Pop rock band featuring two Dixon natives releases new single

DIXON — BAJA, a northern and central Illinois-based pop rock band featuring two Dixon natives, releases its new single Saturday, June 1, to kick off its first organized tour around the Sauk Valley area and central Illinois.

AJ Schmall and Jonathan Rivera, both 23, became friends in the first grade while attending Dixon Public Schools. After high school graduation, Schmall attended Bradley University in Peoria and Rivera attended Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Schmall said in an interview with Shaw Local.

In spring 2020, at the peak of lockdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Schmall and Rivera both moved back home to Dixon. They “had a lot of extra time on their hands” and started playing music together, he said.

From there, BAJA was formed.

The band consists of Schmall, on vocals and guitar, and Rivera as the two core members along with a live horn section. Together, they create a “soft, pop rock, funk sound,” Schmall said.

BAJA has released four singles and one EP. Their first song “Nothing Can Hold Me Back,” released on Dec. 4, 2020, has received 3,360 listens on Spotify. Their most popular, “Reflection,” released on June 12, 2021, has received 3,816 listens on Spotify, according to BAJA’s Spotify page.

The band’s newest single, “Hometown Whiskey,” will be their first release since August 2023. At midnight, on June 1, it became available for streaming on all major platforms.

The song is “BAJA’s take on country music.” It’s about being young, carefree and just living in the moment, Schmall said.

Also on Saturday, June 1, the band will kick off the first performance of their “Hometown Tour” at Mad Water Saloon, 321 W. First St. in Dixon, playing from 9 p.m. to midnight.

For the past couple of years, BAJA has performed all over the Sauk Valley area; a few times in Davenport, Iowa; for an event at NIU; the Peoria Riverfront Museum; the Bellson Music Festival in Rock Falls; and the Petunia Festival in Dixon.

This year is their first time doing an organized tour with “an eight-piece group so it’s kind of hard to coordinate,” Schmall said.

From June 1 until July 3, the band has scheduled nine performances in Dixon, Sterling, Peoria and Bloomington, hitting all the towns their band members have called home.

BAJA’s Hometown Tour schedule

• Saturday, June 1, Mad Water Saloon, 321 W. First St. in Dixon, from 9 p.m. to midnight.
• Saturday, June 8, Crusen’s, 426 E. War Memorial Drive in Peoria, from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m.
• Wednesday, June 12, Music Under the Stars at Grandon Civic Center, 304 Brinks Circle in Sterling, from 6:15 p.m. to 7 p.m.
• Saturday, June 15, Downtown Farmers Market, 200 N. Main St. in Bloomington, from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
• Sunday, June 16, Dadfest Car Show at Abiding Word Church, 806 E. Lynn Blvd. in Sterling, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Friday, June 21, Oliver’s in the Heights, 1231 E. Samuel Ave. in Peoria Heights, from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m.
• Saturday, June 22, Tin Lizard Bar & Grill, inside of Par-A-Dice Hotel Casino, 21 Blackjack Blvd. in East Peoria, from 9 p.m. to midnight.
• Friday, June 28, PatiO’s Irish Pub, 222 W. First St. in Dixon, from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m.
• Wednesday, July 3, Petunia Festival on the Dixon Riverfront at the Reagan stage, in Dixon, from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m.

Schmall said they’ve received overwhelming local support from friends and family since the beginning. They’ve gotten the opportunity to record music in a professional studio and shared the stage with “big-name artists” such as the alternative rock band Everclear and Walfredo Reyes Jr., the drummer from the band Chicago, he said.

For more information, visit bajaband.com.