BY BRITTANY DANIELLE for WEEKLY VOLCANO 1/9/26 |
We have all heard the saying, “What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?” but we rarely think, “What would you do if you thought something would probably fail, but you wanted to see what would happen anyway?” What if the goal was to go for what you wanted and believe there were others out there just like you who would join and support your idea? A trust fall into your community.
January 24, 2026, at Slice of Life Pizza on Pacific Avenue at 5 p.m. is where that question will be answered. Slice of Life presents Another Local Show?! Vol. 2. With more than just bands coming to play, the community has come together with vendors, stagehands, sound technicians, MCs, and street teams to make this event happen. It is more than a labor of love; it is a testament to the strength of a community wanting cool things to happen in its neighborhood and to showcase the art that lives within it.
Matt Keller, bandleader for K. Williams, did exactly that. With an idea from mentor and manager Pablo Mathiason, K. Williams thought, “What if,” and made the call. “I might be in over my head,” he stated on his TikTok account. “We’re trying to organize a huge show at Slice of Life in Tacoma.” After sending out that call, he said, “It was wild how quickly everything fell into place. I didn’t realize how many other bands were just like us, who just wanted to play and were willing to hop on. John was a huge part of that. He was so down to make it happen and helped put a lot of the pieces together.”
Zac Stewart, guitarist for K. Williams, said, “The whole process was amazing. People came out of the woodwork like crazy. It took no time at all to put the lineup together. We thought we should make it into a two-day event with how many people were coming out to play.” Laughing, he added, “Two days is crazy. Next time. People are wanting to come out and do things, and it’s rare to me.”
John Hayes, owner and operator of Slice of Life, is an advocate for local music and is grateful to have a space to help facilitate different ideas. He enjoys working with musicians and artists who think outside the box and are interested in creating an event or experience. “I love having a place that is an open space for people to showcase their art and music and to show up for each other. I get to witness the unfolding of people, love, community, and art. We need to support each other and share it with others,” Hayes said. “People should come on out; pizza will be flowing all day.”
Hayes called upon local vendors, bands, and organizations to help with the show. No stranger to the Slice family, Cascade Music Alliance will be supporting sound and stage management for the day. Cascade and Hayes have worked together for years, from helping boost the now-booming open mic on Monday nights at Slice of Life to bringing Hayes on for solo work in residencies around Tacoma.
Between Hayes and Cascade, there is a mutual love and support for the music community, a deep respect for each other, and a desire for “cool [stuff] to happen in my own neighborhood,” said Woody Bell, co-founder of Cascade, with an attitude of abundance. “When we work together, we build more options for all of us to use versus having scarcity. When we think with scarcity, we stop supporting and participating with each other, and that never builds more, but shuts things down and isolates us. We have to rise together. Everyone will find their place and calling when there are more opportunities to work with,” Bell said.
With that mindset, it is important to note that everything, down to the building of the stage, has been a community effort. Otha Adams started coming to the Slice of Life open mic more than a year ago and quickly became friends with Hayes and other musicians. He made it a point to boost Slice of Life and help in ways he knew he could. He started by hanging speakers on the walls inside and helping organize the stage area, and as the weather grew nicer, he realized, “I have free resources at my job. I have access to a lot of materials that would normally be thrown away. But I saw the need for an outdoor stage and thought, ‘Hey, I could build that,’” Adams recalled. And that is exactly what he did.
The stage that will be used for the performances on January 24 was built by Adams and has been tested and approved by other community members, including John Lane, a local musical heartthrob and open mic regular who will serve as the MC for the day. His humor and sincerity are a fitting combination for an all-day host.
As you can see, this is not just “another local show”; it is a showcase of grassroots, boots-on-the-ground, word-of-mouth, trust-based community effort. It is built on the backs of those who are not afraid to get their hands dirty for something they believe in. And that, readers, is the ultimate rebellion: leaning on each other to take ownership of your community.
The all-day event still needs help with flyering, and street teams are needed for that. Vendors who want to bring their goods to sell will also find space available. For more information, contact John Hayes at @the.real.aloe, Slice of Life at @soflpizzeria, Cascade Music Alliance at @cascademusicalliance, or K. Williams at @itskwilliams.
Another Local Show?! Vol. 2, Jan. 24, 2026, at Slice of Life, 8045 Pacific Ave., Tacoma. 5 p.m.
