Shockoe Sessions Live! Rewind

Leslie Lilburn is a Northside singer-songwriter who grew up in scenic Front Royal, VA and moved to Richmond in 2021. His vocation was thrust upon him in his youth as a result of constant and intense exposure to the music of the British Invasion; later in life, a love of the country music of the 60's and 70's seeped into his brain. The powerful synthesis that resulted produces songs of joy, beauty, and heartbreak that would make a fine addition to the soundtrack of a Tarantino film. He passes his time in a well-appointed garage studio, Murphy’s Pocket, with his band, The Dots.

The Dots came to be through serendipitous occurrences, years of friendship, and frequenting a delicious RVA staple of a restaurant, Dots Back Inn. Consisting of Michael Lamp, Robin Liebenthal, Robert Whitehead, and Kevin Vorhis, The Dots bring a plethora of varied musical influences together to help create something beautifully unique, yet complimentary to Leslie’s songwriting.

Tyler Meacham isn’t just telling stories, she’s building a world for them to live in.

According to Style Weekly, “Meacham has shown an uncommon knack for performing pop music’s signature alchemy: turning specific experiences into broadly accessible storytelling. Part of that is her commitment to candor, both in her music in her communication with fans.”

Her 2024 EP “sad girl summer” was chiefly recorded at her home studio, 6807, with her longtime partner, Chip Hale. The EP unpacks grief in all its forms and features her standout single “dream house” which was awarded 2nd Place in the Mid-Atlantic Song Contest. An accompanying video for the song was chosen as the winner of WNRN’s Tiny Studio Contest and received a feature on NPR Music’s Song of the Day.

In addition to writing and producing her own music, Tyler hosts & organizes Anyfolk—a bi-monthly curated music & art showcase that has built a following of over a thousand local music lovers since launching in December of 2024. Through raw, unfiltered songwriting and intentional community-building, Meacham is creating a lasting space for her work and her colleagues to grow.

There’s a lot of symbolism in the act of cutting hair. The haircut Landon Elliott gives himself in the video for “aftermath” – the first release from his new album, also called aftermath - is full of it. On the surface, it’s simply a guy getting busy with the electric clippers, but there’s a good deal more to it. There’s the fact that he does it himself, shaving off his own headful of red-brown waves like an act of defiance. And it’s his first haircut in eight years. All told, something significant is going on here. By the end, as he stares up at the camera, the hair is gone. He looks like a different guy. He is a different guy.

So much has changed in the singer-songwriter’s life since he made his 2019 debut album, Domino, that he’s made a new record to come to grips with it all – and to reach out to others who might be going through what he did. The self-released aftermath is Elliott’s reckoning with his past and his future, in the form of 11 beautiful, straight-talking tracks. The “aftermath” video acts as an introduction; delve into the rest of the album and meet the new Landon: overthinker, storyteller, lover, empath, father, gay man. “This album is a reset,” he says. “I feel much more myself these days.”

Aftermath isn’t like many other albums you’ll hear this year. It’s a story of growth, forgiveness – and the transformational joy of becoming exactly who you are.

An electrifying alt-country band with musical styles that are as diverse as the Appalachian landscape they call home. Runner-ups for the coveted "On-The-Rise" award at FloydFest 22, The Jared Stout Band has quickly solidified their presence in the national music scene. The band's dynamic sound seamlessly weaves Appalachian rhythms with Blues and Rock undertones, creating a tapestry of emotion and energy that resonates with audiences of all ages and musical tastes.

Jared Stout's songwriting is soulful and relatable, with an authenticity that draws listeners in and guides them through a journey of life's ups and downs. From the moment the Jared Stout Band steps onto the stage, this remarkably talented, emotionally charged set of musicians commands attention with a unique sound and an unparalleled, captivating intensity that leaves a lasting impression and forever fuses the shared experience into our hearts.

Set List

Mackenzie Roark and the Hotpants is an Americana rock band from Richmond, Virginia, known for energetic and engaging live shows that bridge the gap between Americana charm and rock 'n' roll grit. With a voice that carries the weight of lived experience and lyrics steeped in raw storytelling, Roark crafts songs that explore love, loss, resilience, and the search for meaning-all wrapped in the kind of gritty, roots-driven melodies that feel as timeless as they are urgent. Known for their powerhouse performances, the Hotpants round out Roark's dynamic songwriting with the fiery tones of fiddle, electric guitar riffs, funky basslines, and tight harmonies. Their album "Ghost of Rock and Roll" is due out June 6th, 2025.

Set List

Zarove is an instrumental trio from Richmond, VA, formed in 2024. Zarove fuses decades of collective experience in Bulgarian and Middle Eastern traditions, avant-garde art music, rock, and improvisation. Traditional Turkish instruments meet electric fret less bass and a hand-crafted drum kit in songs that meld genres, rhythms, and borders.

Set List

Brady Heck is just country. No two ways around it, he was just brought into the world that way. He lives it, and you can hear that in his songs. His songs are both clever and conversational, but also deeply sincere and striking. He writes the way he speaks and sings about the world he knows. The Virginia native released his debut EP, Ain't It Cruel, on Richmond's own Vocal Rest Records in 2022. He then followed up shortly after in 2023 with two singles, Grey Fox (a truckers tale and tip of the hat to classic country songs of the 70's, with the smile and wink appeal of Burt Reynolds à la Smokey and the Bandit) and Watermelon Seltzer, a country blues song that reminds us that poor boy can still live the good life. Now in 2025, Heck, who is most known for fronting the Richmond based southern rock group, Holy Roller, is looking to expand himself further with new music, a new group, and a clear focus on the only thing that really matters: the song.

Set List

Big Fancy, an indie disco band from Richmond, VA, brings a fresh and funky blend of soul and dance that's as timeless on stage as it is over the airwaves. The group of friends behind the sound draws inspiration from neo-soul, R&B, and deep groove to seamlessly intertwine soulful roots, jazz influences, and classic dance vibes. With over 15 original tracks written and two singles released, Big Fancy has gained fans from Richmond to Paris. Over the past three years, their live performances playing around the city have earned them the vote as one of the top five bands in Richmond by the Richmond Times-Dispatch. Known for exploring love in all its forms-be it love for people, places, or ideas-Big Fancy always steps up to the stage in celebration of rhythm, connection, and movement.

Set List

Kofi Shepsu, came out of the womb drumming. He is an African Percussionist and studied the West African drums for 7 years under the Master Baba Olumide, starting at age 4. He was formally introduced to Jazz and the drum set as a member of the Richmond Youth Jazz Guild under the direction of Ashby Anderson. Kofi received a full scholarship for Berklee College of Music Summer Jazz Workshop with Terri Lyne Carrington. He is a 2017 Young Arts Jazz and Vail Jazz Workshop Finalist. In addition, he was selected in 2017 to attend Berklee College of Music Global Jazz Institute/Newport Jazz Festival. He is a 2018 graduate of Appomattox Regional Governor’s School for the Arts and Technology. Kofi was also awarded a full scholarship to Manhattan School of Music. While there he got to study with master musicians Buster Williams, Kendrick Scott and Marc Cary. He has played with Savion Glover, Alicia Olatuja, Charles Owens, Tim Green, Marc Cary, Benny Benack III, and Julius Rodriguez.

Set List

Gull is "best described as a drum; a living, breathing drum of flesh on fire that cries out assorted tongues of creatures past and delivers it from a single unique perspective; a communal music broadcast of blood and bile left as an offering on the altar of sound."

Nathaniel Rappole's solo music endeavor, Gull, was conceived on an endangered wildlife preserve in Front Royal, VA in 1999, and has been publicly active since 2007. Gull has recorded a 7", 6 EPs, 3 full lengths, and has traveled vigorously-playing venues, on the streets, and in the wilds of Canada, United States, Mexico, Europe, Kenya, and SE Asia.

Gull has toured in support of White Rabbits, Tres Mts, RNDM, and Saxsquatch, and has shared the bar arena with the likes of Silver Apples, Girl Talk, Deerhoof, Adrian Belew, Sleaford Mods, Tatsuya Nakatani, Zeta, Ruby The Hatchet, Panda Bear, Mdou Moctar, Dan Deacon, Godcaster, and Melt Banana. In 2012, Gull was featured in a movie about music in Mexico called Hecho en Mexico, and in 2014 he produced and performed in a documentary on street/public music in Kenya (Street Muse Kenya), which premiered at The Fowler Museum at UCLA in Los Angeles, CA. In April of 2016, Gull performed and answered questions pertaining to his travels at TedX in Richmond, VA, and in 2017 he contributed an improvised performance to Grotesque Tables ii - Noah Wall's anagramic reimagining of Brian Eno and Peter Schmidt's Oblique Strategies deck of cards from 1975.

In December, 2019, Gull went to Thailand and Laos to film a new doc (Street Muse Thailand) in an ongoing series about musical ecology and culture around the world. In January of 2023 and again in December of 2024, Gull was an artist in residence at Stove Works in Chattanooga, TN and set up an impromptu recording studio while incorporating captured sounds of the city's environment