Miami Student

Issue date: 10/2/07 Section: Community

Jason Gentile, lead singer of Blues Pheonix, performs songs to help raise money for the American Cancer Society at his annual Play for a Cure Saturday night at Balcony.

Mission Man gave away about 1,260 demo albums and spent approximately $400 promoting for Saturday evening's 4th annual Playing for a Cure. But the 28-year-old Oxford resident, otherwise known as Gary Milholland, said he was still happy with the $147 his event at The Balcony raised for the American Cancer Society (ACS).

Attendance at the performance was minimal, with a few members of the event's previous bands listening to Mission Man's performance. Five fans did stream in at the end, singing along to his best known hit, "Chillin' at the Papa."

"It's pretty chill here tonight," said Brittany Treacy, a Miami University senior and a fiancé of senior Ryan Troescher, who performed that evening. "There's not going to be a ton of people here … People are just chilling, playing pool. It's an added bonus to have Mission Man here tonight."

Mission Man was the headline act, but Blues Phoenix, Troescher and Justin Wagner were scheduled as well. Mission Man orchestrated Playing for a Cure to raise money for the ACS, as he lost his mother to cancer in 1994. He accredits music to helping him through those difficult times.

"It's those kinds of things when I actually need music, regardless of if I'm concentrating on my career or if I'm just doing it as a hobby," he said. "I don't see myself giving up doing it anytime soon."

Mission Man coordinated costume changes for each song he performed, from various T-shirts to a Boston Celtics jersey. And according to the Oxford native, even sparsely attended events such as Saturday night's performance offer him a chance to sharpen his skills.

"I love performing live; the hard part is when I'm playing to a bartender and a couple of sound guys," he said, prior to the event. "I've played a lot of those shows. I still perform my set, I try to give the same energy but it is not quite possible. (Still performing) shows that I'm still serious with what I'm doing and gives me a chance to come back and bring a little fan base. It's a moment to practice on stage. But even five people going crazy-that keeps me going."

And Mission Man is still going.

Continued...

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