• L.A. | Superficial or Super-chill?

    June 27, 2018 - By 

    New York, Nashville, and LA are known as the three pillars for the music industry. They each specialize in slightly different markets and industries, and I had my guard firmly up against all of them for different reasons. My admitted presumptions: Nashville: Cutthroat and competitive. New York: Highly skilled but no money to be made. LA: Superficial. Examples of these stereotypes definitely exist, but I’ve also been very lucky to experience the beautiful, contradictory sides of each as well. I was so pleasantly surprised by Nashville’s community-based approach to music (more here), and now have also been lucky to experience…

  • Life is short – Go to LA

    June 15, 2018 - By 

    I crash-landed onto my bandmate’s couch after an exhausting but rewarding day of teaching. I had finally stopped, but my brain continued its inner debate about whether a last-minute trip to California simply to “relax” was a good idea. It seemed so silly, yet I found my “reckless brain” fighting hard to convince my “rational brain” to book the flight. I was torn. A series of events had brought the idea for this short visit to the surface, and my curiosity to re-experience this particular city wasn’t letting go. It was a warm Michigan evening and still light out at…