Finding Community in the Midwest Music Scene

We don't measure distance in miles across the American Midwest, we measure it in minutes. This group of people above traveled many minutes each one of them to gather in Fort Dodge, Iowa for a showcase of talent you would expect to find only in the heart of Nashville, TN.

The Scene Projects are hosted by Bubba Startz. Bubba founded a podcast network to support artists that are more than happy to live in "fly over country". They have built whole careers entertaining small town folk in bars, pubs, and street dances from the Great Lakes to the Rocky Mountains and they aren't giving any of it up to chase a dream in the big city. Quite the contrary, they are supporting one another by driving hours and hours just to be together and share they're songs with one another.

Songwriter Showcases happen often in places like Nashville where a vodka/red bull costs a cool $20 bill but in Fort Dodge, IA and other towns like it that might get you a whole bucket of cold brews...and a pizza.

They just do things a little differently out there in the country, where church can be in the corn fields and the spirit of music is alive and well in front of a row of dart boards. They don't need a stage to perform and most times during the summer when there is a stage it is often just a flatbed trailer anyway. This isn't something new here either. These farm tested American folks have been partying in dance halls for a few generations.

Ask any farmer in his 60's about the good ol' days and they will tell you of wild nights spent twirling their buckle bunnies across the dance floor of some smoky room in the middle of nowhere. Places like that were common place in the 1970's out here in farm country and they were the heartbeat of a generation of young people looking for love (or trouble) in the American countryside.

Now the tradition lives on, even though the dance halls went away when the drinking age went up to 21 and DUIs became more prevalent as the cars got faster and the speed of life kept accelerating. The spirit of these places never died and as the whole country begins to end its love affair with alcohol and people seek more sobering experiences, little gatherings like this day in Fort Dodge on a Sunday will become more prevalent.

On March 9, 2025 artists from across the whole state of Iowa and a podcaster from South Dakota got together to make this Sunday a magical event unlike anything that little town had ever seen. They shared personal stories about their songs and the moments that inspired them.

There were tears and laughter. Joy and pain. Lots of hugs and beers were shared and they got the whole thing recorded on video to share with the world later on The Scene Projects channel on YouTube. Everything that makes country music good for the soul was on display in the front of a small bar on a Sunday afternoon after church.

For some of us this is exactly the kind of church we are looking for anyway. A community unafraid of their sordid past and willing to lay it all on the line for the sake of the song. If you're gonna live, live inspired and I can't think of a thing that was more inspiring than spending a day with friends and music.

So go support that small local artist close to your home and support podcasts like The Scene Projects as they continue to support this community of songwriters who call the space between New York City and Los Angeles home.