MusicTown Detroit Introduces Musical Web Series

MusicTown Detroit may run a two-person skeleton crew, but executive director Annie Scaramuzzino says that won’t stop them from highlighting local artists. Their new web series District Sessions represents the wide sampling of musical talent in metro Detroit.

“It’s just myself and our engineer Ryan full time, but we’re huge music fans and we wanted to do more to show off the modern creative talent of Detroit. The series is in the same vein as NPR Tiny Desk or the BBC Live Lounge, but more unique to our studios,” Scaramuzzino says.

The series airs on MusicTown’s YouTube and Facebook platforms every other Tuesday. The plan is for it to run indefinitely to serve as cozy, behind-the-scenes glimpses into the creative process. Scaramuzzino and her partner curate the talent but say anyone is welcome to reach out and inquire about being featured.

“The vision for District Sessions was sort of a stripped down, intimate setting. We close curtains, hang some lights, make it moody and cool. During the sessions, artists rework their songs and play with their styles. Podcasters come in and assist us a lot – Rob Reinhart from Acoustic Café (on WDET) has been a great collaborative partner, for instance,” Scaramuzzino says. 

The first two episodes feature local guitarist Trey Priest, a member of the D.Cipher collective who also facilitates instruction, production and exposure for local talent. MusicTown’s parent company, Entercom, allows the organization to assist community creatives in a variety of ways.

“We want to let the episodes speak for themselves the same way we try to act as helpers here at MusicTown,” Scaramuzzino says. “There’s always an element of community. We do free podcasting here and host networking events in our live rooms. We’re the platform, the artists are the motors.”