Geena Fontanella’s Parking Garage Tour: "There’s No Better Art Than Life Itself"
From secret meetups to heartfelt acoustic sets, Geena Fontanella is bringing raw, unfiltered music back to its roots, with pop-up concerts in parking garages and a deep belief that art is meant to be lived and shared.
REVIEWSLIVE SHOW
ASHLEY DAVIS
7/28/20252 min read
Image: Jacksons_photography95
A resurgence of rebellion is on the rise, with a big middle finger to conformity. Why wouldn’t an independent millennial punk artist do the most punk rock thing—perform a tour in parking garages? Geena Fontanella decided to reclaim music’s origins by hosting a series of secret pop-up shows as part of her parking garage tour. I was fortunate enough to attend the Tulsa show on July 15th, where I had the opportunity to experience the magic of music and connection.
A parking lot tour is a great idea, so I asked her how she came up with it. “It all started with social media. I was trying to figure out, ‘How do I get a live show through a screen?’ I accidentally sang in a parking garage and realised, ‘This is it.’ From there, I was like, I have to make this a whole tour.”
Geena Fontanella began the show with a meet-and-greet for those who arrived early. Once everyone was settled in, she opened her acoustic set with a brand new, unreleased song. After finishing the track, one young fan excitedly requested her favourite song, “Normal Life”—and Geena happily sang it just for her.
Even though it was a hot summer day, the show was an intimate and unique experience. I was curious about how much work went into this wild idea of touring parking garages. “Each show has had its own struggle. The biggest problem every time is security or police kicking us out. Overall, the tour requires hundreds of hours, including reviewing DMs and texts to find a suitable venue, scouting it personally, and identifying a backup option in case we are denied access. That doesn’t even include promoting it on socials, keeping up with the email and text thread, or practising, etc. It’s a ton of work, but insanely worth it when I get to meet the fandom face to face.”
When asked about her favourite moment on the Parking Garage Tour, she said, “It’s hard to pick your favourite moments because each city and each person I’ve met at the shows has been so precious to me. I will say, 110+ people pullin’ up in Tulsa and security not shutting us down was pretty memorable.” I would agree—it was a night to remember, especially seeing the interaction between her and her fans. She stayed until everyone had had the opportunity to say hello or grab a photo to commemorate the occasion.
As we all love music for its artistry and expression, I was curious about what art inspires Geena. “There’s no better art than life itself. Pain, struggling, hurt, joy, laughter—I’ve gone through it all. When life has dealt you so much, you want to share your revelation of how you conquered and made it through with everyone. Art is really about service and helping others. Like, ‘Hey, I went through this so you don’t have to.’”
Geena Fontanella’s Parking Garage Tour is still in progress. If you want the chance to catch one of these secret shows, make sure to check out her socials to sign up for text alerts and join the email list, so you’ll know where she’ll pop up next