Summer is wrapping up and, for the third straight year, my last event of the summer was down at the Shoals as part of Billy Reid Shindig.

It's a perfect mix of fashion, food, art, music and friends. This year our work was used at two Studio Series dinners, where some incredible chefs served up meals inside the iconic Muscle Shoals Sound Studios and Fame Recording Studios. Some of the original session musicians told stories about making music with Aretha Franklin, Clarence Carter, The Rolling Stones and more. To say that these dinners were epic was an understatement...

Friday night I helped my friend, Michael Fojtasek from Olamaie, cook at Muscle Shoals Sound. Other than the little problem of a monster rainstorm during prep time, Michael put out an amazing meal with Lisa Marie Donovan. Lisa is a James Beard Award winner from Nashville, TN. Between the two of them, some truly awe-inspiring food hit the tables inside the studio while the Swampers told their stories.

Saturday night's dinner was hosted at Fame Recording Studios, where Jack White and the Raconteurs had recorded all day on Friday. An array of food from Kelly Fields—James Beard Award winner from Willa Jean in New Orleans, Rob McDaniel from SpringHouse in Alexander City, AL, and Katie Button from Curate in Asheville, NC was cooked out on the grills and served up inside the tracking room at Fame. The vibe was amazing. 

The rest of Shindig was full of friends (old and new), Billy's S/S '20 Fashion Show, a big old party in the park, a pop-up from our friends at Rancho Pillow, a lot more food and a Sandlot baseball game between Billy's Alabama Slammers and Jack White's Warstic team. Finally, there was music from The Raconteurs, Cautious Clay, Blind Boys of Alabama, Margo Price, Drivin' & Cryin' and plenty more. 

This year I also finally got out to see my friend, Natalie Chanin's, shop, factory and the incredible work she does at her company, Alabama Chanin. I've always been inspired by what she makes and how she does what she does. 

Once again, I came back from Shindig inspired and excited to see how this energy finds its way into my own studio.

Photos by Billy Reid & Keith Kreeger