Seven years ago Troy Campbell opened up his Bentonville home to songwriters from across the globe.

It wasn’t unusual for the Austinite-turned-Arkansawyer. He’d already been working with House of Songs in Texas. The nonprofit organization aims to unite musicians worldwide to make music together through the Player-2-Player program and share performances with the community through activations and shows.

For the Player-2-Player program, musicians are paid to meet and write.

“I brought from that [program] from Austin. I was doing that there because in Austin there were a lot of songwriters, but nobody was writing with each other,” he said. “But they would readily write with an international writer, because the opportunity [was there] to make a friend and be able to be invited somewhere, to open shows.”

Campbell said he lives for making those sorts of connections between musicians here in America and in other countries.

“During covid, we really leaned into getting people to see each other online so they could see each other’s lives,” he said. “We realized that nobody had proper Wi-Fi or basics.”

He said other musicians had to learn how to livestream.

“We started giving tools to artists and raised money to outfit about 80 artists with the basics that they needed, and each one was different,” he said. “The only thing we asked was that they wrote. But if you knew more about technology than another artist, it was upon you to show them how something worked.”

House of Songs also creates music-related events throughout the area. One of those activations this year has been the SongRider Series, which pairs musicians with local bike groups to ride together and write music about the experience. The first showcase was during the FreshGrass Festival in May.

Since the tornadoes during Memorial Day weekend damaged trails, he said they sometimes load up their van with a PA system, generator and music equipment to bring tunes to the trails.

As the trails are still being rebuilt, Campbell said the SongRider series is going well.

“We’ve been finding a lot of the artists are having bigger crowds because they made friends, and some of them have joined the bike groups,” he said. “Maybe we’ll get healthier musicians, I don’t know!”

The SongRider series continues with music from Thomas Stringfellow on Sept. 26 and Oct. 17 at the For the Love meals events at 306 S.W. A Street in Bentonville. Then Evan Alvarado and Ciavash Zaifi perform Oct. 9 at Gear Garden in Blowing Springs Park in Bella Vista with the Friends of Arkansas Singletrack post-ride event.

House of Songs will also host an anniversary concert with Scott Strickland (Austin), Benjamin Del Shreve, Steph Essin, Duo Divinas, Thomas Stringfellow, Jasper Logan, Common Roots and more surprise special guests from 4-7 p.m. Sept. 22.

Campbell said the event is a thank you “to the folks that supported us, and the musicians who have dedicated themselves to collaborating.”

This is the 15th year for the House of Songs in Austin. Campbell is also wrapping up his video series, “City of Songs,” which explores creatives in other cities. Hosted by Austin-based musician Stephanie Hunt, the series explores Barcelona, Spain; Montreal, Canada; Seoul, South Korea; Stockholm, Sweden; Mexico City; Mumbai, India and San Juan, Puerto Rico. It will premiere at South By Southwest in March and was picked up by PBS+. Mario Troncoso served as director.

Campbell is also working on a chapter book about House of Songs that will include Bentonville.

In the meantime, he’ll be meeting new artists and encouraging connections.

“The house is just an extension of the way people treated me,” he said when he was a young musician out on the road. “Good musicians do this anyway. They welcome people into their homes. They are curious. They’re interested in others. They’re not trying to be interesting all the time. That’s the formula.”

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FAQ

The House of Songs Bentonville’s Seventh Anniversary Celebration

WHAT — The House of Songs in Bentonville celebrates seven years of songwriting and collaborations with a special concert with songs and stories from Scott Strickland (Austin), Benjamin Del Shreve, Steph Essin, Duo Divinas, Thomas Stringfellow, Jasper Logan, Lacy Hampton and more surprise special guests.

WHEN — 4-7 p.m. Sept. 22

WHERE — RØDE House at The Momentary

COST — Free, no tickets required.

INFO — thehouseofsongs.org

UP NEXT —The SongRider series continues with music from Thomas Stringfellow on Sept. 26 and Oct. 17 at the For the Love meals events at 306 S.W. A Street in Bentonville. Then Evan Alvarado and Ciavash Zaifi perform Oct. 9 at Gear Garden in Blowing Springs Park in Bella Vista with the Friends of Arkansas Singletrack post-ride event.