Redgy Blackout will perform at Rivers Day for the first time.
Guitar/banjo player Jeremy Breaks grew up in Prince George and attended the event often as a child.
The B.C. Rivers Day Music Festival is a free public event at Fort George Park from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, which encourages residents to celebrate the quality of life that rivers and fresh water provide to each person.
Breaks and singer and multi-instrumentalist Scott Perrie are Redgy Blackout and the duo is in the middle of a contest called Peak Performance Project, which is a professional development program presented by Jim Pattison Group. There are only 20 acts chosen from B.C. The project is designed to help new and emerging artists with their careers in the music industry. In addition to a rigorous six month artist development program, the Peak Performance Project will award more than $344,500 in direct artist development funding and prizes, making it the biggest individual radio station project in Canada.
"The Peak Performance Project is such a great opportunity and it helps you develop as an artist," said Breaks, who used to play in local band Floored. "This project is the only one of its kind in Canada."
Perrie and Breaks met at an open mic on Main Street in Vancouver and decided to write songs and play as a duo.
"I find that where I am now is because I like to experience change and I like to take some risks in my life," said Breaks. "You know you can get pretty wrapped up in your life. I was pretty comfortable in Prince George with a good job and I always knew I wanted to take a really good shot at making a living at playing music and the first step was moving to Vancouver."
Redgy Blackout has written a song called When You Were A Kid and will donate all proceeds to the BC Children's Hospital Foundation as part of the Peak Performance Project.
"We chose the the Children's Hospital because we like children and they really are our future and the foundation is trying to build a new hospital right now so we figured if we could try to raise $5,000 for them -- that's our goal -- we'll be really happy."
The duo is going to make a mini documentary for the foundation to help raise awareness and encourage people to donate funds to the cause.
Breaks said he and Perrie are looking forward to performing at the Rivers Day Festival Sunday.
"We kind of describe our music as roots rock, folk cabaret," said Breaks. "We're definitely a rock band and definitely have roots and Scott has a theatre background and so he's really expressive. We have trumpet and banjo in our set and that's where the cabaret element comes from. We always try to make it really interesting."
Everything is coming really quickly when it comes to gigs and the Peak Performance Project, where Redgy Blackout will have an opportunity to showcase their talent is right after they perform at Rivers Day, so the festival will benefit from that as well, said Breaks.
"We'll definitely have our game shoes on," he added.
Also appearing at the Rivers Day Festival is Ken McCoy, Marcel Gagnon and local band Canadian Waste.
