WXTJ Jamz: mr. after
Today, mr. after takes the stage for a special solo performance to celebrate the final episode of WXTJ Jamz as produced by graduating Director Ashley Park and WTJU Audio Engineer Ben Larsen. It’s the end of an era — one year, eight videos, and 25 incredibly talented local musicians have visited the station on Ivy Rd to put on their best live performances in front of a camera (or three). Watch the full video on YouTube.
Keep reading to learn more about this performance, as well as find final notes from our producers at the end.
mr. after, born Noah Tinsley, is a 23 year old rapper from Charlottesville, Virginia. He has been surrounded by music his whole life but made his first official appearance in 2021 on “Globes” with Elie Bashkow, his longtime friend, collaborator, and producer. Noah is also a recently graduated Master’s student from the University of Virginia. With this episode of WXTJ Jamz, he debuts the first of hopefully many more fully solo live performances as an artist on the rise.
mr. after delivers thought-provoking, strikingly self-aware lyrics with a relaxed but powerful timbre — telling the story of his inner world one line at a time. Even in the beginning stages of his career, mr. after shows great promise in his ability to connect with a wide array of audiences. A unique and skilled performer with an exuberant stage presence, Noah’s personality, natural creativity, and sense of humor shines through in every performance as mr. after.
Find “mr who knows,” “BOSE,” “SQUIRREL,” among other releases by mr. after at linktr.ee/mr.after. To keep up with Noah, follow him on Instagram.
Notes from the Producers
Ben: Knowing this would probably be our last episode of Jamz, Ashley and I really wanted to find a way to make a special video that built on all that we learned during the making of this series.
Ashley: Doing this has seriously given both of us the opportunity to meet and work with so many wonderful people who really care about their craft — and expand upon ours. Being able to professionally capture some of the best live music I’ve ever seen and heard has been a truly incredible feeling. When the team first started the series, summer of 2022, we just wanted people to know that you don’t have to go far to discover that. The music right here in Charlottesville and the community support that WXTJ harbors is so good; it’s really all you need.
Ben: As both of us are genuinely big fans of Noah’s work, once we invited him on, we immediately got to work brainstorming the set, the video, and everything else about it.
Ashley: This is also the first time both of us weren’t bogged down by classes or other work, so we were able to run with more of our silly ideas. Like, there’s so much room on that stage. Why not have some fun?
Ben: As you might notice, there are a lot more props onstage this time apart from the usual crab cameo.
Ashley: The crab still made an appearance. He just felt a little shy this time because there was another stuffed friend on stage. We must all learn to share the spotlight sometimes.
Ben: Ashley and I envisioned this idea of setting up a living room… on the stage. It’d just be Noah, his drum machine, a mic, his raps and his beats. We actually thrifted most of what’s in there. Admittedly, the bulk of what we walked away with was several dusty lamps that we spent an entire afternoon cleaning.
Ashley: It’s a show just like all the other ones we’ve done, but this time, it’s a bit more personal. With the way we set up the stage, the cameras, as well as the lyrics on-screen, it just feels like we get a little more insight into Noah’s process. He’s not just a rapper; he’s also a writer. And a really good one. When we came to him with these ideas, I think he knew exactly what we were going for without even saying much. Each time he looks into the camera to deliver certain lines, just know all of that happened quite naturally. Here, his style of performing informed my video editing — and not the other way around.
Ben: In a lot of ways, Noah made a lot of this episode his own. He invited the viewer into his world, just looking around the room at the cameras that happened to be recording. It was a lot of fun to work with him.
Ashley: If you can’t already tell by our notes, all of us love breaking the fourth-wall over here. Maybe a bit too much, but it’s controlled chaos. There’s a lot more of that than usual in this video, as well as some bloopers at the end that’ll hopefully make you laugh with us.
Ben: Here’s a fun fact. The night before the show, I was trying to figure out how we could connect Noah’s drum machine to our mixer while we were setting up the stage for the next day. It turned out to be an easier solution than expected, but the added gear on the table did make for a good prop. If you look closely or know anything about audio equipment, it’s pretty obvious one of the machines with one lone cable coming out of it isn’t actually connected to anything. It just wanted to be included in the video.
Ashley: Overall, like with all the other videos we’ve put out, I’m excited for some people to discover a new artist after watching WXTJ Jamz. I hope this last episode does a good job showing the world why crazy radio people love local music so much. Even if it’s only been a little over a year, it’s been nice having a way to document our time here in the Charlottesville music scene so we can also look back on it years from now.
Ben: The coolest thing about producing this project for us has been the emphasis on creative autonomy and collaboration. Some pretty amazing things can happen when we support and believe in each other’s work. Being a part of a small team allowed us to be able to see the format of this series develop and evolve with each episode and each performance. Thanks to our viewers and to the station for letting us create something like this. We’re both so grateful.
Set List:
“mr who knows” – mr. after
“GÄNGER” – mr. after
“MUDSLIDE” – mr. after
“The Boulder” – mr. after
“BOSE” – mr. after
“SQUIRREL” – mr. after
WXTJ Jamz is brought to you by:
Producers – Ashley Park, Ben Larsen
Performer – mr. after
Audio Engineer – Ben Larsen
WXTJ Director – Ashley Park
Video Editing – Ashley Park
Mix + Master – Ben Larsen
Videography + Set Design – Ashley Park, Ben Larsen
Special Thanks – WTJU Radio
Video Extras:
14:45 – Credits
15:17 – Thank You
15:36 – Outtakes
Thanks for watching and supporting WXTJ Jamz. Look out for more WXTJ videos coming soon. We can’t wait to see what the next team makes! – Ashley and Ben
