Courtesy Members of Local 782 gather at Hogwild Records recently. The music coalition has a launch event coming up June 19.

San Antonio music coalition, Local 782, wants the city to know that they are united and here to stay.

Until now, information about the group has mainly been spread by word of mouth, but from June 19-21, nine bands who are members of Local 782 will perform at The Mix and officially launch their album You Are Here. We Are Here to show all of the 782 Zip codes what they are about.

Local 782 is a coalition of people in the San Antonio area who are in the music business. George Garza, who is in charge of Local 78’s media relations, said music is at the center of the coalition, but the movement is much bigger than that.

“Our tag is ‘because you can’t spell community or opportunity without unity’ and that’s what it’s really about,” Garza said. “There’s no discrimination, there’s not a genre-specific mold. There’s nothing that we’re following, we’re just working together for everybody’s progress.”Erica Gutierrez, lead vocalist and guitar player for Ledaswan, said Local 782 is a close-knit community where members educate each other about the music business and empower each other by bridging the communication gap between musicians and the media.

“(Local 782) is basically a collaborative effort for local musicians to better the musical community,” Gutierrez said. “Personally, Local 782 means an opportunity for my band to network with other musicians in the community.”

Garza said before Local 782, some local bands did not know how to promote themselves in the most effective way and were unable to get media coverage.

The Texas Media Empowerment Project, an advocacy group that uses music, media and technology to encourage community awareness, helped Local 782 organize and is now “handing over the reins” to the musicians. The group formed with the idea that all of the members would know what was going on and have the same agenda. Garza said when Local 782 started, there was skepticism by some people, but the group has now begun to grow in numbers as members put in time and effort.

“I was worried at first because I wasn’t sure if people would be interested in the cause, but apparently there were other musicians thinking the same thing and wanting to help the community,” Gutierrez explained.

Gutierrez said she enjoys seeing bands with strong work ethics come together to accomplish a common goal.

DeAnne Cuellar, project director for Texas MEP, said Local 782 is trying to make the city a more hospitable place for musicians.

“Even though we’re only 45 miles away from the ‘Live Music Capital of the World’ and we have a diverse music scene here, we still have problems,” Cuellar said. “(Local 782 is) getting together to work on issues and resolve them.”

Garza said the group provides a chance for local people in the music business to come together, express their concerns, and make a difference. It is not about taking the music scene hostage; it is about getting some recognition for the city as a whole.

“Art is a huge part of our culture. Our city sometimes gets overshadowed by surrounding cities and other music scenes,” Garza said. “We believe San Antonio deserves that respect and the opportunity to shine and show people what we’ve got. We have a lot to offer and that’s what it’s about. By next year, who knows what we can do.”Local 782 plans to continue putting on shows, increase in membership, and release new albums every three or four months.
The group meets on Monday nights at Café Latino, but anticipates having to find a larger area to meet. For more information about Local 782, visit www.myspace.com/local782 or call (210) 525-8147.

Samantha Hensley | 210sa contributor