Immersed Zine

By Christian Ponds | Top Photo by Emma Huff | Bottom Photo by Danny Crapanzano

Olivia Gillaspie and Madison Grifaldo’s friendship started through a mutual friend after both lady’s established music career had begun during the small rise in shows after COVID-19’s shutdown. Grifaldo’s history in classical music and opera singing combined with a secret romance writing songs behind closed doors led her to braving open mics when she lived in the greater Durham-Raleigh area. Gillaspie, singing since she was a little girl, began playing guitar during shutdown and brought the songs she’d been writing to life. This led her to playing bass and singing in the Wilmington “hike rock” band La Veta Pass. Both women came together after being asked to do a last-minute “women’s show.” After talking and realizing how they both held the same views about the event feeling like an afterthought or that the show was thrown together in a hustle they began to have ideas of how they could help their community in a more thoughtful way. Things like this often happen from people trying to do “something good” but without real intention and care behind these types of events, it feels like disrespect. This led the friends to begin a women’s collective called “For The Roses.” The goal behind this collective is to create a space for women and queer-folk alike to feel safe expressing and sharing their art. Whether that art is music (of ANY genre), graphic design, traditional art mediums, photographers, poets, etc. they want to create a platform to lift each other up. This kind of thoughtfulness can only lead to a stronger community of creators in Wilmington and beyond throughout North Carolina. Follow @fortheroses on instagram for upcoming shows, open mics, and other various community events.