It’s that time of year again – The Central Florida Public Media Tiny Desk Showcase is back, featuring live and local music chosen by you!
This time, demand was so great that we had to get a bigger venue: it’s happening at the Beacham in downtown Orlando next week on June 5th.
This year’s performers are Joseph Jiovanni and INtensity, Skyyler Rain and the Next Door Neighbors, VIBRA, and Yella Kang. The band Cammila was also voted into the Top 5 but can’t make the stage this year.
Before the big night, the bands tell us about what moves them to make music, and to help us get to know them a little, they brought along one interesting fact about themselves to share.
We’ll start with Joseph Jiovanni and Intensity, because we already know an interesting fact about them – you’ve voted them into our showcase before! They’re back this year with a song called “Let’s Love.”
“In love, we all need each other,” said Jiovanni. “And I mean neighbors, I mean man and woman…I mean daughter or a son or a brother or a sister, a coworker, citizen or not, regardless of sex, sexual preference, political party or even religious belief system, we all need each other and need to learn to love each other. And that's what our song ‘Let’s Love’ is all about.
A new addition to this year’s lineup is Skyyler Rayn and the Next Door Neighbors with the song “Dialing My Digits.”
When asked for an interesting fact, Skyyler Rayn cheekily mentioned that he just adopted a hamster named Possum, which certainly qualifies and now we want to see pics. On his music, he added, “The reason why I make my music is because growing up, I didn't have an easy way of communicating my feelings. So when I had to start writing poetry, I realized it was a way for me to color words into ways that aren't just saying it, you know, it's painting a picture, and sometimes, in some ways, making it easier for other people to understand what you're saying.”
The band VIBRA joins the lineup with their song “Mas de ti/Keep Me Steady.” Juan Arango of VIBRA said if you don’t understand the words, don’t worry – just feel the music!
“The invitation is, we don't mind if don’t understand the lyrics. Our invitation is to feel it. And actually, the name of the band is this: VIBRA. Vibra means ‘vibe.’ So connect with the vibe. Connect with our roots, connect with this Latin flavor, and just go with the flow. Feel this music.”
When chatting with Yella Kang about their song “The Replacers,” we learned an interesting fact about their name. It’s a reference to “The King in Yellow,” a novel from the 1890s.
“By Robert W. Chambers, who was a big influence on Lovecraft,” explained Yella Kang’s Ryan Ongena, “and then in turn, Stephen King.”
“And yeah, we're total nerds,” he laughed. “Horror nerds, space nerds, sci-fi nerds.”
Cammila and her song “Sideral” were also voted onto the stage for a second time – she performed in 2024 – but sadly, something has come up for her this year and she won’t be joining us. Still, we want to honor your votes and share a few of her thoughts here.
“One interesting fact about me is the fact that I'm Venezuelan, and even though my first language is Spanish, like I've only ever written songs in English, for some reason. It's easier for me. It's just easier to express how I'm feeling and put it into words in English. I can express myself and connect with other people's feelings. And like in a it just feels like in a deeper way.”
