Listen to the live interview Episode #479: A.V.A Live Radio Behind The Music with Jacqueline Jax: http://tobtr.com/10072873
GETTING TO KNOW MARCINA GARNER
by Jacqueline Jax host of A.V.A Live Radio
People can expect to hear messages..
for the soul over a blend of the music styles that influence my sound-, from soul, rock and roll, to jazz. Those messages include freedom and the love found in having a real, honest, relationship with God. I hope to give the listener a glimpse of Love amidst the complexities and realities of life. My music for my upcoming EP is a personal testimony of the thoughts I have each day. The EP’s title is The Multitude of My Thoughts. It is my first project, and will be coming out on 6.24.17.
Interesting story about how I came up with the title: Mmmhmm
I was on my way to work on the train one day. During that time, I would read some inspirational texts on the ride into Baltimore City. One day in particular, I came across a biblical passage from the book of Psalms that said, “When I said my foot slips, Oh God, you uphold me with your right hand…in the multitude of my thoughts, your comforts delight my soul.” In my life, I wear many hats- a wife, mother, musician, sister, daughter etc. I struggle with various issues, as I believe we all do, and this text resonated with me. It reassured me that no matter how hard things may become, thinking about the ways God is good to me and my family on a daily basis lifts me up. He is my joy. So, I decided to give my album this title. At that point I was in the development process of the album, and I found that the songs I had written were linked by that one passage. Mmmhmm is one of the songs from this album. It is a dance song of reassurance that in God, true freedom exists in this life, and especially in the life to come.
Song: Mmmhmm
Music Genre/ category : House/Dance/Soul/Inspirational
I love house/club music, and living in Baltimore, if you go out to the clubs and night, or listen to particular radio stations in the area, you will hear it. The style of this song was influenced by the Baltimore house music, and a bible verse I grew up reading. It was one of my grandmother’s favorite scriptures, and has become one of mine. The hook of the song is Mmmhmm, which we all know is slang for affirming something that is true and sure. When singing about God’s good news and heaven, titling the song Mmmhmm was only right. I recorded and produced the song in the basement of my house. I sent the song to friend and Grammy, Dove nominee and Juno Award winner producer Roger Ryan out of Nashville, TN to listen to, and he loved it. He produced the piano and synth instrumentation for the song. Additional music contributors included the DMV’s own trombonist Nic Brogdon, trumpeter Milton Smith, and guitarist Joshua Lutz out of Nashville, TN. Jeff Pitzer, of In The FloodZone, IL, completed the final mixing and mastering.
Link: www.marcinagarner.weebly.com
Music Business…
I feel optimistic and open to the possibilities that await for me in my music career. As an independent artist, I enjoy the feeling of being in control of my own musical career, growing in my knowledge, and learning as I go along on this journey as a producer and singer/songwriter. Social Media is very powerful vehicle that has been beneficial to me. It has helped me cross into other parts of the world and share my gift. Many of the blessings and opportunities I have acquired over the last two years happened from my interactions and relationships I acquired through social media. I was blessed with collaborative opportunities to work with great people.
Cons-shady individuals in the music scene. But I guess you can’t really escape that reality. Sometimes, I wish it were a bit easier to find people that keep their word. However, I have to try and be the change I would like to see.
I would love to have 5 minutes alone with…
Avery Sunshine. She is an awesome artist and musician, who has been successful in navigating the social media scene, building a strong fan base, and savvy at her craft. Plus she seems like such a positive individual. I think it’s important to glean wisdom from people like her who are where you aspire to be.
I live in Baltimore, MD..
with my husband Kevin and two daughters Shelby and Andrea. In my opinion, Baltimore is a musically eclectic/diverse area. Urban music influences can be heard throughout the music. You will find r&b, christian, gospel, adult alternative, jazz, country, bluegrass, rock, etc. We have the Inner Harbor, which has a lot of restaurants and musical venues such as the Hard Rock Cafe (which debuts local artists and bands each night in the summer), Pier Six, where Prince held his “Rally 4 Peace” concert two years ago on May 10, 2015 following the arrest and death of Freddie Gray. Most of the places you go out to have a musical venue/component associated with their establishments. The music scene often serves as a platform for artists to advance social/political change in the city.
Also, there are a large number of annual festivals and events in our area where musicians can focus on to gain exposure. Some of note include Light City, which takes place in the Spring each year. Artscape, which holds a competition for upcoming artists to be featured performers, AFRAM (African American Festival), which takes place in July of this year. You can find all sorts of wine festivals where local artists can play for exposure, numerous concerts at Pier Six, the Merriweather Post-Pavillion, the Artscape Festival, Meyerhoff Performing Arts Center, etc. We are 30 minutes from DC, home of the DC Jazz Festival, Howard Theatre, Lake Arbor Jazz Fest. There are great opportunities for a musician to thrive here if you are good at your craft and really want to start pushing yourself out there in these scenes. Plus, you have a large college radio scene in this area. It is a niche I am working on tapping into. There are some great universities in the area such as Morgan State University, UMBC, UMCP, which all have great music programs. In general the Baltimore/Maryland/DC. It is an area filled with creativity and opportunity.
Website and social media links:
http://marcinagarner.weebly.com/
https://marcinagarner.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/mgarnerofficiallikepage/
https://www.reverbnation.com/marcinagarner
https://www.facebook.com/kamesepro
https://twitter.com/kamesepro
https://kameseproducer.tumblr.com/
https://www.instagram.com/kamesepro/
http://kameseproductions.weebly.com/about.html
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUXXEnQ1MY-qsD92Dt9VjzTofAaULNKGI