Members of the Derek Woods Band have had to pull some strings over the years while building their reputation as a group, working to establish themselves and gain a fan base beyond western Pennsylvania.
The band has performed nationally but embarked on its first coast-to-coast U.S. tour in 2023, a year that is being capped with two wins at the annual LIT Talent Awards, an international music competition. And the only strings they pulled to win the awards were strings on a puppet.
The band’s video for “Don’t Look Away,” from its 2022 album, “Picture Yourself,” won LIT Talent Awards for best music video and best art music video. The centerpiece of the video was a “Muppet”-style puppet of namesake Derek Woods, which was created by California company Jonny Does Puppets.
“We’d done a few music videos for our past album with (director) Jamie Wright, and we were always coming up with different creative ideas,” Woods said. “We had this idea to use a ‘Muppet’ version of me, and it was a very interesting process.”
Unlike a traditional shoot, Wright, Woods and others had to keep a close eye on the camera angle so as not to accidentally include puppeteers Dave McCabe and Sean Glass.
“The story of the video, which is also reflected in the song, is the puppet traveling around and asking for directions,” Woods said. “‘Don’t Look Away’ has been a fan favorite, so getting this recognition at an international competition is a really cool thing.”
“With LIT, we’re not just celebrating talent; we’re championing visionaries who herald a renaissance in entertainment,” said Thomas Brandt, spokesperson for International Awards Associate, which has organized the LIT Talent Awards for the past two years. “Anticipating the ripples these icons will create in the entertainment milieu is exhilarating, and it’s an honor to be a catalyst in this transformative saga.”
For members of the Derek Woods Band, the awards are a capstone to a year that saw them undertake their first national tour.
“Getting this recognition at an international competition is a really nice step in us moving forward,” Woods said.
Patrick Varine is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Patrick by email at pvarine@triblive.com or via Twitter .
