NEW ORLEANS — There’s a new way to watch concerts from D.B.A.
The Frenchmen Street music club has a fresh coat of pain courtesy of artists Sam Skrimpz and Niahm Rita that hopes to inspire a few smiles for people passing by the venue.
"You know, I think of it like a public service and it also brings me a lot of joy to bring joy to other people,” Skrimpz said.
“Even in a time where it feels like hopeless and very frustrating that we can't share those experience together,” Rita said.
The artists got the job when owner Tom Thayer got sick of looking at the club’s hurricane shutters.
"I am looking for things to give me inspiration, give me joy,” Thayer said.
Sadly, the bright paint is not emblematic of how he’s been feeling. There are still COVID-19 restrictions in place for music halls and even though DBA has been closed since March, the bills keep coming.
"As venue owners and club owners and bar owners, the bills haven't stopped. They keep coming in. The mortgage has to be paid,” Thayer said.
But there is still some fight left in the man who has owned DBA for two decades. He is launching a brand new music streaming concert service live from the venue to your home.
"We are starting DBA live this evening with Walter Wolfman Washington, who has performed Wednesday nights here for the past 14 years,” Thayer said.
It’s not going to bring the same kind of money this place was making before the pandemic, but it’s a start.
As tough time continue, Thayer is trying to remember what Sam Skrimpz and Niahm Rita set out to do with their art.
"I think just being creative is something that gives me joy and I was happy to do it,” Thayer said.
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