CARRBORO, NC— Local singer-songwriter Jack Hammond had a religious epiphany this week while playing a show at an empty cafe.
“It was 5pm on a Thursday, and I was just there, singing in this empty cafe,” Hammond told our reporters this morning. “And I was like, who am I playing for right now? Why am I doing this? Why am I even here? And then I realized, I’m not alone. None of us are. We’re never alone.”
After his epiphany, Hammond stayed up writing all night and has recorded three new songs, enough for a demo. “I was always kind of agnostic, but the emptiness of the cafe just brought it home to me. Even the barista was in the back doing dishes. It was like, one minute I felt more alone than I ever had; the next minute, I felt like for the first time ever, I truly had company.”
He wants to write music that conveys that feeling, but without being “too Christian-y.”
We spoke with Martel Cane, the barista on shift during Hammond’s epiphany who also owns the coffee shop.
“Business has been declining lately and when he came in for his standing time on open mic night, it was just crickets,” he told us. “Honestly, I’m concerned that we’ll be able to keep evenings open at all.”
“I told Martel not to worry,” said Hammond. “Even when the shop is empty, it’s not really empty. God’s always there, watching us.” He smiled into the distance as we slowly walked away.
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