"Music is the best thing for the soul"

Sally Asher sally@tulane.edu
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Staff in the city

“Summertime, and the livin" is easy,” as the George Gershwin song goes. But not if you"re Tracey Bellina. A graphic designer for Tulane University since 2007, summer is typically Bellina"s busiest time of the year.

Tracey Bellina with Band Camp

Tracey Bellina, right, sings with Band Camp, a six-piece rock/pop costume cover band. (Photo by PVM Photography)


She is front and center as a singer with Band Camp, a six-piece rock/pop costume cover band. Band Camp covers songs from the 1970s to contemporary hits. With the group"s high energy, elaborate costumes and dynamic sound, Band Camp plays festivals and school fairs. Last December, Band Camp played at the New Orleans Bowl to a crowd of 18,000.

For Bellina, who has been singing since she was 4, music is a family affair — her mother is an opera singer and her brother is the front man in a punk band in New York City. Her favorite aspect about performing is the children.

“I get to dress up and be this kind of superhero every weekend,” Bellina laughs. “The kids go bananas. They ask me to sign autographs and tell me they want to be musicians when they grow up. I love that I can be a positive influence. Music is the best thing for the soul. It"s the world"s language. It speaks to everyone.”

In addition, as one of the founders of NOLA Bulls, Bellina oversees the most minute details of its annual four-day Spanish-themed festival in July, San Fermín en Nueva Orleans. The celebration this year (July 10–13) includes wine dinners, a Hemingway talent contest and its most popular event, El Encierro, the Running of the Bulls, with rollergirls serving as the bulls.

On Saturday (July 5), from 5:30 p.m. until 8:30 p.m., Bellina and her band bring their musical moxie to an Independence Day celebration in Morgan City, La. The group will be the opening act for the fireworks over the Atchafalaya River, where the livin" is easy.