Ida Hakkila – WO+rd
Ida Hakkila hosts “The Heavy Light Show,” on Radio Kingston. She’s also DJ’d at some other radio stations, and written comedy and memoir.
Sofia Ruvira – WO+rd
Sofía Ruvira-Fernández is a native Galician artist, writer and researcher. Her work focuses on the
exploration of liminality throughout performance art, movement and writing. Ruvira uses different
mediums such as water, paper, yarn and nature itself exploring the relationships established through
time-matter-memory-body-word. She is pursuing her PhD in literature at Yale University.
In 2021, Fernández received a Fulbright Arts Fellowship to pursue advance dance studies at the José Limón
School in New York City. After that, she has been commissioned to be part of the Ciclo MEXER at MIHL
(Galicia), Newark Art Festival (New Jersey), PAUSA USA (Queens) and Acción Spring(t) (Madrid),
IHRAF at The Tank (NYC) and others. Her art pieces have been exhibit in Centro Galego de Arte
Contemporánea, CA+MP Recovery Lounge and Museo Interactivo de Historia de Lugo, Solaina Galería
(Spain), Chashama Gala (USA) and Torn Page (USA). She was part of the selection of the VII Encontro de
Artistas Novos, 2023, a Flusslab resident in 2023 and a A Casa Vella resident in 2022. Also, Fernández is the
author of Un verano en Manhattan (Distrito93, 2022) and soon of 4 Plays in Galician (CUNY University,
forthcoming 2024), Os corpos fráxiles (Aira Editorial, forthcoming 2024) and Casasoá (Laiovento,
forthcoming 2025). Ruvira is one of the authors featured in the anthology Letras Con Morriña (Deza
Migrante, 2023) in Buenos Aires. She holds the biweekly newsletter Minimal Atomic Thoughts. Alalá is her
first long-length work in English.
sofiafernandez.net
John W. Barry – WO+rd
Born in the Bronx, raised in the New York City suburbs of Rockland County and living in New York State’s Hudson Valley since 1990, John W. Barry is an award-winning journalist with a passion for writing and a love of music. This combination has brought John to some pretty incredible places and put him in the company of some incredible people. From Radio City Music Hall in Manhattan to Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado and many places in between, John’s relentless pursuit of the stories, the people and the circumstances that define the world around us has enabled him to assemble the pieces of a compelling tale or two. John grew up in Bardonia, New York; and is a very proud graduate of Bardonia Elementary School; Clarkstown South High School; and the State University of New York at New Paltz. The latter is what brought John to Ulster County, New York, and set him on his path to Woodstock, Levon Helm Studios and the Midnight Ramble. Following eight years writing for his old hometown newspaper, The Journal News, John remained with the USA Today Network and took on the duties of music writer at the Poughkeepsie Journal in Dutchess County, New York. John soon found himself in the center of Levon’s Midnight Ramble house concerts, getting to know Levon, his band, his crew, his management team, Team Levon and, of course, his fans. Circumstance was kind to John and lit a path as he unleashed his relentless fervor for writing and music. The result was his book, Levon Helm: Rock, Roll & Ramble—The Inside Story of the Man, the Music and the Midnight Ramble.
Destiny Riviello – WO+rd
Destiny Riviello has two cats, a dog, a lovely partner and loves unicorns so much she cries sometimes!
Lena Moon – WO+rd
Lena Moon has been writing poetry since she was a young teenager. She is a dancer, poet, storyteller, ceremonial song catcher, and a visual artist. Her song “Wise In Her Ways” is an underground classic sung the world over in honor of women. Her poetry has repeatedly been featured in We’Moon’s Datebook, She: On The Tip Of Her Tongue (a women’s artist showcase), and as an opening act for the renowned former performing duo Climbing Poetree. During 2020 she offered weekly live readings of poems she wrote during lock-down, compelled by fans she put them into her first book of poetry called “Love Poems From Lockdown” in 2021.
King In Yellow
King In Yellow, started by longtime friends and musical collaborators, Kyle McDonough and Nick Vining, is a musical fusion of timeless melodies and razor sharp rhythms. Drawing inspiration from the golden eras of rock and jangle pop, their music harmoniously blends raw energy and soothing gentleness. With avant-garde influences, King In Yellow crafts a unique sonic experience that transcends boundaries.
Stefan Weiner
Stefan Weiner is an NYC-based queer indie folk singer-songwriter. He mixes the immediacy of classic songwriting with the intimacy of a quiet conversation with a friend. He made a splash in 2016 with his debut pop single “Skeleton” under the name Stefan Alexander, which garnered over 1.4M plays on Spotify. Unfortunately, Stefan’s career was put on a years-long pause, due to a mysterious chronic pain condition, which he finally resolved in 2019. In the following years, Stefan released two pop EPs, Thunderclap and Cry Again, both to great critical acclaim from publications like Forbes, The Advocate, American Songwriter, among many others. Through his music, Stefan creates space for people to access a deeper vulnerability. He is open and honest about his experiences with chronic pain, love, loss and his queer journey. Audience members often approach Stefan after shows to share stories from their own lives and tell him how much they connected to a certain song or how a lyric brought them to tears. At the beginning of 2023, after years making pop music, Stefan made the transition back to indie folk, where he got his start. He will be releasing Vinegar or Wine on April 4th, which will be Stefan’s third EP. Watch for another EP and a full-length length through 2024.
Sug Daniels
Sug Daniels is a Delaware born, Philadelphia based, singer-songwriter, story teller, and producer who is using the tools around her to capture the emotions of an era. Daniels’ work is as colorful, vulnerable, and charismatic as her personality. She thoughtfully combines elements of folk, rock, and soul alternatives to create personal and tender music interlaced with messages of truth and positive change.
Surgeon General
Surgeon General is a tastefully noisy rock outfit formed in Bennington, VT and now based between VT and NYC, taking cues from 90’s indie to mangle together a sound with the accessibility of classic singer-songwriter stylings with just enough noise to keep you on your toes. SG’s debut record “Live at Martha Hill” is an honest and raw one-night showcase of a band firing on all cylinders until the machine breaks down completely.
surgeongeneralmusic.com
Brittany Ann Tranbaugh
Brittany Ann Tranbaugh (pronounced TRAN-baw) is a Philadelphia-based songwriter whose queer Americana heartbreaker “Kiss You” won Song of the Year in the 2021 John Lennon Songwriting Contest. Tranbaugh has been writing songs and playing shows as a side gig since she was a teenager, but in February 2023, at 31 years old, she finally quit her office job to pursue a full-time career in music. Her newest release is a self-titled EP produced by Grammy-winner Tyler Chester which showcases Tranbaugh in her new era: energetic, self-assured, surrounded by her beloved musical community, and more commanding as a vocalist and writer than ever before.
https://brittanyanntranbaugh.com