Arsena Schroeder has had her share of accomplishments as an independent singer-songwriter for nearly a decade.
The pop-soul artist has performed nationally and internationally while making a name for herself in the music industry. With her platform, she now wants to help and highlight fellow artists who are unsigned by major record labels.
“I realized that when I started music on my own there were just a lot of resources that I needed,” the Charlotte native said during a recent phone interview. “Once I got myself established, I formed a company that provides those resources.”
On Saturday, Schroeder and her team at Dear Soul Music Co., a Charlotte-based music label she founded in 2017, will host “Unplugged+Live,” a touring concert series that showcases the talent of local independent artists. The event is sponsored by ASC Culture Blocks, an Arts & Science Council initiative funded by Mecklenburg County to provide free programming in local communities.
Located on the lawn of Eastway Regional Recreation Center, the lunchtime edition concert will feature a live DJ, food trucks, and special performances by Charlotte artists AftanCi and Monalisa Music.
The Unplugged+Live series, founded in 2013, was initially a house concert.
In those early days, whenever Schroeder traveled to perform, she would put together house shows at the homes of friends and colleagues where she could entertain a small crowd and have a place to stay.
“It was a great way to compliment my public show with a more private show,” she said.
Seeing the success of those shows, she decided to launch a series in Charlotte that would feature local artists.
As the popularity of these house concerts grew, Schroeder would move the shows to bigger venues.
Since its inception, the series has featured more than 150 artists in cities including Atlanta and Los Angeles.
Each show features two or three hand-selected acts, giving them an opportunity to showcase their original work in front of a hometown audience.
Schroeder said she has worked with more than 100 Charlotte-based artists and hosted nearly 200 shows around the city.
Monalisa Music, one of Saturday’s featured artists, said she was excited to share her original music with the Charlotte community.
“The community has definitely been loving & supportive in getting to know me through my sarcastic love songs,” she said.
The neo-soul singer and musician said she has watched Schroeder and her series from afar and is looking forward to finally being a part of it.
“I was super excited to be included in what seems like a very exclusive and elite club of musicians,” she said “ Every video and concert series that I’ve watched online has been super amazing, and I’m glad to be included in that number.”
An unexpected turn
While Schroeder has been admired by many in the music industry, she had not always planned to be full-time singer-songwriter.
During her freshman year at Pfeiffer University, a friend asked Schroeder to write and sing a song for his mixtape. Initially hesitant, she decided to do it.
“…I saw it as a stretch because, I didn’t consider myself a singer,” she recalled. “I fell in love with that process, and that’s what kinda springboarded me into becoming a songwriter and wanting to explore more.”
After graduating in 2011 with degrees in mass communications and sociology, Schroeder decided to pursue a career in music and forgo her initial plan to attend graduate school.
In 2012, she released her first EP, titled “Abundantly.” It consisted of four songs she wrote while in college.
Since then, Schroeder has released four EPs, two albums and performed in venues nationally and internationally. Those venues include La Loca Music In Prague, Czech Republic; the Fleisher Art Memorial in Philadelphia, Pa.; and the Rockwood Music Hall in New York City.
Two of her most memorable venues, both in Charlotte, are the Neighborhood Theater and the Time Warner Arena, now known as the Spectrum Center, where she received a standing ovation, she said, from Charlotte Hornets owner Michael Jordan.
Schroeder said that while she enjoys performing in big venues, house shows provide an “authentic and organic” experience, which she hopes for her performers and guests at Unplugged+Live.
One of her goals, she said, is to provide local artists with a safe space to share their music in their own way, without the fear of competition and high-expectations.
“We try to push artists to just do things at their own pace, and however they like to do it, whether it’s popular or not,” she said.
A label of her own
In 2017, Schroeder created Dear Soul Music Co. to not only manage her concert series but also to provide developmental help for up-and-coming artists.
Her label offers workshops, titled “Using Your Unique,” to offer training in areas such as songwriting, music production and branding.
Schroeder has received multiple awards and funding for her concert series and workshops.
She said she is happy about the recent success of her brand, and she hopes the local exposure will give performers a larger “home-grown” fan-base as they progress in the industry.
“It’s important that when people listen to your content, they form a connection with it,” she said. “With this event, we as artists are able to get loyal fans because they see us in an environment that supports us.”
Unplugged+Live will be held from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. While the event is free to the public, tickets can be downloaded from Eventbrite.
In keeping with pandemic protocols, visitors are asked to practice social distancing and wear face coverings, as required under Charlotte’s masking mandate.
