Current Tour: Kelsey Blackstone, Allie Dunn, and Felicity Team Up to Visited Section 36 Prior to Tour (Part 2)

They're back! Hopefully you enjoyed part one of our fantastic interview with Kelsey Blackstone, Allie Dunn, and Felicity prior to embarking on their tour. Today we'll cover the rest of that interview to prepare us all for the rest of their performances.

So, here's the rest of what happened when Kelsey, Allie, and Felicity all visited Section 36!

Do you have any pre or post show rituals?

KELSEY: I mean, I feel like we probably have some similar pre show rituals, just like drinking a ton of water. Lots of tea with honey, and warm ups before the show. I feel like something big for me I didn't really realize that it was important for me until pretty recently. But, the act of actually getting ready...like in my stage outfit, my makeup, my hair, and being able to have that. Ideally, do it alone or just like in a quiet corner somewhere. It's just like such a nice way to center myself and breathe. And just kinda, think about what I need to do before the show, which is great. And then post show ritual is have a blast. That's it.

FELICITY: I like to work out like, really open my lungs up before show. And then, eat protein. Not too heavy. a light protein. So if I do get nervous, I, don't have to worry about it, and I just have something in my stomach. I know I can feel myself. And I love the ritual of getting ready...knowing what you're gonna wear, the hair, the makeup, you know. And then I feel like I'm not gonna drink on this tour, only because I haven't done a tour before, so I don't wanna be too tired. But if it's a local show, when we're getting off stage...we're drinking.

ALLIE: I'm with you. Felicity. I don't drink on the road. I don't drink ever when I'm playing, just because my vocal cords are super sensitive. So I don't. I don't mess around with it. But yeah, I think just like hydration station all day. And then I just vibe to my favorite music before and just take that energy on the stage.

What is your favorite part about performing in front of an audience?
ALLIE: Favorite thing is like getting the crowd to be involved.

That's my favorite thing for sure.

FELICITY: I mean, I love every single thing about it. Like literally. I feel like my soul is quenched when I'm on stage and nothing else in my life does that for me.

KELSEY: I completely agree. And I feel like it's one of those things where you can't go through all of this months of planning and trial and tribulation and everything if you don't like freaking love every second you're on stage. Sometimes even in my like day to day I'm just like, "Oh, my gosh!" Sometimes when I haven't performed for a little while, I'm just really missing that kind of inspiration to keep going. And yeah, performing alway just like completely fills up my soul. Like something I've been doing since forever, and it just feels right so feels great.

How do you plan to stay? Healthy and energized while on tour?

FELICITY: We're working out. We're running. We're eating healthily. I'm packing lean snacks for everybody.

ALLIE: I think that's the same thing. Like, last time last time I was on tour I was so dead that I just couldn't work out. But I did go for walks. And I was like, alright, this actually feels like I'm doing something.

FELICITY: And that's the beauty of us traveling together as well. Everything can be split, you know? We can split our time. We can all make sure we're rested. There's more than enough of us to drive. That's the beautiful thing about going on tour with your friends. It shouldn't be stressful if we've planned it correctly. We're doing everything as best we can. I think it can be something healthy and sustainable, and something we do really well. I don't think any of us are trying to rage until we touch back down in Nashville, anyway. So I think it's going to be good.

KELSEY: Yeah, I think a big thing for me when I was on tour last summer was kinda what you were saying too. All going on walks, and not only just for, I guess, physical well being, but mental well being, too. It's just it's so nice. Get away from everybody like for a second, or get away from thinking about the tour and everything that comes with it, and just being able to to move. And then something, too, that I I did last summer, which I definitely want to do again is having a pack or two of water bottles and snacks, of course, but the water bottles in my car. Especially because I was responsible for my whole band of seven, and I was momming it up. I was like, I know, you guys are going to be dehydrated. I know you're not going to bring water bottles. So I'm thinking ahead. And yeah, I think it definitely helped.

Do you have a specific goal in mind in order to call the tour a success?

ALLIE: I definitely want to sell out New York, which I have no doubt in my mind we will. I just have no doubt in my mind that we're gonna have great turnouts and it's going to be a turning point in all our careers.

FELICITY: Oh, yeah. I think we got Nashville. I think we got New York, and I think who knows? Might surprise ourselves with a couple of other places, too. I can't wait to make connections with people and make fans. And I have music out for the first time in 6 years and people hearing it, that's an amazing, amazing thing. So being able to do that in person is really special, especially when it's like in corners of the country, you might not normally get to.

KELSEY: Absolutely. I really agree, with both of you, and I think it's definitely possible. I have a really good feeling about all of the cities that we're going to. I feel like we're gonna do like really well. To break it down concisely, though, this answer for me is like 2 things, I guess. First and foremost is, I'm releasing a single, a new original song right when we get back from tour on June 7th. The single has been in the works now, for like almost three years. So it's been like a really long time coming. And I'm very, very relieved and proud of how it's come out. So I'm like bringing a lot of like merch on the road like centered around it trying to really kinda get people to to care about it hopefully. But yeah, it's called "Willow". It's about like getting older, and all of that fun stuff. But so there's that if if that goes well and and people are receptive to that. And then number two is, if in a year from now we are all still friends, and talking and helping each other out and working...then I think that's another like great mark of success, too.

ALLIE: Kelsey, I'm also releasing on June seventh, so the world will be blessed with our music.

FELICITY: I have one. On June ninth.

ALLIE: This is literally this is the best news I've ever got. This is just like it ties the end of the tour together in a beautiful like. Here you go world.

KELSEY: What are the names of your two songs that are coming out in June?

ALLIE: Mine is called "Short Hair".

FELICITY: Mine is, "There's Been a lot Going On". 

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What a way to end things! Can't thank Kelsey, Felicity, and Allie enough for talking with us. Be sure to get your tickets for their tour now so you don't miss a single show! And, be on the lookout for their new singles releasing soon. Hear them on tour, hear them in your home, hear them everywhere.

Don't forget to check out each of these amazing women so you can learn more about them as artists.

Instagram: Kelsey, Felicity, Allie

Spotify: Kelsey, Felicity, Allie
Website: Kelsey, Felicity, Allie

Upcoming Tour: Kelsey Blackstone, Allie Dunn, and Felicity Team Up to Visit Section 36 Prior to Tour

You probably remember Kelsey Blackstone from her incredible music, her "With a Little Help From My Friends" tour, and her lessons learned from that experience. Well, she's back with a new tour starting on May 23, 2023. She'll be joining Allie Dunn and Felicity on a tour making stops from Nashville to Boston. All of the shows promise to be events you won't want to miss. 

I was flattered to hear that all three of these amazing women wanted to sit down and talk about this upcoming tour with us. The three of them played off each other wonderfully during the interview, and gave a great indication of the fun this tour will be.

So, here's what happens when Kelsey, Allie, and Felicity all visit Section 36!

How did the three of you decide to tour together?

KELSEY: Allie, I feel like you should take the lead on this one.
ALLIE: So I was planning a run. A northeast run in Nashville, and I wanted just like a bunch of good nights of music from talented people. Specifically, I wanted women because we are great. So I hit up Kelsey because I found her on Instagram, and I loved her music, and she was down. And then, Johnny, Felicity's manager, hit me and was like, yo, we're like we're looking to do shows in the summer. I was like, well, I am planning a tour end of May. I would love nothing more than Felicity to come. And boom, the magic happened. And now we're here.

KELSEY:  Yeah, it was a pretty easy decision, honestly. I think it's definitely very cool that for the most part it kinda came from Instagram. At least my initial involvement from it. And then Felicity, finding out about you and how you lived in Nashville and getting to meet you, and see you play in person a few weeks ago. It just made me so excited for the tour, too.

FELICITY: Oh, hell, yeah. It's just gonna be such a vibe, all three of us. I feel like we all make a similar kind of music have a similar kind of energy. And I just have loved everything we've done planning for this tour. So I'm just gonna be that much more excited when we're actually on the road.

How did you select the venues?

Kelsey Blackstone

KELSEY: So, again, Allie I think you can take this one.

ALLIE: Well, I played at the Bowery Electric before. It was, it was honestly a great place to play. People were having fun. So that was just something I played up before. And the 5 Spot was like a home to me in Nashville. Then I haven't ever played at The Pocket in DC. But it looked like a sweet spot that supports like local live music. So I hit them up. Boston, Cantab, was just a group effort from all of us just like throwing around names of venues. Especially Kelsey. Just like being: this place, this place, this place, and Cantab looked really awesome. And then, Philamoca, just came along.

KELSEY: Section 36 knows this well, that I played there, and that's where the car was stolen. So I'm gonna be super careful. That's a story for another time.

What goes into creating the set list for a tour, and do you expect it to evolve as you go along?

KELSEY: I know for me, when I play like live shows in general, I'm very like inconsistent. Sometimes I'll go into show days, or even weeks before, and like know exactly what the set list is. Other times I decide on the day, like a few hours before. Obviously for the tour, though, having to be more just organized and rehearsed, and you know everything cause you really wanna present a great product to audiences who haven't seen you before. So I am doing something that I haven't really done before, at least on a wide scale, which is like playing the first like four or five songs of my set solo. Some of it's released. Some of it's not. I'm pretty sure my partner, Adam (Gōst Pepper) is gonna be playing guitar and some bass with me. We have some tracks, we have a looper pedal, and we're gonna try, and jazz it up. And then the last, like three or four songs, I'll be taking some band members from Felicity and Allie, which they are generously donating to me. So that I can finish off the set strong.

Felicity

FELICITY: I'm in the process of releasing my first EP, my first single already came out. So it was easy for me to choose my songs there...the songs coming out on that EP. I've also been lucky enough to be in Nashville for the last two years. There's so many little stages here, and I've done every combination in every order of songs already that I'll be playing on this tour. So I've just been able to figure out which songs I like, and in which order, you know. The more like bombastic ones, at the end. I love having a moment where you can just absolutely wake up the next morning with whiplash at the end of a show, because you're just head banging so hard, and I can't wait to bring that on the road.

ALLIE: No, I literally feel that, though, because with my last tour I was on, I remember I had like a couple of slower ones in the set which are obviously how you wanna break up a set. But I just wanted people to dance. So I think that's what is behind my picking a dance vibe. I just want to people to vibe like there's so much sad stuff in the world, you know.

KELSEY: Very awesome. And yeah, I feel that I've been at concerts where it's just like the indie, sad girl thing for a whole hour, and at the end I'm just like, Oh, my God! Like I'm gonna crawl home and cry! And I feel like that's another great thing about all of us is, we're all like really upbeat and bubbly, and just, like excited. And I think that's really gonna come through in each of our sets on tour so it's very exciting.

Is there something you're looking forward to at each stop on the tour?

KELSEY: My answer to this one is short and sweet. I'm just looking forward to seeing some of my friends that I have been friends with for either a long time, or even just a short time, and all of the cities that we're going to. It's just gonna be a nice big reunion vibe.

FELICITY: Hell. Yeah, I mean, dude. I've never been on tour before. This is my first tour. But so excited genuinely to do absolutely every single thing. I mean I've played a lot of shows in Nashville, played some shows in New York before, too, when I lived there. But I mean connecting with people that could be fans in cities that I've never been to. That's unreal. That's so sick. And of course, Bowery Electric, New York City, I mean, let's go!

Allie Dunn

ALLIE: I'm excited for the food, too. I'm gonna get a Philly cheese steak for sure!

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Next week, we'll share the second half of this incredible interview. Can't thank Kelsey, Felicity, and Allie enough for talking with us. Be sure to get your tickets for their tour now so you don't miss a single show!

Don't forget to check out each of these amazing women so you can learn more about them as artists.

Instagram: Kelsey, Felicity, Allie

Spotify: Kelsey, Felicity, Allie
Website: Kelsey, Felicity, Allie

Tour Tips from Kelsey Blackstone

You may remember that before embarking on her "With a Little Help From My Friends" Tour, Kelsey Blackstone was kind enough to bring us behind the scenes and show us how an independent artist pulls off a tour like that. Now that it's over, she has generously returned to share some hints, tips, and tricks about going on tour that she learned along the way. Starting with a quick Q&A, she also added some unprompted thoughts. I hope you enjoy it. -S36.

Photo: Sam Melanson

What’s a forgettable item you definitely don’t want to forget?

An item that I definitely would not want to forget would be a microfiber towel. I’m so happy that I brought mine on tour because not only can they fold up really, really small, but they also dry a lot faster. Super helpful!

How do you look after your personal health and fight burnout?

It’s really important to try and fight burnout, both physical and emotional, so a few weeks before tour I started taking a natural herbal immunity supplement called echinacea. I still take it now, actually, and I’ve only had one minor cold in the eight-ish months that I’ve been taking it. It’s been really, really helpful. For mental burnout, I think the best thing to do is to try and schedule a few moments every day where you’re by yourself, doing some deep breathing, stretching, etc. Since everyone’s all cramped in the car on the long drives, doing things that bring your attention back to yourself feels nice. So, put your headphones in and maybe have some scheduled quiet time in the car so people can just journal, read, write a song, or anything that they want to do.

How do you find accommodations?

Photo: Michael Smith

For accommodations on tour, we were blessed to find a lot of friends (and some complete strangers!) that were able to host us for a night or two. That was a super big help and the biggest advice I have to other artists is to just ask around for willing hosts. Usually, the person who books you at the specific venue may either host you themselves or they may have a friend that has hosted bands before. Sometimes they might just have a nice friend or family member that has an extra space, and doesn’t mind that you and your band are crashing on the floor for an evening. Of course, that being said, it’s important that you know all of your band members are on the same page as far as being respectful of whatever space you’re in. Obviously different spaces have different ground rules and boundaries, so it’s smart to always be communicating with whoever you’re staying with to ensure you’re being respectful in the way that they would like.

How do you find the right venues?

Finding the right venues is easy in some cities and hard in others. Similar to finding accommodations, I think the best way to go about that is to  ask around see what other similar bands have done and where they’ve played. Take a look at their past billings and remember that Instagram is really your best friend. It’s such a great tool to help with a little bit of this research. And if there’s any venue where you’re feeling a little bit on the fence you can always send a message to a band that has played there before and ask them about what their experience was like. To have a first-hand account of that is really helpful as far as making sure that the venue will be a good fit for your band.

How do you make use of down time?

Photo: Phillip James 
Throckmorton

Going on tour is typically similar to the feeling of going nonstop for several days in a row, so it can be fun but also quite tiring. Since you’ll be taking a lot of long drives and doing shows most nights, I think it’s very important to intentionally schedule at least a few days off depending on how long your tour is. Our tour was 2 and a half weeks, so we had about three or four days off in total. Not only is it great to just take the pressure off and be with your friends, but it’s nice to be able to sleep in a little bit and to spend some extra time in the city for exploring. This just makes the whole experience so much more well-rounded.

What’s a mistake you shouldn’t make?

A big mistake that you shouldn’t make is renting a Kia, because apparently they are very easy to steal. Unfortunately I learned that the hard way in Philly (shout out to Philly)! Either way, no matter where you are or what vehicle you have, I would say the biggest thing - and something I wish I did - is buy a steering wheel lock or anything that deters theft. Every band at some point, I’ve discovered, has a story about van troubles going wrong or their van being broken into.

Best places to eat?

Photo: Lily Nyashia

The best places to eat, by far, are diners. We ate at a diner almost every single morning of our tour and it was great because usually they’re cheap, you get really big portions, and there’s something there for everyone. Everyone gets their coffee so no one’s cranky, and everyone’s starting the day with a nice big meal which really does keep you going into the afternoon. So for us, we would start the day with a big meal at a diner somewhere, and then I always made sure that both cars were stocked with snacks and water bottles. Those afternoon snacks are really helpful because sometimes you might be lucky and have enough time where everyone can go and get a quick bite to eat at the next destination, and then other times you might have to rush and no one has time to grab a meal until after the show is over late at night. So again, having those snacks on hand are very important for when you don’t have time to go and get a full meal, but you just need something to keep you going.

Last but not least, I just have some general advice that I’m going to give in a bullet point form: 

• Make sure that you have a clear itinerary before the tour starts and that you’ve given your band members a chance to look it over so that everyone is (literally) on the same page. Everyone should know where we are going to be and at what time. It takes a lot of the thinking out of it, because it’s already been figured out beforehand. 
• Another thing I would suggest is making sure that everyone in your band knows what the expectations are for the car. Some people like to keep their seat very neat, other people don’t really mind, other people thrive in more of a messy scenario - so making sure that everyone knows what to expect from each other beforehand, so there’s no surprises, is a good idea. For us, we created a “rule” that if someone put on their headphones it’s like that person is “in their room” so you can’t bother them (unless of course there’s something super necessary that you need to talk about). But it’s respectful to give that person their time to unplug from everybody else, and just have a little bit of alone time, even if they’re sitting right next to you. 
• The last piece of general advice I have is; before going on tour, it’s a good idea to go over individual jobs for showtime and pre-show. For example, when we get to the venue, Person A is going to take charge of setting up the stage. Person B is going to set up the merch table, and Person C is going to talk with the sound person and make sure that everyone has what they need to sound good. Person D is going to go get enough food and drinks for everyone in the band, etc. All of that to say, everyone has a job and we all know what’s expected. It’s really a team effort and there’s never an unfair burden put on any one member at any time.

Thank you to Kelsey for sharing this with us. If you want to learn more about Kelsey, check out the interview she did with us here at Section 36 Music in March 2022.

Kelsey Blackstone and Gōst Pepper - “With a Little Help From My Friends” Tour - The Logistics

As she embarks on her "With a Little Help From My Friends Tour, Kelsey Blackstone was kind enough to bring us behind the scenes and show us how an independent artist pulls off a tour like this. I hope you enjoy it. -S36.

When it came time to pick cities and the route of the tour, we knew we wanted the timeline to be about two weeks long. We also knew that we at least wanted to make it down to Nashville, because that’s where Adam (Gōst Pepper) and I will be moving to in January of 2024. We also already have a good amount of friends down there so we thought it would be a great chance to see them and get a little more of a taste of Nashville. 

My band and I have done enough shows in the Northeastern area to expect that no matter how prepared you are, things will still go wrong. While this can be nerve-racking, I know that I’ll have the help of my friends to figure it out as we go! I am looking forward to going with the flow and having a fun time on the road, seeing the cities and all of the places in between. I’m sure there’s going to be hard moments, but I also know there’s going to be amazing moments that make it all worth it. And overall, again, I’m really grateful to get to experience this with - and because of - my awesome friends.

 

Catch Kelsey Blackstone and Gōst Pepper for their 1st ever show in Ithaca, TONIGHT at Deep Dive, with notable soul-jazz group, the High and Mighty Brass Band.

Thank you to Kelsey for sharing this with us. And for sending along the tour poster, designed by Anna Ferrari, and the picture by Sam Melanson If you want to learn more about Kelsey, check out the interview she did with us here at Section 36 Music in March of 2022.

Kelsey Blackstone and Gōst Pepper - “With a Little Help From My Friends” Tour - Introducing the Friends

As she embarks on her "With a Little Help From My Friends Tour, Kelsey Blackstone was kind enough to bring us behind the scenes and show us how an independent artist pulls off a tour like this. I hope you enjoy it. -S36.

I’ve wanted to go on tour like this since I was a little kid, so this is kind of like a dream come true. I originally started my band back in January of 2020 - little did I know what the future had in store. We had plans at that time to go on a tour for the summer of 2020 as well, and when that looked like it definitely wasn’t in the picture anymore, we knew that it would be a long time until we got that opportunity again. 

Some of the friends that I work with in the band now are friends that I’ve had since my very first months in Boston in 2018. It’s been so special to get to experience their growth and see the development of their own art over the years - they’ve seen mine too and we really support one another.

So let’s first start with how I figured out what to call the tour. When you don’t have a tour set up around a new or upcoming release, then it becomes more of a: ‘how can I introduce my music that’s already out there and my music that I’m going to be putting out to as many new faces as possible?’ As I was thinking about why I make my music and what it’s like to perform on stage, I was reminded that I would not be able to make this work without my friends in the band. But this also includes friends like you, Ron, helping to spread the word about my music and what I’m trying to do in Boston and beyond. It also includes the people that I get to meet in the audiences we perform to. But it doesn’t just stop there: our friends on this tour also include the very lovely people who have agreed to host us. Most of our lodging is provided by our friends in different cities, venue owners, friends of friends - just kind individuals. This tour would definitely not be possible without them either, and so, the ‘With A Little Help From My Friends’ tour was born!

The friends on stage for this tour include Sean Marcelin on guitar, Elliot Rick on bass, Anderson Jno Baptiste on keys and synth, Kaylin Frisaura on trumpet, Matome Phala on drums, and Aidan Donnelly on saxophone. Gōst Pepper (that’s his stage name, he also goes by Adam!) is the other band on tour with us. Adam/Gōst Pepper is the one that produced my song, ‘My Superstitions’! This will be both of our first times touring and it’s going to be really exciting to have everybody with us. 

Last but not least, I can’t forget to thank our friend, Pat, and the Save the Cat Agency for helping us book this tour. Pat has worked with a lot of local bands and helped send them on tours, so we thought that going to someone like them, with their experience, would be really helpful for us. I’m happy to say that we were absolutely right and Pat is the best.

You can catch our tour kickoff show on Wednesday, 8/2, at O’Briens Pub in Allston! NY favs Seeing Double will be there too.

Thank you to Kelsey for sharing this with us. And for sending along the tour poster, designed by Anna Ferrari, and the picture by Sam Melanson If you want to learn more about Kelsey, check out the interview she did with us here at Section 36 Music in March 2022.