Pop Punk Park sprang to life at a moment when the music world was forced behind closed doors. In early 2020, Richie Gordon—fresh out of a corporate job and itching to create something meaningful—saw indie artists floundering in a locked-down landscape. Rather than just watch them struggle, he grabbed his camera and set out to capture the most intimate side of these bands: bedroom concerts that pulled the curtain back on who they really were. Suddenly, fans who craved genuine connection found exactly that through raw, documentary-style footage. The success of those first micro-docs and the surge of an online Discord community to over a thousand members proved that showing musicians as they truly are—without the social media gloss—made people care more, not less.
That spark of authenticity fuels Pop Punk Park’s vibe today: fun and hopeful at its core, yet unafraid to dive into the real struggles and triumphs that shape a band’s journey. Richie’s guiding belief is that people want to see their heroes being human—sharing the candid moments, the late-night practices, the flubs and frustrations, and the small bursts of magic that make us remember why we fell in love with music in the first place. From filming awkward remote sessions to finally getting back on stage for live interviews, Pop Punk Park has stayed true to its mission of letting bands share the stories they’ve “never told anyone.” Now, as the world reopens, Richie sees a future of longer, more immersive content—delving even deeper into the messy, hopeful, and altogether extraordinary lives of the indie bands he admires.
