On March 28th & 29th a two day festival will commence within Laguna Beach's iconic Sawdust Festival walls, but not without a little chaos along the way. The two-year old festival didn't gain a required city permit until late last week and by then the festival had lost support from its largest sponsor, Ivan Spiers, the owner of Mozambique. Spiers was responsible for curating the event with headlining acts Allen Stone, Smash Mouth, and Brett Dennen and when he walked the musicians followed.
The grounds, established in 1968, to educate the public and provide a sales outlet for unrestricted art will still house other much anticipated acts including Adam Lasher. We caught up with Lasher, a past contestant on this season's American Idol, to find out what he's been up to since we last spoke during Hollywood week. Lasher explains how he feels about the competition in hindsight and a newfound passion he gained since being a contestant on the show.
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OC Weekly (Taylor Morgan): What was it like to be on Idol?
Adam Lasher: I went into it thinking I'm going to do exactly what I want to do. I told them and they were like great! I was surprised. I got to sing original songs,show the world what I could do, and it was a free platform. Just because they didn't pick me doesn't mean I'm not happy with the outcome. I was also able to tell my story, gain a larger following with YouTube and music companies, but most importantly I have a presence in the diabetic community. That was a bonus I didn't expect and I'm really passionate about it. I'm still riding the wave!
I've seen you post on Instagram & Twitter about this. When did you begin raising awareness for diabetes?
It started with sharing my struggle with diabetes on Idol. People from all angles then began to share ideas and inventions about diabetes with me. A lot of musicians want to heal people with their music and yeah, I might help a guy and girl get it on at a bar while I play “Let's Get It On.” But I can literally help people with diabetes stand up for themselves by raising awareness about the medical industry and sharing inventions, like the CGM and Afrezza- it's changed my life.
What's next for your music?
I released an album in January called These Shoes. We are going to record a few new songs this week too, an acoustic version of “These Shoes” and a song called “This Is The Secret”- it's an eerie, slow, foggy vibe. The last group of songs I wrote were songwriter, American Classics. But the next will be uptempo, energetic, songs you can dance to. I want to pick up the heartbeat.
What can we expect from you at Blue Water?
All original music by the Adam Lasher Band.
Who are you most stoked to see perform?
I'm really excited about The White Buffalo and Aloha Radio. I'm looking forward to chill-axing and listening to reggae.
Lasher is set to perform at 2pm. For specific showtimes and the full lineup, stay tuned to the Blue Water Music Festival website here.
See also:
The 50 Best Things About the OC Music Scene
The 50 Worst Things About the OC Music Scene
The 25 Greatest OC Bands of All Time: The Complete List
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