Kamikaze Love

Oh, how I do love this new album.

It's coming along great! Ridiculously behind schedule? Yes. But worth every extra moment, and every crazy trip to Boston during my rare free weekends.

I've been posting a lot to the making-of-the-CD blog (which you can have access to if you pre-order the CD! Just use the handy-dandy paypal button at kateklim.com) but didn't mean to deny this blog the occasional sneak peak. So here you go:

How To Video: Sweet Potato Horse Head (And What I'm Thankful for This Year)

Well, it's Thanksgiving, and I have much to be thankful for (including, but not limited to: the great folks who support my art, my family, amazing friends, health, happiness and Local Taco). I'm super thankful, but I won't bore you with it. Just know that I am.

For this post, I'll just write about one thing in particular that I'm thankful for: family traditions. Specifically, my favorite tradition of all time, the Thanksgiving Sweet Potato war.

Friends, let me tell you a story.

The Story of the Sweet Potato War

Twenty years ago, when I was 8 years old, and long before I thought they were delicious, I was offered my first taste of sweet potatoes. As most second graders would, I instantly thought they were revolting. Impressed by my incredible bravery, my older brother asked how they were.

"Delicious," I responded without thinking. I don't know why I lied. Wait–yes I do. I lied so I could trick Matt into eating them. He fell for it, and after he'd taken one mushy, disgusting bite, I burst out laughing. The seed was planted. He would have revenge.

The next year, Matt snuck sweet potatoes into my food. One sneaky little spoonful was tucked underneath my regular (safe, delicious, non-orange) mashed potatoes. Oh the horror! Later that meal (or perhaps the following Thanksgiving... it gets blurry) I snuck sweet potatoes into his milk. Simple enough.

It grew from there. In 5th grade, I made a blow dart out of a drinking straw, and in a move that would become Klim family history, blew sweet potato into his mouth from across the table as he raised his fork to eat.

In college, I worked in a hardware store and (partially out of boredom) started plotting months in advance. I came home armed with invisible wire, eye hooks, and a CD that included Handel's Hallelujah Chorus. This was now the post-divorce era, and our Thanksgivings were no longer the big productions of my childhood. Assigned seating was a thing of the past, but one person had an assigned seat that year.

Matt humored me by sitting at the seat in front of the place card bearing his name.

I waited until dinner was well underway, and then turned around and pressed play on a portable stereo I had stashed beneath a side table. The chorus began to play. At that moment, I untaped the end of the invisible wire, which had been strung through a series of eyehooks in a makeshift pulley system, and as I slowly fed the wire more slack, a sweet potato lowered from the ceiling onto Matt's plate. My cousins applauded. Once again, history was made.

Since then, the tradition has faded as life continues to offer more and more distractions and holidays become rushed. I missed the past two Thanksgivings to play gigs. Matt has a family of his own. There have been attempts (such as giving Matt's daughter a Mr. Potato Head as a Thanksgiving gift, and having her unwrap it in front of him only to find a sweet potato adorned with plastic facial accessories), but I've never matched the Hallelujiah-descending-potato.

Until now, perhaps:

Gigs and Album Stuff (In other words, a copy of my October newsletter, posted to my blog.)

Greetings friends!

I'm writing to you from the futon in my producer's studio, just outside Boston, MA. We just finished editing and listening to "Why It's Blue," and I won't lie–I'm giddy. The angel-voiced Kristin Cifelli comes over tomorrow do sing background vocals, and I couldn't be more excited. If you've been meaning to pre-order, please do, and if you want to make the liner notes (by donating $50 or more to the project) there's a deadline of October 22nd to make it into the graphic design. Be immortalized. (Just imagine... It's the year 2159, and someone's discovered a time capsule from the early 22nd century. Enclosed is a copy of my album, Kamikaze Love, and your name is listed under the thank you section. The people of the future can only assume that you were extremely important and altruistic. They name a holiday after you. And at least one bridge.) You can pre-order or donate here:

www.kateklim.com

Philly area gig - Saturday, October 30th at Burlap and Bean

My first Philly area gig in FOR-EV-ER. Not only will this be co-bill with fellow pianist John Conahan, but it will be cheap (ten bucks) and wicked fun. If we sell out in advance, I will wear a child's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Costume (you can view it here). Find out more about the venue, and buy tickets in advance (recommended) by visiting burlapandbean.com.

Cheesecake recipe...

Ok, truth–I'm pretty much a vegan these days, and I just thought by including the words "cheesecake recipe" in this email's subject line [which I TOTALLY DID when I sent this out as an email], you'd be compelled to read it. But once upon a time a made this cheesecake. It weighed approximately ten pounds and the gentleman friend I made it for took one bite and exclaimed "You made this from ingredients?!" It was that good. We got extremely possessive about the cheesecake, and when his roommate cut what we viewed as an excessively large piece, we stared at him until he finished every last bite. (Wasting any would have been an unforgivable offense.)

The recipe can be found here at allrecipes.com. I also read all the user comments and tweaked accordingly. If you make it, let me know how it turns out. Preferably in person, at one of my upcoming shows.

Speaking of Upcoming Shows...

Aside from the Philly show, I have a number of other shows coming up, including some in Memphis, Texas and more. Find all my tourdates at kateklim.com. 

That's it for now. Thanks for listening (and reading)!

xoxo

Kate

Twitter: @kateklim

Blog: kateklim.blogspot.com

Occasionally, things are perfect.

Intentionally and pretentiously written in the third person:

SCENE: A perfect fall Saturday in central Ohio...

While en route to the local Whole Foods, Kate stumbles upon a farmers market, peace demonstration and adorable main street where more people are walking than driving. Since the farmers market is closing up, Kate finds her way to a local coffee shop where she counts seven chess games being played, with competitors representing every generation. The barista pretends to to warm her scone with his mind, while making superhero noises.

And with that, Kate falls utterly, hopelessly in love with Worthington, Ohio.

---

PS- Concerning my last blog post... I decided this moment was definitely worth sharing :)

Some Things You Save...

At one point this summer, I found myself staring out over a lake at sunset.

I had an impromptu sushi picnic in a random park.

I walked my way down Newbury Street to the Boston Common, and two willow trees framed the skyline perfectly.

Each time, I found myself reaching for my phone to take a picture and post it on twitter. Each of these times I also had the sense to stop myself, thinking "some things I need to save for me."

Oh, Twitter, you're so addictive. It's so tempting to publicize every occasion in which I do something cool. Because, people will think I'm cool, right? Don't get me wrong—I'm not anti-twitter. I initially signed up to keep fans in distant cities engaged and share new music. I continue to use it because it allows me to feel connected to old friends, and even helps me find new friends. And, well, sometimes I find myself hilarious and want the world to know.

In fact, I just tweeted. (Cough. Excuse me.)

I'm a writer and performer, so I love sharing my thoughts and feelings. I do it on a regular basis, and value the vulnerability that comes with singing my songs for an audience, or writing them and immediately posting them to this blog. There are lots of folks out there who think there's far too much information (and far too much useless information) taking up prime real estate in our brains. I'm undecided on that one.

What I'm trying to keep in check is my motivation for sharing parts of my life, or even my motivation for the activities I post about. (I've caught myself pushing myself to do something adventurous because it would be an "awesome tweet." That historically does not lead to my best decision-making.)

Mainly, though, I'm just going to try and remember that some moments need to belong only to me—partly because I just think they should, and partly because there are some moments that can't be descibed or shared. And certainly can't be communicated in 140 characters or less or with a crappy picture from my cell phone.

I will continue to write and share songs that mean something to me, though. I'm definitely going to keep making odd videos. Ooh. And blog and tweet whatever goofy thoughts I have. No question. It's just that I had a great lunch adventure in Boston today... and I'm not telling you where. I'm saving that one. :)

The Habit

So, it seems I've gotten into the habit of creating. All the time. I left Boston on Friday, and was back in Nashville by Sunday night (stopping for a wedding in Pittsburgh on the way) so don't get me wrong... I'm exhausted. I fully intended to head to bed early tonight. But then music happened, and I recorded this idea that had been bouncing around my head for the past month:





This isn't from the album (the album recording quality will be much higher, and have other people playing instruments. I swear!). I just miss spending each night til dawn recording.

Maybe I'll just stay this way :)

Guilt trip marketing:

Puppy face! Cough!

Life in Boston

Dear Blog,

I'm sorry I've been neglecting you. The truth is... well... I've been seeing another blog. I've been making this CD, and I put up a blog to keep all the folks who have donated and pre-ordered updated on it's progress.

But I didn't mean to spend so much time away. And I have CD updates for this blog, too.

1) It's gonna be AWESOME
2) Bass, drums, and piano for most of the tracks are done
3) I'm having an incredible time making it
4) Our bass player is hilarious, and tells ridiculous stories like this one, the "Iguana Story"



So, I've been spending a lot of my time lately laughing... more soon :)

-Kate

Ya Know What I Love?

I'm not sure when it happened, exactly, but at some point during high school or college, my mom was trying to coax me out of heartbreak by reminding me of life's simple pleasures. Most of the conversation is lost to me, but I remember one statement:

"Ya know what I love? Pockets."

And my mother proceeded to explain how sometimes, when everything seems to be going wrong, she reminds herself how much she loves pockets. Because they're convenient. Because at some point, someone had to invent them. They go unnoticed, but they're essential. (I recall this conversation whenever I wear trendy pants and find myself missing the place to anchor my hands during nervous conversation. Or to store/find a quarter).

Anyway, this post isn't intended to preach about love. It's just interesting to note that there are lots of things to love other than (okay, maybe in addition to) people. The new album starts recording tomorrow, and I think it's going to be named after the song "Kamikaze Love." So, it's on my mind,  I suppose.

Ya know I love?

Google search montages! (especially when the images are of varying size and quality because I'm lazy and quickly use screen capture without any further editing...)

Amen, my friend. Who doesn't love cookies?

Kerrville Folk Festival Video Shenanigans.

So, there's nothing like being in a songwriting contest with an ex-boyfriend. I took advantage of this situation, and made this little video with fellow songwriter, and former boyfriend, Chris O'Brien about what it was like to date me. This video was recorded at the 2010 Kerrville Folk Festival in Kerrville, Texas.

*Despite what people have suggested, I TOTALLY did not edit Chris's responses in this video. That would be dishonest.

I won.

Aghhh! I won!

http://www.kerrville-music.com/newfolk.htm

I'll have more info up soon. And a crazy video I made with singer/songwriter Chris O'Brien. And pictures of hippie graffiti.

But I just wanted to let you know that after several years of not winning songwriting contests, I actually won one (homophone alert!). Of course, this means I'll be in Texas an extra week. Good thing I only packed four days worth of clothes :)

Also, the view from the Starbucks I'm at right now:

Slowing Down.

My former roommate, Ashlee, used to make fun of me, because I never walked anywhere in our house. I sprinted. Occasionally, I pranced. But mainly, I bounded up the stairs and ran from one room to another.

In my new house, I do the same thing - if I forget my cell phone in the other room, I literally run to get it. Most of the time, this causes my roommate's dogs to start furiously barking. I still haven't gotten used to the dogs.

I'm not sure why I do this. As far as exercise goes, I generally think running is tantamount to torture, so it's not due to any kind of athletic habit. I guess, when I decide I want something, I want it now. I move fast. I think this is a good quality to have when you're pursuing a career as difficult as music.

Of course, I can't be like this all the time. I have a tendency to run until I burn out. Most of the month of May was spent working, running around, working more, playing shows, writing music, planning my album, and not sleeping. That's why, when planning my trip to the Kerrville Folk Festival, I decided to take the long way.

Option 1: (More direct route)

Option 2: (The long way. The fun route. The eat lunch in New Orleans and sleep by the Gulf of Mexico Route)

Every once in a while, I need to remind myself to slow down. Take my time getting from point A to point B, and maybe eat fried dough in New Orleans for lunch.

Or walk knee-deep into the Gulf of Mexico. (The shores of Galveston are not yet affected by the BP Spill. But I apologized to the Gulf while I was there, and promised to trade in my car for a hybrid as soon as I can afford one.)

I guess that's it. I'm going to leave this Starbucks and make my way to Kerrville now. And I promise to take my time. Did I mentioned that my internet deal-searching skillz got me a room at this place? Taking the long way pays off.

PS - You may be wondering, "Hey Kate, are you slowing down because you got a speeding ticket and opted to go to internet traffic school rather than get the points on your license?" The answer is, I don't think so. But the timing of both makes for a good tie-in. Thanks for asking :)

It's not a question of IF this video is awesome, but rather HOW it can be so awesome.

Am I overselling the video with the above blog title? Possibly. But the theme of this next video was in fact, "awesomeness." When my newest wacky friend, Nate Baker and I heard that the Tennessean's On Nashville blog was looking for "Awesome April" themed videos, we began plotting. Unfortunately the plotting took most of April, but we've managed to get it out into the world before the month's end.

The result is this award winning* (see below) chronicle of craziness (with a bit of Nashville history thrown in for good measure).




*And our not-at-all photoshopped award:

Album Update! New Vlog about Alabama!

Dear blog readers, music supporters, and insomniac web surfers,

First, let me just say "Woo hoo! We've hit the 40% mark for the new album's fundraising campaign!" For those of you who have given, I really can't thank you enough. I feel so fortunate to have such a great support network, and people who care enough about me and my music to help me realize my dreams. If you haven't given, and would like to, travel on over to this blog post from earlier this year.

(...Searching for a good segue to the next topic)

So, anyone seen any llamas lately? Or giant chickens? I have.



Love,
Kate

Dress Up for Laundry Day

Long ago (2005) in a land far, far away (Somerville, MA), I used to have to go to the laundromat to do my laundry. It was quite inconvenient, as well as annoying. But everything changed when I invented "dress up for laundry day."

You see, by the time laundry day rolls around, all of your good clothes are dirty. Most folks at the laundromat wore some combination of PJ pants, workout clothes, old t-shirts, or other miscellany. I wore a similar sad uniform as well- until I realized one other type of clothing remained clean come laundry day: my fancy clothes. Once this realization occurred, there was no doubt in my mind as to what must be done. "Dress Up for Laundry Day" was born.

I started to look forward to laundry day. There was a local coffee shop (True Grounds, how I miss thee!) that I would often walk down to after transferring my clothes to the dryer. I remember the day I ordered my chai latte wearing a bright pink tube dress, purple shrug, and black and white checked shoes.

This memory occurred to me today, as I sat down to do a task I wasn't particularly looking forward to. I believe, with a little creativity, most tasks can be fun.

That said, this is what I wore while I highlighted and entered my EZ Pass statements into excel in preparation for my taxes, and yes, that is a big bow in my hair:

Dress Up for Laundry Day, please meet Dress Up for Tax Prep Day. I think you'll get along just fine.

Charity Opportunity... And How I Write Songs

Hello there! I just received a pretty cool email from a fan (and album supporter).


"Hey Kate,
I need to make a donation to the Chilean Red Cross relief fund; I would be anyways, but especially since one of my sister's friends' families lives there.  I was going to do what everyone did on Twitter with their accounts for Haiti (# of followers I get in a month, I'll donate that much to the Red Cross).  Since I have all of 4 followers and almost never tweet, this doesn't work out well for me...so I have a challenge for you - you have 112 followers at the moment.  Spread the word via some tweets, your blog, at shows, etc, and at the end of March, I will donate $1 for every follower you can add."

This fan, Ed K., has already been an amazing support to my career. He was, in fact, the first donor to the new album! If you're not following me on twitter yet, please do. I win, you win, Chileans win, and Ed wins (in the sense that his already large reserve of good Karma will become even more plentiful.)

---

Next on the agenda... I stayed up far too late last night listening to bits of old songs. For those of you who are writers... do you have notebook upon notebook of unfinished ideas? I have a hard drive full of what I affectionately refer to as "song nuggets." Some of them are good. Some are not so good. Sometimes I write them, save them, and forget they exist until a bout of insomnia has me browsing through the old files.

I've also had several conversations lately about my songwriting process, and decided that it would be fun to put myself out there: post one of these unfinished, barely formed ideas and show you how my brain works.

Here's the mp3, about 6 months old, complete with jumbly lyrics I hadn't settled on yet, 3am vocals, and the sound of me getting off the keyboard bench at the end and pressing the stop button. (Note - the sites that host these mp3s keep going under, so apologies if you've read this post at a moment when the mp3 was broken or missing.)



Here's my process for the above song, explained:

1) The song starts with one little piece, generally what I hope is some unique thought, or some emotion expressed in a way that (again, hopefully) hasn't been done before. In this case, this song started as a metaphor, which occurred to me while driving from Boston to Philly* in winter of 2008. "You were my raincoat, but now you're the rain." I had, at the time, been reflecting on that crappy-post-breakup feeling of how when you lose someone you love, you also lose your support system that you need for that kind of loss. Similar metaphor: getting kicked out of your Social Acceptance Club.

*I tend to remember exactly where I was, which is often in my car, when such ideas occur. The second verse of "Blue Sky Love" was written on Mass. Ave. in Cambridge, heading towards Somerville, between the Lizard Lounge and my old apartment. "Franklin" was written, in it's entirety, on highways 91 and 84 in Connecticut.

2) The idea is either born with a melody, or attaches to one rather quickly. Then it bounces around my brain for a gestational period of 1 minute to 2 years. In this case, it went into hiding and resurfaced after my next heartbreak. (I returned to this song in fall of 2009, at which point I also wrote: Recover, Can't Wait, The Secret, and 2 other heart wrenching songs. Breakups = songwriting juice.)

3) I sit at my piano until a piano part that moves me comes along. The original idea turns into a chorus (or in this case, a refrain). Maybe a verse comes. In this case, I came up with some "filler" for the verse. I don't love it, so it will eventually be re-written, with the L-word omitted, and less space before the refrain. You can tell it's filler by the fact that I sound like I don't *really* know what words come next.

4) Generally, I would write in this order: chorus,verse, verse, bridge, and then I'm done. The order it would be performed in would be: verse 1, chorus, verse 2, chorus, bridge, chorus, or something along those lines, as I'd hate to use the same format every time. In this case, I had an idea for the bridge, which is why the recording has a verse, refrain, and bridge. It's still missing a second verse, and the first verse is tentative.
5) I get into a zone and finish the song. Most of the time, when I have this much of a song, there's enough momentum to finish. But I write songs for two reasons: 1) catharsis 2) relating with people. My sadness meter started edging back towards "pretty ok" around this time, and the catharsis became unnecessary. As for relatability, it would have been forced at this point. So the song will remain a nugget, at least for now.

So, that's how I write songs. And why I write songs. In case you were wondering.

Road Trip! Video blog from the APCA Conference

This was, by far, the best APCA conference ever. I made you a video blog... enjoy :)

Album Update, Sweet New Haircut, Happy Valentine's Day

A three part blog update...

Part 1 - Album Update

Thanks, thanks and thanks for supporting the upcoming album! It's been less than two weeks, but we've raised 15% of the funds needed for the new album! If you're considering donating (which reserves you one or more copies of the album as soon as it's done) go here:

or you can e-mail me directly at: kate@kateklim.com if you’d rather mail a donation. For a detailed description of all the perks and levels of support, see my last blog post :) I'm so touched by the help I've already received. You all deserve puppies. (But I can't give you puppies, so you'll have to settle for the new album. At least the album will never go number 2 in your shoe.)

Blog, Part 2: My new haircut.

I got a haircut today. I also made a crazy face. 

The combined result is this picture.

Blog, part 3: Happy Valentine's Day.

I feel obligated to say this, primarily because a three-part blog sounds cooler than a two-part blog. I've been hanging out with a lot of five year-olds lately. For them, Valentine's Day is all about the candy, and has nothing to do with romance. They are SO right.

Epilogue:

Album, haircut, candy = good
Valentine's Day, untrained puppies = meh.
Thanks for reading :)

-Kate

The NEW Album Is Coming! (But I Need Your Help...)

Hello friends, fans, and music supporters,


After a year or so of dodging the question “when will the next CD come out?” I finally have an answer! It will be recorded in Boston this summer, and produced by the talented Brian Packer. (Those of you who have seen my band in action in Boston will recognize him as my super awesome guitar player.) This spring will be spent fundraising (cough, cough) and the album should be released in the fall. It’s going to have an amazing band, and some of my favorite songs from the past few years (Kamikaze Love, Nothing to Do With You, Franklin…) You can hear some of my new songs on this very blog.


The ultimate fundraising goal is $10,000, which sure sounds like an awful lot of money, but is actually on the low end as far as CD budgets go. While times are tough, I’m confident that it can be done, and welcome any support you can give. If 100 people give $100, we’re there! If you don’t have $100, give what you can. Pre-ordering the CD costs $20, and if half this mailing list does that I will still exceed my goal! No matter what you give, a donation will grant you access to my recording blog, where I will keep you involved in the recording process (videos from the studio, title suggestions, etc.) I’m also looking for some Album-fundraiser house concerts, so please shoot me an email if you think you could contribute by hosting one of those!


Here are the levels of donations (ALL of which are appreciated!)

$20 – Autographed, pre-ordered copy the CD, which will be released in fall 2010.

$50 – 2 Autographed, pre-ordered copies of the CD, which will be released in fall 2010 AND a thank you in the liner notes (Note: Deadline to be in the liner notes is Dec. 8th, 2010)!

$100 - 4 Autographed, pre-ordered copies of the CD, which will be released in fall 2010 AND a thank you in the liner notes! (Use them as Christmas gifts!)

$200 or more – Sponsor a song! Receive everything from the $100 level, but also your name listed as the sponsor of a song of your choice (first come, first-served) on the CD.

$500 or more – House concert! Receive 4 Autographed, pre-ordered copies of the CD, which will be released in fall 2010, a thank you in the liner notes, and a house concert performance for you and your friends. (House concerts must be within 100 miles of: Nashville, Atlanta, DC, Philadelphia, Baltimore, NYC, Boston, Chicago and fit within my existing tour schedule)


$1000 or more – Lots of CDs. I’ll make you brownies. You’ll be listed as an “Angel” donor on the CD with a really long thank you. I’ll make a video of me singing whatever song you want and put it on youtube. Hand-made puffy paint T-shirt? You got it. You get the idea ☺

I have a paypal donation button set up here:

or you can e-mail me directly at: kate@kateklim.com if you’d rather mail a donation. I’m really looking forward to making a terrific album, and appreciate everything you’ve done for me in my crazy musical adventure so far. The era of major-label backed albums is over, but I look at this as an opportunity for this new album to be a shared effort. I can’t do it without you ☺

Much love,
Kate

Hey Kate, Whatcha Been Up To?

Sorry about the blog absence for the past week or so. Life in Nashville has been just grand, but a bit busy. I finally got to bring my new FlipHD to a live show, but learned the hard way that I need to position it far from any speakers. I'm really psyched about playing with a drummer (Steve Sinatra) and a singing, strumming side man (Russell Wolff) though, so I'm going to post the video from this Tuesday's performance at the Basement New Faces Night despite its sketchy audio. This is mainly because I want you to hear the new "trio" setup, but also because I really like the shirt I chose to wear.  Russell and Steve are invisible (camera was on a tripod focused on yours truly), but they're cool as hell.

Enjoy :)

The cities I've lived in, personified as boyfriends (and a video of "Ripple")

Boston - My first true love. I fell for you deeply, and completely. I dreamed of us spending the rest of our lives together, but I suppose I always knew. You came from money, and I was never going to be able to afford that lifestyle. You were often cold, and hard to navigate. In being with you, I distanced myself from my family. You brought out the wild child in me - the college girl, up-all-night adventures. You moved me into my first apartment, were with me at the bar when I turned 21, and gave me a long hug goodbye when I packed up and left you at 25. We spent a total of 7 years together, and I think a part of me will always wonder... what would have happened if I had stayed?

Philadelphia - You were an old high school friend, and I came running to you after my break up with Boston. I wish I had treated you better, but I suppose we both knew that you were a rebound. You're a great guy, really, and I wish more people knew it. We saw some great concerts, ate some great food, and watched the Phillies take the World Series together. I hope we can still be friends. I really mean that. I'll call you. Say hi to my mom.

Washington, DC - Oh DC. Our relationship was a mere 6 months, but intense nonetheless. I'd had a crush on you for years. I should have known better when I realized that you weren't really into music. I let you drive my car to Annapolis that one time and you crashed it. The sad part is that I was would have stuck with you, had you not broken my heart. But now I'm bitter, and not afraid to tell you that sometimes you smell bad. And you're bad at baseball. Ha.*

Nashville - Dear Nashville, with your independent coffee shops and your surprisingly good sushi. With your Centennial Park and your unbelievable songs. With your friendly strangers and secret society of blogging geeks. I think, maybe, you're the one.

*Disclaimer to the couple of DC-area fans who read this. I love you guys! Just not my DC experience and how hard it is to get a dang show there. I promise to visit and sing songs as soon as I can.

Speaking of, here's a video of me singing a song in the DC area, at last year's Mid-Atlantic Song contest ceremony.

First Video Blog! Snow Day Adventure...

Well, my brand new Flip UltraHD came in the mail this week. Friends, I am in love. When Nashville declared 1/8/10 a snow day, I decided to film my first video blog entry with my good friend Brooks West.

Enjoy!

My hair, at this moment (oh yes, and Happy New Year)

Wow. I just went to brush my teeth, and the craziness that is my hair caused me to laugh out loud. I want to share this crazy hair with you:

But I can't blog JUST about my hair. (Can I?). I don't know how you folks welcomed in the New Year, but I spent my 1/1/10 in a coffeeshop plotting how to be a more fulfilled and successful artist. I recently read an article about how an artist can make a living (or most of one) if they have 1000 true fans (a true fan being someone who goes to all or most of your shows, buys your new albums, and perhaps reads your blog even when it's just silly pictures and rants). With a new CD on the horizon, this really does seem like the right approach. So stay tuned as I implement my ideas (working on my mailing list, video blogs, street team, etc.) and feel free to share your suggestions, let me know if you think you're a "true fan," and tell anyone who will listen that I exist.

Oh, and you can read that article here.