░⟦ Y͟o͟u͟r͟ B͟r͟a͟i͟n͟ i͟s͟ A͟l͟l͟o͟w͟e͟d͟ t͟o͟ P͟l͟a͟y͟ ⟧░ That was the title of my acceptance speech for the Outstanding Alumni Award from CU Denver's College of Arts & Media. It was about harnessing creativity and following curiosity wherever it leads, especially if it brings you delight. My nominating professor Lorne Bregitzer, gave an incredible introduction speech! From Lorne I took classes in mixing, mastering, sound design, and synthesis. In the next few days I'll make another post thanking collaborators and more professors by name ♥️
⌇ ⏃ Ḅ̶́̂̈Ẹ̶́̂̈ Ḳ̶́̂̈Ị̶́̂̈Ṇ̶́̂̈Ḍ̶́̂̈ Ṭ̶́̂̈Ọ̶́̂̈ Ỵ̶́̂̈Ọ̶́̂̈Ụ̶́̂̈Ṛ̶́̂̈ Ḍ̶́̂̈Ṛ̶́̂̈Ẹ̶́̂̈Ạ̶́̂̈Ṃ̶́̂̈Ṣ̶́̂̈ ⏃
⚡Ṛ̶́̂̈ạ̶́̂̈ḍ̶́̂̈ị̶́̂̈ạ̶́̂̈ṭ̶́̂̈ẹ̶́̂̈ Ỵ̶́̂̈ọ̶́̂̈ụ̶́̂̈ṛ̶́̂̈ Ẹ̶́̂̈ṣ̶́̂̈ṣ̶́̂̈ẹ̶́̂̈ṇ̶́̂̈ć̶̣̂̈ẹ̶́̂̈ ⚡
⌬⏣⎔ G̷͔r̷͔a̷͔v̷͔i̷͔t̷͔a̷͔t̷͔e̷͔ T̷͔o̷͔ Y̷͔o̷͔u̷͔r̷͔ S̷͔o̷͔u̷͔n̷͔d̷͔ ⎔⏣⌬
DJing & playing accordion at Katrina & Aaron’s wedding was such an honor 💍They are exceptionally interesting and cool people, I loved meeting their sweet friends and family🎉 I practiced accordion an hour a day for three months and now have an hour long set, would love to play more places🪗 I love DJing weddings and Moon Magnet DJ Productions has 11 this year🪩
Here’s a pic of the accordion setlist, highlights were French café music, polkas, scottish reels, Irish Jigs, Italian Waltzes, covers of Howl’s Moving Castle, James Blake, Xmen 90’s Theme, Misbehavin’ from The Righteous Gemstones, White Lotus Theme, Pokémon Poké Center Theme from Red/Blue, The Path of The Wind from My Neighbor Totoro, Beirut, and Pirates of the Carribean Theme.
1st 📸 by @haleyallenphoto
Moon Magnet Music School turns 1 year old 🚀 To celebrate, we're giving away free lessons on our website :) Music Lessons are a thoughtful and life changing gift to share with friends & loved ones :) 🚀
moonmagnetmusicschool.com
Moon Magnet DJ Productions has more events than ever this year. We hired 3 amazing DJ’s and got a disco ball! Joia Hansen has been teaching at Moon Magnet Music School for 4 years and now DJs with us. He’s DJing Baby Rave music at Cookie Factory today for their 1 year anniversary on their outdoor stage at 3pm, right after Laura Goldhamer’s set. Last night he DJ’d Series Fest at the SIE Film Center. Film makers fly in from all over the world for this event and it’s been so cool being a part of this amazing very late night party the last 5 years. Here’s some pics and videos of Joia DJing🎧
Learn how to make a song in an hour⏲️
Always wanted to make music and don’t know how to start? 🧐 Moon Magnet has you covered! Click the link in our bio to schedule a FREE intro lesson in music production, guitar or piano🌙🧲
Take a music production lesson with Sage Varhely-Davis @ignisbeats , he made this song and video🤙
Partnered with @mondaydotcom to plan their Bring your Kid to Work Day! It was a magical morning in the secret garden full of potion & fairy house making, bouncy housing, great music & more🧚🏻♀️🌸🪻🪄
#denverevents #childrenevents #denvereventplanner #mondaydotcom #secretgardenparty
COMBO just posted this article! It mentions Balanced Breakfast Denver, which is a music industry meetup that Mona de Amore and I used to run for 5 years at Mercury Cafe until the pandemic. We had monthly guest speakers from Red Rocks, the CEO of Meow Wolf, AEG, Live Nation, music lawyers, publishing companies, labels etc. Balanced Breakfast was co-founded by @stefanaronsen and still has chapters in dozens of cities. If you want to start one or bring back Denver’s, you can!
COMBO has had monthly music industry meetups in Denver since 1999! It stands for Colorado Music Business Organization. Their website is packed with useful resources and info on the Denver music community. Barb Dye does an amazing job. Check it out and attend a meetup!!
📸: @juliannaphotography
Grateful Web has covered music since 1995, and today they published an interview with me about creativity, curiosity, and the philosophy behind my CU Denver Outstanding Alumni speech “Your Brain is Allowed to Play”. Here’s a snippet:
“Many of us lived together in a house, and the original dream was to record music with friends in the studio, throw shows featuring our friends’ bands, and release their albums on CDs, tapes, or records. In 2013, Moon Magnet Collective began doing all of those things. It started as a spark between me, Derrick Bozich, Anna Smith, Neil Lyons, and lots of other friends. Many other buddies helped along the way, including Justin Maike and my wife, Jamie Fox. It was a DIY artist collective inspired by other collectives like Laura Goldhamer’s Long Spoon Collective or Elephant 6. It began as a group of friends making music videos with mylar blankets, and evolved into three established Colorado businesses. Moon Magnet is a Music School, DJ Production Company, and Mixing & Mastering studio. It’s humbling to look back on how we went from making art to building the infrastructure that helps other people find their unique musical voice. The throughline has always been the same: bring people together through music and give them a space where they can find their sound and radiate their essence.”
📸: @juliannaphotography
I’m over the moon to announce that Moon Magnet has won Westword’s Best of Denver award for “Best Mobile Music Recording”! It feels great to have our recording studio and music school recognized, both of which offer mobile recording services and classes. I’ve been working my whole career in music from producing my own music, to recording and mastering other artists, to teaching students how to produce and release their music. This award is a bigger deal than the reader’s choice because it’s an editorial pick where they provide a writeup (on page 53!). Following the Outstanding Alumni Award from CU Denver earlier this month, I've never felt more grateful and proud to be part of the Denver music community and recognized amongst so many amazing musicians, artists, and businesses. Thanks to our team members, teachers, past collaborators, and friends who have contributed to receiving this award.
I actually got nominated for Denver's Best House DJ in 2019 and still have the plaque déCollage won in 2018 for winning Denver’s best Psych Band. <3 Thank you Westword!
1st 📸 by @juliannaphotography
Accepting the Outstanding Alumni Award from CU Denver & the College of Arts & Media was one of the best nights of my life! Giving the speech was so fun and I can’t wait to share it. Thanks Lorne Bregitzer for nominating me, your classes were life changing and I just used some of the skills you taught me to master a song by Horse B tch today🎧 It was so great seeing Storm Gloor, Paul Musso, Erin Hauger, Todd Reid, Anthony J. Catalano, and so many other friends! This was the second Alumni Day that UCD put together and it was an amazing reunion, highly recommend that alumni go next year!
The podcast episode dropped today and I’m so happy with how it turned out! Paul Musso invited me on to CU Denver’s Lynx Cast, it was a blast to reconnect with him. He’s also an excellent podcast host and has had some of my friends like Andy Sydow and Michelle Rocqet on. You can find it anywhere by searching MEIS Lynx Cast. Here’s the episode description:
In this episode of Lynx Cast, Paul chats with alumni Reed Fox about his journey building Moon Magnet from the ground up. Reed dives into the realities of running a production company, sharing lessons learned through creativity, risk, and entrepreneurship. A special focus of the conversation highlights his work teaching music business and mentoring the next generation of artists and entrepreneurs on how to navigate the industry with confidence. Reed also reflects on balancing business leadership with performing, and how each role fuels the other.
So this is one of the greatest honors of my life and I wanted to share here with my friends and family… I’m receiving one of CU Denver’s first Outstanding Alumni Awards this year! It’s only the second year the College of Arts & Media (CAM) has presented this award, and having them honor my work in building community and education in the Denver music scene is so surreal, and a big win for all of us doing DIY music and art. Not only does the award feel unreal and beyond gratifying to be recognized, but it also feels like a reminder that Denver truly is a place where musicians and artists can grow and thrive together, and make a difference in a world that underestimates the value of music and art.
Here’s some info about the work I’ve been doing, from graduating UCD to the beginnings of Moon Magnet, and founding multiple music businesses:
I founded Moon Magnet in 2013 with Derrick Bozich, Anna Smith, Neil Lyons, & other friends. What began as a small artist collective has grown into three Denver-based music businesses that create meaningful musical experiences, build confidence, and help people find their unique musical voice:
• Moon Magnet Music School, serving 100 plus students across the metro area with 26 teachers providing in-home lessons
• Moon Magnet DJ Productions, an award winning event DJ company active across Colorado
• Moon Magnet Mixing & Mastering, a recording studio working with independent artists, and institutions including Meow Wolf
Four other alumni received the Outstanding Alumni Award this year! The five of us were chosen from three departments: Film & Television, Visual Arts, and Music & Entertainment Industry Studies. Last year was the first year the award was given. Thank you Lorne Bregitzer for nominating me! I love my alma mater and have been able to return to CU Denver more than ten times as a guest speaker to help students grow and see a path forward in the arts in Denver.
Photo by @juliannaphotography
