After nearly 2 years in hiatus, The Parlor relaunches with local songwriters, touring artists, and CBD drinks in the “Winter Nights” season of secret shows! Follow along: http://www.facebook.com/ParlorColumbus
Will Freed kicks off the first two events at The Parlor, performing original songs blended with Eric Clapton hits as a tribute to the legendary songwriter. The Legendary Songwriter Nights were popularized in 2018-2020 through performances by Will Freed, Dan Heidt, Andy Shaw (Shaw Brothers), George Barrie (Mojoflo, Doc Robinson), Micah Kesselring, Jordan Kirk, Kevin Ashba, Ramey, Matt Munhall, Jesse Henry, and many more.
Over 4,000 friends and audiences came through these ‘secret show’ living room concerts, including the President of the Columbus City Council, The President of Ohio Arts Council, the CEO of major corporations and local businesses, and televised artists like Josh Krajcik and Chris Jamison. The community inspired the new build of house concert stages on the South Side of Columbus and ‘Star City Stage’ in Grove City, each new location providing a new outlet and patron community that has supported dozens of new concerts and thousands of dollars in artist payments each year.
With Ohio Liquor Laws, selling alcohol at house concerts without a permit has been long known to be illegal, but giving a beer to a friend at a house show has been generally accepted as “BYOB culture”, a grey area of law until the recently unsuccessful State of Ohio charges in 2021 against The Parlor. After a series of discussions regarding law reform of the “Keeper of a Place” law, The Parlor was awarded a small fine by Columbus courts when a beer was commonly handed to an audience member, free of charge; but now, CBD drinks by W*nder offer a bonafide solution to avoid all appearance of evil. Founded by Tanisha Robinson, and backed by local venture capital funding of Loud Capital, W*nder offers 4 flavors of CBD drinks that will be provided to audiences who attend The Parlor’s secret show in 2024.
“BYOB culture has been around for decades as a normal part of local music,” said Hendrickson. “Alcohol and music go together like beer and pizza. In 2024, I think CBD will be a cool addition to live concerts that can support detailed and intimate listening.”
While CBD drinks have already made it into popular restaurants like Town Hall and Local Cantina, who carry the W*nder drinks as a mixer or go-to alcohol alternative, the growing popularity of CBD drinks makes them an exciting solution for house concerts.
And since the Pandemic’s shut down of concert venues, demand for live music continues to grow in Columbus. In January, The Parlor has been seeking out songwriters who can perform 12-15 songs by legendary songwriters or form themed bands that can perform unique shows at the private concert space.
“We’re looking for songwriters who have a passionate understanding of a hit artist and who will put in the time and dedication to learn their music, reproduce their songs, and perform it live in our listening room” says Hendrickson. And while The Parlor hasn’t produced an ‘Ed Sheeran Night’ yet, it’s a low hanging opportunity. “I wish an artist would come to me and say ‘I learned every hit by Smokey Robinson and I want to put on a Motown night with you. We’ve got audiences that would really pay that.”
And the opportunity to create shows for The Parlor can pay an artist thousands of dollars each year outside of their traditional gigs, without exhausting a fan base. “We like to provide artists and bands with guarantees so long as they join in on some of the promotions. We only need 30 audience reservation per secret show to make it valuable for everyone, so if the bands or artists create a unique show and perform it multiple times with us each year, it becomes a cool revenue stream for them.”
To make it a compelling night, The Parlor audiences love to see bands try something new. “We love to see bands take risks and try new versions of their songs or music that they wouldn’t usually do on a larger stage,” Hendrickson described. “That’s what makes our listening room cool for the band and the audience. The band can experiment, tell stories, or try versions of songs like they would if they were in their own living room. Our listening room is a good barracks for sparring around with new ideas.”
And there is a showmanship quality to The Parlor that is rare and gives Hendrickson a sense of community when returning home. “I love coming back from travels and having a home base After months in South America, The Parlor feels like a tree fort in the jungle of Downtown Columbus. I love seeing my friends there and it’s awesome when it all becomes financially sustainable in ways that helps artists, supports our health and wellness, and keeps us engaged in the human experience.”
Seat Reservations for Eric Clapton Night by Will Freed on Sunday 1.28: Available Now!
columbussongwriters.com 
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