Girls Rock Camp is coming to town, and local organizers need your help
Ah, spring, when a vinyl collector’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of Record Store Day. Saturday, April 16th is Record Store Day, and while it might seem odd to bring it up a month out, there is a purpose here. Local record store owner Amy Mayfield, whose dedication to grass-roots philanthropy has often raised the question of “when is she going to become a full-fledged community organizer?” is sponsoring a very special fund-raising event for Chattanooga’s first ever Girls Rock Camp and needs the support of local artists now to make it happen.
The Girls Rock Camp phenomenon is global and although each camp is autonomous, the GRC Alliance is a network that connects the various camps through yearly seminars and resource-sharing. The basic philosophy of the camps is the empowerment of girls though music.
Girls aged nine to seventeen have the opportunity to spend a week at the summer day camp where they select the instrument of their choice and receive instruction in playing and songwriting, form bands, and ultimately cap-off the week with live performances of their original material.
Through their experience with music, girls are given an opportunity to develop confidence, creativity, and a host of valuable tools that ultimately serve to free them from the limitations imposed by sexism, crass commercialism, and the media. Amelia Rodgers-Jones, Rose Cox, and Kristen Ryan, along with a host of volunteers throughout the community, are organizing the Chattanooga iteration of Girls Rock Camp with a special emphasis on accessibility.
To that end they are pricing the camp on a sliding-scale so that girls from all walks of life and economic backgrounds have the opportunity to benefit from the experience. Doing that requires funding, and that’s where Mayfield and AKNF come in to play.
Mayfield is seeking local artists who are willing to donate their efforts towards painting unplayable records. The repurposed works of art will then be available for sale on Record Store Day at Mayfield’s AKNF shop (located in Coolidge Park) with 100 percent of the proceeds going to fund Chattanooga Girls Rock Camp.
Traditionally, Record Store Day is marked by independent shops selling limited edition releases pressed specifically for the day, a novel means of generating revenue for the store, but AKNF is foregoing that tradition and focusing on the art show instead because, as Mayfield explains, “As a woman who loves music, I feel compelled to use my music store as a means to help something like this (CGRC) happen in my community.”
As far as artist submissions are concerned, all mediums are welcome. Suitable (unplayable) records are readily available at thrift stores and AKNF is also offering their own damaged LPs to interested parties. All art must be received before April 16th.
Artists interested in contributing to the cause can contact Amy Mayfield at mayfieldrecords@gmail.com (please put ATTN: GIRLS ROCK ART BENEFIT in the subject line.)
Chattanooga Girls Rock Camp will be held July 18-23 at the new Cine-Rama/CFF building on Main St (formerly Grocery Bar) with registration beginning April 1st. For more information on volunteering, donating, or even attending the Chattanooga Girls Rock Camp visit chattanoogagirlsrock.com.
Note that the non-profit is looking for musical AND non-musical volunteers as well as any caterers or restaurants willing to sponsor lunch-for-a-day for volunteers and those children who partake in free or reduced-cost lunch programs during the regular school year.