Common Questions and answers
- Q. Is it true that you have only 1 song? Answer. No. I have many songs in various stages of maturity; however, I have only been able to afford producing one. My duties have not afforded the luxury of time needed to write scores, produce demos, earn monies for projects, get studio time, etc. I’m working on it. Any help would be appreciated.
- Q. What other projects do you have on deck? Answer. Next up will be some cover songs to include some gospel songs, however, our new original songs will include: “Bad Country Song”; “12,000 Horses”; “18 Wheels”; “Kiss Her For Me”, "Cool Mountain Mornin", and “Pick a Rose”. All I need is the money and the time. Oh, and a great arranger. Wanna Help?
- Q. Aren’t you a bit old to be starting a Country Music career? Answer. Who said I was starting a career? While I’m not opposed to it, the music my wife and I wrote and continue to write, have a greater purpose than simply entertaining. I would however, love to rub shoulders with some of my heroes in that industry and ask them some heart-to-heart questions, and maybe sell some tunes along the way. And, given my age, some say I should be retiring. But I agree with Indiana Jones: "Its not the years honey, its the mileage".
- Q. Who do you vocally pattern yourself after? Answer. Great Question. In short, I can’t think of anyone off hand for which I intentionally patterned my voice and style. If I had to pick someone, I would say somewhere between Josh Turner, Trace Adkins, and Chris Young. I've been told by the Nashville studio (Hilltop), that I'm not quite at the bottom of the barrel, since I don't sing through my nose and don't require much vocal pitch correction. I can state, I'm not Garth - who, btw, hovers near the top of that barrel. Having said that, my country music song style would be considered ‘Prime Country’.
- Q. Are you opposed to being signed by a label? Answer. I’d have to chew on that one a bit. While I understand the huge lift by letting someone(s) else perform all the biz stuff to allow me to just write and sing, I have also been enlightened regarding the tight schedules and stress from touring, promotion, and studio time expectations. Considerations would imply continuation of my focus on helping hurting folks, having time for my family, and, having the freedom to produce songs that the fans wanted to hear as contrasted to what marketing mandated. Marketing isn’t always right (ex. Willie Nelson: Columbia 1975 & Waylon Jennings: RCA Victor 1965)
- Q. Regarding your concept of building hope in our communities, how do you intend to take on that mammoth task as one person? Answer. I don’t. This involves everyone. There’s a story about a little boy walking a beach head following a storm, picking up star fish that had washed ashore and throwing them back into the ocean. An older gentleman approached and told the boy that there were miles of beach and that he would never be able to save them all. The boy lifted a star fish from the sand and as he tossed it into the ocean replied, “No, but it just made a difference to that one”. The point: Building Hope applies to everyone. This must be a mindset change at a personal level. In Short: “Make a difference one at a time, where you can, with what you have. Just start somewhere.”
- Q. Are you considering merchandise for sale, and if so, what? Answer. Great question. One of the first items on my list are ‘Bsum1-4sum1’ cards that community groups, churches and parents for children can use as a ‘tag-your-it’ scheme. In short, you do something to build trust for someone, then give them a card that they in-turn need to pass alone to someone else. The gift that keeps on giving.
- Q. How much does it cost to produce and release a song? Answer. The “Give a Guy a Break (Revived)” song production cost just over $2,000, including Nashville, TN, studio time, scoring, and travel costs. Note that many business costs are not included. To be quite candid, getting my studio slot in Nashville was nothing short of a God thing given that most studios only allow 4 or more songs per session at around $7,000 - $10,000 per session. Getting a session for 1 song isn’t typical. And, I still don’t have $10,000 to spend. Taking loans for such endeavors is very high risk of repayment.
- Q. Are there costs for things other than producing a song? Answer. Wow.. Short answer is absolutely – all the BIZ stuff. If you are an independent artist, the split of product vs business I have found to be 30/70. The level of effort and start up expense for the business end isn’t for the faint of heart including: copyright, royalty, and license management; distribution, marketing and promotion; web site creation and hosting; social media management; establishing an LLC or Sole Proprietorship; managing taxes and the IRS; managing banking; etc. There’s much more to it than I had anticipated.
- Q. Are you opposed to people helping to fund your projects like Go-Fund-Me and others? Answer. I would never look a gift horse in the mouth, and welcome all integrity-based donations. Yet, in my cynical experience, seldom does this happen and seldom is anything free or without a catch. This reality oddly enough is one of many things that breeds distrust and robs people of hope. In short, if there is a foundation or honest donor who desires to support some of our production projects, I would welcome the assist and partnership. This would include 'Go Fund Me' projects and Spotify Funding Pages, etc.
- Q. What if there is a Writer or Arranger who wishes to help? Answer. Please, and Pretty Please. I love a good challenge, and love great talent from those who paint with words and music. I desperately need a good keyboardist who can arrange scores, and is good with country vocal harmonies. I have no problem sharing copyright and royalties with other writers, or gaining mechanical licenses to produce someone’s song. If a writer is offering their services with honor and integrity, please contact me with your offer.
- Q. What if someone wants to cover your song internationally? Answer. I am willing to go above and beyond for those seeking mechanical licenses to cover my song, to include licensing my sound tracks. Especially for the message this latest release carries. Given that the United States is not unique to hopelessness, I would love for international artists to perform my songs in their native language. While I am aware of the risks of international licensing and fraud, I believe that this songs message outweighs the royalty risk. Please contact me.