I’m going down to Mississippi
I’m going down a southern road
And if you never see me again
Remember that I had to go….
I haven’t been writing in here nearly as much as I wanted to lately but it seems that most of my computer time recently has been devoted to a major project in Second Life. Cidnee Cooperstone, Ann Bluxome and I have been creating a new blues club called the Riverside. This project is in conjunction with Powell Goodman and Lee Marchant’s development of a Mississippi Delta themed sim, which conveniently enough is called Mississippi Delta Blues. Our two groups are working together to build what we hope is the premier blues sim in Second Life.
There are a lot of really good blues clubs and sims in Second Life but none quite had the flavour that we were looking for so we decided to go our own way. There were many things we discussed when we were dreaming up our project but some of the things we decided were that we wanted a sim that made you see, feel and hear the blues when you arrived, a place that had the look and the aura of blues country. We also wanted what we thought would be a very open and welcoming atmosphere combined with the best DJs and hosts we could find. One of the main things strangely enough is that we wanted a blues club that played blues and while that does sound rather obvious I don’t know how many times I have gone into different blues places in Second Life and heard Nickelback or Metallica. Nothing against those bands but they aren’t blues. Maybe it’s just me but when people decide to visit a blues club I think they want to hear blues. I know I do.
So about 3 to 4 months ago we had our first meeting and the wish list was written. We set about shaping what we wanted the sim to look like. We had many discussions and it seemed like we would never finalise our ideas but slowly and surely it took shape.
We spent many of those early days searching. We were searching for the right idea, the right look, the right DJ, the right host and generally the right path. After a few missteps and wrong directions we started to find our way. We hired some of our first DJs ( BluJns Benoir, Filo Tani, Bear Rasmuson, MoonMaiden Horner & Reverend Quar) and Ann had hired some hosts (Aelia Ceriano and Zara Mistwalker). We started to get a framework of what the club and area around it would look like. We went shopping for the best dances. This resulted in some very large laugh fests for Cid and I. We bought furniture and decorations all with a somewhat obscure theme in our minds. We seemed to know what we wanted even if we had no idea how it would fit together at this point.
There were days where I had some doubts if it would ever come together totally in the early stages as we were working together yet separately with Powell and Lee. Yet, one day when I was finishing up putting the Riverside club together and Cidnee was helping me with the texturing it all seemed to come clear as the place suddenly had the unmistakable flavour and feel that we wanted. I knew then that we could have a very cool build.
Ann contributed the fish fry place and the gas station which really helped to complete the atmosphere of the Riverside. There were plenty more little rural flourishes that were added but now that we had the main components they were easy to find and fit right in.
As we continued to tinker with the smaller things the Grand Opening celebration was rapidly approaching. We decided we wanted a dry run so we planned on having a pre-opening party for our friends. We invited all the people that we had come to love and rely on as our friends in Second Life. Some brought friends with them and it turned out to be such a great night for us as some of the new people we met (Mac Ronas & Xavia Palmira) ended up working with us as well. Having all of our favourite avatars there made it very special for us and was really a success for us just being able to open the doors for our friends.
With the opening in one week, we only had a handful of DJs and even less hosts so Cid and I scouted for DJs while Ann went looking for hosts. Thankfully we managed to find a couple of each that final week before we opened. As luck would have it our friend Artiste Ibanez chose that week to come back from a long absence from Second Life. I immediately cornered him with an offer to DJ for us. We also lucked into a great host when Piffy Difference was paired with me at Hotlanta Blues Club. We found Hannah Volare that week too although at first she wasn’t sure she wanted to work at the Riverside, but thankfully we won her over.
On Saturday, January 16th the Sim opened to great success with Lee and Powell hiring Saint Skytower and SRV4U da Blues Preacher who played the first show’s at the Cotton Field Stage a neat open air venue in the middle of a tall cotton plantation. It was the perfect opening to the Mississippi Delta and attracted a great crowd of friends and new faces. At one point I believe we had 53 avatars on the sim.
Then, finally, the moment Cidnee, Ann and I had waited almost 3 months for arrived. The Riverside was open. I was the DJ in my own club and it was really quite a thrill. All in all it was a wonderful day and evening. We had about 30 plus avatars in the house all night and a great time. We had many old friends and familiar faces drop in to make the night very special and we had plenty of new faces that we hope become frequent guests. By the end of the night I know that Cid, Ann and I were happy, satisfied and exhausted. It was a good tired though.
Thanks to all of our friends that attended. Thanks to all the new faces too. All of you made the night very special.
