Indie Thursdays at Renaissance Hollywood Hotel Tap Into Local Talent

For the average independent musician in Hollywood, paid gigs are extremely rare. Many struggle to gain exposure in the illustrious rock mecca, performing at open-mic nights or hustling presale tickets for “pay-to-play” gigs.

To help such artists gain exposure, the , with the help of Hollywood Music in Media Awards (HMMA), invites up-and-coming musicians to play at its Indie Thursday showcase in the hotel lobby bar.

The showcase held on the first Thursday of each month features six independent acts playing intimate 20-minute sets in front local music fans and industry professionals. Based on their performances in the showcase, a number of the artists are invited back to the hotel for a paid gig of their own the following month.

At May’s Indie Thursday, artists representing a range of genres and levels of experience were: Caleb Fritel, Raspin Stuwart, Ryan Lutz, Ryan Hill, Kate Kilbane and Sorry, Nelson. The six acts played to a crowded lobby lounge on May 5.

The all-ages, no-cover event is from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. each month in the recently renovated lobby venue. Organizers of the event are proud to create an opportunity for independent artists to gain exposure and pay. The showcase has placed more than 100 artists in paid gigs at the Renaissance since its inception in February 2009.

“This is the only event that I’m aware of that places independent music artists in paid gigs," said Brent Harvey, HMMA executive producer and Indie Thursday emcee. "So, the three artists that are chosen to come back for a night of their own, they get a paycheck from the hotel, which is quite unusual for Hollywood.”

After holding the inaugural Music in Media Interactive Conference at the Renaissance in November 2008, Harvey was approached by Dan Shaughnessy, director of sales and marketing for the hotel, who was looking to book some artists to play in the hotel’s lobby lounge.

Harvey agreed, but sought to make the event “something more.” His awards and conference exist with the goal of introducing fresh music from around the world to the licensing machine of Hollywood. He launched Indie Thursday with a similar mission in mind.

“The industry professionals I have in the audience — those that help select artists—sometimes they’ll see somebody that they really like and they’ll start a relationship,” Harvey said. “Soon, maybe they’re doing a project together. Maybe a producer is saying, ‘I’ve just got to produce this guy.’ Those success stories happen all the time.”

The hotel sees Indie Thursday as the perfect opportunity to tap into the community and reinforce Renaissance's position as a lifestyle brand.

“It was the perfect marriage, to try to get those independent artists a shot at a paid gig and, at the same time, to try to activate the hotel a little bit and create some buzz,” Shaughnessy said.

Indie Thursday was alternative rocker Fritel’s debut event as an original artist. Fritel belted out rock ballads with the backing of an all-acoustic band.

“I play a lot of covers too, but this is my passion,” Fritel said. “To be here, to finally do this, it’s just awesome. Especially here in L.A., it’s hard to get a gig that’s all just about this, instead of pay-to-play or whatever.”

Soulful folk showman Stuwart touted his diverse musical talents Thursday, backed by bass, drums, and classical guitar. 

After publishing Boulevard Magazine in Los Angeles for 29 years, Stuwart retired and began a career in the music business. He started at the bottom, playing coffeehouses and open-mic nights. Now he’s a featured Starbucks artist and has had songs from his album, We Do What We Do, played on the radio. 

“I started a year and a half ago, and it’s like every door opened up,” Stuwart said. “I love to do what I do, as you can probably see. I’m very spiritual, so the little voice said to me one day, ‘Go do your music, and I’ll open up every door.’ ”

“It’s been great. The people are wonderful,” Stuwart said of Thursday’s event. “Anytime you can get in front of an audience to play your music, I love it, no matter if there are three or 300.”

Hill and his three band mates just finished recording, producing and mixing their debut EP, Believe, all on their own. After regularly playing at the same clubs and bars, the bluesy rock vocalist was excited to play a stripped-down set in front of some fresh faces.

“Tonight is great because we got in front of people that have never heard us before,” said Hill. "It was probably 95 percent people that have never heard us before, which is awesome. It’s really cool to play an acoustic set, which we don’t do very often. It’s cool to break it down and kind of get raw, show everyone that it’s no gimmicks, no crazy solos, just ‘this is our music, this is who we are.’ ”

On Monday, after collecting feedback from industry and VIPs in attendance, Hill, Lutz, Kilbane and Sorry, Nelson were each selected by the Renaissance to play a paid gig at the hotel in June.

Through its RLife Live entertainment platform, Renaissance has booked a number of national acts to play the hotel’s lobby lounge. Past acts include Plain White Tees, Nick Howard, Angel Taylor and Raphael Saadiq. D.C.-based Thievery Corporation is set to play at the hotel later this month.  

Renaissance also hosts the , an all-you-can-eat live jazz event from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the hotel’s Twist restaurant. Crooner Nick Ellis performs Rat Pack favorites at the hotel weekly.

The next Indie Thursday showcase is June 2.