DAY - 309

GREAT writing session with J Fred Knobloch and Sweet Angeline co-writer, Liv Devine today.  We wrapped up and put the finishing touches on one song and started a brand new ballad that's feeling really good so far.  We haven't dug into a nice ballad since we've been writing together. Sometimes I feel like ballads (especially country ballads) are the hardest songs to write.  Not only is there little room for them on the radio, but they need to be knock your socks off, spectacular to hold someone's attention and gain traction when pitching.  All the really great ballads are just so timeless.  Have you ever heard "I Can't Make You Love Me"?  That song kills me every time I hear it!  Mike Reid (the guy who wrote that song) just wrote another amazing ballad that's on Kenny Chesney's new record, it's called, "Always Gonna Be You".   I seriously cannot listen to the song without getting choked up.  It's incredible.  You can check it out if you google it.  My only disclaimer is (don't tell Kenny Chesney I said this) Mike Reid actually sings it better.  Long story short, the bar is really high when it comes to ballads.  Regardless, the one we just started is beautiful and I can't wait to see where it goes.

Fred filled us in on his meeting with Cliff Audretch from ShowDog Records.  He said, it went great, Cliff loved the stuff, and loved the sound.  Another iron in the fire!  Let's keep 'em coming baby.

Today I emailed, Josh McGhee from McGhee Entertainment.  Josh is Darius Rucker's manager. (refer to day 102)  I decided to pitch Darius Rucker, "Saying Yes".   Shot in the dark but we'll see.  If you haven't heard "Saying Yes" yet, I just posted it yesterday.  You can check it out here! http://mynameisaugust.bandcamp.com/track/saying-yes

Today, I also heard back from Red Rocks Studio and Sony Music producer, Mark Wolff.  Mark was reaching out to update me regarding the future country project he's going to be working on.   He mentioned that it hasn't gotten off the ground yet, but is expected to soon and that he's really looking forward to showcasing my stuff to the artist and her management/investment team.  I'm pumped!  It was really cool of Mark to reach out and keep in touch.  It's a nice show of good faith that he truly is interested in the songs.  Hoping this could lead to something awesome in the near future.

Have a great weekend!

DAY - 307+308

My apologies for the delay.  Here's what been happening yesterday (Wed. Sept. 26th) and today.

Woke up bright an early at 6am again on Wednesday to record another, more rockin', in your face version of the jingle for Toyota Universe. (refer Day 306)  Knocked that out and sent it over at about 10am.   They love the new version as well and will be showing both to the client.  After sending over the new jingle I had a bit of time to do some legwork.  I found out that Trace Adkins is looking for songs for a new record.  Trace Adkins is signed to ShowDog Universal.  If you've been following along you'll know that Cliff Audretch III is head of A&R at ShowDog so I decided to send a song to Cliff.

Ohh...btw... speaking of the song!  I finally posted it to my catalog yesterday for your listening pleasure!  Please take a listen to "Saying Yes" written with Canadian singer-songwriter, Kirk Penney.  If you haven't guessed already, that's the one I pitched to Trace Adkins.

After an early morning (8:30am) class I came straight to the library to do some work.  I have some time to kill before going to producer, Chris Zurzolo's studio in Manayunk, PA.  Today I'm going to be recording vocals and doing a bit more filming with Chris and Paul Simeone. (refer day 304) While I have some time to kill, I reached out to Carie Long, also A&R at ShowDog.  I figured it couldn't hurt to send the song to both Cliff and Carie.  I'm really hoping they dig it.  I think Trace Adkins would really nail the tongue & cheek nature of the lyric.  Here's hoping.  Cheers!

DAY - 306

Whew!  What a day so far.   6:30am wake up, got to the studio by 7:30am, Toyota jingle written, produced and recorded by 11am. (refer to yesterday)  Off to school by noon to meet with financial services (more headaches) and do some observation hours.  Had a quick hour to sit and do some networking before classes start and teaching begins for the rest of the night.  My apologies for not posting the new song yet!  I know I promised it would be up by yesterday, but I haven't had a chance to actually sit and let it upload to my catalog site.  Will do as soon as possible!

Speaking of the new song, I sent it to publishers and song-pluggers, Michael Martin and Shane Barrett today.  If you've been following all the while, you already know that both Michael and Shane are well-connected Nashville reps with many successful placements so I'm really pumped to see what they think. Kirk Penney (my co-writer) already started pitching it as well.  To tell you the truth, I'm super-excited about this song.  I know I always say that, but I really have a good feeling about this one.  I actually got the chance to show it to my dad and mom (who are both professional musicians) over the weekend and they both said, "This is honestly the best song you've showed us in a long time!"  And let me tell you, coming from a family of pro musicians, I don't get ANY slack.  If it's not up to par, I'm gonna hear about it!  Kirk said he's been getting fantastic response on his end as well.  So we'll see.  I will post ASAP and you let me know what you think and if you have any pitching ideas.  Thanks!

Also, just heard back from Greg at Stream Companies.  They love the jingle and will be showing it to the client today!!  Got past the first step, now the client needs to love it.  Fingers crossed.  Greg also sent me another email asking for a more "kicked up, rockin', in your face" version of the jingle to show the client as well.  I'll be taking care of that tomorrow morning.   Stay tuned.

DAY - 305

Cool news...Today I was just asked to do a jingle for Toyota Universe!   Let me back up a little bit...

To make a long story short,  I reached out (over a year ago) to Greg Press, an advertising rep from Stream Companies in Philadelphia, regarding my interest in doing some jingle work for their clients.  Greg let me know that he'd have the company check out my stuff and get back to me if they'd like to use me.  Well, I just got an email from Greg and his colleague, Dave regarding working on a Jingle for Toyota Universe.   I'm really pumped!  Doing jingles is a fun and creative way to make some serious extra money.  The ONLY draw back is, most jingles are done on what is called "spec"...meaning that there is no guarantee that they will actually use my jingle.  If they do decide they love it and want to use it, then and only then will I actually get paid for my work.

Hah, I know sounds rough, but it's just the nature of the beast.  I'm gonna take a crack at it...wish me luck!!

DAY - 304

Apologies for the delay...this blog post covers, Friday September 21st.  

It's ironic that I didn't have time to post a blog on Friday,  because I literally spent the entire day talking about it!   Believe it or not, I'm in the midst of filming a mini-documentary style piece about "Making it 365" and myself as a songwriter/performer.   I was actually approached by my long-time mixing engineer and producer, Chris Zurzolo and his partner, Paul Simeone.  They have a film and video production company and they we're looking to do a portrait on an artist and approached me about 2 weeks ago.  They thought this whole blogging adventure would make for a great angle and a fresh piece!  Can't express how exciting it is to film this project.  Can't wait for you to see it... hell, I can't wait for me to see it!

Spoke with co-writer, J Fred Knobloch today.  He was actually on his way to another pitch meeting for our stuff!  Today Fred is meeting with head of A&R for ShowDog records, Cliff Audretch III.  Small world because if you've been following, you'll notice that I've been in touch with Cliff for a while now.  Really cool to see things come full-circle in a way.  We shall see what happens!

Got the final version of my latest song with Canadian/Nashville singer-songwriter, Kirk Penney today.  I couldn't be happier.  Can't wait for you to hear it.  Will post tomorrow...stay tuned!

DAY - 303

The next step in your life’s work may not be to read another book or spend one more hour practicing.  It may require you to pick up the phone, attend a conference, or buy someone lunch.  - Author, Jeff Goins

Heard back from Dana Parish today! (refer to Day 300)  Dana let me know that she got my email and would be forwarding to her husband for future consideration.  Nice!  I wrote Dana back thanking her and expressing my appreciation.  If you've never heard Dana Parish you should definitely check her out www.danaparish.com.  She's a fantastic writer as well as artist and she has been a source of wisdom and experience for yours truly along the way.

Also, got an email from my Canadian co-writer, Mr. Kirk Penney last night with a rough mix of our newest demo.  Sounds AWESOME so far!!  Can't wait for you to hear it,..I can't wait to start pitching it...I'm pumped to say the least.  Will post ASAP.  For those interested, we did the demo at Studio 19 in Nashville.  I could not be in attendance, but Kirk handled the direction of the session and did a fantastic job.

Alright, time to do some writing!

DAY - 302

Today I spent all morning working on a song that J Fred Knobloch and I started a little while back.  We never actually ended up finishing it, but I always had an affinity towards the idea and the song in general so I thought I'd take a stab at finishing it.  After re-working a bunch of sections and writing a bridge,  I'm really happy with the outcome!  It's super-tight, really catchy and still... a GREAT idea.  There's probably a few little tweaks here and there that need to made, but I sent it to Fred to see what he thinks and to see if we wants to do a demo.

I reached out to Clay Myers at Big Tractor Music Publishing in Nashville.  Same deal as I've been doing... quick introduction, followed by my spiel about pursuing a career as a writer, yahda, yahda, etc, etc, don't want to bore you with the details.  Anyway, looking forward to potentially hearing back from Clay.  He's an industry veteran and Big Tractor is a killer independent publisher with a great track record of hits.

Alright, I'm off to class.  Have a great rest of the day!

DAY - 301

Apologies in advance for the brevity of this post.  I'm running around like a crazy man today and the clock is ticking before my next private lesson begins...

Kicked off the day early with a great skype writing session with Sweet Angeline and J Fred Knobloch. We're whittling away at the last details of the song we began 2 weeks ago.  It's a great idea, but definitely a hard write.  Melodies are killer and the subject matter is pretty cool and outside the box as well.  Looking forward to knocking this one out!

I reached out to Alex Torrez from TMG today because I found out he was looking for songs for George Strait.  I sent Alex an email with a couple songs... "Love Takes Work" and "Heart On A String".  "Heart On A String" might be a stretch but he used to cut that sorta thing...maybe he'll dig it.  I also sent J Fred a text to let him know as well.  You can check both out here... www.mynameisaugust.bandcamp.com

Also,  keeping fingers crossed.  J Fred has a meeting scheduled today with Sony Music Nashville to play them songs!  Hoping we get the same response as Universal

DAY - 300

Day 300.  The number 300 snuck up on me today and now it's staring me in the face.  I wasn't expecting to write a blog about Day 300 just yet.   It's exciting, scary, overwhelming and a multitude of other things all at the same time.   I don't really know where I thought I'd be by the 300th day of this adventure.  I can certainly say that I've come ALONG way...but there is still a ways to go.  Moving into the home-stretch, I can honestly say that I've never felt more prepared to reach a goal in all my life.   I can also honestly say that I've never put so much in to reaching a goal.  So much blood, sweat and tears have gone into this operation (ok maybe not blood)  that it's a little sad to see it winding down.   Well, what can I say...65 days left.  Let's make 'em count!

Today I emailed, long-time family friend, successful songwriter, and mentor, Dana Parish.  Dana is an amazing artist and songwriter whom I have mentioned earlier and throughout the blog.  Today I reached out to Dana to say hi, update her on everything that's going on and send some material her way.  Dana's husband happens to be in the film scoring industry and has a lot of success supervising and scoring music for movies.   I thought I'd reach out to send over "Heart On A String" to see if he may have any thoughts/ideas.  I believe whole heartedly that the song is perfect for a variety of movie scenes and I just need to get it into the right hands.  If he likes the song I also offered to send more over.  Composing songs and music for TV/Film is a huge outlet for a songwriter.  Anything I can do to get a foot in the door is a step in the right direction.

DAY - 299

Got together with long time friend, bandmate and co-writer, Eric Schwank today to do some writing.  Eric and I have about 5 or 6 songs in the works at the moment and we're making plans to demo at least 4 of them in Nashville.  The songs are very strong and every time we get together we spend some time tightening everything up.  Today we discussed demo studios and found some cool options that we're looking into further.  Really looking forward to getting this stuff recorded!  I'm actually hoping to have some ready for my meeting with Cal IV Entertainment on October 18th... little more than a month away... might be cutting it close but we'll see.

Ok, got some awesome news in the form of a phone call and email from LA.  I spoke with co-writer Scot Sax and he had a meeting with a REALLY cool and well-known artist (who will remain nameless at this point) and their management yesterday.  Turns out, said artist and management, LOVES the latest song we wrote!!   This doesn't mean that they're cutting it, but it's definitely a great first encounter.  Keeping my fingers crossed tightly and saying my prayers.   Happy Friday!

DAY - 297+298

Apologies for the delay.  My currently inflexible schedule has been preventing me from being able to sit and write.  Here's what's been happening yesterday and today.


Day - 297

Today was spent writing with Tyler James and J Fred Knobloch as well as sending out emails and making plans for the upcoming Nashville trip.  Scheduling sessions and requesting meetings etc.  Trying to make the most out of the short 5 day trip.  Reached out to ASCAP to schedule the Wednesday night pitch session.

Day - 298

Today I did some more research on both Nashville and LA publishing companies.  Since I write just about as much Pop music as I do Country, I 'd love to meet with a publisher who has their hands deep in both markets.  I stumbled across Ole Publishing.  Ole has offices in both Nashville, LA and even Toronto.  I was able to dig up some contacts and decided to reach out.  I sent emails to both Mike Sebastian and Chad Richardson.  Mike and Chad are both creative directors in charge of placing songs and finding new talent so I figured it'd be a good place to start!

That's all for now.  I'm heading down to the studio to work on some new music.  Hope you enjoy the rest of the day.  Cheers!

DAY - 296

Kicked off the day early with a Skype writing session with the Sweet Angeline team and J Fred Knobloch.  Went great!  Got through the bulk of a brand new idea that J Fred brought to the table.  Sounding really cool so far...along the lines of Eli Young Band meets Love and Theft.  Getting together with J Fred and Tyler again tomorrow to try to finish up.

I sent a bunch of emails out today just tightening up my itinerary for the next Nashville trip. (Oct. 17th-21st)  Scheduled a session with J Fred Knobloch on the 17th and another possible session with Sony writer,  Heather Longstaffe on the 18th.

Today I also reached out to Manic Monkee Music.  Manic Monkee handles a ton of commercial film and tv placement.  I sent them a couple songs to see if they thought they could use for commercial advertising placements.  Fingers crossed...as usual.

DAY - 295

Enjoying a little downtime at the moment.  Just got back from school and I don't teach until 4pm so I've been taking advantage of a little window of time on this beautiful Monday to relax.   You know Fall is just around the corner when the smell of pumpkin flavored everything permeates the air of you're favorite coffee joint.  I swore I would wait a little longer,  but I gave in and bought my first pumpkin coffee of the season today.  I figured the cooler weather justified my decision.  It was well worth it.  I love Fall and even more, I love me some pumpkin.  Pumpkin coffee, pumpkin beer, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin donuts, pumpkin bread, you name it.  Anyway, I could talk about how much I love the Fall season and pumpkins all day, but that's not why we're here.  Let's get down to business.

Today I researched and contacted Liz Rose Music.  LRM is an independent publishing company founded by world renown songwriter, Liz Rose.  Liz Rose is most known for her accomplishments with Taylor Swift.  Just wiki her name and you'll find a ton of info!  Anyway, she started a publishing company in Nashville.  I feel like reaching out to Liz and her staff is a good idea for me personally because they truly seem to understand the pop side of the country market and that's where I'm the strongest.  I wrote an email explaining my intentions and left a link to my catalog so we shall see.

Alright, I'm off to start teaching.  Enjoy the day!

DAY - 294

TGIF!  Wow...I am drained.  Officially back to grind and in full swing.  Fortunately, I'm off of school on Fridays and don't start teaching 'til 5pm, so I can use the day to write, record and get extra work done that piles up through the week.  Time management is truly an art and I have yet to master it.

Had a great skype meeting this morning with the Sweet Angeline team and J Fred Knobloch.  J Fred has a bunch of things in the works and wanted to chat details and update everyone.  Looks like Fred will be meeting with both Warner Bros and Sony in the next week or so!  As always, fingers crossed and prayers said.

Also, I've been in touch with Shane Barrett. (refer to yesterday) Shane set me up with another writing session while I'm in town.  I'm set to write with rising country star, Megan Redmond.  Megan is only 16 years old, but she is making some major waves.  She's a fantastic young writer and has a killer voice that's really unique.  You can check her out here... www.meganredmond.com 

I'm really digging how this trip is shaping up so far...hitting music row hard Wed-Fri then doing some serious wedding planning over the weekend.  Can't wait!

Hope you have a great weekend.  Cheers!

DAY - 293

Asking is the beginning of receiving. Make sure you don't go to the ocean with a teaspoon. At least take a bucket so the kids won't laugh at you.
Jim Rohn


Heard this quote today and it made me think.  There's something to be said about that.  I remember years back when I "thought" I was ready to be a hit songwriter/artist.   I'd send emails out requesting industry heads to "check out my stuff" ect.. ect.  But you know what I realize today?  If any of those people actually did (check out my stuff) back then, I wouldn't of had much to show for myself.  Sure I had a bunch of songs, but if I had to be honest with myself, I might of only had a handful that were truly good.   I'm learning more and more that it takes time and patience to develop a catalog of strong material.  And that's NOT even to say I've done it!  I don't think I'll ever be done developing it.   Just some thoughts. Anyway...

 BIG DAY.  Officially scheduled my first one-on-one meeting with a killer Nashville publishing company...and...booked a writing session with hit songwriter, Jane Bach!! (Reba McEntire, Jo Dee Messina, etc.)   Here's the story...

Last night, my fiance Susan and I locked in the dates and booked the flights for our next Nashville trip. This morning I got to school early and sent emails to publishers, Natalie Harker and Shane Barrett with my trip details.  Natalie (creative director of Cal IV Entertainment) got back to me, letting me know that she'd like to meet while I'm in town and to bring a CD of at least 15 songs.  Done and done... of course I'll meet with you!!  Natalie is creative director for one of the hottest Nashville publishers right now.  She's a super-talented publisher and I really feel as though she and her company have a finger on the pulse of today's country market. Needless to say, I'm pumped!

Later on, I got an email from Shane Barrett booking a writing session for me with hit writer Jane Bach. Shane is another super-talented and successful publisher/song-plugger with a killer ear for current country hits.  I'm so excited and grateful that he set me up to write with an incredibly talented songwriter such as Jane.  I'm gonna bring my A-game to the session and hope we knock it out of the park!

DAY - 292

"Better to light a candle than to curse the darkness."

Chinese Proverb 

Power-packed morning.  After taking care of some unsettled issues/paperwork (headache) for the Fall semester of my graduate program, I got right down to business.

I sent an email to Michael Martin. (ASCAP director and owner of Extreme Writers Group)  I just found out through my good friend and co-writer, Eric Schwank, that Michael is involved with a really cool writing team/publishing company called Extreme Writer's Group.  www.extremewritersgroup.com.  I reached out to Michael to update him on some of the cool stuff that's been going on and to ask if he'd be interested in setting me up with some co-writes with writers from his team.  Michael's team is stacked with incredible writer's like Mike Reid, "I Can't Make You Love Me", Clint Lagerberg, "Rascal Flatts", "Lady A" ect, etc.   At the least, I'm really interested in staying on Michael's radar.

I sent an email to song-plugger/publisher, Shane Barrett.   Shane has had so much success pitching songs to artists for example, "Crazy Girl" to the Eli Young Band.  I wrote Shane today, giving him an update and also letting him know I'm coming to Nashville in October and would love to take his offer to write with members of his team.  He got back to me immediately with a couple writer's who would like to work with me!  One being a successful hit writer and another being an up and coming country singer with tons of promise.  More on that as it comes!

I sent an email to Ryan Beuschel at ASCAP today and sent him the song I wrote with Scot Sax.  Just wanted to touch base, get his thoughts and stay on the radar.

That's it for now.  I'm off to the studio to do some minor tweaks to the worktape from yesterday.  Stay tuned!

DAY - 291

Wanted to get an early jump on the week.  I emailed producer, writer and founder of the Bullets Production Team, William "junebug" Lee.  Apparently, Mr. Lee is looking for songs to pitch to Avril Lavigne and Pink.  If you've been following along, you'll know this past week I finished up a demo with co-writer Scot Sax that is a slam dunk pitch for Avril and Pink.   I know my co-writer's publisher is doing a lot of the pitching but I want to be able to pull my own weight as well.  That being said, I reached out to William and the Bullets Production team to see if they truly had a door open to either or both camps.

Alright, off to the studio to work on a work tape (good representation of a song before demoing) for the song I wrote with Canadian/Nashville songwriter Kirk Penney.  More to come!