Last night my friends put on a “guerrilla show”, we set up a sound system and band equipment under a highway bridge and 200-300 friends came to rock out to jazzy rock, hardcore and hip hop. We started at 8 PM and went til about 3 AM with an after party going until 8.
In the beginning of the night I wasn’t really feeling it. Something about how I had been writing for three days straight and wanted to keep writing made it hard to concentrate on being social and enjoying music.
(one of the quieter bands)
At about 11 PM though, a friends hardcore band came on and...holy shit! They had so much energy no one there wasn’t at least bobbing their head, even the people who had just came for the soft, gentle, poppy, jazzy rock. Our friends were all going nuts. It’s rare to see a band that can work the crowd like that, and the fact that we were all friends and friends of friends there made it even more powerful. The female singer and her boyfriend, the guitarist also have a rap project. I love the way they pass energy back and forth on stage and pass it on to everyone else.
As I watched the show I had a strong urge to create something. I thought “I would sure love to fill people with so much inspiration, just being myself in a way that resonates”.
The night went on and one friend told me that he thinks since I’ve come to visit (it’s been three months), he feels everyone’s been much more motivated and creativity is flowing much better than before. He said that just by talking to me, a lot of friends remember who they are and don’t get lost on distractions as much. It’s something a lot of friends do but something he thinks I do considerably well.
Later that night at the after party, my old drummer and I jammed, a kind of rhythmic noise jam. This time I was on djembe and singing he was playing the melodica and banging things. It felt good to play with him again.
After we spoke for a bit, I spoke to three new friends and explained a lot about our scene, the way we approach music and life. When they went down to find the bathroom another friend came up to me and said out of nowhere “There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you for a long time. The way you can blend into cultures is really special, we sometimes forget you aren’t local and then when I see you talking to these people I realize you are helping people understand each other, you are really really good at it.”
I almost cried. It’s rare for someone to see you the way you see yourself and recognize the work you do when it’s not something flashy or something that fits into a label like “performer” or “lawyer” or “teacher”. The most honest acts are rarely recognized, but this friend pays attention enough to see all the subtle things we do for others. He filled me up with a sense of satisfaction.
The next day I sent a message to the guitarist of the hardcore band. He was so happy and told me he was actually only at half energy last night, which I had a hard time believing. I told him that he filled us all with energy that we will be able to channel into all kinds of creativity and inspire others with it. He told me he learned everything he knows from the friends I am staying with, including the two who had voiced appreciation for me the day before.
We came full circle! My friends had inspired the band, the band inspired me, and then I inspired my friends again. This kind of relationship is so powerful, it’s what a healthy empowered tribe looks like. It will fill you up and keep you going through anything, You can have it! Just be you! Be you so much that you feel you can’t be anymore you than you are already being. Don’t look outside of you for happiness or support. Find it inside yourself and then others will come to reinforce it and multiply it!
I believe in you!