"I think music in itself is healing. It's an explosive expression of humanity. It's something we are all touched by. No matter what culture we're from everyone loves music." -- Billy Joel
The world completely changed in March 2020 as we were hit with a global pandemic. Hawaii had its first lock down (stay at home) order and we did not know what the effects of this pandemic would be. Not knowing how long it would affect our lives, our business, & family was very unsettling. The last 6 months has been such a challenge for the entire world. It is so sad to see that our economy has been greatly affected by this. Many people are losing their jobs, and businesses are shutting down. Every time you turn on the news it is just too much to watch. There is so much negativity going on in the world. People really don’t know what to do or who to believe in. The reality for many people is dealing with financial hardship, anxiety, depression, family problems, and the list goes on.
As things were unfolding all over the world. We had to shift the way we think and do things. Thinking outside of the box became the new normal. We pivoted our business by turning to Virtual & Drive by events. We hosted Virtual Parties which were successful. Who would have thought that people would resort to virtual events!? It was mind boggling to see that during this pandemic people had to learn to adapt to the changes.
We saw how successful virtual events were, we asked ourselves what could we do to help people during these uncertain times? We wanted to provide a way where people can escape and have an outlet from the reality of what was going on in the world for a few hours once a week, on every Saturday by tuning into our live stream and also be able to show case our DJs & MCs talents and gifts. It also kept our DJs sane, while continuing to work on their craft because Music is their passion and it is what they LOVE to do. This challenged them to learn about the technical side of streaming, talking on the mic (as we know most DJs do not like to talk on the mic) and show their creativity through their own live streams. Our MCs were able to make people laugh at their silly jokes. As we all know laughter is the best medicine.
We launched “So Over It Saturdays” on March 29th not knowing where it would lead us. We were learning as we go. It took Wes a few days to figure out all the technical logistics. Figuring out which Platform to use, what worked and didn’t work. He was constantly working on how he could improve our live stream. We started on Facebook, transferred to Zoom for a few months, and today we are on Twitch. People were tuning in and every week we would see the same people jumping on and having a great time. What was even more amazing was that we got to meet new people from all over the world. We continued to be consistent and do our live stream every Saturday and saw it grow. It was rewarding to see people enjoying the music and having a good time.
As things were slowly opening back up, the event and wedding industry remains closed due to no gatherings. Our industry will be part of the last phase to open back up. We are now in our second lock down and going on six months with our live stream. Yes, six months! Can you believe how fast time is going by even during this lock down? Even though we continue to face many challenges during this time due to the pandemic, it has truly been a blessing and honor that we are able to do our live stream every week. We finally jumped on Twitch two months ago and saw the outpouring of the DJ community from all over the world coming together to support each other. Through Twitch we are able to meet other DJs, support them by following, subscribing, tipping, purchasing merchandise, and seeing their talents.
One day I was thinking that there must be more to this Live stream. It hit me! This was way more than just a Live stream. I finally realized why it was more than just a live stream. Music heals the soul and we need it more than ever especially during this time. We need to come together as a community to support not only local DJs & live entertainers but everyone from all over the world. When we do events, people love it because we help them have FUN, forget about life, and make memories that will last a lifetime. Since we aren’t able to have large gatherings or celebrate right now, this is the only way.
Studies show that music is a great therapy and heals the soul. When listening to music that you enjoy, dopamine, the “feel-good” chemical and serotonin, the “happy” chemical is released in your brain giving you a sense of pleasure and boosting your mood. Music is a great motivator and music with a strong beat will make you want to move due to a psychological phenomenon called entrainment. This is why so many people listen to music when exercising and dancing. Could you imagine doing these activities without some beats? How can music help relieve stress? Along with dopamine and serotonin that is released when listening to music, oxytocin is a hormone released while singing which can alleviate stress and anxiety. Studies have found that singing decreases feelings of depression and loneliness. You don’t have to be a great singer to sing! Also, any kind of active engagement in music can help relieve stress such as playing an instrument or moving/dancing to music.
Did you know that there is a thing called Music therapy? Music therapy is the clinical and evidence-based use of music interventions to accomplish individualized goals within a therapeutic relationship by a credentialed professional who has completed an approved music therapy program (American Music Therapy Association). Research shows that live music works the best when working on specific needs. Board-Certified Music Therapists (MT-BC) use music very intentionally in live sessions using specific techniques and interventions geared toward each individual’s goals of care. Music can be very therapeutic and a powerful tool to use at home and on your own, just know it’s not the same thing as experiencing music therapy.
This Pandemic has been a blessing in disguise, in a way that it allowed us to share our gifts with people from all over the world through our Live Stream and give them an outlet from the craziness. It has also brought the DJ community together to support each other. We are so grateful to the Twitch community for giving us a place to share great vibes and energy and make friends from all over the world. Your kindness and generosity has kept our hearts full and kept us going. Thank you to our loyal viewers for continuing to spend your time with us every week on our Live Stream and supporting not only us but all our DJ’s. We have been working on a few collaborations with other local DJs. Stay tuned as we will announce upcoming projects we have been working on soon!
If you aren’t already following us on Twitch please follow us at: https://www.twitch.tv/fromaboveent
Also, make sure to support and follow our DJs as well:
Feel free to subscribe & Tip. We greatly appreciate if you are able to give but don't feel obligated. Your support and follow is more than enough.
"Music is a therapy. It is a communication far more powerful than words, far more immediate, far more efficient." -- Yehudi Menuhin
“Music can lift us out of depression or move us to tears - it is a remedy, a tonic, orange juice for the ear. But for many of my neurological patients, music is even more - it can provide access, even when no medication can, to movement, to speech, to life. For them, music is not a luxury, but a necessity.” -- Oliver Sacks, Neurologist
Short sample clip of our live stream on Twitch
Intro video for our beach theme live stream made by DJ Lejas
If you would like to host a virtual event please contact us for more information.
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