PRESSING ON: Druid City Brewing Funding Record Of Local Musicians

TUSCALOOSA, AL — Druid City Brewing Co. owner Bo Hicks has an arm full of tattoos exclusively related to his home state of Alabama. Calling himself an "armbassador" for both Alabama and Tuscaloosa, his latest effort to aid the arts in his community could see memories preserved for decades to come, long after his tattoos are faded and gone.

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After hosting an online concert event at the brewery's 15th Street location on Dec. 18, 2020 — featuring numerous Tuscaloosa musicians — Hicks decided to raise the money to have a vinyl record pressed through Oz Music, which is the brewery's neighbor and the city's only independent record store.

The record will feature certain selections from the five-hour event, with Hicks saying Oz Music will get its margins from each sale, while the rest of the cost paid by the customer will go to the musicians.

Tuscaloosa artists featured on the record will include: Tom Rathe, Patrick O'Sullivan, Adam Ingram, Brantley Charles and the One Timers, Matthew Wurtele and Matt Bryant.

To fund the project, the brewery is collecting donations through an Indiegogo crowfunding campaign, which has raised $1,315 of its $4,000 goal as of Wednesday. The campaign currently has 18 days left.

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Hicks then pointed out how important the support would be for local artists, due to the impact had on the gig economy nationwide and locally during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

"The record just seemed like a natural thing because we only play vinyl here at the brewery, we let people pick it out, and we have a whole row of Alabama-based artists," he said. "But there are also a lot of other people. We want to support the artists that come from here and show the country that we are not the stereotypes they think we are."

Hicks was inspired to have the record pressed after seeing the outpouring of support during the live-stream event, which raised upwards of $7,000 for local musicians during the holiday season.

He also expressed gratitude for the contributions and support from Chamber CEO Jim Page and Tuscaloosa Tourism & Sports President Don Stanley, along with numerous other community-minded supporters of local business and the arts.

"I just thought it was such a good snapshot and all of these folks are people I immensely respect," Hicks said. "Some of them are at the points in their life where music is not going to be their forever job, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have amazing, beautiful songs that should to be recorded."

While his tattoos will provide a sense of place wherever he goes, Hicks hopes the record will do the same, serving not only as a lasting reminder of Tuscaloosa's resilience during the pandemic, but the vibrancy of the local arts scene.

"This is something that we believe in," he said. "A lot of people complain that Tuscaloosa isn’t Athens or Austin. I don't want that. I want Tuscaloosa to be Tuscaloosa."

As new coronavirus cases see a sharp downturn with the rollout of the vaccine a year after the pandemic began, Hicks is hopeful for the future of live music in Tuscaloosa.

"It's such a trying time right now," he said. "We want to be a force of good. That’s why we’re still open outside. Numbers have been looking great and hopefully we will be able to have outdoor shows again soon."

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