Monday, August 19th, 2024. Nai Tapas, East Village, Manhattan.—With support from Fat Tire, The Wild Honey Pie hosted an intimate Dinner Party with Nashville-based Tennessee Indie Rock Musician, Annie DiRusso.
The New York City native, who wears the influence of both cities on her sleeve, performed a set of original music from her most celebrated EP, God, I Hate This Place as well as her brand new single, ‘Legs’ produced by Caleb Wright (Hippocampus, Samia). “‘Legs’,” as Annie describes the song, “is a humid summer night in the south. It’s a battle between my wish to surrender and my instinct to control. I hate not knowing things, but I’m loosening my grip and letting it all play out.” Annie DiRusso’s 200k+ social media followers have eagerly awaited the release of ‘Legs,’ which recently garnered 1.5M views on TikTok and Instagram. The new song hints towards DiRusso’s new forthcoming album, whose title name has not yet been released.
Eric Weiner, Founder of “The Wild Honey Pie” pictured with Indie Rock Musician, Annie DiRusso and fellow musician
Annie’s close to home delivery and vulnerability in her lyrics stirred the spirit of The Wild Honey Pie Creative Agency Founder, Eric Weiner; who, since being bit by the industry bug during his internship with MTV UK in London, takes pride in his collaborative work with artists and their fans to create connection. “The Wild Honey Pie was created to break down the barrier between artists and their fans and help reward super fans for their loyalty to the artists. We allow artists to thank their fans, on a personal level, it’s a special moment for everyone involved. In today’s music industry, there’s a lot of talk about ways to build community around musicians, ways to convert listeners to super fans, and I think we have a perfect formula for this through our Dinner Parties.”
Fans of Annie DiRusso pre-game to Fat Tire during The Wild Honey Pie Dinner Party with Annie DiRusso; Photograph by Emilio Herce
The Wild Honey Pie Dinner Parties are funded by brands like Fat Tire who supported The Wild Honey Pie with Annie DiRusso’s Dinner Party at Nai Tapas, which also included a live filming for an upcoming video, “We’ve worked on videos with Cage the Elephant, Eric Clapton, Iron & Wine, Jason Mraz and on the events side with Del Water Gap, Lucius, Haim, Kishi Bashi, Rainbow Kitten Surprise, and many more. We work with some pretty cool brands too: Vacation Sunscreen, Olipop, Half Day Iced Tea, Blundstone, Grillo’s Pickles, and of course, Fat Tire, the supporter of The Wild Honey Pie Dinner with Annie DiRusso. Everything we do is about taste; the curation of artists and the brands.”
Guest in attendance, Bonafide Rojas (The Mona Passage) eyeing Fat Tire can. Photography by Emilio Herce
Lite bites at The Wild Honey Pie Dinner Party With Annie DiRusso Photography by Emilio Herce
The dinner opened up with lite bites, such as savory fried homestyle potatoes, shrimp in garlic sauce, ham croquettes, and complimentary cans of iced cold Fat Tire to chase. Guests mingled and laughed like old friends and reuniting family across the table, while the The Wild Honey Pie and Nai Tapas teams engaged fans of Annie DiRusso by gifting them with memorabilia and autographed tote bags, “Our parties are intentionally intimate. Dinners are capped by the size of the restaurant. Monday’s restaurant, Nai, fits 55 people, we have restaurants that fit 60, 70, 80, and also as scaled-down to 40 person capacity.”
As the night continued, the guests, better acquainted, completed the decadent servings of fudge dessert and once fed, the ambiance was set for Annie DiRusso to take the stage and give a live performance. “We love so many different kinds of music,” Eric says as Annie DiRusso takes to the stage, greeting her fans like close friends from her hometown, “…but I think our sweet spot is pop and indie.” Annie opened her set by praising the service of the Nai Tapas, Fat Tire for their support, and The Wild Honey Pie host team. She acknowledged the comfortability of the atmosphere and expressed her gratitude for a fed audience, which she laughs as she states she, “…doesn’t typically get the luxury of a fed and relaxed crowd.”
“Don’t Swerve”, Annie DiRusso fan shows off her gift bag keepsake Photography by Emilio Herce
Fans sang along as Annie performed song favorites such as, “Nine Months,” and “Don’t Swerve”. Annie DiRusso is gifted with an amazingly raw, and heart aching emotive voice; one that echoes the promise of a songwriter we will speak of for years to come.
Annie DiRusso performs live at Nai for “The Wild Honey Pie Dinner with Annie DiRusso”. Photography Credits by Emilio Herce
The Wild Honey Pie presents and hosts a wide array of dining events, from its popular Dinner Parties, which are hosted all over the country, to its intimate Pizza Parties, which are typically held in Brooklyn, New York, with the iconic collaborator, Paulie Gee’s Pizzeria. The agency also host an après-ski weekend 4 times a year, most recently in March 2024 with Local Natives, Gus Dapperton, Fat Tony, Salt Cathedral and more. The après-ski weekend is a combination of wellness activities, food pop-ups, and live music all around Hunter Mountain and Glen Falls House in upstate New York. The Wild Honey Pie also aims to extend its reach to international artists and venues in the future.
The true success of The Wild Honey Pie Dinner Party lies in the simplistic genius of catering to both the artist and their fans: feed the fans a hearty meal, give them access to a piece of live music, let them mix and mingle with fellow fans and grant them the opportunity to meet their favorite artist; most importantly, allow the artists to meet the fans that support their art. This brilliant curation is found in every element; from the choice of the artist to the selection of the savory dishes, the atmosphere, and down to the well-thought-out table placements. The Wild Honey Pie Dinner party is a fresh and unique experience worth having, “There’s a magic to what we’re doing with our parties that’s simply different than the venue experience. When you’re combining your love of food and music, with great design and so many surprises, it’s hard to beat. We want to change music fans’ and artists’ lives.” I think they’re doing just that very thing.
https://www.thewildhoneypie.com/events/all The Wild Honey Pie also has a partnership with Graduate Hotels by Hilton, as well as more Dinner Parties in Austin, LA, Denver, and beyond.
Click to watch Annie DiRusso’s new video, “LEGS”
