Ro chats with Nikola Whallon, seasoned chiptune, Balkan, and Klezmer VGM artist about starting a video game music live event in Seattle, Washington. The two chat about other conventions and live venues that host game music, celebrating local and nearby artists, and the event's hopes in the PNW area.

Split Screen Seattle will be hosted at Substation in Ballard, in Seattle, WA on May 8th. Doors open at 7:30PM, and show starts at 8PM. The lineup is Ian Cowell's Exceptional Band of Goblins, Ro Panuganti Prog XP, Super Soul Bros., and dannyBStyle and the venue is 21+. There will also be retro game stations.

Participants: Ro Panuganti (He/Him), Nikola Whallon (He/Him)

Plugs:

Tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/split-screen-seattle-tickets-1316634311669

Bluesky

Instagram

Ro chats with guitarist Steven Poissant aka Steven Strums about his debut solo album "Acoustic VGM Vol. 1" and arranging retro and modern songs for acoustic guitar. They chat about early Youtube and the video game music scene in 2010s, working with Sam in Super Guitar Bros., experiences recording the album, and playing live as a solo artist.

Participants: Ro Panuganti (He/Him), Steven Poissant (He/Him)

Plugs:

Bandcamp: 

Spotify: 

YouTube Channel: ⁠

Ro speaks with composer Josh Barron about his work on Fallen Aces: Episode 1 and the process of going from cover-creation to orchestration. They discuss learning as Josh wrote a score across several years, writing techniques, and the power of influential video game music.

Participants: Ro Panuganti (He/Him), Joshua Barron (He/Him)

Bandcamp: http://joshbarronstudios.bandcamp.com/

Spotify: http://open.spotify.com/artist/5OnSsTZYZgoL0bJfa8YtNm?si=4oqfOQk1TN6-wqImbGS1DA

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/barronjcomposer.bsky.social

YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@joshbarron8961

Ro speaks with Sean about his experiences joining the VGM scene and progressively arranging more collaborations. The two discuss the art of getting into collaboration, being a good arranger/guest, and taking on huge projects like Sean's "Beyond the Sky" music video.

Participants: Ro Panuganti (He/Him), Fuzz Pixels (He/Him)

Plugs:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzrfHr9V4UxTI68yteJSjXA

Ro speaks with composer Chase Bethea about getting into composition for games, Game Jams, experiences working on Aground Zero, Stardander School for Witches, and Sunken Stones' soundtracks, and advice for musicians. The two discuss creative ways to write, celebrating more authentic "pirate soundtrack" tropes, and even the interaction of composers and "remixer/cover artists".

Participants: Ro Panuganti (He/Him), Chase Bethea (He/Him)

Plugs:

https://chasebethea.com/

https://linktr.ee/chasebethea

https://chasebethea.bandcamp.com/music

Ro speaks with Vaughn Rowles about the online game music convention, VGMCon, and the events taking place in person and online. They discuss the variety of performers, many game-music bands formed for the con, and panels hosted at the convention. They also discuss the Game Music Remix Awards as well as the VGM Album Jam for charity happening April 4th-7th, including ways for people to get involved with the convention worldwide.

Participants: Ro Panuganti (He/Him), Vaughn Rowles (He/Him)

Plugs:

https://www.vgmcon.org

https://vgmcon.org/activities/album-jam/

Ro speaks with Epic Game Music AKA James Ronald about his experiences on Youtube and in the video game/nerdcore music scene across a decade, his brand new Snowboard Kids Lo-Fi album, and perspectives on making a career in VGM. The two discuss their enjoyment of Nintendo 64's Snowboard Kids, MAGFest and ConBravo, playing guitar as a lefty, as well as finding shifts in styles as well as James' band Rex Viper.

Participants: Ro Panuganti (He/Him), James Ronald (He/Him)

Plugs:

https://www.youtube.com/EpicGameMusic

www.jamesronaldmusic.com

Ro speaks with Patti Rudisill about her experience creating "Voices in the Dark" and "Dear to the Heart", a Final Fantasy VII Double cover album with arrangements built around violin. They discuss interesting guests inclusions, her experience self-producing a variety of tracks, and how Final Fantasy VII: Remake has influenced arranging classic songs. They also discuss her experience with creating interesting music videos for Youtube, and fan theories for the title Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth.
SPOILER WARNING for Final Fantasy VII (1997) as well as Final Fantasy VII: Remake (2020) from 30:19-45:00, also marked in the podcast!

Participants: Ro Panuganti, Patti Rudisill

Plugs:

https://www.youtube.com/PattiRudisill

https://pattirudisill.com/dark-and-heart

Ro speaks with Alyssa Menes AKA AC Menes about working in game music, sound design, and arranging music for both rock and gaming symphonic groups. They chat about 60s/70s rock, great music coming from the New Jersey Gamer Symphony Orchestra, and what it's like to work on deep cut game music for performances. Lastly the two discuss the upcoming MAGFest music festival in National Harbor MD, what Alyssa plans for her show at the Belvedere, and the great experiences to be had.
The show will be at the Belvedere Lobby Bar on January 19th at 2PM ET

Participants: Ro Panuganti, Alyssa Menes

Plugs:

https://acmenesmusic.com/

https://www.njgso.org/

Ro speaks with Brooke Ferd and Becca Michaelson about their upcoming panel "VGM in Music Education" to be shared at MAGFest 2024 in National Harbor, MD. The three discuss how the panel has grown through its presentation at teacher's conferences and VGMCon 2023, as well as how they've experienced music education as teachers. The trio enjoy the benefits of improving the classroom, inclusive music forms, and how engaging K-12 students with music helps inspire a long-term appreciation.
The panel will be hosted Thursday, January 18th at 5:30PM ET at Panels 6.

Participants: Ro Panuganti, Brooke Ferd (Medllix), Becca Michaelson (flootiful)

Plugs:

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Flootiful

https://www.youtube.com/@Medllix

https://www.youtube.com/@BeccaMichaelson