Artist Detail

• Tell-a-friend

Justin Kennedy

Musician

About the artist: Artist Information

Instrumentation
Benji Morris: Vocals, Acoustic Guitar
Ted Hardin: Electric guitar, Dobro, Vocals
Johnny Slate: Banjos
Dan Powers: Bass
Justin Kennedy: Drums/Percussion

Biography
The seeds of Downtown Senate were planted in High Point, NC early in 2003 when Grant Bowles (mandolin, vocals) gave Benji Morris (acoustic guitar, vocals) a Whiskeytown cd in exchange for Benji's John Prine collection. After listening, they reconvened and the singing and strumming began. Pretty soon impromptu jams with friends Ted Hardin (lead guitar, vocals) and Johnny Slate (banjo) began occurring at Johnny's house in High Point. DTS began covering Whiskeytown, John Prine and various bluegrass traditionals along with a few other artists like Uncle Tupelo and Lucinda Williams. Long time friend of Ted and Johnny, Dan Powers, joined in on bass in March 2005. Before they knew it, these 5 friends had a band with roots all originating from High Point, NC. At Benji's suggestion, they called themselves Downtown Senate, a name based solely on a moment of random inspiration, and which contains no intentional meaning. After becoming a 5-piece band, original music started being sprinkled into the mix. DTS would soon find out that all 5 members were capable of composing and shaping songs of their own. Playing regular weekend gigs around the triad area of North Carolina, DTS tightened their live sound while establishing a nice little core of fans in the High Point/Greensboro area. By June 2005, the band had compiled an album's worth of original tunes and the songs were ready to be put to CD. The CD, titled "Cadence" was made available on July 8th, 2005. DTS rode that initial high from the CD release on through the summer of 2005, their journeys taking them as far away as Hurricane, WV, in addition to various parts of the Piedmont and Western North Carolina. In October, the band was honored to be asked to play at Mannerland, a musical/camping experience in Mebane, NC put on by good friends Barefoot Manner, a spectacular band out of Raleigh, NC. At Mannerland, the band shared the stage with other great NC bands such as Kicking Grass, Willie & Me, and of course Barefoot Manner. Justin Kennedy also High Point native and good friend, joined in on drums in November 2005, providing the beat we'd all been looking for. DTS finished off 2005 with a bang. Justin made his debut the day after Thanksgiving in High Point playing to an anxious group of fans. DTS wrapped up the year playing a Christmas night show at Club Triangle in High Point. It was there that the guys played for 500 of their closest friends, family, and well, a lot of strangers, too! The energy at that show provided DTS with the momentum it needed heading into the new year. Riding the high from 2005, Downtown Senate experienced their best year yet in 2006. The band was able to share the stage with artists like Doc Watson, The Avett Brothers, Blueground Undergrass, and Chatham County Line just to name a few. The best news of the year was by far being named "Best New Band" and "Best Local Band" by Greensboro News and Record's GoTriad publication Readers Choice Awards. GoTriad is read by over 250,000 people in the triad area. Not a bad accomplishment for some guys who've only been together for a little over 2 years. Additionally, the band finished and released their second full-length album titled "Unwind." The band was able to work with some wonderful, well-known people on this record. Recorded @ Nightsound Studios and Mastered at The Kitchen, "Unwind" provides the listener with a never before heard genre that the band likes to refer to as its own "honkadelic tonk'n roll." Songs from the new album have been receiving airplay on local radio stations such as 90.9WQFS out of Greensboro. It's early 2007 and the band is already talking of more studio time to record another original album; however, it is our intention to play more shows in 2007 than we ever have. The energy is too vibrant not to tour our asses off. See you in '07 down the line...