Big Village Little City — It’s a Family Thing

Big Village Little City (Photo by Joshua Santora)

Not surprisingly, there wasn’t any time to take the foot off the gas on November 9, the day New York’s Big Village Little City released their debut album, Over the Weather. There was still work to be done, from a taping at City Winery to a record release party.

It’s the life of a working musician, and Amy Grace and her crew (Osei Kweku, Zac Hills-Bonczyk, Kenrick McBean, Kai Sandoval, Bryan Pasian, Mauki McGruder) aren’t waiting for the world to come to them. They’re going after every listener they can get the old fashioned way — by making good music and playing it whenever they can.

“Some bands forget that the whole point is the experience itself and to grow your audience,” said Grace, the band’s vocalist. “And you can’t really grow your audience when there is no audience because there’s no show. (Laughs) It’s a lot of work to really be booking all the time; it’s basically an office job. So it’s a lot of work to keep playing and to have all the musicians available, especially in New York because everybody’s part of a lot of different musical projects.”

But since 2016, they’ve managed to make it work with a diverse, yet cohesive, style that has a little bit of something for everyone. And in a city that isn’t easy to build a following, BVLC has managed to make a true home in the Big Apple.

“The response has always been really positive and everybody keeps saying I’ve never seen anything like this combination of all my favorite stuff,” said Grace. “There’s something for everybody. And the live experience is really fun. It’s a dance party, it’s live horns, it’s an ambiance that we create. It’s not just something that you stand and watch. And then when we did the video release party, all the feedback was really good, and everybody that comes across this band and this sound is super down, and we’re lucky that we have no shortage of other artists that want to come and add to the ambiance.”

That means body painters and live artists to go along with the music, and when you add it all together, it’s a fun time where you get your money’s worth. No, it’s not your typical night out, but that’s the point.