Guitarist Mike Johnson plays with the “Roughshod Records SideKicks Show.”
He sent a video of his two-man band performance to Potomac Local shot at the June 4 Occoquan Spring Craft Show. Occoquan Town Sergeant Sheldon Levi appears in the video at about 4:30 and shuts down the amplified performance.
It appears some of the craft vendors, who paid between $300 to $475 to showcase their wares at the event, did not appreciate the duo using an amplifier during their set. Levi asked the band to turn off the amplifier.
At about 7:25 in the video, Levi comes back to speak with the country music band. The duo then packs up and ultimately leaves the spot they had been playing at, in front of Union Street Guitar Works. Johnson states he’s been attending craft shows in Occoquan since 1997 and has never seen anything like this.
Here’s a statement from Occoquan Town Manager Kirstyn Jovanovich:
The show rules that are provided to each vendor and publicly available on the Town’s website state that “Amplified music is not permitted, with the exception of entertainment contracted by the Event Director.” This is done in an effort to ensure that any entertainment present at the show does not disrupt the participating vendors or public and does not inhibit their ability to conduct business throughout the show. In this particular instance, we received a complaint regarding the amplified music and the disruption it was causing and asked that the individual stop using amplified music as per the show’s policies.
We also spoke with the property owner who stated that they did give permission at the band’s request to play during the show on their property, but did not contract the group for the service. We invited the group to continue playing acoustically in that location in an effort to reduce the noise impact on the surrounding vendors or to participate as entertainment in a future show where they would be contracted by the Town and have an opportunity to play and sell their music as part of the show.
We do our very best to create a lively and family-friendly atmosphere that includes a mix of crafters, artisans, foods, businesses, and entertainers, but must do it in a very purposeful manner that will allow for all participants and visitors to receive the most out of the experience.
In the video, Johnson claims he emailed Union Street Guitar Works on May 31 and said he had permission from a Union Street Guitar manager to play in front of the store. We spoke with the manager who told us Johnson contacted him ask asked if it was OK to come and play in front of their property, and the guitar shop said OK.
Union Street Guitar Works sells two of Johnson’s CDs inside of the store. When asked if Johnson would be allowed back to play in front of the store again, the manager replied “I really can’t say.”
There are two craft shows each year in Occoqaun, one in spring and one in fall. They shows are the largest tourism draws, and fundraisers for the town.
