In celebration of our 25th anniversary, last month we announced our new YouTube series the River City Sessions. The River City Sessions give us a chance to support the kind of musicians that help build our company and share their work with a global audience. This month features Donald Gelpi aka. The Big Burly Man, performing his song Holy Ghost.
You may be curious about where the name The Big Burly Man came from (so were we) so we took some time to get to know the man behind the beard and more about his songwriting and this haunting song.
Big Burly Man performs original song Holy Ghost
Tell us about yourself. How long have you been making music? Who are some of your inspirations? Who did you grow up listening to?
About 18 years now. My inspirations span all over the place. From Fats Domino, Nick Drake, Van Morrison, Louis Armstrong, Elvis, Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, The Beatles, Bob Marley, and Led Zeppelin to newer artists like Damien Rice, Gregory Alan Isakov, Ray LaMontagne, Iron and Wine, The Tallest Man On Earth, The Lumineers, Jose Gonzalez, Ben Howard, and many, many more.
Besides my rap and alternative rock stage, I really had my first musical shock listening to Led Zeppelin around 16. I was really into them, and still, love them today. I had also gotten into other classic greats like Jimi Hendrix, which got me into, Bob Dylan from loving All Along the Watchtower. That kind of started the whole folk-singer songwriter thing for me.
Where did The Big Burly Man come from? It's a great name!
Thank you! Some years back I had written a song called The Big Burly Man. It was about me, and at the time it was kind of a hidden moniker. It had been on my mind to possibly start performing under it for a couple years. Some of my favorite artists go under stage monikers, and it was a lot more common for artists to do it back in the day. A lot of those old blues players did it too. It's almost like being a character, as a part of this whole creative idea. I don't know, it just seemed fun and cool.
Tell us about the song you performed for the River City Session. When did you write it? What's the inspiration?
I wrote it towards the end of October of 2019. It's got this haunting sound to it, and it was around Halloween, so naturally, I was thinking about ghosts and things like that. I've gotten a lot closer to God over this past year, and I thought how great would it be to have this haunting sounding song referring to the most epic ghost or spirit of all. Holy Ghost, I thought. I love it.
What's the best song you've ever written? Why is it the best?
It's difficult to say. Holy Ghost is up there. Another song that I would naturally think of first is C'est La Vie. It's a very upbeat and catchy song soaked in heartfelt lyrics and truth. It's a local fan favorite too.
Tell us about a successful show or event you were a part of.
It wasn't without mishaps, but this past October. I had the honor of putting together my very own music festival. It was called Baton Magique. It was an Indie Folk Festival at Tin Roof Brewery. It was a lot of work, but we had a pretty great turnout for its first time around, and I received a lot of fantastic feedback from folks which made it all worth it for me. I was also very fortunate to have a few local musicians who were involved pitch their ideas and help with the process. It's a beautiful thing.
Who is your dream collaboration?
Just one? Ha! It would have to be Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, Damien Rice, or Gregory Alan Isakov. There are many others, but you don't have all day.
What do you enjoy most about making music? What do you hate most?
The magic of it all! It truly seems that way. When I write a new song, it's like getting a new toy or something. I just can't put it down. It feels like Christmas morning. It's an absolutely thrilling experience! God is the creator. He loves to create. It's not too far fetched to imagine why we love to create different things too. Mine just so happens to be simple folk songs.
I wouldn't say I hate it, but the only part that feels like work is promoting my music, and trying to get folks to come out to a show. There's also always a lot of it's who you know gets the good show going on behind the scenes. I know that happens everywhere though, but it's tough sometimes. That's why I'm super grateful y'all chose me. Y'all didn't know me, or owe me any favors. Thank you!
If you could change anything about the music industry, what would that be?
I'm not sure I'd change too much. It is what it is. And the way it is is due to many factors and reasons. I'm thankful just to do my small part as big as I can do it.
What advice do you have to anyone getting into the music scene?
Create the kind of music that inspires you! If you feel that lantern being lit and burning from the inside, you're doing it right.
Watch his performance here:
Learn more about capturing The Big Burly Man's intimate sound from the engineer Kyle.
North America Stories
19/05/2026
Champaign, IL - March 16, 2026 Cobalt Digital, the leading designer and manufa...
19/05/2026
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. April 16, 2026 - Cobalt Digital today announced a partnership ...
19/05/2026
Las Vegas - April 18, 2026 Cobalt Digital, the leading designer and manufactur...
19/05/2026
LAS VEGAS April 18, 2026 - Advanced HDR by Technicolor and Cobalt Digital are ...
19/05/2026
LAS VEGAS - May 4, 2026 - Cobalt Digital, the leading designer and manufacturer of signal processing products, and a founding partner in the openGear initiativ...
19/05/2026
London - 11 May 2026 Cobalt Digital, the leading designer and manufacturer of award-winning signal processing products, and a founding partner in the openGear...
19/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/05/2026
Grass Valley has entered into a three-year enterprise agreement with Phoenix Broadcast Solutions as the Singapore-based company expands its live production oper...
19/05/2026
Clear-Com supported Musikal Perahu Kertas, a large-scale musical theater production in Indonesia adapted from the acclaimed novel by Dee Lestari, through the d...
19/05/2026
Actus Digital, a LiveU company, and a leading provider of intelligent media monitoring and broadcast compliance platforms, announced today that METEO CONSULT ha...
19/05/2026
Globecast, a leading provider of managed services for the broadcast and media industry, today announced the completion of a major renovation of its Singapore fa...
19/05/2026
Following a major upgrade to its Connecticut remote production centre with the installation of three 60-fader Argo S consoles in 2023, RPS has switched one of t...
19/05/2026
PlayBox Technology today announced the launch of Celebro Play, a browser-based media orchestration platform designed specifically for broadcast facilities and p...
19/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/05/2026
LYNX Technik, provider of modular signal processing solutions for broadcast, post, and professional AV will showcase its latest signal processing solutions at B...
19/05/2026
Media Links, a leading developer and manufacturer of IP media transport solutions, has announced the integration of its Xscend platform with Skyline Communicat...
19/05/2026
Collaboration expands regional partner ecosystem as Media Links showcases IP media transport solutions on stand 4M4-4 and alongside Clearcast Asia on stand
Me...
19/05/2026
Company Highlights Labor-Saving Control and Custom Branding Opportunities Designed to Increase Integrator Profitability
LynTec, a leading manufacturer of ele...
19/05/2026
Mago Studio Moves AI Video Beyond Prompts with New Production-Focused Tools
Brie Clayton May 18, 2026
0 Comments
New Capabilities Bring Controllable, ...
19/05/2026
It May be Time to Stop and Take an AI Breather
Brie Clayton May 19, 2026
0 Comments
If the rock you stay on starts to roll, jump clean. Or you'll...
18/05/2026
Despite a bumpy start to the year, the provider of event-production support and ...
18/05/2026
Daktronics has partnered with the University of North Carolina to manufacture and install 11 LED displays totaling more than 10,000 square feet and more than 14...
18/05/2026
CBS LA has announced a multi-year partnership with the Los Angeles Rams, covering exclusive local broadcasts of Rams preseason games, weekly year-round programm...
18/05/2026
Skyline Communications has announced an integration between its DataMiner xOps p...
18/05/2026
eCLUTCH, the hybrid esports platform powered by iKOMG, has announced an expansion of its distribution across Europe, MENA, Africa, and Asia, along with new cont...
18/05/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
18/05/2026
With 22 games this season, the production team looks forward to tweaking and enhancing the coverage
After 8,660 days off the air, the WNBA returned to NBC yest...
18/05/2026
(L-R) Midori Francis and Natalie Erika James attend the Saccharine premiere during the 2026 Sundance Film Festival at The Ray Theatre on January 22, 2026, in ...
18/05/2026
The Australian Defence Force uses L3Harris T4 and T7 robots for explosive ordnan...
18/05/2026
Continued investment across Europe and Germany is expanding local teams and improving access to stock, regional expertise, and specialist broadcast support.
CV...
18/05/2026
Agentic AI inference at one-tenth the cost per token with NVIDIA Vera Rubin NVL7...
17/05/2026
Back to All News
Oasis Premieres on Netflix June 19
Entertainment
17 May 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Summer, sunshine, the beach, parties. T...
16/05/2026
Boris FX Continuum Pairs AI Precision and Advanced Creative Controls
Jessie Electa Petrov May 16, 2026
0 Comments
The 2026.5 release adds automatic de...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/05/2026
Seattle Sounders FC and Seattle Reign FC, in partnership with RAVE Foundation an...
15/05/2026
Dan Brumm has served as sound designer on Bluey, the Australian children's t...
15/05/2026
The Professional Audio Manufacturers Alliance (PAMA) and Shure Incorporated are accepting applications for the 6th annual Mark Brunner Professional Audio Schola...
15/05/2026
Netflix has announced an expanded NFL schedule for 2026 and beyond under a four-year partnership extension with the NFL through the 2029-30 season. Each season,...
15/05/2026
Ateme is supporting TVRI (Televisi Republik Indonesia) with a contribution and d...
15/05/2026
Concacaf has announced the launch of a new website and mobile app built on Deltatre's FORGE platform. Concacaf.com and the mobile app, available on iOS and ...
15/05/2026
Eutelsat has announced the launch of QBC Business Economic Channel by Qatar Media Corporation, broadcasting in 4K/UHD via Eutelsat's 7/8 West video neighbo...
15/05/2026
Major League Soccer has announced four original content series timed to the 2026...
In celebration of our 25th anniversary, last month we announced our new YouTube series the River City Sessions. The River City Sessions give us a chance to support the kind of musicians that help build our company and share their work with a global audience. This month features Donald Gelpi aka. The Big Burly Man, performing his song Holy Ghost. 
