This is the story of how our live music and yoga classes came to be.
There was nothing but dead air. It was my first day on the radio and I was shadowing a more legit programmer’s 3 hour shift at WYCE. I had been through the required training, recorded myself in a test run and followed my mentor for several weeks. I was ready. Right.
The plan was this. At 2:00pm I would take over the big chair, slip on the headphones, navigate the control board, prep the CD’s and talk (gulp) on air. So around 1:55pm my mentor slipped out of the chair, the signal it was my turn. We started talking and joking…..I didn’t have to worry we had plenty of time. She had put on a looooong jazz song, plenty of time. Until it happened. Dead Air.
We looked at each other. An immediate panic hit me. I lunged for the chair, threw on the headphones, hit the control board to open my mic and said (with my voice trembling and gasping for air) “A world of music all in one place, 88.1 fm WYCE.”
I’ve never stood in front of a roomful of students to teach my first class, but I think I have an inkling of the kind of terror that happens the first time a new teacher opens their mouth to speak.
Back to 88.1 fm WYCE. If you don’t already know it, it’s a volunteer powered community radio station here in Grand Rapids. I was lucky enough to get to be a volunteer programmer for about 2 years. I got to interview national touring acts and had access to incredible new music from all corners of the world. But the single best thing was exposure to local artists. Many of them would come play in-studio shows, hang out at the station and perform at WYCE concerts all across town.
So fast forward to a random Slow Flow class I happened to be taking in 2012. I‘m blissed out in savasana, mind completely blank when it happens. It’s when it always happens. Ideas from nowhere, mind completely blank and an idea appears. We ended up calling it the Savasana Surprise.
The Savasana Surprise: book an incredible local band to come in while everyone is laying still, eyes closed in savasana, and serenade the class. We premiered the idea to a packed 5:45pm class in Eastown not long after. Lindsay Lou and the Flatbellys were our musical guests. It was incredible. At just the right moment the door opened and in slipped the band. They started playing softly. A few people peeked, others smiled, everyone felt it. The energy was off the chart.
Revue Magazine just called us a “local institution”. It’s nights like this that cement our legacy. Only at the Funky Buddha.
Since our Savasana Surprise series it was only natural to begin featuring local artists playing full class-length shows. WYCE Jammie award winning artists like Rick Chyme, Vox Viddora, The Muteflutes, Valentiger, AB, Delilah DeWylde….and I can’t wait to see Lady Ace Boogie at our upcoming Funky Buddha Fest (starts August 22nd…you should probably pre-register now to save your spot!).
Supporting local artists is now part of The Funky Buddha’s DNA. I like to think of it like this….you go to a yoga class and a (hot) house concert breaks out. We love the experience and we love being able to support our incredible collection of local artists with a venue unlike any other.
So if you enjoy our live music and yoga classes blame my time at WYCE. Better yet show up next February to the Jammies at the Intersection and check out the sheer talent on display. Let us know who you like….we’ll have them play for you while you practice.
Chris
PS- If you already have local favorites you’d love to see at the studio, please list them in the comments!
