GemsOnVHS
GemsOnVHS[1] is an archiving recording project started by Anthony Simpkins, primarily consisting of a popular YouTube channel featuring live sessions of modern folk musicians and songwriters. The channel is made up of mostly unplugged, live performance videos and interviews with musicians, songwriters, journalists, and academics. As of October 2019[update], the channel has over 82K subscribers and over 44 million cumulative views.
History
Founder and director Anthony Simpkins, originally from Lakeland, Florida, moved to Nashville early in life. With a high school education and no formal cinematic training, he began making videos at 18. [1] In 2011 he started the GemsOnVHS YouTube channel, primarily making videos of friends and songwriters in Nashville. Since then Simpkins has uploaded over 100 videos to the channel.
In November 2017, GemsOnVHS posted a "Who is Gems" video to the channel explaining the history and concept behind it. [2] Simpkins describes being surrounded by talented musician friends in Nashville and wanting a way to share their skills with the rest of the world.[3] The video also requested responses from viewers on what they would like to see more of. At that point the channel had 16K subscribers.
In June of 2019, GemsOnVHS announced its record label division with the release of the Hill Country Devil (Hayden Karchmer)'s first album Nicotine and China White via digital download on their website.[4]
Popular Featured Artists
- Benjamin Tod
- Lost Dog Street Band
- Sierra Ferrell[5]
- Colter Wall
Influences
Simpkins was largely influenced by Alan Lomax's field recordings of the ‘50’s and ‘60’s and Vincent Moon of the film project La Blogotheque. When asked about who he decides to feature on the channel, Simpkins says:
“People always ask how they can be on the channel. I look for authenticity. I’m looking for people … the kind of guys that ain’t gonna play the Tiny Desk Concert on NPR anytime soon. Why? Because they’re drug addicts, they’re weirdos, they’re not able to get their music out there. They’re talented but they shoot themselves in the foot.”[1]
He recorded an interview with Alan Lomax’s nephew John Lomax III which is due to be released as a podcast in December 2019 as stated in a recent podcast interview. [6]
Locations
GemsOnVHS films in different locations for every video, usually using unique or meaningful sites as backdrops. When asked about how he chooses a scene to film in, Anthony says: "It's about being natural, it's about being where the musician is. If I can film it in their living room, that's where I'm going to go...that's where they're most at home and that's where their song is going to be represented the best".[7] Artist Max Gomez said of creating the video "Joe" with Anthony in an abandoned building near Germantown in Nashville "I knew Anthony was great at what he did just from meeting him. As we filmed, we caught the tailend of daylight as the sun set over Nashville"[8]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Siegel, Jacob (2018-08-08). "GemsOnVHS: Meet the YouTuber Who's Spearheading a New Wave of DIY Americana". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2019-10-23.
- ↑ The story of GemsOnVHS vol. 1, retrieved 2019-10-23
- ↑ Steed, Alex (December 18, 2019). "Anthony Simpkins of GemsOnVHS". Nashville Demystified (Podcast). Retrieved 2 January 2020.
- ↑ Kinton, Mark (March 28, 2019). "THE HILL COUNTRY DEVIL – NICOTINE AND CHINA WHITE (GEMSONVHS)". God is in the TV. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
- ↑ "Sierra Ferrell Makes Stunning Debut at AmericanaFest". Saving Country Music.com. 2019-09-16. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
- ↑ Austin James (April 3, 2019). "Anthony Simpkins". The Slow Drag (Podcast). Retrieved 5 November 2019 – via Apple Podcasts.
- ↑ The Abstract (November 29, 2018). "Chronicling DIY Americana with Anthony Simpkins of Gems on VHS". The Abstract (Podcast). Retrieved 5 November 2019 – via Audio Boom.
- ↑ Malone, Chris. "Max Gomez's New Video Is a Refreshing Cup of 'Joe': Premiere". Billboard. Billboard. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
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