Bridget Burns '05 gives social action a soundtrack with Wyld Stallions Records

By Marc Glass, photo by Ryan Mercer (Spring 2007 issue)

With Wyld Stallions Records, an independent record label she founded in December 2005 from Burlington, Vt., Bridget Burns ’05 combines her two passions: promoting new, local and unsigned music acts and raising funds for a variety of social-action causes. The label’s first CD, “Caring is Knowing: A Compilation to Fight AIDS in Support of Vermont CARES,” is a 19-track collection of music from Burlington-area bands released in February 2006.

“Our message was that one of the best presents you can give your loved one on Valentine’s Day is to get tested for HIV,” said Burns, who donated proceeds from the sale of the CD to Vermont CARES, a non-profit organization providing services to people living with HIV and AIDS in Vermont.

Burns, a creative writing major at UMF, didn’t intend to produce recordings or fund social causes when she graduated. A former editor in chief for the campus newspaper and steady contributor to the online publication KnifeParty.com (for which she chronicled the alternative music scene), Burns imagined a career involving regular bylines in Rolling Stone magazine. Stymied by a job applicant pool rife with like-minded college graduates seeking to break into music journalism, Burns relocated to Burlington with UMF classmate Erin Evans and took a job as a nanny. The “Caring is Knowing” project was started simply as a way to support a worthy cause and gain an entrée with the Burlington music scene. In the end Burns organized a concert-based record-release event and cleared $1,000 for Vermont CARES.

“When I finished with the project I realized this could turn into a good business,” said Burns, who applied for and received a Vermont Economic Development Authority loan to let Wyld Stallions Records run, well, wild.

A conversation with friend Billy Linehan, who served with the U.S. Air Force in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, led to the label’s next project. Burns and Linehan discussed ways to support currently serving troops and veterans, as well as their families. Unbeknownst to Burns, Linehan pitched the idea of a CD compilation to the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), and the New York City-based nonprofit organization signed on. Burns promoted Linehan, who is now a business major at Southern Connecticut State University, from friend to project manager at Wyld Stallions Records.

Burns said that initially 80 percent of profit will be earmarked to cover production costs with the balance going to IAVA initiatives that provide support services for troops, veterans and families. Once production costs have been met, the proportions will invert with 80 percent of sale proceeds going to IAVA projects. Beyond the IAVA project, Burns would like to release a compilation of contemporary children’s music to support cystic fibrosis research.

“A lot of people congratulate me on the service aspect of the business, which actually makes me pretty uncomfortable,” Burns said. “I’m definitely proud of my work, but I’m most proud of the fact that I managed to secure a small business loan with a creative writing degree. And I’m proud every time I convince a band to get on board. But I’m not proud of the service aspect because that part is just common decency. I think it’s an attitude that’s very prevalent at UMF.”

And what about the name of her record label¬¬¬—is it some homage to the ersatz heavy-metal band Wyld Stallyns featured in the 1989 film “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”?

“Erin [Evans] and I had a radio show on WUMF, but we didn’t know what to call ourselves,” Burns said. “When asked what our interests included, we jokingly answered, ‘horses.’ We had never heard of ‘Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure’ so we were completely naive to the movie reference the program director assigned as our show name. People still say, ‘Oh, yeah, just like the Wyld Stallyns in the movie!’ Sometimes I’ll try to explain the radio show connection, but often I will just go along with it and say, ‘Yup, just like Bill and Ted.’”