Father Teresa: Student-Made Band
Right into the microphone, Senior Jack Bricklemyer sings along as the rest of Father Teresa play. Back in November, these Plant seniors performed their first gig at Molly Malone’s on Davis Island, gaining popularity amongst the school and in the community from playing covers from some favorites such as Kilby Girl and Supersoaker.
Every day at Plant, students wear headphones everywhere they go. Whether it’s in class or just walking through the hallways, music plays a big role in everyone’s lives. It’s a simple thing many can’t live without. But what if our favorite songs were able to be played live right in front of us? That’s what seniors Jack Bricklemyer, Nate Dibbs, Charlie Fisher, and Jake Slack made accessible to Plant students and the Tampa Community with their band, Father Teresa.
“Nate, Jack, Jake and I were all at Nate’s house and we just started jamming to some music, which led to Jake and me to play this song called Simple Man on the guitar. We all just looked at each other that day and were just like, ’we should start a band,’” senior Charlie Fisher says.
Father Teresa plays many covers from classics like Brown Eyed Girl to personal favorites such as Kilby Girl. When time suits them right, they all meet up and learn these songs from scratch just by listening. Father Teresa got its spotlight back in November of 2022 with the announcement of their first gig being at Molly Malone’s on Davis Island.
“Molly Malone’s was so fun especially for it being our first gig with the band,” senior Jack Bricklemyer says. ”The school talent show was fun too, but it didn’t compare to our experience at Molly Malones. There, we were able to play for like two hours and play majority of the songs we have put onto this playlist on Spotify.”
With their first gig at Molly Malone’s being a huge success with a packed room of excited and upbeat guests all created by Father Teresa’s energy, they were eventually asked by the school to play at Plant Idol, a yearly event at Plant High School to raise money. With the rise in popularity, the event was filled as many were looking forward to Father Teresa’s big performance.
“We are planning on trying to as many gigs as possible before we graduate,” Fisher says. ”We plan of playing a lot more favorites, one being Misery Business by Paramore. We love when everyone gets all hyped up and excited, this overall has just been a great experience and hobby for us.”
To keep a lookout for upcoming performances by Father Teresa, follow them on Instagram and additionally their TikTok to check out videos from gigs like Molly Malone’s and rehearsals: https://instagram.com/fatherteresaofficial?igshid=ZjE2NGZiNDQ=
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6ruJpJCfWiv4JxAJUdlWRx?si=UvhgVSvITYaaqknTa7IdSw