Senior Keagan Potts picked up the electric bass in sixth grade after his friend, Lars Lindqvist, recommended he start playing. “I didn’t think twice about it,” said Potts. Ever since, Potts has been taking lessons at the Linden Hills House of Music where he met the members of his current band, Silent Agency, in the spring of 2008. At the time, the band just so happened to be looking for a bass player, so Keagan decided to audition.
“It was my first real audition for anything musical,” said Potts. “Naturally, it went horribly, and I didn’t get in.” While he did not gain immediate acceptance into the band, Potts remained persistent, sending frequent emails to the band’s lead singer, Evan Bakker, to give him another shot at proving his true musical ability. Eventually, Potts joined the band which now plays over twenty gigs a year around the Minneapolis area at venues ranging from the Hopkins Depot to First Avenue.
At school, Potts is just as involved in music. He is a section leader and a bass captain for Edina’s Symphony Orchestra and can often be seen playing bass in school shows later in the year such as Current Jam and Pops. “I’m happy to help out wherever I’m needed,” he said. This year, Potts auditioned with over 15 solo acts for Current Jam, staying true to his word.
Beyond music, Keagan is a wide receiver on Edina’s junior varsity football team and is a pole vaulter as well as a captain of the track team. However, he says that he enjoys pole vaulting much more than football. “There’s nothing really quite like it,” he said. “It’s almost as much fun as playing music.” Potts will likely be headed to state this year for pole vaulting.
In the midst of his involvement, Keagan Potts has not lost sight of the value of education. He said that education “gives people the necessary tools to make a different in today’s world. It’s vital in order for us to understand what’s going on around us.”
As for next year, Potts has not decided what school he will be attending. He hopes to one day make a living playing music.