Hive Open Mic ( #openmic ) is a global community of music lovers, for music fans and musicians. Each week is a new invitation for expression and connection.
Hive Open Mic - Top Ten Spotlight
A Celebration of Our Global Community
Today's "Top Ten" list is a recap of weeks 1-10: April 12-June 20, 2020, celebrating the starting point of Hive Open Mic. Here are ten outstanding entries, featuring ten different song carriers. I'm happy to say that these musicians hail from many nations, with multiple languages, covering many genres.
In my personal life, I often resonate with the "Eagle Condor Prophecy," visualizing two opposite tribes joining forces to work as one nation, valuing peace and harmony. This is exactly what we're achieving here. That's because music is a common ground that we can all walk on, and this frontier is free and open!
"One nation under a groove, gettin' down just for the funk of it. One nation, and we're on the move. Nothin' can stop us now." —George Clinton
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Spotlight
The Mechanics of the Heart [Original] - by @lorenzopistolesi
My heart intelligence tells me to shine the spotlight on this post first of all, as it feels vitally meaningful at this moment. Italian musician @lorenzopistolesi shared this song on April 22, 2020, at an earth-shaking time in human history when the coronavirus pandemic was at its scariest. This artist stood up singing out, full-blast on his 5th floor balcony, with grateful neighbors adding harmonies and applause. This is the potent and powerful medicine we carry.
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More Highlights
Aguila Aguile + Quñaq [Covers] by @joseacabrerav and @auelitairene
I am so thankful for the friendship and kinship that is happening here in the Hive Open Mic community. Here are two musicians who I've learned to love and respect as a brother and sister. These beautiful Venezuelan song carriers have blessed my life with their sacred songs, and their advocacy of the audio frequency: 432hz, striving to bring healing and well-being to the world.
The Grand Attention [Original] - by @montycashmusic
This artist of Western Australia has been an inspiration to me. He is a long-time ally of the #openmic movement since its Steemit days, as well as an essential early voice in the formation of Hive Open Mic, plus a big contributor in the Tip Jar. Here is a memorable performance that introduced his versatility on multiple instruments, his exotic sound, and his advanced understanding of music theory with the interesting rhythm pattern. This song encouraged me to try "looping," kicking open some cool new doors.
Bitter Sweet Symphony [Cover] - by @juliolunar
Here's another musician who up-leveled the playing field. This is a song that stood out in Hive Open Mic Week 1. It's a hip rendition of "Bitter Sweet Symphony," by The Verve. I dig this artist's percussive guitar playing. And I admire the ending, capturing the essence of The Verve's string arrangement, through whistling! What pleasant surprise. I appreciate the genuine grace I hear in the performance, along with the attractive presentation.
Ponto de Yemanjá [Original] by @wildfamily
For her second entry in the Hive Open Mic, @wildfamily delivers a high-energy "ponto," sung in Portuguese, enhanced with original footage from the Gulf Coast. It's a heart-felt expression that brings me right out into the deep waters, waves clashing and crashing. I appreciate the a cappella art form, featuring the voice in all its glory.
"The voice is my instrument of choice. I'm always learning, working to maintain a daily practice of singing aloud. It really brings me joy." —@wildfamily
Uno (Cover) by @ylich
Another incredible singer in our community is @ylich. I highly admire this tango, demonstrating his terrific talents as a vocal soloist, supported by karaoke-style concert instrumentation. Other times, he creates his own musical accompaniment with excellence on the stringed instruments too. I feel fortunate for his steadfast presence in our community, sharing and caring.
Slow Down (Original) by @bryandivisions
For variety and enjoyment, I'm happy to include newcomer @bryandivisions as one of the phenomenal contributors. His recent first entry is an amazing wave of positivity and artistry, given in the flow-state. He is our event's first rapper, delivering on-the-fly songwriting that feels like a divine vibration. I found myself listening to this one repeatedly as it impresses me greatly.
Se Trata De Ti (Original) by @ilazramusic
Here's an original song that takes my breath away. I adore the way this song starts right on that soaring high vocal note, wow! I feel blessed to hear this voice and this song at this time—it inspires me. This artist tells me his instrument is native to Venezuela: "Cuatro", like a Ukelele but bigger and less bright. Some people use it to play "Joropo" (traditional Venezuelan music), but @ilazramusic makes it uniquely his own as a percussive accompaniment.
Down in The Valley (Cover) by @jubei333
To me, this sentimental song is timely, potent, and resonant as it relates with the historic Black Lives Matter movement. Through the medicine of this song, with its haunting melody, and the storytelling given by the song carrier, I find myself imagining the slow rhythm of plantation life, filling with emotions, feeling compassion for those struggling through racism and similar injustices. Feels important that we sing and hear songs of this nature at this time.
United As One [Original] by @rezasofyan
This Indonesian artist reaches out and touches us with folk songs of a simple nature, filled with tenderness. Here is his original song called "United As One," written in the Aceh language—one of the 1,000+ languages of Indonesia. I appreciate the underlying message, rallying people to embrace each other as a greater family, working toward unity and harmony. I believe he is achieving this exact effect by sharing this song with this community.
Todo Estará Bien (Original) by @oliverjobs
I'm grateful for the artists who share the story behind the music. Here's a good example. This artist shared the origin story of this original song—it was a positive awakening, written after experiencing a spell of depression. I appreciate his willingness to explore our theme: "Wake Up," exploring what that means to him and then expressing himself from that place. This allows listeners to relate and resonate.
Hive Open Mic - Vision Statement
A Creative Connection through Live Music
Reviewing these songs, we can understand how music connects us across all distances, through all languages. We can recognize the universal language that exists in a melody. We can witness the wonderful ways music is medicine—a powerful force that helps us to express and connect.
Along these lines, I'm thankful to each and every participant who acknowledges our weekly theme. To me, this is a special way of connecting in the creative space as we explore new territory together. My commitment is to offer an interesting theme each week, supported by an intriguing image, inviting a shared artistic journey. Here are the original artworks and themes from our first ten weeks of the Hive Open Mic.
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Inspiration
In honor of Week 10, here's the best track from Pearl Jam's Ten album. At that time, MTV was one of my primary introductions to new music and then VH1 upped the song sharing game with their "Behind The Music" video series, documenting the roads to success (and sometimes failure) walked by popular artists and bands. This was before the days of the internet, iTunes, Napster... in the time of cassette tapes and traditional radio. Boom—the music industry blew up! And somehow, with or without the industry, we are now empowered as individuals to share our music with the world.
Acknowledgements
Being the host of this event, and an active participant, I am delighted by what we've achieved as a community and as individuals. I see this as an opportunity to explore new territory as artists, making connections along the way. I feel humbled to recognize my calling as a brother to all, and I hope every participant will feel my love in response to theirs.
I feel encouraged to continue moving forward. I am thankful to my fellow musicians most of all, voicing their genuine spirit—a true act of courage. Thanks to all the artists spotlighted above, along with many others: @kantos, @jossavendano, @exzorltg, @steevc, @partitura... Next, I owe gratitude to the generous listeners, upvoters, commenters, and curators, including: @pfunk and @holger80, and some noteworthy communities: HiveStreet and Natural Medicine. Thank you.
Note: Hive Open Mic - Week 11 is underway now, where the weekly theme is: "Ask."