looking at doing good things for our state of Michigan?

Absolutely.

I have a very, a very lofty goal to kind of tie in music into what we do with our pure Michigan and have it be pure culture, pure music, pure sound.

I think we have an ability.

Our entire state is full of chock full of talented artists, and really trying to work together to shine that light from here all the way up to the UP.

We’re a very unique state in that way, that we have all kinds of recording studios and I call us Michigan music ambassadors.

We have groups I collaborate with at Sounds of the Zoo that has helped me stay here as local spins, which is an online Michigan music magazine.

Sonic Coast is a new, free listening music app.

Michigan Music Alliance is a supportive business to help people in the world of music know how to run their business.

And there’s a mitten podcast, mitten music.

So I really paired up with different, I call this music, Michigan music ambassadors, to really support this as a whole, so that we can start to create what would be like a music city.

It just has a little more mobility.

And sounds of the zoo is here to plug that in.

I want to see that grow throughout our whole state, so that all communities are going to start supporting music.

The venues are gonna grow.

The touring will be able to expand when we all get on the same page.

And it’s all about the music.

So.

Finding some taglines to really push us to the middle of the state.

I mean, Michigan’s a beautiful place to be.

I think we have all the potential to be a new music industry.

the industry be seen through the eyes of the Midwest to share with the rest of the world.

I always double check myself when I’m looking online, the go rounds, or is it just go round?

If you’re a head, it’s just go rounds.

My name is Graham Parsons.

We are the Go Rounds, and this is our hometown.

So thanks for coming out.

I just say, Oh, we’re under the umbrella of rock and roll, but it spends the spectrum from, like, delicate.

Two irreverent, sort of in your face, punk.

usually just end up saying, You should just listen to it, you know?

Like, I don’t, I have no idea what to tell you.

I’ll forget it for the thousandth time I will walk you hold you through the night I will walk you hold you through the night I will walk you hold you through the night I think it started as more of a studio project, and... we were just obsessed with, like, creating songs that we loved, or recordings that we loved, sounds that we loved.

And then we became this performing unit, and then in 2012, it blossomed into a 20 piece band.

where we had a horn section and string section, and multiple drummers, and three guitarists, and multiple keyboard players, and background vocalists.

And that was, that was sort of the beginning of my understanding of, like, the go rounds as an institution, and the go rounds as a bit of a revolving door, as far as people who want to be creative and want to plug in when they can, and then we formed the quartet that was the longest standing quartet in 2014 through 2021, which was Mike and Adam and Drew and I, and then we proceeded to sort of test the limits of touring and performance, and playing 130 shows a year, and driving all over the place.

And then when the dust settled from that, when the pandemic ended, it was, we had to recalibrate and re envision what music was, a life in music.

And now it’s all about the balance, and, like, finding a way to never lose the creative fire, but always being open to the thing changing, you know, and understanding that it’s gonna change.

You know, you can be obsessed with something when you’re young, and you can kind of block out the rest of the world.

But I think as you grow, and as you get older, you realize that you have to be tending to all things in life, that’s maybe where we’ve grown the most, like, how to care for each other, how to care for ourselves, you know, trying to be more measured, and be more mature, and just, like, always trying to do things from a place of love.

How you do Why you here?

Will you ever want to know?

The reason being a being reasonable.

Just something about writing songs and creating art that is a little, um, like, out of my hands, and I’m totally comfortable with that, and that actually, like, makes me feel less pressure when I’m creating something.

Of course, you have to put in the work, you have to sit down.

The song tells you a lot as it’s being written.

It kind of, it leads you in the direction it wants to go, and you kind of just have to be, you have to pay attention and listen to it.

And then bouncing it off other people.

You know, the collaborative process opens it up, too, and you’re like, Oh, wow, I never thought of it from in this way, or, wow, you adding that baseline to this particular chord structure totally changes the vibe I had in my head, but I love it, or I don’t.

I think what I’ve learned is to relinquish control.

I mean, maybe that’s the biggest lesson and to understand that so many of these things are going to be better, having had more people involved.

These epiphanies are these surprises when lines or when ideas connect.

It’s like, whoa, that’s kind of, um, almost psychedelic in a way.

Or, again, feeling like you’re being, sort of, sent a message from beyond.

So there’s that whole feeling, and then the recording process can be a little more tedious.

That can be a little more like, you know, being a, like, a precise baker or something, ’cause there’s so many technical aspects happening while you’re doing that.

But sometimes in that moment, you find a sound, that, again, it’s just, like, a total accident, and that opens up the section of a song, and that’s, like, oh, my God.

Like, this is exactly what we needed to hear in this moment.

Being surprised is like a really good thing.

I just really enjoy that when someone brings an idea that I would have never thought of.

And it’s like, wow, this just enhanced this section or this song, in a way that is just so beautiful, and I’m so grateful for.

And as far as themes lyrically, you know, I think I use music as a way to process more often than not, like, difficult things.

or loss or grief.

And that’s not where I am in my life right now, but I still think there’s always something there.

And even if you’re not there right now, there’s always an echo of something you’ve been through, or there’s always this anticipatory grief that we carry for ourselves or for our loved ones.

And so music has been therapeutic for me in that way.

And I usually only pick up a guitar when I’m sort of in a space of needing to reflect, I guess.

Sweet mother’s a mercy Shredding you away Where has your ability gone?

The approach hasn’t really changed too much.

I mean, we still just goof off.

We get together, we try to find things that are funny or sound good, or make, or evoke some sort of feeling, and, yeah, really, you know, it’s kind of, that’s remained the same.

There’s like, that’s the most childlike portion of, like, being an artist, I think, is the creation.

You know, then you have to professionalize it and present it and market it, but that’s where I have maybe the most fun, or I feel the most free, or I just get the most sort of, like, energetic rush, is, like, writing songs and finishing a song.

And then for me, I love performing.

I really feel comfortable, like, in a group of, in a large group of human beings on stage.

Otherwise, I don’t go to a ton of shows.

I don’t go out and, like, be, I’m like, I don’t love being in crowds so much unless I have that purpose.

And so, in that space, when I have that purpose, and I can connect and, like, share love with an audience and receive that energy and just get that cycle going.

That’s so healing, you know?

And people who go to shows know that.

They go home, and they’re inspired, and they wake up the next day, and they, like, want to get back into something that they, they left behind, or, you know, and that’s the power of music.

It’s just like, we all get that, and it’s not just the performers.

Like, everyone experiences a release, and then also, like, this upwelling of inspiration.

You know, and energy.

For me, for the most part, just creating music and releasing it, like that’s success.

Whether or not it has a large audience, that allows me to, like, live comfortably, doesn’t really matter so much, and also, I think that can come at any time.

If you believe in it, like, I think it’ll find its audience, and as far as mountain peaks, I mean, we’ve traveled all over the country, and we’ve played, you know, headlining shows in Mexico, and wonderful shows in Canada, I’d love to get overseas.

I’d love to travel through Europe and play music.

And I just, you know, I just want to keep making things that I like, you know?

And I think that’s what a lot of artists want.

It’s like, you’re the first listener of whatever you’re creating, and I want to make something that I truly feel like is timeless, that I’m proud of.

And maybe I’ve done that, you know, but I think I’m always striving to, like, there’s always something, when you look back at things you create that you might have wanted to change, or, but I’d like to get to a point where I make an album, or even one song, or something, where I feel, like, it’s perfect, and that it’ll live, live on way beyond my life.

And I’m still excited about things we’ve created 10 years ago, but I think my favorite song is probably the next song, you know, the song we haven’t written yet or haven’t realized yet.

That’s probably what keeps me going.

It’s just, like, thinking about that evolution.

And, like, what’s coming?

That’s really inspiring to me.

Tell me no but you won’t let me go Tell me no but you won’t let me go Don’t you know.

I’m alone.

See me out and you runnin’ around See me out and you runnin’ around Don’t you know.

I’m alone.

That’s right.

You are my girl, but you’re not here to stay.

You want my love, but every other day is so cruel.

What ’cha you do?

That’s right See me out and you’re running around.

See me out and you’re running around it so cool.

What ’cha you do?

Let’s go out and have a good time, Like we did just the other night Let’s have fun.

And shake some.

See me out.

And you’re running around See me out and you’re running around.

Let me come and shake some All night long Yah let’s have fun See me out and you’re running around.

See me out and you’re running around.

We just have some fun.

And shake some 1,2,3,4 How do you do?

Why are you here?

Will you ever come to know?

The reason being and a being reasonable.

I like you who has no rival in his town.

I’ll throw it away.

Throw it away, throw it away for me, honey babe.

17 dreams in the secrets I keep for you.

You’d think he have no rival in his town?

Plain as a day.

Dark as a dawn.

Some lovers are clearly gone.

You live on the haunted memory.

Oh, memory.

Memory, feel free to fail me this time.

Leave me be, lonesome as a lonesome song.

Like you have no Rival in this town But always with that rival in his mind.

Yeah, jealousy and envy by his side.

Fall In Love Faith that’s gone Away.

Fall In Love Faith Will Come again How do you choose who to be near to when you’re so far away?

Making faces at the water in your summer gone?

Man, that was now.

That was questionable, we ever come to know.

How to keep them actions from coming into question again.

Be here who has no rival In this town holding in the dimmy screen around.

Bleeding for And lying down.

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