By Mike Romero
Photos by Clark Clifford
The Music Capital of the Mountain West. Tha Mothah*ckin Sound Town. Sonic Valley. Whatever you choose to call this creative little place we call home, Provo Music Magazine‘s mission is to put it on the map as an internationally significant music hub. When we say we want to take the Provo music scene to new heights, we mean it. And we’ve been busy.
As you may know, Provo Music Magazine is produced by Deseret Noise Co. A full-service creative agency, Deseret Noise Co. handled all of the photo, video, and writing needs for tmrw magazine for the last year. A killer opportunity by any metric, that allowed us to bring celebrities from all walks of life to the mean streets of Provo, Utah for a rippin’ good time.
Here are five people who came to Provo in the last six months:
JP Saxe
JP Saxe’s iconic hit “If The World Was Ending” was nominated for Song Of The Year at the 63rd Annual GRAMMY Awards. A frequent collaborator of artists like John Mayer, Julia Michels, Allie X, Sabrina Carpenter, Lewis Capaldi and more, JP came to Provo to perform songs from his 2025 double album, released in two parts: Articulate Excuses and Make Yourself At Home.
This performance of “STRANGERS” was performed live at June Audio and mixed and mastered by Scott Wiley. Provo Music Magazine‘s editor-in-chief, Michael Luce, interviewed JP Saxe at Taste 117.
Provo photographer Clark Clifford shot JP Saxe at Wasatch Studio, located in The Bright Building downtown.
Ari Abdul
Ari Abdul, known for her viral hit “BABYDOLL,” has been all over the world this year – even doing a tour in China. The New York native stopped by Provo right before her Chinese tour. Shot by Clark Clifford at The FIND Lab on Center as well as the basement of Taste 117, Provo Music Magazine publisher Zach Collier interviewed Ari outside of Velour’s weekly Open Mic Night.
Ronen Rubinstein
Shot at The FIND Lab and Taste 117, musician and actor Ronen Rubinstein was interviewed in the kitchen of June Audio Recording Studios, and gave an advance listen of his debut EP in one of the audio suites upstairs in the house.
Best known for playing TK Strand on FOX’s GLAAD Award-Winning drama 9-1-1: Lone Star, Ronen is also the lead singer of Nights In Stereo.
Natacha Karam
Another 9-1-1: Lone Star alum, actress Natacha Karam came to Provo and was shot at Velour Live Music Gallery and Justin Hackworth’s studio on Knight Block. Her suit was handmade by Jamison Strong of Garth’s Custom.
Lunch was provided by Tommy’s Burgers and Black Sheep Cafe. Her boyfriend, John, is mentioned in the tmrw article as having come with her on her trip to Provo. Turns out, her boyfriend is none other than John Clarence Stewart. You may recognize him from his role as Simon on Zoey’s Extraorinary Playlist and Alex Wesley on Luke Cage.
Natacha Karam was recently cast as Hagar in Fox’s upcoming The Faithful. John Clarence Stewart will join the NBC medical drama Brilliant Minds as a series regular for its second season.
Florian Picasso
Coming all the way from France, electronic musician, DJ, and music producer Florian Picasso performed a 30-minute live set in the house portion of June Audio. Engineered by GRAMMY Award-nominee Nate Pyfer and shot by the Rugs Unplugged team, this set represents Provo tapping into some pretty crazy connections: not only is Florian the great-grandson of Pablo Picasso, but he’s also collaborated with artists like Echosmith, Martin Garrix, Tegan and Sara, and more.
Florian Picasso was later shot by Clark Clifford at La Fête – across the street from Velour Live Music Gallery.
Deseret Noise Co. has plans to continue high profile collaborations like these that unify, mobilize, and pay creatives in the Provo music scene. For news and updates on future opportunities and collaborations, follow Deseret Noise Co. on Instagram.