By Ashleigh Beaudoinnews@langleyadvance.com
A Langley cafe is opening its doors and giving a space for local musicians to showcase their talent.
The Gossip Corner Cafe, in conjunction with musician Nigel Briggs, is beginning a new showcase series for local musicians and performers.
The venue, owned by Anthony Teeuwen and Gloria Iuliano, has been open for about a year, and when Teeuwen met Briggs last year they were both inspired to create a place where artists could perform in their own community.
Briggs, a 34-year-old Maple Ridge resident, has been a solo musician for 15 years, and knows that it can be difficult for local musicians to find venues to play in, without the artists losing money at the end.
“Generally, a lot of up-and-coming bands or performers don’t have a lot of venues to showcase in locally, they have to travel into Vancouver for that.”
For Briggs, music has always been a passion, and that passion inspired him to pursue music as a career.
“My dad was a drummer and as I grew up, I started picking it up as well,” he told the Langley Advance.
His style of music includes rock, country, blues, pop, and more. He has also played with some local bands, but largely he has pursued a solo career.
“My solo style tends towards more pop-rock with a bluesy twist, but I write songs in all styles,” he said.
As a Lower Mainland musician, he knows that it can sometimes be difficult to find venues to perform in and showcase music.
Though this will be a first for Briggs, Teeuwen, and Iuliano, they all hope it will turn into something more, and creates a space where artists and the community can come together and enjoy a night of good, local music.
“We’re excited to see what kind of turnout we can get,” Briggs said.
They are hoping to create a community and this first event will set the pace for future events.
Looking for Talent
When he started looking for talent to showcase, Briggs turned to social media – Facebook and Craigslist in particular – to drum up interest in the event and see who was interested in performing.
Initially, he hoped for one or two other performers, but the response was so great that he decided to choose three other acts to perform, with himself as the opening headliner.
“I got a great response… we are hoping to do this monthly, depending on the draw,” Briggs explained.
In his search for talents, he is looking for eager artists, with the drive to take their music as far as they can, but he also wants to create a community for local artists.
“As competitive as it is, we’re all in this together,” Briggs said.
First event
The first show will be on Friday, Jan. 20 at the Gossip Corner Cafe, 5680 198th St. Doors open at 7 p.m., with music starting at 8 pm.
The act will open with Nigel Briggs performing solo.
Briggs says that each showcase will tend towards a certain genre. For the first show, Briggs says that they were going for more of an acoustic feel.
Kevin Morningstar and Jacob Gold also will perform, as Star Attraction, as well as folk-rock singer Ted Kim in his act Dear Father, and Brett Janzen as Atlas to Earth.
“I love doing this kind of live music,” Briggs said.
“I joked that for the night it will be called Gossip Corner Cabaret… it’s going to be like a cabaret night.”
