To complete the trio is Ben Anderson, who shares a similar musical background with Aaron. “Our dads were both gospel recording artists and we both used to sing and play with our dads at revivals like Billy Graham,” says Ben. Aaron often weaves stories from his gospel music days into his Nashville Unplugged performances, which, by the way, are about as much fun as you can have with your clothes on.
Aaron’s experience staging intimate live performances by singer-songwriters with Nashville Unplugged was a key component in the creation of the Park City Songwriter Festival. Aaron says philosophically, “It’s one thing to dream about something, it’s another thing to find the beauty of the camaraderie, the collaboration, and the different giftings that the process can bring.”
After years of being an artist and playing many unsatisfying music festivals, Aaron dreamed about a festival where people could touch, taste, and see the spirit of music and the stories behind the songs.
For the first Park City Songwriter Festival, Aaron says he and his partners had two really big goals: First, they wanted the experience for the festival goer to be unique. “We wanted them to leave saying ‘I’ve gotta come back next year because I’ve never experienced anything like that before,’” he says. And second, they wanted the experience for the artists to be top-notch. According to Aaron, songwriters aren’t really shown the appreciation they deserve for creating the soundtracks of people’s lives. “So, to be able to perform onstage at a place like The Rockwell Listening Room and
have a captivated audience listening to their songs and stories is oftentimes more rewarding than maybe even a hit song on the radio,” he explains.