{"id":516349,"date":"2016-03-16T09:41:56","date_gmt":"2016-03-16T13:41:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wp.fredericknewspost.com\/playlist\/?p=516349"},"modified":"2016-03-16T09:41:56","modified_gmt":"2016-03-16T13:41:56","slug":"road-stitch-early-feels-great-sxsw","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/2016\/03\/16\/road-stitch-early-feels-great-sxsw\/","title":{"rendered":"On The Road: Stitch Early Feels Great At SXSW"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"_DSC0078\"AUSTIN, Texas \u2014 Spiritually Touching Individuals Through Christ\u2019s Hands Early.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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That\u2019s what Frederick hip-hop artist Lorenzo Nichols will tell you if you ask him what his stage name means. On this Tuesday afternoon, however, it could also stand for, \u201cman who forgot shoes.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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After spending the early parts of the day working on the cover art for his upcoming EP, \u201cThe Great Compromise,\u201d Nichols is ready to venture from his hotel room at the Courtyard Austin Northwest back downtown to get ready for his single 15-minute showcase at the Bat Bar on Sixth Street.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The problem? He was hoping to wear a maroon pair of Greats sneakers and not the black ones currently protecting his massive feet from the heat. Upon his return, the 32-year-old is asked why he prefers Greats over Nikes or Adidas, or, well, anything else, really.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cBecause anything I love is going to be great,\u201d he only half-jokes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cGreat\u201d is the word of the day for Nichols and his traveling companion, Brian Closs. Not only does it describe his preference in shoe brand, but it also sits at the center of perhaps the trip\u2019s most poignant moment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Before making their way into the center of South By Southwest, the duo stops at the city\u2019s Baylor Street Art Wall, where bricks upon bricks of graffiti pile on top of each other, ascending in height like a fortress protecting a castle in which Banksy might live.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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They scale their way to the top and the view is tremendous. A sea of color surrounds them like an old school hip-hop fever dream while the city of Austin sprawls before them, ready to be conquered. Scattered on the ground are cans of spray paint. Nichols grabs a shade of blue before stopping for about three seconds to take in a phrase someone already sprayed on a wall in front of him.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cLive a great story.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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His deep voice chuckles as he subliminally shakes his head. He moves up one more tier and begins spraying letters over concrete.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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S-T-I-T-C-H. E-A-R-L-Y.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Later on, over a pre-showcase food-truck meal, Nichols shrugs off the weight of his impending performance.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cAs long as I go on stage and give my 1,000 percent best,\u201d he explains while chewing on a pork slider, \u201cwhatever happens after that, I can be cool with because I gave it my all.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Almost on cue, two things happen: First, he receives a text message from his parents, wishing him luck for later that night. Secondly, a man approaches the picnic table, immediately disclosing that he\u2019s quite drunk. He rambles on about the human race, allowing whatever alcohol intake consuming his body to force a sense of misplaced wisdom upon his words.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Instead of acting abruptly, Nichols listens intently. He responds with thoughtful answers, responsible and kind.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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He\u2019s a guy who talks with his hands and never leaves a single stone unturned once you dare ask him to address whatever pebble might be in play. Mention a single topic and he\u2019s off, preaching what he practices before, inevitably, practicing what he preaches. You can understand why people would warm to him, yet somehow it endears each time you see it happen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Within 10 minutes, the stranger\u2019s mind is enough at ease that he\u2019s on his way, ready to cross the busy street that separates him from another drink. After a handful of minutes, it\u2019s time to move on and the Frederick rapper laughs.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cThis happens to me all the time<\/em>,\u201d he says, looking at Closs. \u201cI don\u2019t know what it is. Everywhere I go, people just come talk to me. It\u2019s never been weirder than in Austin, though.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Nichols eventually makes it back to his white Kia rental. He needs to change his outfit before heading to the Bat Bar for the night. During a quick call to his wife, a misunderstanding about the time difference between Texas and Maryland results in Nichols saying, \u201cThank you. I love you.\u201d He straps on his Icon Natn backpack. He\u2019s ready to go. He\u2019s about to step into his moment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Soundcheck is scheduled for 6 p.m., but it\u2019s at least a half-hour after that before Nichols even recognizes anyone he\u2019s supposed to talk to in order to obtain information about the night in front of him. Before long, it becomes clear that any possibility of a pre-show run-through is dwindling by the minute. The showcase is set to begin at 7, but 15 minutes before that, the backing DJ isn\u2019t even done unpacking his gear.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A Bob Marley mix is blasting through the house system. Nichols and Closs sit at a table top, saying nary a word to one another. The former keeps looking around him with equal parts curiosity and confidence, while the latter won\u2019t detach his eyes from the Instagram account on his iPhone. An acoustic version of \u201cThree Little Birds\u201d begins to soundtrack the bar.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cDon\u2019t worry,\u201d the fallen reggae legend sings, almost hauntingly. \u201cAbout a thing. Because every little thing. Gonna be all right.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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It\u2019s a tender moment, one that calls back to something Nichols said earlier in the day.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cIt says in the Bible: \u2018Do not be afraid of the faces,\u2019\u201d he explained. \u201cSo, I\u2019m not. People are going to say, \u2018How was the show?\u2019 And I\u2019m going to be like \u2026 .\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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He stops for a fraction of a second and grins.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cIt was great.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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AUSTIN, Texas \u2014 Spiritually Touching Individuals Through Christ\u2019s Hands Early. That\u2019s what Frederick hip-hop artist Lorenzo Nichols will tell you if you ask him what his stage name means. On…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[26],"class_list":["post-516349","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-on-the-road"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/516349","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=516349"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/516349\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=516349"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=516349"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fnpsites.net\/playlist\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=516349"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}