Going South by Southwest

(For the seventh consecutive year, Urban Tulsa Weekly held its South by Southwest Music Festival essay contest during the months of December and January. Contestants were asked to write a 500-word essay expressing why they should go and to show why his or her finger was on the pulse of the local music scene. The ability to write imaginative and thought-filled sentences was also required. We send the winning essay writer, along with one friend, down to one of the country's top music expositions to serve as a correspondent for UTW. This year, the festival takes place March 17-21 in Austin, Texas.

Check back with UTW in late March to read more about the festival. And, if you think you could do the job, enter next year's essay contest beginning in December 2009. Cheer's to you, Keline...)

OK, UTW, I'm going to make the SXSW essay contest really easy for you. I should represent UTW as a guest correspondent, and I'll give you a couple of good reasons why I am THE choice for 2010.

First, I have a passion for music. A love of music is pretty much a requirement for this assignment, but passion is different than love. Trust me--I used to be married. Second, I am hardworking, dedicated and I enjoy writing about music. No, these aren't sensational or exciting reasons, but I consider them a decent guarantee that UTW readers will have a fantastic recap of the annual rite-of-spring for the music industry instead of a boring, empty column ... or even worse--boring, empty words.

In order to properly cover the non-stop hyperactivity that is SXSW, I will go armed to the teeth with an open mind, an available schedule and unlimited energy drinks (not Red Bull, that stuff is nasty).

Music is my No. 1 priority, so naturally the bulk of my essay should be discussing the band I think would be the best choice to represent Tulsa at SXSW.

Eric and the Adams are rock, pop, soul and blues all rolled into one. With Eric's addition of Angel and Jimmy Adams, his sound has become more confident, refined and just plain fun. I've followed Eric's career for almost four years, and he seems to have come out of his shell; no longer a simple singer-songwriter, he's now a personality.

From dressing in costume for shows to performing on creatively designed, elaborate sets, Eric and the Adams have established themselves as a force to be reckoned with.

Eric and the Adams should be THE band to represent Tulsa at SXSW because they are the total package: good songs, good looking, good publicity and brilliant marketing.

Eric and the Adams don't just play shows in Tulsa; they play all over the country, from Washington D.C. to Nashville to New Mexico. Eric and the Adams don't just receive the average local Tulsa publicity; they have been featured in UTW, Tulsa World, Up Late with Ben Sumner and on several papers across the country (Out, The Advocate, Dallas Voice, Boston Herald and many others).

Eric and the Adams didn't just have a CD release party; they filmed a music video with two of the most sought after photographers in Tulsa, had an in-store performance at Dwelling Spaces the day of the show (virtually unheard of in the local music scene), gave away a free CD with every ticket and sold out the venue.

Of all the local bands in Tulsa, Eric and the Adams have the best shot at succeeding at SXSW. And what do you know? They're already on the schedule.