Where Are They Now? Emily Elbert and Anthony da Costa
Catching up with Emily Elbert and Anthony Da Costa, two young musicians who have both played at the me&thee in Marblehead, MA
Ever wondered what may have happened to any of the musicians you may have seen at the me&thee? We have a great track record of introducing the world to many stellar musicians who have since gone on to bigger successes. Occasionally, I’ll revisit those great shows here and give you the lowdown on where those musicians are today.
Turn the wayback machine all the way to the Second Annual Beatles Benefit at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Marblehead in August 2007. This was a benefit to help fund the building of an accessible bathroom. We had a large cast of musicians that day but these two young musicians totally eclipsed everyone’s expectations. Emily was just starting Berklee College of Music in Boston and Anthony was still in high school. They had never met in person before this night. Since then they have done many shows together.
Watch Emily and Anthony sing “I’m Looking Through You.” Enjoy! Emily had played a couple of songs during the show but I don’t think any video exists. I do remember that she got a standing ovation after she sang “Oh Darlin’”
I had the pleasure of working with Emily for a while during her first year at Berklee. We traveled to a lot of New England venues, went to NERFA (North East Regional Folk Alliance conference in the Catskills) and to International Folk Alliance in Memphis. The me&thee presented Emily with both Patty Larkin and Ari Hest. Emily’s style grew and matured into a soulful jazzy groove and she began playing more and more with other musicians whom she met at college.
She exceled at Berklee, recorded a few albums and a DVD and has jazzed up her repertoire. She has toured the world and has played in Peru, Turkey, Thailand, Palestine, and Indonesia. She has won numerous music awards and was named of the Top 10 College Women by Glamour Magazine. She exceled at Berklee, recorded a few albums and a DVD and has jazzed up her repertoire. She’s opened for the Leon Russell, Livingston Taylor, Tuck & Patti, and other notable musicians. Going places? I’d say “hell, yeah!”
Take a minute and watch this video of Emily performing her song “Dialed In and Opened Up” to get an idea of what her style is like now! Pretty incredible, eh?
You can read more about Emily here.
Anthony da Costa has played the me&thee three times since that great day at the Beatles benefit in 2007. He collaborated with his friends, Pesky J. Nixon; played as part of a “thematic” show called “Three Teens and a Marine” along with Seth Glier (another Beatle alumna who will be headlining the me&thee in Winter 2014); Casey Sullivan (who is now a Berklee student as well as part of the successful band, Air Traffic Controller); and Monty Delaney (a former Marine / Bronx copy / lawyer who is currently running for a county judge position in New York) and a co-bill with the amazing singer-songwriter from North Carolina, Jonathan Byrd.
Anthony just recently graduated from Columbia University with a degree in history. Despite all the work that went into studying at an Ivy League college, he still managed to keep up a rugged tour schedule and has played all over the United States. He’s also recorded several albums since his first visit to Marblehead. How many 23-year olds do you know who have recorded nine (count them) CDs? Anthony is the youngest musician to win both the Kerrville and Falcon Ridge songwriting competitions. He’s much in demand as a sideman and is part of a band called Nancy and Beth (even though the main singers are not named Nancy or Beth but are, in fact, actresses Megan Mullally (Will and Grace) and Stephanie Hunt (Friday Night Lights) and they’ve appeared in some of the best venues around as well as on the Conan O’Brienshow. Anthony has opened for Loretta Lynn, Judy Collins, and Suzanne Vega. Going places? I’d say “hell, yeah!”
Here’s a fairly recent video of Anthony singing his song “Back of My Mind”
Learn more about Anthony da Costa here.
We couldn’t be more proud of these two me&thee musicians! Before you know it, they’ll both be common household names—but their music will continue to be unique, relevant and just plain great!
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