Because It’s New York City: The Nightlife Culture Interview with Amanda Bantug

 

It is common knowledge that online marketing and digital distribution gives artists and musicians the ability to create and release music from any where on the planet. The cliché of coming to New York with your guitar to make a name for yourself isn’t as universal as it once was. But even in the era of iTunes Youtube and Reverbnation there are still many artists yearning to perform in the City. In the first interview of its kind, NCI talked to Amanda Bantug an alternative musician from Georgia who is planning her New York debut.  

NCI: When you imagine playing your music live in New York, what do you see in your mind’s eye? What do you think that first experience will be like?

AB: Since I’m not from New York, of course I imagine thousands of people singing my songs back to me a MSG, but realistically, that is not going to happen right off the bat. I know I’ll probably be at a more intimate venue, which is wonderful because I really get to interact with the audience. I hope the audience will give me a lot of their attention and really get to know me through my music. It’ll be really exciting for me because I love New York so much and it’ll be a dream come true to even play up there. Even if it’s just me and a guitar.  

NCI: Tell me about the last song you wrote. What inspired it, how did you develop that idea and what kind of emotions did it bring out of you when you knew it was done?

AB: I literally just a wrote a song yesterday. I have a very close friend who actually inspires me to write a ton of songs. They’re just in the phase of doing anything they want to do and take anything they are handed. It sucks because they have such a great talent that could take them wherever they want, but their heart just isn’t in the right place. So that is what the song is kind of about. After writing it, I just feel like a weight lifted off of me, because sometimes I can’t express myself best verbally, so I put in song. But songs can’t fix things, so the emotions I still feel towards my friend haven’t changed.  

NCI: What inspiration do you think you will get from being in New York City to perform? 

AB: I’ve read somewhere that being in different surroundings can help your mind open up to creating different ideas and what not compared to what someone would usually create in their day to day setting. With that being said, I would definitely be inspired to write about different concepts with a different type of genre. I am always up for experimenting with sounds, lyrics, and structure.

NCI: Why do think a lot of musicians still want to come to New York to perform? In an era of digital distribution and independent music, what still draws artists like you to want to perform here?

AB: Cause it’s New York City! What else is there to say? There are only a few cities in the US that are as diverse as NYC. I feel like you can always run into someone up there who can pull a couple of strings for you. Because of all this digital distribution, there is so much going on, it’s hard to listen to all of the bands that deserve a chance. That is why us artists need to play live in so many places, including New York :)

Links

Facebook: http://www.reverbnation.com/amandabantug#!/artist/bio/artist_1700888

Reverbnation: http://www.reverbnation.com/amandabantug#!/artist/bio/artist_1700888

Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/amandabantug

YouTube: Amanda Bantug Videos

The Social Side of Nightlife Culture

By Gamal Hennessy

When you walk past the bouncer and into a lively bar, it might feel as if you’ve submerged yourself into a chaotic mess. Various sized clusters of people are interspersed with floaters, stragglers and spectators. Some are laughing, some are dancing, some are yelling, some are oddly silent and a few of them are chasing each other around the room with phone cameras.

There is a certain amount of random shenanigans going on here, but if you sit back and observe them you can see that there are various types of communication, interaction and connection that going on in any bar or club. Being able to understand what is going on will give you a stronger appreciation for the social dynamic in nightlife culture. The following examples are not meant to be exhaustive or exclusive. Many of these interactions can happen simultaneously and even a conversation within a group can ebb and flow from one to the other. But these examples will give you a sense of the complex dynamic going on in any crowded bar.

Elements of Social Interaction in Nightlife Culture

Sexual: The most obvious type of connection in nightlife is the sexual one. Nightlife is sex and sexual energy is sublimated in to every aspect of the nightlife experience. We present ourselves in ways that we hope will attract potential partners. We tease and flirt to test the waters. We play games of attraction and seduction to capture their imaginations and then we go where that connection leads us. Whether you are talking about pick up artists in a meat market or a quiet date at a martini bar, a one night stand or happily ever after, modern courtship happens in the nightlife space. Without it, a major link in the sexual selection process would be gone.

Business: There is an saying about never mixing business with pleasure but anyone familiar with nightlife knows this mixing goes on every night. Nightlife is integral to many business practices and many deals, business connections and meetings would not happen absent a night of drinking. I’ve spent time with people in the advertising, legal and media industries. Going out to “events” for or with the client is just as important (if not more important) than the work that goes on from nine to five. I’ve seen upscale lounges sectioned off for so many private parties of investment banks and insurance companies that the place looked less like a bar and more like a convention at the Javits Center. I’ve been on both ends of the buying and selling process in several cities around the world and one thing remains constant; if a deal is going to get done, someone has to take someone out for some drinks. It could be a few pints at the pub. It could be bottle service at the newest lounge. It could be lap dances in the champagne room of a strip club. The concept is the same. If there is no pleasure, there probably won’t be any business.

Bonding: Our experiences are not limited to picking up strangers or selling something to our clients. A lot of our time is spent with people we already know and actually want to spend time with outside of work. Friends, family, couples who are dating, all use nightlife to reconnect and enhance the bonds they already have. How common is it to email friends you haven’t seen in a while and find out where they’ll be on Friday night so you can all hang out and have some fun? What is a date if not a couple spending time together? If family members come in from out of town and they are not too young or too old to go out, isn’t it normal to bring them to some bar? You could get together for conversation, carousing or just to catch up. The bar or lounge are prime places to do that.

Celebration: Venues often market themselves as having the best parties in the city. We use events and occasions both large and small as the reasons to get together and enjoy ourselves. A few close friends might take you out to celebrate your birthday with you. Perhaps you attend a release party for an artist’s album or gallery opening. Maybe it’s an after party for an awards show, closed deal or concert. Or it could be a huge holiday celebration for Thanksgiving Eve or New Year’s Eve. We mark some of the significant events in our lives with a celebration and very often that celebration happens in a club.

Exhibition: The most subtle type of social communication is the exhibition. Many of us engage in a constant struggle to raise our social standing and rank relative to similar people in our surroundings or our peer group. To achieve this, we show the people around us our value through some type of display.

• Men will order bottle service to show that they have money to spend.
• Clubbers will throw themselves onto the dance floor to show that the skill they have with their bodies.
• Women will compare themselves to the size, shape, attractiveness and style of other women in the room.
• Social butterflies will move through the room collecting handshakes and kisses to show how much people love them.
• Drinkers will knock back beers as fast as they can to show their superior tolerance for alcohol.  

Each display is meant to send a signal, build reputation and ultimately value. The struggle to climb the social ladder is not unique to nightlife, but the exhibitions that can be found here are often different than what you might find in the daylight hours.

Communication as culture

It is easy to see how music, food and fashion play a role in nightlife culture and by extension influence society as a whole. But culture is not only the artistic and aesthetic components of a society. How people communicate with each other is also an important factor. Nightlife is, at its heart, a social interaction. We go out to connect with friends, lovers and strangers on one level or another. Our social interaction is part of our lifestyle and lifestyle is part of culture.

Have fun

Gamal

Mad46: A Good Reason to Miss the Train

By Gamal Hennessy

One of the major trends in New York venues over the past few years is the roof top lounge. It has evolved from a unique type of venue to a sub genre in its own right. It draws out patrons looking for an open air party during the warmer months. The most recent entries into this niche market also come with heat and retractable roofs to provide year round entertainment. Parties above the city streets are now common in Meatpacking District, LES and Midtown West.

Mad46 is entering its third year in this category but you might not have heard about it yet. It is perched on top of the Roosevelt Hotel on Madison Avenue and 46th Street, just a block away from Grand Central Station. Walking into the back of the hotel, you are quickly met by a security guard who ushers you through what looks like a service entrance into a dark corridor. You won’t go three steps before you see another guard holding open an elevator to whisk you upstairs. The speakeasy mood continues when you exit the elevator and peer around a corner into an indoor space lined with lounge chairs and small groups of two and three hovering over glasses and laughing. Your search for the bar will lead out outside onto a hedge lined terrace and a wide open view of the midtown skyline. The center of the terrace will reveal the bar. From here you’ll have a chance to take in the mixed aged crowd relaxing in cabanas and the view while you wait for your drink. A stroll to the opposite end of the terrace will reveal a second room with red walls and thin red columns that looks like a good place to run if the rain starts to fall. It will only take you a few sips of your mojito before you decide that this is a good place to go if you ever miss your Metro North train after work.

The venue has a lot of potential upside beyond its appeal to Connecticut commuters. It’s location makes it a natural spot for advertising, marketing and PR professionals who work up and down Madison Avenue (and before all you downtown hustlers write this place off consider this question; what better place to make connections than a room full of PR pros sipping margaritas?). Unlike other rooftop venues, there is no drama getting in, although it pays to have a reservation on the weekend. The staff is friendly and professional. The management limits the amount of space reserved for bottle service which leaves more space for you and me. Management also takes steps to keep the vibe unique by offering DJ parties on the weekends, special events for men (think professional cigar rolling and drinks), women (think professional manicures and drinks) and themed parties for events like the Kentucky Derby (think big hats and drinks)

For all its upside, the space does face some challenges. The terrace is not heated or covered although the two separate indoor rooms provide more than enough space during the colder months to keep the party going. The hours of operation end fairly early compared to other New York venues because of its connection to the hotel, so while you can start your party here you’ll have to end it somewhere else if you plan to party all night. Finally, Mad46 is fairly isolated from other marquee venues. If you want to continue to party, you’ll have to venture east to Lexington Avenue, west to Times Square or grab a cab downtown. But considering that more midtown venues are being planned even as we drink it might not be long before Mad46 become the centerpiece for a midtown nightlife expansion.

For more information about Mad46 you can check out their website at http://mad46.com/ or follow them on Twitter at http://twitter.com/mad46

Have fun
G

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