I was doing my normal gig of interviewing at BLK Live this past weekend – Fishbone, one of my favorite bands, was the featured act, and I was excited to sit down with lead vocalist, Angelo Moore, to discuss one of the most groundbreaking acts of our era. But prior to his band arriving for sound check, I was told there was a group of teens from School of Rock, who had been selected to perform as the opening act for Fishbone. We thought, what the heck, we’ll put them on the camera and do a quick interview with them just for fun. Well, I am SO glad we did!

I thought this would be an awkward or difficult interview, as people sometimes get nervous and don’t know what to say, so I expected with these subjects being so young it might not flow as well. I couldn’t have been more wrong! What a delightful bunch they were! I was so impressed with the thoughtful and insightful answers and responses from these young musicians. Not only do they all play multiple instruments, but it is clear that they take their art and craft seriously and work very hard at it – a life skill that we should all be modeling for our kids. When we live in such negative times, it is so inspirational and hopeful to see young people who really do “get it.”  I felt like I was talking to old souls. The wisdom and enthusiasm coming from these teens moved me and made me think about how important it is to support and encourage our youth who want to be heard and recognized in their passions, goals, feelings and talents. Whomever their parents are, I give them all the credit in the world because they must be doing something amazing to raise such impressive young adults, and exposing them to great music, which I feel is so important for not just kids, but the rest of us, too! I give the School of Rock a lot of credit for the time and investment they are making in teaching these kids, and BLK Live as well for giving these budding musicians the platform to showcase what they are capable of - the more we can do to support that, the better off we will ALL be!

As for the show, well, these rock-stars-in-the-making did not disappoint! They killed it on stage! I’ve played with adults who are far less proficient on stage than these kids! Bailey Pyritz on lead vocals, and sporting a seriously cool Mohawk, reminded me a bit of a young Wendy O’ Williams – she puts it all out on the stage and has that intangible quality, attitude and X-factor of a very special artist who you know is going to do her own thing with no apologies and make her mark – something rare that we’ve seen in people like Blondie, Elton John, or the Runaways. I loved it! But make no mistake, the rest of the band - Torri, Michael and Jacob – are forces in their own right! They blew us away with their talent on their instruments and their beyond-their-years stage presence. These guys and gals know how to play and they know how to deliver because they aren’t jaded, they are living it in the moment – a good reminder and lesson that even the most experienced musicians can still learn from in case they’ve forgotten that magic or become complacent in their craft. This entire interview really brightened my day, it made me remember what its like to be that young, full of laughter, and full of dreams for the future, and the bottom line is, talking to these kids was just FUN!

Keep your eyes on these young musicians, I believe we will be hearing their names again in the future….

For more information on School of Rock and the great work they are doing, visit schoolofrock.com

For more information on this young band, Not Confined, you can find them on Instagram at notconfinedband, Facebook at Not Confined, or on their site at www.notconfined.com.