By Drew Erickson
For a lot of artists, creativity is born from an selfish origin; create as a result of they want it. However most creatives ultimately uncover that what they create can transform greater than they supposed. Artwork, executed in personal, is usually a device we use to heal ourselves. However, when made public, artwork is a type of expression that may attain far past its creator. Having just lately begun sharing his music with the world, musician Zane Penny is specializing in how he can use his work to carry Anchorage’s arts neighborhood nearer collectively.
As a songwriter, Penny makes use of her writing to create pleasure and sweetness out of ache and ugliness. “I actually imagine that while you flip trauma into artwork, it stops being trauma. You simply have a cool piece of artwork. So I do not see it as, ‘This can be a shitty a part of my life.’ It is like, ‘Rattling, that is good writing materials,’” he mentioned.
However by sharing her music, Penny found that songs even have the potential to assist the listener. “I write one thing actually private, after which I believe higher of it, as a result of I believe, ‘Do I would like folks to know this about me?’ As a result of it is like, so extremely private. It is sort of bizarre revealing components of me that my household would not even learn about. However I believe that is what’s so nice about it. Folks you do not know might be able to relate way more to what you say.
Penny desires the sense of neighborhood and connection to go so far as potential. She is a part of the Vitus Collective, a bunch that goals to arrange occasions for folks of all ages to take pleasure in artwork and music.
“Right here there are not any exhibits for all ages, besides Nave, so when there is a chance, many individuals come to assist.”
At the moment, most dwell music in Alaska is carried out in bars, which limits the viewers demographic. However the collective is engaged on increasing the scene.
“The shortage of alcohol is de facto nice. I acquired texts from folks after the present, like, ‘As an individual who’s sober, it is very nice to be in an surroundings the place that is not, like, the norm.’ When there are kids, or folks my age, below the age of twenty-one, they need to be included. So, everybody dances and everybody sings. It is a good environment. Is superior. It is a lot extra enjoyable to get everybody concerned,” defined Penny.
The neighborhood component of Penny and Vitus’ operations applies not solely to their public occasions, but in addition to their work collectively.
“At any time when I write music, it is tremendous collaborative. All my buddies make music, so I am going to simply go it on and get concepts, and we’ll all add our little sauce to it,” Penny mentioned.
And this sense extends past the Collective, via the native music neighborhood.
“In Los Angeles, everyone seems to be so replaceable that everybody fights to get to the highest. However in Alaska, it’s a must to make it work with others. It is probably not aggressive in any respect, a minimum of for my part. It is like, ‘I will placed on a present with the homies,’ Penny mentioned.
Earlier than she began writing and performing music, Penny was behind the scenes, working with Vitus to shoot music movies for the opposite members.
“I began once I was in kindergarten, doing the Lego stop-motion shit. After which I acquired into brief movies.” However he had all the time needed to make his personal music. “I used to be like obsessive about Justin Bieber. He needed to be Justin Bieber. So my first dream was, like, ‘I need to be a pop star.’ After which I acquired into motion pictures and stuff. After which I did that till, I do not know, I joined Vitus and we began doing exhibits, and now I am like, ‘I need to be a pop star.
After seeing her colleagues carry out dwell, Penny labored up the braveness to grow to be the focus and began performing as nicely.
“With the ability to see somebody within the place you need to be in is de facto enriching. Particularly when you may see it in entrance of you. I believe there’s loads of hope that may be given to folks,” mentioned Penny.
Vitus plans to be very energetic in Anchorage this summer time, with a variety of inventive initiatives in thoughts. In addition to producing music, they’re engaged on style design, collection and a podcast. In addition they intention to placed on exhibits for all ages each week throughout the summer time. As for Zane’s inventive plans as a person, he intends to launch singles each few months as he works to launch his first full album. For now, we are able to stay up for his subsequent tune “The Avenue” coming quickly.
Take a look at Zane Penny’s work on Spotify and be sure you observe @VitusCollective on Instagram.
