everything new I'm making (and can buy it that way as well).
You have 13 Grammy nominations. Tell me more about those - what were they for? Oh Lord. Those were from 2002 and 2005. I have the list on my website for what cate- gories and such, but I don't keep that stuff in my head. I was nominated, yes, but didn't get past the first round. I know it's still a great ac- complishment and makes me look really good on paper, but I just don't think too much about that whole Grammy thing. It opens doors for me, sure... and people are im- pressed by it. It's good, it is. It's just not why I play or write, so I care very little about it. But, don't tell the Grammy's that! ha! I keep my focus on my songs, and how I connect to the people that come to my shows. That is a far greater accomplishment to me than a few grammy nom's.
Well put! So, what is your writing process? Is it something you shut your- self off from the world to do or are you constantly writing or does it come to you all at once? I do have to have some solitude to write. Often times, I write after long drives. Thank- fully I drive a lot, so there's a lot of writing that has happened in my life. There's also something about a hotel room that inspires me to write. Generally it's after a long drive that I pull into a hotel and sit for the night, so it works out perfectly for my writing process. Then there are times that nothing comes to me and yet I feel the songs in me stirring around. Those are frustrating times, but I have learned that those times are okay to just sit. The songs will come when they are ready, not always when I want them to be ready. Some of my songs write themselves, I just hang on to the pen and see where it takes me. Other times it's a fight from start to finish. And there have been songs that have taken
five or ten years to finish. I go with it when it comes, I put it down if it's not the right time, I just keep doing what I do and believing that it will work if it's meant to. So far... so good. (Smiling)
Tell me what you remember as your most memorable musical moment to date? I have so many, honestly. The one that sticks out heavily to me in this moment, is a night I played in Madison, WI a few years ago. There's a long back story, but basically I was really worn out. My confidence was totally gone, I felt like I wasn't a good enough singer to even be on stage. I had been touring heav- ily with another artist, and that relationship was incredibly damaging to my self confi- dence. I felt pretty beat up and was trying to think of a way to get out of the music business and just find something I was good at, and could be wallpaper for a while. I am a very spiritual soul, and I lean heavily on my faith in my life. I had been praying a lot about this situation and what I should do with my life if music wasn't "it" for me. I needed to hear from God, and He most definitely spoke up. It was a Tuesday night, at a place that I had never played before and I knew walking into that gig that the bar didn't like me. They pre- fer heavy rock, and I am not that. My agent asked me to play, and he asked them to give me a chance, the pay was terrible, too, so I didn't walk in with much confidence at all. I set up my gear, and people started showing up. Friends, fans, new people... pretty soon, I looked up and saw the place was full, and I recognized them all. They were there to see me. I started playing, and they sang along. My spirit wasn't just lifted, it was beaming confi- dence. I knew God was talking to me that night, and I was growing not just as an artist, but as a person. The audience that night was amazing, interactive, polite, listening, en- gaged. I played my last song and ended the show to a standing ovation. A standing ova-
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62