GREAT Calling Presents:
An Intimate Evening with Dan Croll & Priya Ragu
Written and Photographed by Nicole Conflenti •
April 3, 2022
The wind howled as I walked the cobblestone streets of NYC’s NoHo neighborhood in search of my destination for the evening. The warm light radiating from Great Jones Distillery’s grand lobby was a welcome reprieve, but not exactly what I was looking for. If you blinked, you might have missed it - a piece of paper taped to a side entrance, reading “SoFar Sounds.” In 2021, Great Jones became the first whiskey distillery to open in Manhattan since Prohibition, but tonight it was a speakeasy for the musically inclined.
At the heart of the Great Jones operation is the distilling room, which doubled as an intriguing setting for the night’s performances. Whiskey barrels and large silver fermentation tanks lined the walls, and a private bar at the back served signature craft whiskey cocktails. The stage, bordered by twinkle lights, was set against the backdrop of an impressive twenty foot-tall copper whiskey still enclosed in a two-story glass chamber. Enthusiastic chatter filled the room as guests filtered in and took their spots on blankets that had been laid out for them. It was an event shrouded in mystery, from the means of snagging a ticket to the secrecy of the artists set to perform.
Playing host for the evening’s festivities was the United Kingdom’s own GREAT Campaign. For almost a decade, the campaign’s mission has been to show the world the best of what the UK has to offer. Its newest project, GREAT Calling, brought the nation right to our doorstep through events showcasing Great Britain and Northern Ireland’s unique food, innovation, and sport. Its tagline? “America, it’s time to see things differently.”
In early March, Britain’s iconic red phone booths started inexplicably popping up around Manhattan. When the phone rang, city goers were encouraged to answer and say, “I want to see things differently.” Participants who did were entered in a giveaway to win tickets to the campaign’s events around the Big Apple. To highlight the UK’s music scene, GREAT Campaign partnered with SoFar Sounds and invited the lucky New Yorkers (who quite literally answered the call) to experience the nation’s best emerging artists through a series of four secret performances in intimate settings around the city.
SoFar Sounds was born out of the desire to see and experience live music differently - both for the artist and the audience. The goal was to create intimate spaces free of distraction, providing an opportunity to be truly engaged. Legend has it that the first SoFar Sounds show was in a tiny North London flat with only eight people in attendance. Founded on the basic principles of respect and community, SoFar Sounds has grown to become a global movement, hosting magical experiences distinctly separate from the world of sold-out arenas.
The first act of the night was Liverpool-born Dan Croll, performing six spellbinding songs from across his discography, including “From Nowhere,” “Bad Boy,” and “Surreal.” Dan first broke out on the UK music scene in 2014 and has been a staple ever since. Conversing casually with the audience between songs, he joked about the “ungodly amount of pizza” he had consumed since arriving in NYC and was subsequently grilled by the crowd for his choice of slice (2 Bros, of all places). “Okay, I’ve made a mistake!” he shouted jovially, “I’m a tourist!” He also shared about his move to Los Angeles five years ago, the result of a spontaneous New Year's whim. A performance of his 2020 song “Stay in L.A.” gave poetic insight into his adjustment to life in the States. Although he may now be living the American Dream, Dan’s roots were planted in England. A student of the Liverpool Institute of the Performing Arts, he received funding from the British government to tour America in 2017 as part of an initiative to share the UK’s musical talent overseas - and hasn’t stopped since.
The UK has a rich music heritage that has shaped global culture - from the “British invasion” of the sixties to today’s all-star recording artists like Ed Sheeran, Adele, and Lewis Capaldi. For his final song of the night, Dan performed a song dedicated to one of the UK’s most famous stars, Sir Paul McCartney, who happens to be a co-founder of his alma-mater. “Yesterday” is an homage to a flustered encounter with the living legend at the school, recounting the story of how he almost missed his chance at meeting McCartney due to missing the last train home. The GREAT Campaign said it best: “From world-class educational institutions through to labels, studios and venues, the UK is the ideal place for aspiring artists to flourish. Each new generation builds on the inspiration of those who have gone before to make their own fresh contribution to global popular culture.”
New York City is a bustling metropolis filled with infinite microcosms. At any moment, little pockets of magic and human connection are exploding across the five boroughs. To borrow a phrase from Hamilton, SoFar Sounds makes you feel like you’re in “the room where it happens,” a part of something bigger than yourself.
An electric energy filled the air as the show’s host eagerly introduced the night’s second up-and-coming act. “She’s blowing up in London right now and we are very lucky to have her here in a small room,” he said, “And I think in a few years’ time you’re going to be like, ‘I saw Priya Ragu.’”
Priya’s band entered the performance area and began the set with an epic, thirty second-long electric guitar solo. She watched coolly while seated beside the stage, allowing the anticipation to build, then joined in for energetic performances of her songs “Kamali” and “Good Love 2.0.” Her sound is a refreshing take on R&B, blending it with genres like soul, Tamil folk music, and jazz. She calls her distinctive style “Ragu Wavy.” A marked departure from Dan Croll’s gentle rifts, Priya’s singular style continued to showcase the exciting diversity of the British music scene.
Born and raised in Switzerland, she spoke of the difficulty in breaking out of the country’s small music industry and onto the international stage. Before pursuing music, she worked for Swiss Airlines as a technical purchaser, living an admittedly comfortable yet “unfulfilled” life. In 2017, she decided it was time to take a chance on herself. “I need to go to New York and I want to see what I can create,” she said of that time, “I was not sure if I could write my own songs. If I was good enough or not.” Her goal was to write ten songs, with the help of her brother producing over Skype. After six months, she went back to Switzerland and started to release them. “And I thought it would take me a few albums to get recognized, to be played on the radio,” she said, “but then it only took me one song.” She launched into a soulful performance of the song that catapulted her career - “Deli.” A track about a midnight encounter in front of an NYC deli, “a snapshot of two people being in the momentum losing track of time.”
Priya attributed the help of the UK as integral to her rise, thanking BBC Radio for playing her songs “over and over again.” She went on to be recognized by Spotify UK, Amazon UK, and was nominated for BBC’s Sound of 2022 - all within the first year of quitting her job. For the final song of the night, she invited everyone to get on their feet and dance to her new single “Illuminous,” which she describes as a song about “stepping into your own power and potential.”
The United Kingdom paved the way for both Dan Croll and Priya Ragu to pursue their own unique artistic journeys, showcasing the nation’s ability to foster phenomenal musical talent. The GREAT Campaign describes the UK as a “creative and cultural hothouse,” and the night’s entertainment made that clear. The performances merged the Atlantic Ocean sized gap between our countries, bringing us together for an inspiring evening sharing culture, perspective, and downright good music.