Sammy Rae & The Friends: The Sheen Center 2025

Anyone who has seen the charming, charismatic Sammy Rae & The Friends in concert understands why FUV was so taken with buoyant Sammy Rae Bowers and her bandmates after their recent FUV Live session in September. The septet considers the live experience as a crucial part of their overall raison d'être — and that's evident in their vivid performance chops. So by happy providence of scheduling, FUV grabbed a chance to have the Brooklyn-based collective take over The Sheen Center for a rousing Marquee Members show.

The seven-piece group released their official debut album, Something For Everybody, via Nettwerk in September and since that time, Samantha Bowers (vocals and bandleader), C-Bass Chiriboga (drums, vocals), Max Zooi (tenor sax), Will Leet (guitar, vocals), Debbie Tjong (keys, guitar, vocals), James Quinlan (bass, vocals), and Kellon Anderson (alto sax) have been spending most of their past year on the road touring  — what they call "gigs and hangs" across North America, Europe, and the UK.

Bowers has said that Sammy Rae & The Friends' deliberate absence of a defined genre was once a hang-up for the band. They've since learned to shed their doubts, realizing that their serendipitous blender method of songwriting, arrangements, and production is organically right for what they do. With the release of Something For Everybody, the group's freedom of multiple choice is evident. "We realized that we had a little of everything," explains Bowers in a press release. "It’s a strength of ours, and one of our best assets."

Check out three videos from The Sheen Center of Sammy Rae & The Friends set at The Sheen Center: "David" and "Good Time Tavern," from Something For Everybody, and the divine femininity, so says Bowers, of the jazzy "Jackie Onassis" from 2021's Let's Throw a Party EP.

[Recorded: 11/18/24; Engineered by Jim O'Hara, hosted by Alisa Ali, and produced by Megan Offtermatt. Videographers: Alena Godas, Lyla Toomey, and Olivia Wahlert.]