Russ Hallauer was first exposed to the Athens music scene while he was a student at Clemson University in the early 1990s. He moved to Athens in 1995 and worked at Flagpole Magazine. In this interview, Hallauer talks about the creation and…
David Barbe was first introduced to music by his parents who were professional musicians. He played the bass for the band Mercyland, and became a freelance music engineer. In this interview, Barbe talks about his contribution to the AthFest music…
Eugene Willis, Jr., aka Blacknerdninja, talks about working at an early age doing odd jobs, drawing comics, and spending a lot of time in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Athens where his grandmother lived. He talks about starting to write raps,…
Ismeal Cuthbertson talks about the culture shock he experienced when moving to Athens, Georgia, and compares the violence between Athens versus the other big cities he's lived in. He talks about his early hip hop influences like Canibus and Fort…
Andrew Rieger talks about becoming a music fan at a young age, his first band, and starting the band Elf Power when he moved to Athens, Georgia for school. He talks about choosing to do home versus in-studio recordings, collaborating briefly with…
Frank MacDonell talks about growing up in the suburbs, taking guitar lessons, forming his high school band, Aftermath, and getting his first Les Paul guitar. MacDonell working for a real estate company after graduating high school, and getting…
Benjamin Edwards, who performs under the name Big Body, talks about his childhood in the West Athens neighborhood of Newtown, his early hip hop influences, and starting to record music in college. He talks about dropping out of school, going to…
Earl Arnold, aka Big Earl, talks about his early life in Harlem, collaborating with rapper Big Al, living in the Bethel Homes apartments (known as B-Town) in Athens, Georgia, and releasing music with the group Big Earl and the Twin boys. He compares…
Darrison Ellison was born and raised in Athens, Georgia. He discovered hip-hop and rap while in middle school, where he was active in school performances. Ellison served in the military from 1989-1995, after which he was involved in the Athens music…
Ken Richardson was born in Athens, Georgia and grew up in the Nelly B neighborhood on the eastside of Athens. He wrote his first rap while in middle school and later adopted the performance name Duddy Ken, through which he wrote and produced music…
Creston Spiers was born in Monroe, Louisiana. He studied orchestra and performance percussion at John Hopkins University and later moved to Athens. Spiers played guitar and drums in the bands Weasel Stick and Harvey Milk. In this interview, Spiers…
Kevin Sweeney grew up in Marietta, Georgia. After high school, Sweeney moved to Athens, Georgia where he formed his first band, Window Pane. Sweeney later played guitar in other bands such as A-Ditch and Hayride, and toured with Sunshine Fix. In this…
Rowe grew up in New Jersey around the 1970s. He grew up listening to artists such as Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen. Rowe learned how to drum as a teenager and later moved to Athens to attend the University of Georgia. While in Athens, Rowe toured…
Dave Marr grew up in Chicago, Illinois in the late 1970s and early 1980s. As a teenager, Marr had an interest in punk-rock which inspired him to learn guitar and played for the band Mantis after high school. Marr later worked as a DJ for WNUR,…
Jill Carnes grew up in Greenville, South Carolina, where her mother encouraged her to pursue the arts. In the 1980s, Carnes moved to Athens, Georgia where she worked as a dishwasher at The Grill and was introduced to local musicians. During this…
Paul Trudeau grew up in Providence, Rhode Island. He later came to Athens in 1988. Paul was interested in drumming growing up and played in a band called Basix as a kid. Upon moving to Athens, Trudeau recorded and toured with the band Hetch Hetchy.…
Cucchiaro was born in New York and grew up playing various horn and percussion instruments for his school’s Drum and Bugle Corp. After graduating high school, Cucchiaro moved to Athens, Georgia after fellow musician Julian Koster, where they both…
In 1985, Curtiss Pernice moved to Athens, Georgia from New York. There, Pernice lived with Ted Hafer, and eventually came to start the band Porn Orchard with Hafer and Sam Mixon, which lasted from 1985-1992. In this interview, Pernice talks about the…
Mark Cooper Smith came to Athens, Georgia to attend graduate school in 1982 from Cartersville, Georgia. Smith performed with the Squalls as the band’s drummer shortly upon his arrival. After leaving the Squalls, Smith played with the band 28 Days,…
Arthur Johnson arrived in Athens in 1982 to attend the University of Georgia. While in Athens, Johnson attended many concerts from bands including Pylon, R.E.M, and the Kilkenny Cats. Johnson later formed the band Bar-B-Que Killers with Laura Carter,…
Jeff Walls was a guitarist from Marietta, Georgia and was a member of numerous bands including Guadalcanal Diary, Hillbilly Frankenstien, and the Woggles. In this interview, Walls discusses his involvement in the Athens music scene and his experience…
Lynda Stipe, sister to Michael Stipe of R.E.M., moved to Athens, Georgia in 1980 as a high school senior. A year later, she attended the University of Georgia as a sculpture major, during which she formed the band Oh-OK. Stipe worked as the band’s…
Peter Fancher grew up in New Jersey and moved to Athens, Georgia in 1975, where he attended the University of Georgia. Fancher performed as the guitarist in Club Gaga, and has additionally worked as the audio engineer at Elixer Recording and Intense…
Chris McKay was born and raised in Camden, South Carolina. He began playing music at an early age and joined his first band when he was sixteen. He moved to Athens, Georgia in the early 1990s and played in numerous bands including Q-Sign, Tanjent,…
Killick Hinds was born in 1972 and spent the first three years of his life in Japan before returning to New Jersey with his mother. Hinds went to college in Maine and moved to Athens in 1995. He performs Appalachian Trance Metal Music and manages a…
Jason Richardson was born in Waynesboro, Georgia. Richardson is a drummer and has played in bands such as Exit 86, Savagists, and Mandible Rider. In this interview, Richardson discusses performing and touring with various bands, and the differences…
Velena Vego is from Atlanta, GA and moved to Athens to pursue success in her sister’s girl band, Mystery Date. After the band broke up, she worked for R.E.M. and Drivin’ N’ Cryin’. She finds her work in booking shows for The 40 Watt CLub, the…
Jabriel Winfrey (Billy D. Brell) was born and raised in Athens, GA. He took an interest in rap and hip-hop at a young age and began writing his own music, becoming a part of the original wave of hip-hop in Athens. In his interview, Winfrey discusses…
