Pillars

Now that this site has had a couple of years to settle in, the undeniable fact is that a few of our past guests have become staples in Out of the Woodwork’s identity. These people have gone far beyond the simple “thank you for interviewing me” and adopted this community as their own. They’re the people who read our articles and talk about them, the people who give us advice and reinvest their efforts in order to help us grow, the people who have dramatically changed the face of OOTWW. They’re the first ones we promote, and news from their ventures goes straight to our front page. The kings and queens of the OOTWW promotional hierarchy, the “Pillars” of our network, have earned a space of their own on this page. As of July 2015, we have expanded our “Pillars” category to include two more faces for a total of 6!

 

Soren Bryce was the original Pillar, filling the role before it was ever given a name. In 2013, Soren became the very first musician to appear on our brand new website. She immediately began promoting us, mentioning the site on her radio interviews and social media sites. Out of the Woodwork was founded, in part, to promote Soren’s music. She has consistently provided us with quality content to feature, spanning both film and music. In 2015, Soren signed with indie record label Washington Square. With the help of her support network, Bryce raised over $10,000 in order to record her brand new EP, which is set to release at the end of the summer. The EP’s first single, “Chariot” was mentioned on NPR’s All Things Considered. Several more tracks followed suit, premiering on pages like Billboard, Kick Kick Snare, and BULLETT Media. Her songs have been featured on television shows such as Scyfy’s Wynonna Earp and MTV’s Finding Carter. We’ve built a strong relationship with Soren over the past few years, and we proudly watch as she continues to succeed.

 Malece Miller, a fan favorite from the television dance competition So You Think You  Can Dance Season 10, was the second artist to firmly establish herself in our little  community. In order to help Out of the Woodwork connect with more talent, we held a  contest in which singers, dancers, actors, and entertainers of all disciplines were  encouraged to submit their work. Though she was still enjoying her television fame,  Malece volunteered to serve as a celebrity judge for our contest. Her involvement not  only brought hundreds of new readers our way, but also established connections  between OOTWW and the SYTYCD support community, especially in her home town of  Ogden, UT. Since then, Malece has appeared in numerous projects including music  videos, television series, films, and live performances. She spent the summer of 2015  touring internationally with the wildly popular violinist Lindsey Stirling on her “Music Box Tour“. Malece is always positive and humble, and takes time whenever her  schedule allows to send love our way.

Spence Mills music had been in our YouTube and music playlists for months before our first article was written. Spence kicked off our year in 2014 by not only agreeing to an interview, but also premiering his track “Hailstone” through Out of the Woodwork a week before releasing it on his own channel. Thus began a collaborative relationship between OOTWW and Mills. In the time since, Spence has become one of our most active supporters and is the creative mind behind our original logo. Spence Mills’ YouTube channel has reached to nearly 4,000,000 views, yet he still releases tagless instrumentals for public use. This man is a self-taught producer of both high energy music you’ll want to work out to and songs slow and reflective enough to make you think about life.
The little man with the biggest sound, Watson Lark is anything but what you’d expect on our page. The last of our original four pillars, Watson adds grit and harsh reality to our community like no other. After a long battle against drug abuse, Watson managed to climb his way out of some desperate times. He turned back to a love he’d lost for years: hip-hop music. Now Watson tours the country in a musical ministry to bring struggling people out of their addictions and into a cleaner, healthier lifestyle. He pushes further, attacking social problems and personal issues such as ego in rapid succession. Since discovering Watson through his Spence-Mills-produced track “Regeneration“, Watson has adopted OOTWW as a close member of his team, consistently promoting the page as we spread the word about his mission and music. Our success is thanks, in part, to his hard work.

Regan Nishikawa has put more time and energy into OOTWW than anyone besides Kaleb himself. Using his design skills and meticulous eye for detail, Regan has always readily given his advice on the visual layout for our website. He is the designer of our current banner photo, and has collaborated with Chancy on several occasions to create promotional photos, T-Shirts, and a couple of fantastic articles. Regan is both helpful and professional, and we are proud to recognize him as an honorary member of the OOTWW team. You can view a steady stream of fresh and fascinating photos on his website or his Facebook page.
Our newest Pillar addition is Elia Esparza: one of NYC’s greatest new indie pop singer/songwriters. Early in 2015, Elia pushed her way to the top of our submission list. Her personality, spunk, and enthusiasm for life were evident from the moment she contacted us. When her debut EP released in February, Elia provided it to the public for free. We were hooked at first play-through. The variety, originality, and vocal mastery present in those few songs promised a bright future for Ms. Esparza’s music career. Utilizing the efficiency of today’s social network, Elia and Kaleb have kept up a consistent ping-pong game of cross promotion, as well as providing valuable feedback on each others’ steady stream of new projects. We hope to continue our uplifting experiences with Elia long into the future!