Dimivan Ludwig Hosts & Performs @ The Hummingbird Reunion Show! August 21st, 2022

On Sunday Dimi hosted a very special reunion show for the Hummingbird Café which was open from 2006-2010. The show featured some of SL’s finest musicians including Boney Mosely, Ed Lowell, Marqs De Sade, Max Kleene and Mimi Carpenter.

Back in the day The Hummingbird gave some of our most beloved musicians their big SL break including one of our favorite performers, Max Kleene who debuted at the Hummingbird Café’s Open Mic night back in 2006 when he only knew 3 songs!

At the reunion concert Dimi took the time to remember all the musicians & friends over the years, who have made such a difference in our community. One of these dedicated people is of course Dimi himself, who is not only a fabulous entertainer but has been a source of support for the music community both at the Hummingbird and now Duval Street Café which has entered it’s third year of bringing us some of the best acoustic music on the grid!

Dimi began his set with an original, “Dear Lonely” a very moving song based on a true news story about the life and death of a runaway teen. Next up was “Fort Worth Blues” by Steve Earle,” followed by "The Heart Of The Matter” by Don Henley, which he dedicated to his right-hand-woman, Rosi Vinsin, the lovely manager & host at The Duval Street Café. The final song in the set dedicated to all his friends was “All Your Favorite Bands” by Dawes. If only all our favorite bands really could stay together. I can think of some I would go see!

After the show I got to chat with Dimi who is from Indianapolis Indiana and has lived there all his life. I discovered that Dimi hosted the first SL music Jam and after that 3 more with the performers camped out on his five acres each time, with an added view of 80 acres of wooded scenery. His garage was converted into an electric jam room. Dimi’s love of nature could also be felt in the area he designed and created personally for the reunion where we surrounded by beautiful mountains and green meadows.

Of course, a shout out to the lovely Kat Chauveau, owner of Love Kats who provided us with the space for the reunion. For those of you not familiar, Love cats has been featuring music on the grid since 2009 and if you are looking for a fun place to go with only the best acts, be sure to drop in for a night out!

When asked how Dimi’s love of music began, he shared that he was surrounded by music all his life. His father was a musician, and they made their first recording together in 1958. As a child he studied piano, trumpet, and then in high school started playing drums and guitar. Dimi began to write in the early 70s together with his best friend. He humbly added that he never considered himself much of a writer but that he does have a few songs which he is very proud of.

I had to ask Dimi when he first realized he was funny because trust me, you can NOT go see Dimi without having a good laugh. You should have heard his Mimi Carpenter imitation. For those of you who don’t know the very talented Mimi, she is originally from France so to hear Dimi sing in his Midwest voice with a French accent, well, you had to be there but trust me, it was hilarious! Dimi shared that much like music, laughter has always been a very important part of his life and that he is quite capable of laughing at himself as much as anything else. If only everyone shared his view the world would be a better place.

Dimi worked as an electrical systems tech in in RL and played semiprofessionally live in his tri-state area for many years and shared that those 25 years of playing are priceless to him. As far as his latest SL musical achievements when asked about the Duval Street Café he said he opened that up because he wants to help keep a small part of acoustic music alive on SL. I would say he is doing a wonderful job as it’s truly one of my favorite places to enjoy live music and socialize. If you are looking for a friendly fun place to go, with great music and plenty of laughs on tap be sure to visit soon!

For my last and most serious question I asked Dimi what the biggest challenges have been that he has faced in his SL and RL. He chuckled, “SL easy, dressing myself!”. “In RL to always remember everyone is different and our differences can make us all better”.

Well said my friend, thank you so much for taking the time to talk with us. We appreciate all you do for the music community in SL and look forward to many more great years of your performances and all of the other artists you host at the Duval Street Café.