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Thursday, November 30, 2023
Crescent Ballroom
Over $59K fundraised

Overall Winner: Rock Judicata with legal talent from Buchalter
Judges’ Choice Award: Retro-Active with legal talent from General Dynamics Mission Systems; Fennemore; and Potomac Law Group

What a way to end our 2023 Fall Tour! Last night, five bands of legal pros came together for an incredible night at the 4th Annual Law Rocks Phoenix. They all rocked the Crescent Ballroom with unique flair while raising over $59,000 in support of Alice Cooper’s Solid Rock Teen Centers and Law Rocks!

We were honored to have Mark Devine of 100.7 KSLX once again host the show. Mark kept up the energy all night and set the stage for a wonderful event.

Guest judge Conrad Varela, an alumnus of Solid Rock, opened the show with a captivating performance. The young guitarist, currently touring the country with his band, Escape the Hive, flawlessly demonstrated his gifts from the guitar gods with shredding solos and a crowd-pleasing rendition of “Take On Me”. The performance was a great example of how empowering music education can be and a tribute to Solid Rock.

Returning family band, The Hoodlums, showed their “Unstoppable” talent with a cover of the Sia hit. We were once again in awe of the three talented Hood children, who each brought their serious A-game. Their performance of Europe’s “Final Countdown” brought the house down and gave each member of the Hood family a chance to shine.

Up next, returning band Probustus showed off their musical chops with a smooth set that impressed us all. They kept the vibes on the sunny side with an awesome surf medley— cowabunga! Their set ended on a funky high note with a great cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition”.

Retro-Active brought their all with not one but two rockstar singers, both of who had captivating stage personas. The audience was pumped up by the full force of rock hits from Styx and Led Zeppelin, and their finale of Somebody Told Me had the crowd singing along.

Fuelit showed that even lawyers aren’t above “Breaking The Law” with a rendition of the Judas Priest metal hit. Their set brought the rock, complete with 2-necked guitars, but the most memorable part of the set was the heartwarming tribute to band member Austin Potenza’s daughter, who joined the band onstage for a beautiful performance of “Here Comes The Sun.”

Law Rocks newcomers Rock Judicata had the crowd on their feet with their cover of “Shake It Off” and continued with a great selection of rock classics including an awesome mashup. We are honored that they came together specifically for this Law Rocks show, and also that guitarist Ryan Evans brought out his sax for the first time in 15 years for the occasion!

It was a close race, but in the end Retro-Active of General Dynamics Mission Systems; Fennemore; and Potomac Law Group took home the Judges’ Choice award, while new band Rock Judicata of Buchalter were crowned Overall Champs! Congratulations to all— the judges really had their work cut out for them.

We’d like to thank all of our participating bands, their firms, supporters, and fans - all of whom came together to support not only the bands, but the broader Phoenix community. Thanks also to the Crescent Ballroom team; our amazing Rock Panel of Judges: Stef w/ an F; Camille Sledge; Conrad Varela; and Kelly Walsh; our three-time Host, Mark Devine; our amazing volunteer photographer, Angela Vaughan, and videographer Monty Scudder; and Jeff Moore from benefiting nonprofit organization, Alice Cooper’s Solid Rock Teen Centers. The evening was made possible thanks to our tour sponsor Secretariat and additional sponsors May Potenza Baran & Gillespie; General Dynamics Mission Systems; Buchalter; Fennemore; and LKGlobal. We’re so grateful for their support in making this special night possible.

You made us proud, Phoenix. We can’t wait to do it all again next year!

Please consider making a contribution to support Law Rocks World Tour and ensure we keep rocking the globe for years to come!

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Featured

Fuelit

Featuring legal talent from May, Potenza, Baran & Gillespie

Fuelit is a six-piece classic rock band that’s been playing together in one form or another for more than 25 years, mostly at biker venues and charity gigs. In our day jobs we are an engineer, a couple of IT professionals, a piano restorer and a lawyer. Oh and then there's Slick, our bass player. He's just professionally cool.

The Hoodlums

Featuring legal talent from Fennemore; My First Nest Egg

The Hoodlums are a five-piece family band with four musically talented people and a momager relegated to the cow bell. Lailah, the drummer, is 8 years old and the heartbeat of the band. Henry, 12, is the lead singer and lead guitarist. Ellora, 13, is on keys and the band’s stylist. Nicolle, age not disclosed, is a business lawyer and co-founder of My First Nest Egg, a company dedicated to teaching children financial literacy. Sean, a litigator and water lawyer at Fennemore, Arizona’s oldest law firm, has passed his musical talent and love for 80’s rock to his children. Despite his skills of persuasion, Sean’s children vetoed his requests for self-indulgent guitar solos. The Hoodlums are thrilled to support Alice Cooper’s Solid Rock Teen Centers with the hope that every kid will have the opportunity to learn and play music.

Probustus

Featuring legal talent from Evans Dukarich

“A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Unless you called Probustus. Then it would smell exactly like a group of dads from Tempe who like to jam on weekends. We want to be rockstars but, you know, we have lives. Michael practices law and plays lead guitar. Andy is a teacher who also happens to sing and play guitar. Paul is a renaissance man who has been credited as a pilot, teacher, and drummer. Little is known of Alex’s past. Maybe he’s the result of top-secret government experiments. Or maybe he’s just a good dude with a penchant for playing bass and gardening.

Retro-Active

Featuring legal talent from General Dynamics Mission Systems; Fennemore; Potomac Law Group

Devon Engel – bass
Sean Hood – guitar
Mike Rissman – keyboards
Chuck Leyva – drums
Christi Sartin – vocals
Dave Cass - vocals

Retro-Active is a high energy rock & roll cover band playing in the Valley since 2006. Featuring dynamic male and female vocals (and three Valley lawyers!) Retro-Active set lists are full of the songs that make you jump out of your seat to dance and sing along. From Adele to Zeppelin, Journey to Van Halen, Guns n Roses to Velvet Revolver, Boston to Kansas and Toto, Styx to Stones, the Black Crowes to the White Stripes, Aerosmith to Jet, Blue Oyster Cult to the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Heart to Paramore, Alien Ant Farm to Michael Jackson, the Cult to Kravitz, Boston to Bon Jovi, Jefferson Starship to Foreigner, Elle King to Prince, Scandal to Dramarama, Petty to Mellencamp, AC/DC to U2, The Killers to The Knack, Florence + The Machine to No Doubt, Def Leppard to Foo Fighters, Rihanna to Rage Against the Machine, Grace Potter to Greta Van Fleet, Ratt to the Doobie Brothers…you get the picture…

Rock Judicata

Featuring legal talent from Buchalter

Rock Judicata is a band of legal experts from Buchalter, where paperwork is our bread and butter, but rocking out is our jam. Josiah Reid dominates the drums with the precision of a well-crafted contract, while Khaled Tarazi takes charge of rhythm guitar and vocals, turning legal briefs into lyrical feats. We have Chello Johnson on bass, bringing the low-end justice, and the shredding maestro Ryan Evans on lead guitar, laying down riffs sharper than a cross-examination. Rock Judicata: where the gavel meets the gravel, and the verdict is always in favor of a good time!

Law Rocks Phoenix is a special event benefiting Alice Cooper’s Solid Rock Teen Centers. The Rock Teen Center inspires teens (12-20) to grow through music, dance and art. They provide vocational training in sound and recording, lighting and staging, video production, as well as a computer lab and a cool, supervised facility for the teens to engage with their peers. In a time where public schools are cutting funding for empowering programs like music, dance and art, The Rock cultivates a love of the arts to inspire and challenge teens to embrace artistic excellence and reach their full potential.

Featured

Host - Mark Devine

A Valley radio staple since 1989, Mark recently retired from the #1 rated 'Mark & NeanderPaul' show on 100.7 KSLX and also hosted the ’Tim & Mark’ show on 93.3 KDKB for 16 years.

Featured

Judge - Stef w/ an F

Stef w/ an F is the frontwoman and founder of the Phoenix-based rock/pop-punk group CITY OF THE WEAK. The band have previously released two EPs, a full-length album and have received over 2 million combined views across their 11 music videos. The independent trio have built a loyal fanbase across the U.S. with their intense, passionate live show which has seen them on tour with acts such as Asking Alexandria, August Burns Red, All That Remains, PVRIS, Lita Ford and Tonight Alive as well as appearances at several of the largest rock music festivals including Chicago Open Air, Northern Invasion, Warped Tour, Rocklahoma, South by So What?!, Rock Fest and Rock USA.

When she’s not behind the mic, Stef is a day-to-day artist manager at Pride Management whose clients include Struggle Jennings, The Black Moods, The Haunt, Scattered Brains, Daboyway and more. She is vegan and fiercely passionate about animal rights and has partnered with several non-profit organizations to raise awareness for the humane treatment of animals around the world.

Instagram

Judge - Camille Sledge

Camille Sledge is a force of nature. Her roles in life have been wonderfully diverse and with each she has been spirited, driven, full of passion and successful as a songwriter, artist, mother, non-profit leader and founder, singer, actress, activist and model. Growing up around music, her mother is Debbie Sledge of the iconic group Sister Sledge, who Camille regularly performs with, in addition to solo performances and being the lead singer of the renowned group Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra. She also sings lead vocals for the Ken Linh Doky jazz trio in Copenhagen, Denmark. Camille founded the 501c3, School of HipHop with her husband in 2014. When she’s not on tour she works with her community to build better outcomes for the youth.

Instagram

Judge - Conrad Varela

Conrad Varela, a talented young musician and alumnus of Alice Cooper's Solid Rock Teen Centers, has performed on stage with Alice Cooper, Geoff Tate (of Queensryche), Tommy Thayer (of KISS) and many others. He opened for ZZ Top and Godsmack at Arizona Bike Week for an audience of 20,000 people, and recorded the music for an Arizona Lottery commercial - all at the age of 20 or younger. Now at 22, he's touring the country with his band Escape The Hive and pursuing music as a lifelong passion and career.

Instagram

Judge - Kelly Walsh

Kelly Walsh is currently the Vice President of SRO PR and runs their Phoenix office. Walsh moved from New York to Los Angeles in 2009 to pursue a career in the music industry after spending a year in London studying Creative Literature. She held in-house positions with Century Media/Sony and Prosthetic Records. She has previously worked with a wide range of artists, including Animals as Leaders, Marty Friedman, Skeletonwitch, Scale the Summit and events such as Chris Hardwick’s Id10t Music Festival. She joined SRO PR in 2018 and has worked on campaigns for Godsmack, Papa Roach, Extreme, The Verve Pipe, AWOLNATION, Ice Nine Kills, and more. She was promoted to VP in 2022 and moved to Phoenix where she opened a new office. Walsh’s current roster at SRO includes Asking Alexandria, Nothing More, The HU, Extreme, From Ashes To New, Micki Free, The Black Moods, Butcher Babies, Zona Festival, the Jack Kerouac Estate, Better Noise Music, and more.