By Marcia Hunt
With large events being canceled this summer, many people are looking for entertainment locally.
Despite the unprecedented pandemic, best friends Nancy O’Connor and Sadie Fridley found a way to hold local live concerts, right from their homes.
O’Connor, a sophomore at Berklee College of Music met Fridley, a senior at Fayetteville- Manlius High School nearly five years ago when the two participated in a local musical production.
Now, they decided to hold Driveway Jams, socially distant live concerts in Fridley’s driveway which also serve as fundraisers for several local and national organizations.
“After learning about the horrendous murder of George Floyd, we decided we wanted to do something about it. It sort of transformed Driveway Jams,” Fridley said.
The two have raised over $3,000 for organizations including the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund and Black Lives Matter Syracuse.
To make the concerts more accessible for everyone, Fridley livestreams the events on her Instagram page, which she makes public the day of the concert.
The livestreams have been viewed far and wide, from people in Seattle to viewers across the globe in France.
Local viewers can show up in person, as the two girls perform six feet apart from each other and they set up benches and viewing room that allows people to be socially distant.
The turn out for these events is usually good, the duo said, and their musical talents typically end up attracting some those passing by to the concerts.
Beyond being for a good cause, O’Connor and Fridley view the concerts as something fun to do during quarantine.
“Music is a really important way for people to destress and feel emotions in a fun way,” Fridley said.
O’Connor said from her perspective, music is more important now than ever and it is sopmething these musicians are proud to be able to share with their commuinty.
“It’s nice to have something to work for. It’s nice to see people and perform live music for an audience,” O’Connor said.
The final Driveway Jams event will be held on Aug. 9 at 7 p.m. at 313 Cooper Lane in Dewitt. Those who cannot attend in person can view the livestream at the Instagram handle sadie_fridley.
The proceeds will go to Black Lives Matter Syracuse.
Donations are accepted through the Venmo account “DrivewayJams” and the PayPal account “ScrabblePay”.
