Real estate brokers rock out to raise thousands of dollars for charity

A rockin’ tradition among Raleigh-based commercial real estate brokers is set to return this week for the first time since the pandemic.

The Triangle Area Office Building Association is set to host its fifth annual “Battle of the Broker Bands” on Thursday at the Lincoln Theatre to raise money for Raleigh-based nonprofits Neighbor to Neighbor and Haven House.

“It’s a lot of fun,” said Longfellow leasing broker Matthew Goodrich, who is emceeing this year’s event. “Part of that is just seeing [fellow brokers] in an environment that they appear to be extremely comfortable in because they’ve done it for a long time and they really like it.”

Tickets are $20 in advance, and the event is open to the public. Doors open at 5 p.m. Thursday, and the bands are scheduled to begin playing at 6 p.m.

Neighbor to Neighbor spokesperson Julie Hathcock said the nonprofit plans to use funds to support its academic mentoring program, which serves 125 students who are at least two grade levels behind in math or reading.

Haven House CEO Michelle Zechmann said the nonprofit is excited to be part of Thursday’s event.

“Proceeds raised from the Oct. 13 Battle of the Broker Bands will provide critically needed operating support for our 11 programs that help more than 1,400 youth each year who are experiencing homelessness, a crisis, or problems at school, home, or in the community,” Zechmann wrote in an email to WRAL News.

Goodrich said the event raised a total of nearly $50,000 for charities from 2017-2019.

Five bands will participate in this year’s Battle of the Broker Bands:

• LowBröw: Covers songs by the Grateful Dead, the Allman Brothers and the Tedeschi Trucks Band
• Hot Rooster: A rock and funk group that writes and performs all original music
• Steamroom Etiquette: A group that does cover songs from the 1970s
• Torn and Frayed: A mix of covers
• The Clifton Brothers: A group that does country and bluegrass covers

Lee & Associates Managing Director and Vice President Brian Farmer plays guitar in Hot Rooster.

“I’m the official hype man for the show,” Farmer joked. “I mean, the bands are really, really good not just because I’m in one of the bands … but really, I’ve been a musician, a wannabe musician [and a] real estate broker my whole career, and so I understand music. I understand good music.

“The bands bring it, and they bring it hard every year.”

Farmer used to play in the Raleigh-based rock band Far Too Jones, which released several albums in the mid-1990s.

“I’ve been blown away each year we’ve done this with how good the bands [are], and how prepared they were to bring it,” Farmer said. “And then, the Lincoln is a great stage, and they’ve got a new sound system.

“We’ve got a light show, so it’s going to be a legit rock and roll show.”

This year’s event will not be a competition to see which band can rock out the hardest.

“It’s actually not going to be a battle this year,” Farmer said. “The theme is getting the bands back together because of post-COVID, so we’re actually not going to have judging.”

NAI Tri Properties Executive Vice President Robin Anders plays guitar in LowBröw.

“You don’t expect brokers to get on stage and be rockstars,” she said. “I mean, we aren’t all rockstars, but we’re all wannabes, right?”

Anders said she looked forward to the return of the competition in future years of the event, but understood the significance of the event returning.

Farmer and Goodrich agreed on the good-spirited nature of this year’s “Battle of the Broker Bands.”

“It feels like we shouldn’t … make this a competition [but] more of a celebration,” Goodrich said. “Like, let’s launch this into the next five years, and then maybe next year you consider, ‘Is it a competition again?’”

Anders recalled how “Battle of the Broker Bands” got started with Farmer.

“I remember we were sitting in a board meeting one day, and just knocking around … just talking about music and, ‘Wouldn’t it be fun if we could incorporate more music and do something that was fun for the entire organization?’” Anders said. “And, [we] started brainstorming how many people we knew that were commercial real estate brokers that actually [completely] different life.”

Anders said she’s excited to play in front of friends.

“When you get people in business out of their normal environment and you see people doing something that – in some cases is out of their comfort zone because we've had some brand new bands to perform or people doing things that you just don't expect – you just develop closer relationships,” Anders said. “People who are friends and develop relationships, I think more easily open their wallets too.

“And, I think that was especially the case for us in the last event that we did. And, each year, we've raised more [money].”

Farmer thanked each of the sponsors that will help make Thursday's event possible, including the lead sponsor Littlewood Law.