Photos: The Speakeasy Open Mic operates as drive-in concert due to COVID-19
Thursday night marked the first transition of The Speakeasy Open Mic event to an outdoor drive-in format. Drivers parked their cars around a small pallet stage with a sound system that broadcasted the performances into the vehicles' radios. The Speakeasy has been operating since late 2017, offering a platform for budding musicians and poets. Many artists said social issues like police brutality and COVID-19 have influenced their creative processes lately.
Photos: The Speakeasy Open Mic operates as drive-in concert due to COVID-19
Poets, rappers and vocalists perform at a drive-in open mic June 25 in Arlington. Attendees were able to tune their car radios to a frequency that let them listen to performances from the safety of their car.
Photos: The Speakeasy Open Mic operates as drive-in concert due to COVID-19
Vocalist Chynna Oliver performs at a drive-in open mic June 25 in Arlington. After self-isolating for the past four months, many artists missed the community and love that comes with performing.
Photos: The Speakeasy Open Mic operates as drive-in concert due to COVID-19
Local rapper Halloween Han performs at a drive-in open mic June 25 in Arlington. Halloween Han said social issues like police brutality are things that influence his art today and that he had to learn to deal with growing up as a Black man in America.
Photos: The Speakeasy Open Mic operates as drive-in concert due to COVID-19
Vocalist Garrett Arellano performs at a drive-in open mic June 25 in Arlington. Arellano said it's been about four months since he was last on stage due to COVID-19.
Photos: The Speakeasy Open Mic operates as drive-in concert due to COVID-19
UTA alumnus Tre Michael Dae performs poetry at a drive-in open mic June 25 in Arlington. Attendees parked their cars in a circle and lit the stage with their cars' headlights.
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The weekly event has been adapted to an outdoor setting where Arlington artists can purge their emotional baggage and reconnect with the creative community.
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