Pen & Page

(Poster design by AJ Ostlund)

Tuney time has new meaning for me this year. Before, I was a casual spectator enjoying the show. Now, as a sponsor of the event and a coordinator of all things Tuney, I’ve got a behind-the-scenes look, which has included counting boatloads of ballots, coordinating the performers’ schedules and the awards presentation, and the last-minute kinks we’ve been ironing out. And that’s just the work that goes in before the first award is handed out.

All this prep work will culminate in the ninth annual Billings Outpost Tuney Awards presentation, coordinated by Billings Outpost staff and Tuney volunteers on Saturday starting at 4 p.m. at Yellowstone Valley Brewing Co.

We’ll present the Tuney awards and celebrate local musicians, and have a great lineup of live performers who represent previous Tuney Award winners and some of the community’s hardest working musicians. The evening’s performances include ENDever, Dan Page and the Barn Cats, the Peach Pickers, Earthshine and Matt Rogers.

Proceeds from this year’s awards show, as in previous years, go toward a great cause: paying some of the medical bills incurred by local musician Gy Moody, who recently suffered a heart attack.

As a friend of Moody, I sat in the hospital with him following his heart attack and knew he was grateful to be alive, and as strange as it may sound, he seemed to welcome this alarming wakeup call. However, Moody, like many of us, is living without health insurance and has mounting medical bills for his care. We’re asking a $2 cover at the door, or more, if you can spare it, for this great cause.

So I hope to see you Saturday, even if it’s just for a few minutes. Come down and show your support for your local music scene, musicians and, of course, your weekly independent newspaper bringing you musical notes each week.