Today we’d like to introduce you to Brooks Coker.
Hi Brooks, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I am a Knoxville-based creative and am passionate about cultivating our city’s music culture, not only for myself but for all musicians and artists. Growing up in Fayetteville, Arkansas I was privileged to be around a thriving folk and indie-folk scene.
Many Saturday mornings as a kid my parents would drive me to the farmers market with my acoustic guitar to play for tips. I made bank by the way! After being exposed to the earlier records of Bon Iver, I was in awe of the endless avenues of indie folk. Today, I still write and glean from the genre. My passions have now expanded to music, audio production, and photography.
After living in the Knoxville area for a number of years, I’ve been discouraged by the lack of diverse opportunities for local creatives to share their craft. Aspn Audio is a focused way for me to meet some of the needs of our local culture alongside many others with similar goals.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
One of the greatest challenges in creating a production company has been communicating the value of the works you are presenting.
When I’m promoting a musician through our platform or when I’m hosting a concert for a band, I’m their biggest fan and I know how amazing they are. The challenge is convincing enough people to come to support them in person or to stream their music.
Luckily, I have quite a few friends facing the same challenges and we’ve been brainstorming on how to work together on promotion and culture building.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
In February of 2022, I launched the Aspn Audio Podcast. This was my first initiative to better connect Knoxville to local creatives. I’ll be wrapping up this first season in August with 14 episodes. Each episode is under 30 minutes and features a Knoxville musician talking about one song that they’ve written and released. This season we feature artists Kelsi Walker, Zack Miles, Hollie Sikes, & many more talented songwriters. The goal of this podcast is to allow songwriters to talk about their work in unique ways that they might not otherwise have on stage or in other settings.
The second initiative is the Aspn concert series. We’ve hosted 4 shows since launching. 2 at Ijams Nature Center, 1 house show, and 1 at the Birdhouse. With these shows, I wanted to create a space where songwriters are the focal point of the evening. There are plenty of spaces where music is in the background of restaurants and bars, but very few where an audience is able to give a performer their undivided attention.
For each show, we feature multiple performers and give them space to talk about their stories in between songs. We have also included visual art and craft by inviting local creators to sell some of their work at our events. Looking forward, I am planning on collaborating with other curators and venues to co-host these shows.
What was your favorite childhood memory?
Oooo this is a tough one… might take a second haha.
Exploring the woods in the backyard of our house in Fayetteville with my sister and our dog! Also, the same scenario plus on snow days.
Contact Info:
- Website: aspnaudio.com
- Instagram: @aspnaudio
- Facebook: Aspn Audio
- Other: linktr.ee/aspnaudio/
