Clinton Bowman, a junior in Parks, Recreation & Tourism management, wanted to keep the North Carolina folk music scene alive. So when his Arts Entrepreneurship instructor said he had to design a non-profit, he decided to do just that. Artists Like You is an organization created to help connect North Carolina folk artists to the community surrounding them. 

Bowman started the organization because he noticed how many folk artists were struggling and how many people were not aware of the talented artists right here in the Raleigh area.

“A lot of people had no clue who some of these folk musicians were,” Bowman said. “I just thought that if people actually knew their talents, they would be able to get to know these musicians and support them.”

Bowman said he has always loved music but did not become interested in folk music until his sister took him to a folk festival in Newport, R.I.

“Whenever I got back home from the festival, I decided to keep listening to folk music,” Bowman said. “Then I started discovering more and more about the local musicians and realizing how many there were in North Carolina who play folk music.”

Bowman explained that Artists Like You primarily helps the musicians themselves. 

“I’m not taking really any money from them,” Bowman said. “It’s just an opportunity to gain publicity and gain a better following with people that are close to them and find people that can help support them.” 

According to Bowman, Artists Like You is on its way to becoming an official 501(c)(3) organization and even established an official sponsorship from Fractured Atlas, an organization in New York. However, sponsorship will all depend on how the second pilot project unfolds.

“The pilot project is a little mini concert series called Folk Friday,” Bowman said. “The first one was a practice round for us, which was June 20 in Jamestown, N.C., and was a success. The second is going to be Aug. 15 at the outdoor amphitheater at the Haw River Ballroom featuring David Childers of Overmountain Men, and Emma Nelse and the Umphs.”

Bowman explained that Folk Friday is a smaller scale example of what Artists Like You will be doing more frequently throughout the year once they become an organization of their own. 

“We will be holding lots and lots of more shows that showcase North Carolina folk acts to various North Carolina communities,” Bowman said. “The reason for the pilot project is just to get a feel of how supportive the residents of North Carolina are toward Artists Like You and its mission.”

According to Bowman, the Village Fair in Jamestown was not part of the Folk Friday series, but they did supply the music for it. He said the Village Fair contained the same concept as Artists Like You by bringing folk musicians to the communities that surround them.

Bowman said the Village Fair proved to be a wonderful opportunity for Artists Like You with about 650 people in attendance. He added that three musicians gained the opportunity to expose themselves in front of a larger audience, and it was one musician’s first live show. 

“Giving these aspiring folk musicians the opportunity to gain a following and connect with the people that live in their state is exactly what we are setting out to do,” Bowman said. “I feel like our presence at the Village Fair allowed us to help those musicians take their music in the right direction.”

Bowman hopes to start filling out paperwork for his organization to become an official 501(c)(3) and is starting to plan out the future of Artists Like You. 

“I want to get a good following in North Carolina and to connect communities with as many musicians in North Carolina as possible first,” Bowman said. “Then I would possibly like to move on to other states and perhaps preserve the indigenous music and the folk music of their own state.”

Although Bowman said he would love to continue with Artists Like You in the future, he is seeking help, as he is currently running it by himself with a little help from his two sisters.

“It is our hope that by promoting these musicians, the positive effects can go even beyond the success of the musician, even toward preserving the folk genre as a whole in the state of North Carolina,” Bowman said.

Bowman said anyone interested in helping with Artists Like You can check out the organization on Facebook, Twitter, or email him directly.