Pick up a copy of this week's issue of New Times, and you'll learn all about Haley Grigaitis, frontwoman for the feel-good, reggae-infused local band Ruca. Though she and her band are climbing the music ranks now, having played the TMI Radio Showcase at South by Southwest last week, she had never even written a melody before local producer Jack Howell of WilloDisc Production House approached her to collaborate. Grigaitis had just come back from Bonnaroo, where she bonded with strangers who became her second family, and her very first original track, "B Family," was born.
"The summer of 2010, I travelled to Bonnaroo with a group of complete strangers, and it changed my life," Grigaitis says. "I had wanted to attend 'Roo for years, but nobody in Arizona wanted to make the trek to Manchester, Tennessee. I reached out online and found not one, but almost 30 people, who were in the exact same boat. We decided to dub ourselves the 'Lonerooers' and spent the next few months planning every detail of the trip. Needless to say, I didn't end up being ax-murdered like everyone thought, had an incredible time, and now have the most incredible B-family in the universe!"
You can hear Grigaitis and Ruca perform tonight at Rockbar Inc. in Scottsdale, where four of the founding members of her "B Family" will be in attendance. Listen to the track below, and for more information on Ruca, go here.
