This fall, Lizzy Plapinger and Derek Davies are celebrating a major anniversary of an event that changed their lives. And no, it’s not a wedding — it’s the 10th anniversary of Neon Gold, the influential boutique pop record label they co-founded. Yet Plapinger jokes that Neon Gold X, the festival-like bash they’ve planned at New York’s Knockdown Center today (Sept. 29), will feel like a one anyway: After all, it’s a gathering of family (so say the artists who’ve called the label home), a celebration of successful partnership (in this case, a creative one that’s endured its fair share of industry challenges), and an opportunity to toast the future, however many changes it will bring.
“It’s going to be such a reunion,” says Plapinger of the event, which will feature performances from a stable of Neon Gold artists past and present, including Marina (until recently known as Marina & the Diamonds), The Knocks, St. Lucia, and Broods, as well as Plapinger’s own musical project, LPX. “[It’ll be] unlike anything we’ve ever experienced before.”
Plapinger, 30, and Davies, 31, are perched on neighboring stools at the bar Loosie Rouge in Brooklyn’s Williamsburg neighborhood. They’ve walked over from the label’s nearby offices, located directly above the venue Baby’s All Right. “We’re so consumed with the organization of it that any time I have a second and step away, I’m like, ‘Fuck, 10 years?’ That’s a long time for anything.” Plapinger says. She turns to Davies, her short maroon ponytail whipping around, and places a hand on his shoulder. “That you and I are still friends and we’ve weathered whatever friendship-like turmoil happens in 10 years; that we’ve had a business that sustained 10 years; that we’ve worked in music for 10 years,” she says, her voice trailing off in disbelief.