Philly Singer Launches Concert Series for Cool People Who Don’t Want to Be Out Late
PJ Brown, who has performed for sold-out crowds at the TLA and Union Transfer, kicks off "Dusk" this weekend.
Philadelphia singer PJ Brown, who is launching a new early concert series this Sunday at the Fallser Club (photo courtesy PJ Brown)
In 2023, actor Jamie Lee Curtis put out a plea to bands asking them to have earlier shows, explaining to Hoda Kotb and Savannah Guthrie on the TODAY show: “I love Coldplay. I would love to go see Coldplay. The problem is, I’m not going to go see Coldplay when the show is at 9 p.m., and there’s an opening act.”
Philadelphia singer PJ Brown saw the clip and took this to heart. Brown has been a fixture of the local music scene for more than three decades, having played to sold out crowds at places like the TLA and Union Transfer. So, naturally, she has fans that aren’t quite as, shall we say, resilient as they were in the 1990s or 2000s when it comes to rocking out to a late night of live music. Brown, who grew up singing in church and attended the High School for the Creative and Performing Arts, is herself a grandmother. So she understands the value of good sleep as much as anybody.
“I can’t tell you how many times, in recent years, people hear that I’m playing a show, and they see the time and tell me, ‘I wish you were starting earlier!'” she says.
Thus “Dusk” is now born. Brown launches the new monthly Philadelphia concert series this Sunday at the intimate, Best of Philly-winning Fallser Club in East Falls – with a yawn-free start time of 6 p.m. and an end time of 8 p.m. She’ll be performing with her longtime soul band, The Resistance, which features Philly music veterans Joe Boyle, Justin Hallman, Brian Potash, and Stephanie Ostrov along with guest drummer Alec Meltzer. Each month, she’ll invite a different singer or group from Philly to open the show, with a DJ in between their sets. (This month’s guest is Best of Philly-winning vocal coach and belting cabaret singer Shannon Turner.)
“Yes, there are a lot of older folks out there who still love live music, and I want this to be the solution for them,” Brown explains. “But I also just know so many people of younger ages who just don’t want to be out late. Times have changed!”
The model is well-suited for the Fallser Club, a non-profit that aims to make live music more accessible — and that includes people for whom doors-at-eight-and-show-at-nine might not work so well. “Live music should be available to everyone,” insists the venue’s executive director, Ashana Larsen. “We want you to be able to enjoy a show and still be able to get home and put the kids to bed.”
