WHO .... we want to thank!

Were you there? Last week I posted about Women Helping Others, an organization founded by locals Karen Errico, Lisa Kothe, Julie Brannon, Irma Cardoso and Amy Stinsman.

WHO is a group of women who meet four times a year to have some fun and help a local organization that is doing good in our community. SHAMc was fortunate to be the chosen WHO charity for the first gathering of 2016.

One-hundred sixty-five women attended the event, which was held at Whimzey, to raise funds to purchase a glass door for the art and music center. Kiaralinda had hoped enough women would attend so that we could raise $2500 to cover the door, but that  amount was pleasantly surpassed.

In a thank you email from WHO, Karen Errico wrote:  "We raised $4,432.00! (That included mailed in donations, opportunity drawing tickets, and donations at the event.) WHO bought that door and a lot more--thanks to you ladies! It was a great evening to enjoy the art and fun of WHIMZEY House. It is indeed an honor to have your support and your caring for charities in our community. What a great bunch of gals!"

So yes, thank you. Thank you all! Many of you have been on this journey with us from the day Kiaralinda and Todd thought of turning the property into a center for the arts, and many of you have joined us along the way, including many brand new to SHAMc through WHO. But no matter how long you've been part of the dream, it is finally happening, thanks to your support.

WHO had a sign-up sheet at the event, so if you added your email to a list that evening, you will receive announcements for upcoming WHO gatherings. If you were hoping to sign up for the SHAMc or Song Fest email list, or to volunteer, please head to our website and do so there. We apologize for the inconvenience, but we sure don't want to lose touch with all of you amazing 

women!

 

  

"For all who attended, who sent in donations, Todd and I want to thank you profusely for the difference that you are making and for including us in your vision of ‘giving back to the community.’" -Kiaralinda




               Peace and Love to you all!  -Laura

Calling all women! You're invited to Girls' Night Out with a Purpose!

Karen Errico moved to Safety Harbor almost three years ago and immediately got involved in the community.  Now she, Irma Cardoso, Lisa Kothe, Amy Stinsman and Julie Brannon are a volunteer team leading others to help our community, and guess what? SHAMc is next on their list!

The Women of WHO aren’t exclusive. They want to meet other women whose desire is to make something small turn into something big, and all by spending an evening out with other women. 

“I went through the Citizens Academy," Karen says. "Janet Hooper spoke and gave the statistics regarding poverty in Safety Harbor.  I kept thinking, ‘I want to do something, but what can one person do?’”

Now, just over a year after the first WHO gathering,  WHO―Women Helping Others―has raised much needed funds for five groups and/or non-profits based in Safety Harbor. 

“WHO Safety Harbor is a girls’ night out with a purpose,” Karen says. “And it has grown bigger than I ever imagined it would.” 

Thirty-eight women attended their first gathering and they raised $695 for the Mattie Williams Neighborhood Family Center. That was in November of 2014. Only a year later, 54 women attended and they raised $1249. for Safety Harbor Elementary School classrooms. Karen says the next WHO gathering might attract more than 100 women if all goes as planned. 

The way it works is that each woman who attends donates $20 at the door. The gatherings are four times a year and each one benefits a specific non-profit or organization in Safety Harbor. Besides the donation, women are asked to bring a bottle of wine or a dish to share. 

If you are looking for a way to help our community, to connect and make new friends, join us at Whimzey on Friday, February 5 from 7 to 9 p.m. We will be raising money for the WHO door—a glass garage door that connects the Rigsby house to the music pavilion. The door costs $2400., so everyone hopes at least 120 women will come out for the evening. 

“I am thrilled that WHO has been so well received,” says Karen. “The women of Safety Harbor, they want to help and do something for others, and they are willing to give. Many times WHO women have given more than the $20 donation we ask for. They have such good hearts.”

Besides the food, wine and fun, there is also a table full of donated baskets, gift certificates and merchandise donated by local businesses and residents. Tickets are only $1.00 or six for $5.00. 

“It's just fun,” Karen adds. “It's a feel good group. You’re meeting women and having a good time and at the same you are helping your community.”

Special thanks to Karen, Lisa, Irma, Julie and Amy for all their hard work, the fun they’ve created, and for all the great things they have in the works for the future. By the way, if you have a daughter, granddaughter, or young friend between 6 and 14, who wants to get involved, the group has already formed a Junior WHO. Check out their website for more information and we hope you’ll attend the Whimzey WHO event on February 5. 

Whimzey  is located at 1206 3rd St., Safety Harbor, FL - (One block north of Main St., 12th Ave and Okeechobee St.) Cash or checks only please. Receipts will be available. 

Pure Inspiration: An Interview with Adam Rafferty

Photo credit: Mary Cummings

Adam Rafferty stood on the sidewalk outside Casa Loco (where he was a guest) last Sunday, watching the reflection of his hands in his rental car’s side window. His nimble fingers attended to each string on his guitar as I watched him from my own side window and parked my car.

It was a little too cold to chat outside, so we made our way into the colorful, fun house known as Whimzey. Adam removed his shoes and sat cross-legged on bright patterned, vividly colored couch cushions. The previous night, he and Shaun Hopper had played to an audience under the gazebo, amongst the ambiance of the bowling balls, metal yard art, and plastic flowers of a very fun Christmas past. For those not familiar with this magical place, it’s an art house, color everywhere, and surrounded by bowling balls. When the setting and the music collide (like it did for those of us who watched Adam Rafferty and Shaun Hopper the night before), it feels like you’re experiencing a sort of magic.

I sat across on my own space of color and started from the beginning. The old, Where were you born and raised question. Turns out, Adam Rafferty grew up near Harlem. “It was different back then,” he said. “When I was there – which was sort of scary -- there was also this scene of music. Now it’s gentrified. Harlem now is brushed steel and glass.”

Photo credit: Holly Apperson

But besides being in an area of New York rich with the sounds of some heavy hitters in the music scene, Adam’s dad had his own dreams of making music. “He had this big boomingly-loud Martin guitar―a D-28. Being three and hearing somebody play guitar and sing … well, there are certain things that hit us―they filter through us and go right into the subconscious,” Adam explained. “That hardwired me for music. I was pretty lucky.”

Adam credits his first teacher, Woody Mann, with much of his development. “Now with what I do … there’s such a heavy influence from him.” Mann’s lessons began when Adam was only five years-old. He learned the basics, and later, classical and jazz. “I still love classical music but was never a stone cold classical musician,” he said.  “Sure, I studied it―listened to some Bach. Did it for a year in college, but I found it limiting, discouraging and competitive. Some people triumph, but I couldn’t withstand the politics or pressure of that world.  Then I became interested in jazz.

“I was always busy as a working guitar player,” he continued. “I did my first pro gig when I was sixteen. I was dabbling in jazz and then I found my most important guitar teacher. He’s actually from Ft. Lauderdale: Mike Longo. From ‘64 to ‘71 Longo was Dizzy Gillespie’s pianist. He’s not a household name, but he’s a household name with jazz musicians.” 

Longo became Adam’s mentor. He taught Adam a lot about harmony and rhythm, arranging, and composition. “From age nineteen to about thirty-six, I did whatever he told me.”

He paused, then nodded as he remembered a turning point in his life. “I had actually started getting some gigs with some well-known band players―a few with the organ player Dr. Lonnie Smith, who played in early George Benson records.”

Photo credit: Holly Apperson

Adam Rafferty sees himself as someone who fits in a group of a multi-cultural sort. The group of musicians who have their heads on tight and want the audience to have a good time. “A healthy mix of people,” he added.  

From 1998 to 2005 he was doing two to three week trips to Europe every year. “That was before YouTube, before you could send anything online,” he said. “There was no social media. I had to go to stand alone websites, go to the Post Office to mail demo CDs. I filled out a million forms. I had to be such a proactive squeaky wheel. It was really a lot of work.”

Credit: Mary Cummings. (Shaun Hopper & Adam Rafferty)

He barely broke even and he knew he had to take action to survive as a working musician. “In Europe it’s cool to be a jazz musician, but financially it’s hard. You have to pay for  each band member’s hotel room, train and plane tickets, meals. I started to notice that wow―singers and pop artists can really draw a crowd but instrumental jazz is a slow build. Even for really well-known people. My last touring experience with a band was exceptionally stressful. I knew I had to rethink what I was doing.

“A friend of mine asked ‘Did you ever hear this guy Tommy Emmanuel?’ We popped a DVD in and for the first time I saw somebody playing solo guitar. In about first fifteen to thirty seconds I knew I could do that, but with different tunes. I wasn’t sure how, but I knew I’d go about it somehow.”

Photo credit: Mary Cummings

With a new plan, an old guitar, a few songs and lots of inspiration, Rafferty took a year off.  “I had never practiced so much in my life.  I popped out my first CD. Bought a couple mics and recorded the songs myself. There were all kinds of sound problems, but there was a vibe. You could hear how much I loved it.  I can’t say that about all my CDs, but I was coming alive.” 

Rafferty sent a CD to Tommy Emmanuel―just to say thank you. “I wrote a note, telling him he changed my life.  On the last line I wrote ‘Watch out. I’m coming.’” Adam stopped at the memory to laugh. “Yeah, Tommy wrote back. He said, ‘by the way, I can practice more than you can.’ And he’d drawn a little smiley face.

“You know … when I think about it … he doesn’t realize that by him putting in all the dues, him putting in all those hours, the incredible Pandora’s box he opened for everybody else.”  

Now, due to the amazing support Adam Rafferty offers musicians through his YouTube videos and his instructional support available through his website, people are saying the same thing about him.

Photo credit: Mary Cummings

Adam remembers when he first put his fingerstyle guitar video on YouTube. “People went nuts,” he said. “But it was timing and I was lucky. I did a tune everybody dug. I showed up and hopefully played okay.” He started talking with a few fans who would later become friends. They encouraged him to head to Nashville. “Somebody said that I should go down to The Chet Atkins Society,” Adam said. “When I got there, I was shocked―people knew me.”

Then he was invited to perform with Tommy Emmanuel. “When I finally met Tommy for the first time, I said, ‘You changed everything.’ Now he’s my mentor. He sees what I’m doing and he helps me tighten a few screws here and there,” Adam said. “This summer I sent him Imagine – the video. He told me to look down the neck of my guitar and smile. He said, ‘You’re there, Adam. Keep doing what you’re doing.’ That guy changed my life.”

Rafferty understands what his audience wants. Some will listen to original music and will appreciate it, while others want music they know. He knew that there was already a Stevie Wonder tribute CD, plenty of Beatles tributes, but no one had done a tribute CD to the music of Michael Jackson. People know Michael Jackson’s music, and Adam realized that they likely didn’t necessarily know of him.  “It was like doing a term paper,” he told me. “I needed about fifteen tunes. I found the ones that felt like pure inspiration and then there were the ones that were pure perspiration.

Photo credit: Holly Apperson

“Cover tunes help to hold people. That’s a big cue that I took from Tommy. And he got it from Chet Atkins. “

Adam Rafferty will once again soon tour throughout Europe. “I know what it’s like to live out of a suitcase 120 days a year. There’s a price to be paid.”

His advice? “If you have something you can sell, don’t count on it being a CD these days. The gig is one thing you can sell but you have to be creative and always find something else too.”

Photo credit: Holly Apperson

Thanks, Adam! Travel safe, and we—your Safety Harbor fans―will look forward to more of your music, lessons, and great YouTube videos.

A special Thank You to Holly Apperson and Mary Cummings for the use of their beautiful photographs!

Interview with Randall Bramblett

Randall Bramblett had just finished a salad from one of Safety Harbor’s finest eateries when we (Debby & Laura) interrupted him for a short interview before the concert on March 25. Todd filled him in on the history of Safety Harbor as we settled comfortably on the bright, flowered cushions adorning the wicker couches in Casa Loco. The Casa is across from Todd and Kiaralinda’s house, Whimzey. Casa Loco belongs to them and is used for travelling artists and musicians, as well as friends. It doubles as a studio when necessary.

I was impressed with Todd’s knowledge of the local history, but it didn’t surprise me, because he and K. have a child’s enthusiasm for as much information as they can absorb about everything and everyone.

Laura is the consummate professional and had her pen poised and her I-phone set on record, but only after requesting permission. I was more or less a loose cannon who started out by informing Mr. Bramblett that I’d never heard of him before. If we hadn’t had the recorder, we wouldn’t have this interview because I didn’t write one damned thing down, and barely shut up the whole time.

Randall Bramblett is small in stature but has that certain “aura” of a person who’s special. He’s the guy you see on a subway and think, “He’s probably someone.” He settled on the couch across from us and had an easy smile as he crossed his ankle over his knee. He was wearing worn jeans and a black on black, buttoned shirt. It seems like he had blue eyes, because they twinkled. He ran his hand through tousled blonde/gray hair.

I asked him if he’d ever stayed in a place that had copper Bundt pans for a ceiling. He hadn’t.

We wanted to know if he was related to Bonnie Bramlett, even though the spelling is different. He’s not, but he knows her, (pretty awesome in and of itself). I asked him if he ever ran in to R.E.M. (They live in Athens, Georgia also). He said no, because he’s older. Again I had to make another needless comment by pointing out that R.E.M. is pretty old these days. His eyes twinkled when he said, “Yes, but I’m still older.” His wife has a restaurant in Athens called the Creole Market and he speculated that maybe Mike Mills had dined there.

So, armed with a recorder and excited about the house concert that we were soon to enjoy, we asked him a few questions…

LK: What should we know about your music? You’re kind of jazzy, bluesy?
DK: (Not really a category)
RB: It’s hard to categorize. It’s a mix of a lot of different music. I grew up playing and singing Soul music, but I was also influenced by Dylon, he had a sort of funky thing going too. Country rock, Americana. Gospel. I’m not a Jazz player.
LK: I don’t know where I heard that!
DK: When you listened to music when you growing up what sort of music would most embarrassing thing to admit to? I’m talking about when you were little. Not toddler, but you know, the gawky age…
RB: I used to listen to these piano records that were really schmaltzy. Andre Previn, Peter Yarrow. My older sister’s records – I think they came from her, or maybe my parents bought one of those Columbia “You get all the Classics” collections.
DK: Did you have a stereo?
RB: Yeah, if you could call it that. I don’t know if you could call it a stereo. A hi-fi.
DK: Did anybody else in your family play music?
RB: My sister played piano some. My mom was a kindergarten teacher. She played enough for Sunday school and kindergarten.
DK: Were you good church goers?
RB: Yeah. Southern Baptists.
DK: Where’d you grow up?
RB: Jessop Georgia. It’s in southeast Georgia, near Brunswick, near Savannah. Flat woods, swamp. Omaha River swamp. I spent a lot of time in the river. That made a big impression on me. It’s such a prehistoric looking place.
DK: Did you write things down?
RB: I tried to write some poetry back then. Mostly I was singing in the local high school band.
DK: Like a garage band?
RB: Yeah, a dance band really.
RB: So you guys all got together like in junior high or high school and decided who would do what?
DK: In high school we really started getting paid. We were playing all over by the time we were seniors in high school we were playing all over.
DK: All over Georgia?
RB: Yeah, and South Carolina. Occasionally North Carolina.
DK: Did you play guitar?
RB: I just sang.
DK: You wrote most of the music?
RB: It was all cover music.
DK: So you did covers, but you were good.
RB: Yes.
DK: There were some really bad bands back then too…
RB: I played through college with that band.
DK: So you all went to college and kept in touch?
RB: Yeah, we all played together all through college. I went to UNC some of them went to college at Georgia. I would hitchhike and meet where ever they were.
DK: Chapel Hill is a good fertile place for writers isn’t it?
RB: I think that was when I first heard James Taylor. And Dylon … I never really thought I could write until my senior year. I started fooling around more with the guitar. It was the hippie days too. UNC didn’t really even have graduation. There were so many protests going on. After that I stopped doing cover music and started trying to write songs. I played guitar since junior high but never really wrote until then.
DK: Self taught?
RB: Yeah
DK: We interviewed on of your fans who traveled a long way to see you tonight. Sheila says you play a bunch of different music – different instruments.
RB: Keyboards, sax, guitar… (chuckling) Sheila comes to God knows how many gigs. I’m not sure why
DK: She loves you, that’s why.
RB: She’s showed up in Tennessee, various places…
DK: North Carolina. She said she’s been as far as NC. And you have people coming from Naples.
LK: Who inspires you now?
RB: Occasionally I get inspired. I don’t listen to enough music. But when I heard Elbow this year – an English group – they’re huge - I got inspired. Unbelievable stuff.
DK: Have you ever heard of Chuck Prophet?
RB: Sure. Chuck was on the same label as me out west. I like him. I like hearing quirky things like Cake. I like Lucinda Williams a lot. A great poet. She likes to write lyrics.
DK: So you write all your stuff now?
RB: I have some co writers I work with sometimes. Mostly it’s me.
LK: So how’d you hook up with Todd and Kiaralinda?
RB: The 38 Festival in the Panhandle . It’s where they have this great singer/songwriter festival. Lots of venues. You play at different ones every night. There are probably a hundred or more different people playing.
This seems like a really cool community of people.
DK: We spread the love. You’re in good company playing here. We’re excited. We’re happy you’re here.
DK: Did you bring a road wrangler?
RB: I am the road crew. I was a social worker for a while. So, if you have any problems … (Laughing)
DK: So you did have a real job for a while…
RB: I’ll tell you what happened. I played strictly music for about 10 or 11 years. Had my own group and played with other groups, then I bottomed out in every way with alcohol drugs and everything. I was in New Orleans. Got sober, met my wife. Figured at some point my career was over so I needed to find another career. I want to University of Georgia. Got my MSW there. I got the experience. I was a drug and alcohol counselor. In the middle of school I got a call from Steve Winwood’s people. His music director heard me from Sea Level. He was always one of my favorites – and Traffic ― but I hadn’t picked up a horn in years. I could play sax keyboard and strings. I started getting calls back. It was a great experience.
I Just played with Greg Allman last week. And Leon Helm is one of my heroes. I just played with him. Playing with Steve [Winwood] was a great experience too. Right now I’m doing solo stuff, playing with Geoff Achison, … he is an Australian guitar player. His stuff is bluesy. He comes over for a few weeks. We always play together. It’s a fun life.

(Hi, this is Laura. I just have to say something before we run the credits...)

This was an amazing concert (March 25) and if you were there, you might like to know a little more about this man who should be even more famous than he is. I mean, like as famous as Steve Winwood, Greg Allman, Bonnie Raitt and others who he’s played with. Did you know that about him? He's just as talented as those artists, and in some ways, he shouldn't even be compared. His voice is nice, not overpowering, but rather easy on the ears and leaving you somewhat addicted. I'd say he is as talented with words as Bonnie Raitt ... His lyrics made my mouth water. Yeah, they're savory to the senses, and beautifully crafted.

Honestly, go buy his music. It won’t disappoint, I promise. In fact, there's a FREE song available, too - just in case you want to sample before you buy. His new CD The Meantime, and his older stuff, can be purchased through his website.

I'd love to compare notes and hear which song is your favorite. Drop us a line in the comment section. Are you an old fan or have you recently discovered Bramblett's music? And Mr. Bramblett, if you find your way here for some reason – maybe wondering what happened after those two writers sat you down and plied you with odd questions – well, rock on, man. You impressed the hell out of me.

And the amazing photos are by Holly Apperson. Thank you, Holly. You have a gift with a lens...

An Interview with Greg Boerner

It was a year ago that Todd and Kiaralinda hosted the house concert where Greg Boerner performed to an enthusiastic crowd at Whimzey. Channel 10's morning show, Studio 10 ran a segment on him, and later that week Boerner delighted locals during a Third Friday performance. Boerner (pronounced Burner) sings and plays his guitar with not only feeling, but with obvious admiration for those who've come before him.

"I love what I do," he told me, "especially when I cover a Ray Charles, Tom Waits or Beatles tune--these are my musical heroes. Also, I've listened to and absorbed a lot of music over the years that seems to swim around inside me. It's nice to be able to summon that up and tap into it when I want or need it."

Boerner is not one to toot his own horn, but music is his passion, and when you listen to his distinctive finger picking and vocals, that passion really shines. He began playing at age twelve after finding an electric guitar and an old amp in the attic. "I started trying to sing shortly after that," he said. "The good songwriting came much later and I'm hoping the great songwriting is just around the corner. Believe me, I'm still trying to get it all straight."

His three albums, Nowhere, Wishing Well, and World so Blue have been reviewed by a list of fans, magazines, and music critics, and several music videos are on YouTube. Boerner's advice to beginning musicians is simple: "If you want to play music, you can. No problem. With practice and patience, that's a reasonable, obtainable goal. Now, if you want to be famous, I wouldn't know what to tell you. Even famous people can't tell you. See the difference? You've really got to be doing this for the right reasons. The love of music, connecting with people, giving back a gift you've been given. Any other reason (money, fame, girls, etc) falls short ninety-five percent of the time. In short, take your craft/talent seriously...not yourself. Hard to do at times."

A fourth CD is planned for a May release, and Boerner recently finished a project called Made in Aurora. He and other Illinois artists involved in the project plan on releasing a vinyl record (yes, vinyl!) with proceeds benefiting the Paul Ruby Foundation to raise money toward Parkinson's Disease research.

Although time has passed since his visit, Boerner remembers our town and people fondly. "From my short stay in Safety Harbor, I quickly saw that people embraced music, art, friendship, good food, nature, etc--the truly important things, right? With that said, I know the art and music center will be a perfect fit for Safety Harbor. Just don't forget to ask me to come back and play sometime!"




To purchase Greg's CDs with a check, click here.
To purchase Greg's CDs with a credit card, click here.

He enjoys hearing from you, so feel free to drop him a line or two at gboerner3@yahoo.com.

An Interview with Shannon Curtis

A friend recently told me that to 'really interview' Shannon Curtis, I needed to 'hear the energy in her voice.' Her words 'glow,' and 'she inspires you when you're near her.' I was not fortunate enough to have met Shannon, but she was one of several of the talented musicians who've performed at Whimzey as one of Kiaralinda and Todd's house concert guests. In the next few blog posts, I hope to show supporters of SHAMc what kind of musicians have inspired this town and its people. After asking a few friends about their experience listening to Shannon Curtis's music, and seeing her perform, I was not only told a bit about her style, her talent, and her sound, but also that "She's one of those people you just feel good to be around."

Recently, Shannon Curtis has been on tour, but in-between busy moments, she answered a few questions in an e-mail interview. They're questions I really want to know the answers to; questions I think I would like to ask everyone I meet. I mean, instead of asking someone what they do for a living, wouldn't it be wonderful to know who has inspired them?

Well, Shannon answered beautifully. She is busy now and great things are happening for her, including her recent appearance on Extreme Makeover; Home Edition. I wish her all the success in the world. She is obviously a lovely person, and although I have not had the opportunity to meet her face-to-face, I am going to buy her album and enjoy her musical friendship for a while. I hope you support people who live their dream. If you love music, check her out. Buy her album.

This is what it's all about.

Rock on, Shannon!

LK: Describe your music for those who aren't familiar with it.

SC: I play the piano and sing love songs.

LK: How are you inspired? Who inspires you?

SC: I get inspired by all the little meaningful moments surrounding love and relationships -- before, after, during love. Moments that belong to me, others, characters in books, characters in my imagination.

People who relentlessly pursue their passions are inspiring to me, especially people who contribute creatively to the world. It's an uphill battle to be an artist or a musician or a writer, but where would we be without these people? I'm inspired to see creative people making it happen even when the going is hard.

LK: What changes have you seen in your music (if any) since you performed at Kiaralinda and Todd's.

SC: I'm currently in the midst of making a new record -- my first full-length, full-production record -- and I'm experiencing a bit of an evolution musically in the process. The songs aren't necessarily coming from a different place, but the sounds surrounding them are becoming much bigger, more adventurous, more cinematic. I'm excited to see where this new direction leads.

LK: Are you living the dream you always saw for yourself, or did your music career surprise you?

SC: Deep down, I think I always wanted to be a singer, but when I was growing up and when I was in college it didn't seem like a worthy enough goal to which to aspire. Or I didn't feel like pursuing music as a career goal would be acceptable to my family and my community. (I was a pre-med Biology major in college, for instance. "I'm going to be a doctor" sounded way more impressive than "I'm going to be a starving musician.")

But then in my senior year of college, it struck me one afternoon like a ton of bricks -- in the midst of studying for an organic chemistry exam -- that I was going to be a musician. It scared me to death, the idea of trying to figure out how to make that happen, but it was an undeniable calling, if you believe in that kind of thing. From then on, it was only a matter of trying to figure out how to be involved in music in more and more meaningful ways and how to get more and more experience doing it. Somewhere along the way, I discovered a deep love for songwriting, and, luckily, also discovered that I was pretty good at it!

I certainly didn't have this plan for my life back when I was making plans for my life. But this is where I've ended up after a long series of doing the next true thing in my life.

LK: How did your appearance on Extreme Makeover, Home Edition come to be?

SC: Well, I got a call from a friend of mine who has been in a hard rock band for a while. He said that the show was requesting a song of his, but they wanted a female singer singing something about girl power. So, I wrote the melody and lyrics to music he had written, recorded the part, and we sent it off to the show. And they loved it!

LK: Do you have advice for musicians who dream of performing &/or a career in music?

SC: I would encourage them to write their own songs and play in front of people as much as possible. There is nothing like the stage to bring to light what's working and what's not. And don't ever try to write or sing or play or make music based on what you think people want to hear -- make music that rings true to you. The best thing you can bring to the world creatively is the thing that is most true to yourself. Anything else will smell like a fake from miles away and won't bring you any real success, let alone satisfaction.

LK: Do you think the Safety Harbor Art and Music Center will benefit our town and its musicians?

SC: SO MUCH! I'm so excited for a center dedicated to art and music in Safety Harbor! I wish that every community had people willing to create a place such as this is going to be. Where are we, especially in the hard times we've all been facing the last few years, without music and art? These things will be our saviors, I think, and I'm so happy that there will soon be a place in Safety Harbor dedicated to providing a place for the community to interact with music and art. It's going to be such a happy place.

LK: What's next for you/your music?

SC: Like I mentioned, I'm halfway done recording my first full-length, full-production record and it sounds like a dream, thanks to my amazing producer/husband, Jamie Hill (http://secretagentaudio.com). We're working really hard to make an undeniably great record and I can only imagine that it will lead us to the next true thing.


Visit Shannon's website.

Did you see Shannon perform? Feel free to comment below and share your experience!