July 9th, 2021 8pm Stage
As of June 16, 2021, New York State has lifted all COVID-19 related restrictions that apply to a venue of Rockwood’s size. In accordance with these revised guidelines, vaccination records will no longer be checked and entry will be permitted for both vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals. Social distancing and masks will not be required, although masks will remain recommended for non-vaccinated individuals.
Jake Benjamin
In life, sometimes where you begin is where you belong. A few years ago, singer-songwriter Jake Benjamin made a left turn from his core self of being a musician that sent him on a winding, self-reflective odyssey through states and states of mind. He announces his return to music with his aptly-titled debut EP, Finally Back Home, an exquisite collection of jazz-tinged pop. The New York-based artist earned his bachelor’s degree from University of Miami’s Frost School of Music’s Music Business and Studio Music & Jazz programs, and earned his master’s degree from Indiana University’s prestigious Jacobs School of Music where he studied voice. Because of this formal training, core to Jake’s aesthetic is his sophisticated harmonic compositional vocabulary. Jake tempers this studied musicality with adventurous artistic explorations via a loop station. His innovative approach with this technology treats the loop station as a compositional tool through which he explores the possibilities of vocal layering, beatboxing, and body percussion. “I write original music for the sensitive and heartfelt millenial, and I reimagine jazz repertoire to make tunes my own. The stories in my songs are about me, or somebody I know. I don’t like to make up stories of things I didn’t go through,” Jake says.