10/29/2026
Carmyn Hoen
Kelsey Burgess
We’d like to sincerely apologize to Carmyn and Kelsey. We used a photo Kelsey took at our venue of Carmyn on our napkin holders without asking either of them. I, Jesse, take full responsibility for that, and for how I reacted when it was called out.
We also didn’t realize Carmyn hosts an Open Mic night on Monday nights at The Intermission across the street, which makes this worse. Upon realizing, we did not remedy the situation quickly enough. The Intermission is a great bar that adds a ton of value to this area, and we never wished to take anything from them. We have no issue with The Intermission, Carmyn, or anyone else working to bring good music to this community. We’ve been so focused inward on growing our own music scene that we forgot to look outward, and that was a real mistake.
We also got something else wrong. When photographers come to our venue, shoot our events, tag us, and collaborate on posts, it often felt natural for us to use their photos. But photographers work as hard as the musicians, lighting, visuals, and sound techs do, and tagging us isn’t the same as giving permission. We should have known better.
My reaction this morning was wrong, and I’m sorry for it. We’ve grown quickly and didn’t build the right habits to match, but that’s on us. We’re going to keep finding ways to support everyone in this music scene, and we’ll do it the right way.
Starting this weekend, we’re making a change. We’ll hire one photographer per event, identified with an ID pass. We won’t allow other professional photography unless a band hires its own photographer. This ensures photographers are paid, credited, and that everyone is on the same page. Our band agreements will now state that photos from our hired photographer may be used on social media, in print, and elsewhere, unless the band requests otherwise, and will always include the photographer’s contact information.
