This week is the Country Radio Seminar in Nashville. To those of you who aren't familiar with 'CRS' it is basically a week where local record labels and up and coming artists try to show off their newest talent to all the larger market radio stations hoping to get a few extra adds or spins. For me; well I saw this week as an opportunity to network my ass off, listen to some great newer musicians and get inspired again. Luckily for me, the week had barely started and my inspiration came strumming through during the very first event I attended.
One of my internships asked me to run and grab a few local Nashville trinkets for a small showcase we were going to hold at the CMA office. Naturally with country music that means get some GooGoos and Yazzoo beer because we need to keep these industry folks happy. Will Hoge is a seasoned singer-songwriter from Franklin, TN and even though he is already on his 10th studio album, I am sure many of you have still not heard of him. Well, I had heard his name a few times but was never really phased by it until yesterday. Much like most of these showcases I will be experiencing this week, Hoge played songs that have been over-played on the radio recently. But there is something riveting about a background story to a song followed by its acoustic version in an intimate space. Lyrics from some of countries most iconic songs written on the walls "She pulled the bottle to her head and pulled the trigger" happened to be the first lyric I read. A lyric from the very first country song I had fallen in love with.
Maybe it was just because I had just returned from my hometown, Rockville, MD, but the moment Hoge explained the lyrics to 'Growing Up Around Here' I immediately regained feeling in my passion. Just as Hoge left his small town of Franklin, TN I left Maryland to plug myself into the world of country music. I knew my whole life I did not want to stay in the D.C. area knowing it was not ideal for a career in the music industry but my roots will always be planted there. It is hard to come back and not try to find a way to get back. All of my memories from my first kiss in front of Tilden Middle school to Walter Johnson's first football win in 7 years, all lay in my hometown. Nostalgia really pulled me in during my last visit; reminding me of all the people I love that I left behind to pursue a dream, a dream that constantly breaks my heart.
I really felt as if I had been brought to this showcase to a reason because as soon as I started to feel my heart cracking into a million pieces trying to find a balance between the love for my hometown and the love for my dream Hoge pulled out a song he had written for the Eli Young Band.
"Way back on the radio dial,
The fire got lit inside a bright-eyed child,
Every note just wrapped around his soul."
That was the exact feeling I once got when I first heard "Whiskey Lullaby" by Brad Paisley. Right then, the chorus reminded me
"Keep on dreaming,
Even if it breaks your heart."
My whole body felt awakened. I was interning with two amazing companies that continuously teach me something new everyday. I need to grasp the moment I am living in right now. Absorb as much as possible from all of my mentors and get excited for my future. This was exactly why I wanted to get into music; because moments like this inspire people to follow their dreams, or kiss the girl they never thought they had a chance with, or cry because sometimes it does make you feel better. Music plays throughout our lives like a movie score, we just don't realize it. I want to help write the musical score to someones life as the ever-growing city of Nashville has done for me.
You can catch Will Hoge's newest album, "Small Town Dreams" release on April 7th, 2015. Hoge has written numerous hit songs for other artists such as "Even if it Breaks Your Heart" made famous by Eli Young Band or "Better Off Now (That You're Gone)" Made famous by Lady Antebellum, or his most recent single "Middle of America".
If you are intested to learn more about Will Hoge check out his website; http://www.willhoge.com/, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter pages. You can also listen to more of his music HERE or pre-order his latest album HERE.
Reminds me of bitter, cold and scorching, hot days walking out on the streets of Baltimore, Maryland pitching to every potential customer that I had in my sights. The product I had wasn't Avon or a pyramid scheme but rather a collection of words that had been written down a few years prior in a notebook somewhere. And here I was borrowing a few second of every potential clients time to convince them that these words were worth their $10 buck or 7 or 5 or "okay, okay don't normally do this but $3". You see I had quit my full time job as a phlebotomist making $14.57/ hr to sell these words that God had given my wife in the form of songs which she recorded and made into her first Gospel CD, God is my salvation by Erika Lynn click link for the to see ---> http://goo.gl/8Y6T3. So in short I was helping my wife pursue her dream of becoming a Gospel recording artist which was/is now my dream too. Its been about 2 years since I stopped wearing down my shoes walking all day long selling her CDs but I still have that same drive and passion to support my wife in her God given calling today as I did then. That passion has lead me to learn photography and editing, stage lighting design, stage building, marketing (and now as we prepare to shoot her first music video) video production and a whole lot of other side stuff that I've learned along the way.
ReplyDeleteThey say you don't miss your well until it runs dry and I learned that first hand when my college girlfriend in the early 2000's aborted our child. Up until that point I was a junior in college killin Organic Chemistry with A's and Microbiology with A's, being driven from the passion (for the most part) that every child has from childhood until in that moment with the swallowing of a pill which I was not fore by the way that passion was snubbed out. That experience held me down under water with chained hand and foot for so long. For a couple of years it felt like I had a raincloud over my head pouring rain of shame by day and showers of guilt by night. It felt like there was no light at the end of the tunnel for me, but then in an instant I remembered the words of the Psalmist David when he said " a broken and a contrite heart the Lord will not despise" so with the shock of the defibrillator I began to cry out to Jesus and repented of my sins. No lie a week after I did that I met the lady who is my wife today and I began attending church with her regularly and allowing God's word to heal and re-grow my tattered plumage. Now, that I have that passion back I am going full force with my dream as well as my wife's and we are successful.
I didn't mean to bore you with this long story but I just wanted to let you know that reading your blog post today has encouraged me and reminded me that it is never a waste of time pursing your passion and dreams. Like you said about Will Hoge many of us might not have heard of him but he is on his 10th album which means that he must be doing something right. I'm sure it has its challenges but it sure beats sitting behind a desk doing something that you hate all of your life because you don't have the heart to move out of your comfort zone to pursue a God assigned endeavor or dream. To all that are pursing your dreams keep up the fight and hear this by the great poet Langston Hughes " Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly."
Thank you!