6th Ave Takes the Stage
A little live music in the middle of the day.
On the sidewalk of 6th Ave in Tacoma, two artists showcased their talents in front of the fusion restaurant Grann. Despite the busy street with rolling traffic and pedestrians perusing the local shops, Lunchbreak Live invited the community to take a break, even just for a moment.
Kye Alfred Hillig and Jayden English are two Tacoma-based artists specializing in guitar and vocals. Kye played all original songs, starting with “On Small Wings,” a calm melody that shared his musical soul and identity. His neighbors managed to catch the second song of the set, “The Ghost Will Turn Around.” Drivers would crane their necks and an employee at High Voltage even praised him from across the street. Two songs went by so quickly that I personally asked each artist to play three songs because I wanted to hear more. He happily accepted and played another song without a second thought, like he had that one in the back pocket already. He finished the set with the song “Carnivores.” His presence and sound could easily keep you there for hours. After his set, he stuck around to see Jayden English, a 12-year-old Gibson Guitars-sponsored musician.
Jayden’s forest green mid-century outfit juxtaposed her punk song choices. She followed Kye’s set, starting strong with “Forty Six & 2” by Tool. Her fingers flew across the strings easily while her vocals followed the rhythm. In between sets she would play difficult riffs from “Hot for Teacher”, “Thunderstruck”, and “Crazy Train,” just to kill time. Her second song choice was “Blue and Yellow” by The Used, each song showing her ability to play a variety of dynamic guitar strings.
Pedestrians would roll by and gently smile as they glanced at Jayden. Commuters would roll down their windows before hitting the gas pedal. A mailman briefly walked in front of the set, just trying to get his work done for the day. She ended strong with ‘Cute Without the ‘E’” by Taking Back Sunday. She had a warm smile at the end of her set that almost made you forget she was shredding the guitar just seconds before. Her father was her biggest fan and supporter, passing out guitar picks that acted as a business card for Jayden. Both artists went home, onlookers left the scene, and Tacoma carried on the rest of the day like normal.
Reach out and give them a follow
@kyealfredhillig and @jaydenjuneenglish
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Two Tacoma artists bring the sidewalk to life.