About Sidewalk Stages
Sidewalk Stages is a street performance initiative designed to activate Chattanooga’s public spaces with live local music. Between April and October, 15 to 30 musicians per weekend are engaged for two hours of performance at a predetermined time and location. They receive a modest stipend of $25 and get to keep any tips from the public. Any musician with at least two hours of material who lives within 50 miles of Chattanooga is eligible to participate in Sidewalk Stages. Auditions for new participants take place each spring. Learn more at https://soundcorps.org/sidewalk-stages.
Jeremy Riemer didn’t expect that a visit to the Red Bank Farmers Market would lead to a budding music career for his then 6-year-old daughter, but a voice from above convinced him otherwise.
That voice wasn’t divine, but the message was every bit as clear and convincing. While shopping, the two had come across fiddler August Bruce, and Riemer’s daughter Emi became transfixed. Because the market is small enough and he could see her from just about anywhere, he left her there at Bruce’s “instrument petting” booth while he shopped. A short while later, he heard a familiar voice – Emi’s – singing over the PA.
“It was pretty good too,” he says. “It sounded like a song, and she wasn’t afraid to perform.”
Bruce remembers that day: “When Emi came up, she didn’t want to leave and go anywhere else. She was obsessed.