NORFOLK, Va. — From an early age, Beach resident Clover Stokes loved to sing. So it's no surprise the 20-year-old has chosen music as a career.
Stokes and her band, Monarch, have been playing shows around town for two years, but her latest gig is the biggest yet. She landed a spot in Lilith Fest, a tribute to the all-female touring concert "Lilith Fair," at The NorVa in Norfolk.
“For them to look around this entire 757 area and decide that they wanted to ask me to participate was very, very meaningful to me, very important. I’m just geeking out about it. I’m so excited,” she said.
The concert features about 20 female performers from up and down the East Coast, organized by Project Hera, a nonprofit out of Northern Virginia dedicated to supporting women in music.
While Clover wasn’t even born when the original Lilith Fair started in 1997, she’s very aware of what the festival means.
“It was started to originally show that female-leading acts could sell the same amount of tickets as male-leading acts, and I thought that was really powerful,” she said.
She and her band play a lot of '70s-style rock. She tells me Fleetwood Mac is a big influence.
“As I got older, I started seeing Stevie Nicks rocking out on a stage, and I was like, ‘That’s what I want to do,’” she said.
And she’ll be doing just that on a stage where artists like Justin Timberlake and Pat Benatar have played.
“The NorVa is a local legendary venue. I’ve come here for years to see so many different acts. So to be on this stage, even doing this interview on this stage, is so wild to me. I’m so excited,” she said.
Lilith Fest is happening on Saturday, July 12, with doors opening at 7 p.m. and the show starting at 8 p.m.
Clover Stokes and the talented musicians of the 757 who are following their passion, you are positively Hampton Roads.
