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Every so often, you come across a song that hits you right in the solar plexus. It just has this amazing feel, this emotion and power that immediately grabs your attention. There is a song on the upcoming Marc Broussard album that had that affect on me. It's called "Give Em Hell". Unfortunately you will probably have to wait until the release date of July 26 before you can hear it, but I will probably write about it again then. In the meantime, what songs have grabbed your attention in that way?  What is your favorite part about performing live? "I think it would be cliche to say 'I like to see the crowd get off on my music'. Although isn't that why we do it in the first place? But I like the fact that four people can get together and make sense of it all. It's truly amazing." 
Proof that there are still some people with class in the music industry. From drummer Rich Redmond (Jason Aldean) ... "Kindness goes a LONG way in any field and in any business. I am always kind to baggage handlers, hotel personnel, bus drivers, stewardesses, road crew members, techs (that's my excellent drum tech Jon Hull pictured below), stage hands, caterers … everyone. All of these people’s efforts factor into the overall success of your organization. Everyone has individual skill sets and life paths. Who’s to say that your job is more important than theirs? Don’t be arrogant. Be kind, be helpful, be approachable, and be friendly. Spread joy and love. People will always remember this about you over any kind of musical talent. It’s a fact."  Ranaan Meyer of client Time for Three talks about the extreme world of music. "One of the beautiful aspects of music is that you can live in a kind of extreme world of different possibilities. From being serious to being jovial to being carefree … melancholy. It’s kind of a manic profession in every sense of the word. I guess that’s the way I think about performing the bass. Or I guess I would say that I come by it honestly." 
Cris -- "What is your songwriting process?" Jake Shimabukuro -- "I love writing. I love creating. A lot of times it’s just coming up with a simple lick or a phrase. I remember once … I was thinking of this phrase 'everything is better with you'. And then writing a whole song based on that, turning it into some kind of instrumental, developing the different sections. But every time I get to that phrase, that’s what I am hearing in my head. 'Everything is better with you.' Sometimes it is something so simple as that." 
This past weekend in New Orleans I also had the opportunity to see client Marc Broussard perform. If you tend to judge book by its cover, you would not look at Broussard and his long, red, mountain man beard and think "I bet he's a great soul singer." But all those preconceptions go out the window once the music starts. Somehow his voice is much older than he is. Broussard is in his early 30s I think, but his voice has decades more feeling, experience, and power. It is all at once gritty, tender, and vibrant. And in a world where so many singers have been auto-tuned to plastic perfection, Broussard stands out as a singer who is the real deal.  Back home after shadowing client Cowboy Mouth at their shows in New Orleans & Biloxi. I'm exhausted but still feeling the euphoria that you get from attending their concerts. They are truly events -- a mixture of music, inspiration, audience participation, and some unnamed emotion that is produced when you combine all of those elements together. They are reminders that there are still aspects to the world of music that cannot be digitized and transmitted via the Internet. If you want the experience, you have to be there in person. 
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December 2021
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