ELLY GRIMM

   • Leader & Times

Those looking for a bit of a nostalgia trip will soon have just that opportunity through music.

The Suits will be performing Saturday, April 18 in Maskus Auditorium at LHS to conclude this year's Community Concerts of Liberal series. The show will start at 7:30 p.m., and tickets will be available at the door that evening. As member Timothy Brown tells it, the group is still somewhat new, but there is a lot of camaraderie.

“The Suits is comprised of four gentlemen, and we've been around since about 2018 or 2019. Then, of course, COVID-19 hit, so we did a few virtual events, but once things settled down, we were able to go back to doing live performances. We're based in Los Angeles, and we each represent a different genre, whether it's Motown, pop, rock, and doo-wop, so it's a great mashup,” Brown said. “Our parent company, Sunset Live Entertainment, had some other novelty acts that were drawing big audiences, including The Starlets, which is an all-female trio. The company wanted an all-male version of that, and a lot of all-male musical groups back in the day had four or five members, and there was also a need for a group like that from people who wanted to feel that nostalgia, so that's how we were formed. There's just something very unique and interesting about a group of guys harmonizing together. We travel together and rehearse together and work on choreography together on this music we grew up hearing, and it's just been amazing being able to perform together like that.”

Brown said the show will have a lot of energy that should be infectious for the crowd.

“It's definitely going to be a jam-packed show. We do shows from the 1950s through the 1980s in a variety of genres, so it should be a great throwback for the audience, whether it's with 'My Girl' or 'Livin' On a Prayer' or whatever we're performing,” Brown said. “We do some time traveling through music and hit some of the songs that were on the top of the charts in those eras and hopefully evoke some memories. All four of us are really great singers and people will also see some great choreography and just overall great productions. If you're looking for a night out to get rid of whatever woes you happen to be dealing with, here's some good music that promises to be a good time. There are also even a few moments in the show where people will want to get up and dance, which we actually encourage. It'll just be an overall great time, and we hope to see as many people out there as possible.”

One of the best aspects of being part of the group, Brown said, is the extensive traveling that happens.

“Traveling is one of the best perks of being in The Suits since we get to go all over the place, and we typically have multiple stops close together for a tour, and it's great seeing so many places we might otherwise not have,” Brown said. “I'm not entirely sure when the conversation started about us performing in Liberal since I'm not involved with the booking aspect of everything, but we always do quite a few shows and concerts like what we'll be doing with the Community Concerts of Liberal, and Liberal is somewhere none of us have actually visited, so we're really excited. All we really know about Liberal is there's the International Pancake Day celebration and the connection to 'The Wizard of Oz,' so I'm excited to visit and learn more while we're there. We like to interact with the locals and find out what are the good local spots to eat or get a coffee or what have you. Usually when we stop somewhere, there's the tourist stops that get recommended, but we like to go where the locals go and get a real feel for that community. We're definitely excited to check Liberal off of our list.”

That traveling, Brown said, allows for some camaraderie in and out of the group.

“I've really enjoyed getting to know my bandmates, they're a great group of guys. We're on the road together quite a bit, and when you're in close quarters like that, that's time we spend getting to know each other and maybe even doing some car karaoke,” Brown said with a chuckle. “The traveling is also great because there have been times when I've come across people I went to college with, or someone who went to a past show and remembers us, so it's great being able to travel and come across those faces and meet a bunch of new people as well.”

Overall, Brown said, the show should be a fun time for everyone in the audience that evening.

“It's going to be a great show, we want everyone to come out and enjoy themselves as much as possible. We want this to be a memorable concert they come back to in the future,” Brown said. “And again, there will be some audience participation, but we make it really fun – if you want to get up and dance, we encourage that, and if you want to pull out your phone and get a recording of a particular song, we encourage that too because we like to have a great time with the audience. Everyone is welcome to come out, it's a great concert for the whole family, which we think is awesome.”