Rising Appalachia is super excited to launch our new project “the Slow Music Movement”, an effort to promote sustainable touring practices, bring in local outreach to each event, reduce single-use waste at our shows, source farm-to-table food for backstage, and continue to create and promote sustainable touring practices across the board. “It’s our effort to take the glitz and glam out of the music industry and bring performance back to its roots- that of public service. A service where musicians are not just part of fast-paced entertainment world, but instead influence the cultural shift as troubadours, activists, story tellers, and catalysts of justice,” explains Leah.
The Slow Music Movement is like a ripple that moves outwards, scanning the soundwaves like sonar for the music, stories and songs that contain the same resonant frequency. We have been working alongside incredible leaders and organizations including Winona LaDuke, Joanna Macey, Climbing Poetree, Gulf Restoration Network, the Permaculture Action Network, the Prison Yoga Project, and 1 Billion Rising (along with many more on-the ground efforts) to bring you more direct action and involvement throughout our concerts, and to help maintain an independent musical spirit in the face of such a fast-paced world. We are also scheduling a host of intimate Meet-and-Greet events and workshops to accompany our tour route this year. Stay tuned for more ways to get involved!
The ‘Slow Music Movement’ encourages musicians to try out ‘non-industry standard’ ways of bringing music into the world by “linking to local communities and staying with local friends; pursuing alternative venues for performances and supporting local businesses with farm-to-table hospitality; providing local non-profits at each show a platform to display information; exploring alternative methods of travel including train, bike, low impact vehicles, boat, horse, or simply focusing on regional touring; and encouraging concert goers to take in more than just the catharsis of the music.”
To learn more, check out our current Tour Dates and check in with these Facebook event pages to see what kind of happenings are unfolding as we travel along.