“What are we going to leave behind?” asks Holly Baynham, owner of R Street Studio, the only black woman-owned recording studio in Washington DC. When we spoke, emotions were running high in a pandemic season enflamed by police violence against black bodies. “There comes a time when you have to speak up – it’s time to have those difficult conversations.”
Like many artists, Holly’s music origin story is rooted in the church. But the jolt of the 2016 election prompted a reckoning with her mostly white congregation. “If you support this man and I’m a member of this church, I don’t feel comfortable being here.” It was spirit sapping. Undeterred, Baynham realigned. “Then I had to look at ‘What is mine to do?’ Well not be silent for one, but to be as creative as possible. And that’s where the music comes in.”
Enter R Street Studio, a hidden gem among the row houses in the NOMA neighborhood. People familiar with the space know how special it is, and the woman behind the soundboard sets the tone. “Holly is a force, and a real mentor to folks in the scene,” says Clarissa Corey-Bey, bassist of the DC-based, black queer-led movement Black Folks Don’t Swim? “She lends her space and her expertise and flyness…that’s the vibe that lives in the static at R St. You can feel it when you’re there and hear it in the records.” Black Folks Don’t Swim?, who boast a voracious live following, recorded the theme song to their forthcoming album “For The Source Part 1” at R Street. “We have been blessed by her support and her space.”
The mentor piece makes sense. For Baynham, it’s all about the artists. “It’s important for me to make them feel at ease, to talk them through it…‘This is what we’re going to do, we’re going to take a couple takes…’” Like BFDS, artists Leah Morris, Darsha, and Courtney Hinson have found inspiration at R Street. “You really worked me!”, Holly recalls Darsha joking after a session. But Holly is a pro. “You can record it a hundred times, but why would you? Time is money.” So Baynham tells artists to come prepared – and drink water. Last year, Baynham bought an RV she will convert into a mobile studio. Bringing the recording experience directly to artists is just another way to bring people into a relaxing, inspirational space. “Sing it to your Mamma. Pretend your partner is in the room with you,” she urges. “The mic picks up everything…If you’re feeling fear, the mic picks that up too.”
While R Street Studio’s clientele is diverse, the owner is personally vested in music created by women and genderqueer artists. “When I was coming up, I didn’t know audio engineering was something you could do.” After a short stint at NYU, Baynham earned her master’s at American University, whose audio technology program is one of the top in the country. Now she wants to see more women in the industry and her actions speak loud. R Street hosts events like the Women’s Open Session, where musicians write and record music on the spot, to highlight non-male artists on the scene. Holly also has plans for Girls Groove, a program she conceived of to provide one-on-one and small group instruction for girls to show them that a career in audio technology is possible.
So how does a studio engineer pass the time in a pandemic? “I like these portable synths, so I started making cases out of found materials.” Baynham is a gearhead, a passion ignited by the likes of experimental musician Laurie Andersen and jazz electric bassoonist Paul Hanson. “I saw this video on YouTube where he ran [the bassoon] through all sorts of processors, drum machines, a delay box and vocal harmonizer. I went on Craigslist and eBay and found all of the gear he used so I could do the same thing!” Holly has also started collaborating with one of her best friends who is gathering personal experiences in haiku. Holly will compose the music for the visual essay, which she hints will touch on love, nature, masks, and other personal experiences during challenging times.
Engineer, business owner, and multi-instrumentalist would be enough skills to fill anyone’s resume, but Holly doesn’t limit herself to the studio. “Oh, I love shoes. I like working with my hands.” Her project Hentz 4th Music melds her passions for composing and designing custom footwear. Her recent Black Lives Matter themed high-top was selected as a staff favorite at Alive shoes, an Italian company that crowdsources orders to make shoe concepts a reality. Her Converse designs are sick.
Undergirding these interests is a persistent mindfulness around everything going on. Last month Holly created a Bad Azz Woman playlist in honor of Kamala Harris’ historic election. A step forward, but there is still much to be done. “There’s a lot of self-care that needs to happen.” Baynham carries the ideas behind Imani Perry’s Racism Is Terrible. Blackness Is Not., and focuses on the strength of black women who, despite a history of being victimized, are not victims. “The essential message is ‘feel our sorrow but don’t pity us’. That was very powerful for me.” While she’s heartened to see people of different backgrounds step up in protest, it’s important that the message not be obscured. “We appreciate the concern, but don’t get it twisted.”
A critical ingredient of Baynham’s self-care program is who she surrounds herself with. Some people she brought on in the beginning just didn’t fit. She pivoted. What kind of studio is this? How am I different from everybody else? “When you have people who are not aligned with your vision then you have to release them to their higher good and let them do what they do.” Wise words indeed, but Baynham says it wasn’t easy. “A lot of that was feeling, maybe insecure and not confident in what my abilities were.” But she feels differently now. “If you have something powerful to share with the world – these are artists I want to work with. We need to start speaking truth to power and if that’s through music then that’s what we do.”
“We need to start speaking truth to power and if that’s through music then that’s what we do.”
Holly baynham
Despite all, there’s still no place Holly would rather be than Washington. “I love DC! This is an exciting place…it’s underrated artistically,” she adds. “This city has some of the most talented people I have ever met.” Earlier this year, Holly connected with another non-male engineer in Baltimore, Sarah FM, and sees the value in talking about it and reaching out to more women and nonbinary artists. “It’s really important to me – there are so few of us.”
2020 has posed a unique challenge to the music community but Holly remains laser focused. “I want to stay involved, not be silent. This is a time to sit and figure out ‘What is mine to do?’” It’s a mantra of sorts. “The creative aspect, doing music, writing, creating, and working with artists who have something powerful to say.”
Actions:
Listen to Leah Morris’ “Roots & Wings” from the Something Worth Keeping album
https://www.thisislea.com/buy-cds/swk
Hear Courtney Hinton and Holly Baynham’s Psalm 23
Check out Holly’s shoe game at Hentz 4th Music here: https://www.instagram.com/hentz4thmusic
Be purposeful. Read up: “Racism Is Terrible. Blackness Is Not.” By Imani Perry
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/06/racism-terrible-blackness-not/613039/
Fire up your day with Holly’s Bad Azz Woman playlist:
Watch Black Folks Don’t Swim? at Slut Island Festival 2020 and support their GoFundMe Campaign for the new album, For the Source Part 1: