Written by Mary Friedman. Media by Mary Friedman and Allyson Mitchell.
National touring band, A Summer High, made a stop in Greenville, Illinois on Monday, November 13th. The band and their manager, Dan Beck, have been working alongside a Greenville University Experience First group. Experience First is a branch of University 401 that gives students real-world experience by partnering them with different companies and entrepreneurs. This group has been working hands-on with A Summer High, gathering research and analytics, promoting their tour, and completing other tasks that the band is unable to do while on the road. Some members of the group even got to go on a small stretch of the band’s tour with them.
Three members of the Experience First group got the chance to attend some of the band’s shows in Ohio, Indianapolis, and St. Louis. These three individuals even managed to bring A Summer High to Greenville University for a show. The group said that they ended up becoming very close to the band and even began running their merchandise table at the shows they went to. One of these students was Natty Hepburn, a Junior Music Business and Theological Studies Major. She says, “Going on tour and being able to spend time with these guys, who we have spent all semester working for, is something that is hard to put into words. It was without a doubt one of the best weekends of my life.”
Not only did the Experience First group enjoy the time together, but A Summer High enjoyed this time as well. Mason Levi, vocalist and bassist for A Summer High, said “Working with the team on the road was a great experience. We had been running merch ourselves the entire tour; they ran it and helped it go smoothly. I can tell they like the road and have enthusiasm for it. That’s very important!”
While on the GU campus, they got the opportunity to tour the recording studios, attend classes, teach a class, and play an acoustic set in The Blackroom. The band members found being around people their age to be extremely refreshing and really enjoyed being on a college campus.
The Experience First group will continue working with A Summer High for the remainder of the semester. Both the band and the students look forward to seeing where this partnership goes and what comes of it.
Check out A Summer High’s acoustic set in The Blackroom including their original song “Pretty Little Liar” and many more below!
