The Unstarving Musician

Singer songwriter Arlene Paculan is all about community. Whether it’s through creating empowering arts events or sharing how artists overcome adversity, she understands the power of connection and shares that talent. We talk about her latest album "Home With You," the various events she produces, how she promotes her events, balancing fans and haters, and how involvement in her local arts community has made the difference in building her fan base.

Singer songwriter Chris Avetta joins me for a conversation about stage fright and perspective. We also discuss her new single "Forest for the Trees," her upcoming performance at Lady Brain Fest, what is (and isn't) working in the business of her music, injecting humor into live performances, a self-proclaimed unhealthy obsession with Harry Potter, and more. Hear a clip from Chris' new single in this episode.

Kid Andersen has so much going on these days including having landed among the ranks of master class presenters for TrueFire TV, the release of new recordings for the Little Village Foundation, and a new album that’s in the works. The episode begins with Kid’s recent work for TrueFire TV, and continues with how he helps singers advance their skills (and improves his own skills in the process), being intentional with creating your sound, Kid’s thoughts on record labels, and more.

Lindsay White and a musicians community called the Lady Brain Collective are supporting one another through teaching, knowledge sharing, and collaboration. This is a return appearance by Lindsay. We begin by getting an update on her current projects, and go on to discuss the growth of the Lady Brain musician community, Lady Brain Fest 2019, the balancing of her life and career, tips for Patreon community engagement, gratitude journaling, saying "no," and more.

Staying creative and nurturing a music community is part of life on the road for Crystal and Pete Damore of Ordinary Elephant. This is their second appearance on the podcast, which was a great opportunity to talk about their recent Kickstarter campaign, their new album Honest. Episode highlights include the evolution of their life on the road, development of the upcoming Ordinary Elephant tour, how Crystal and Pete avoid periods of writer’s block, how to build a community around your music, and more.

Singer songwriter Tom Meny knows a thing or two about facing rejection and staying creative. In this repeat engagement for the podcast, Tom and I chat about this, his forthcoming Singer Songwriter with Tom Meny podcast, high and low tech email marketing tips, increasing revenue at live events, musician life with versus without a day job, and much more.

One the best ways to get good musician gigs is by building good relationships. The primary theme of this episode is relationships. This is the second installment and re-release of The Unstarving Musician’s Guide to Getting Paid Gigs. This episode is dedicated to chapters three and four, which are among the first few podcast episodes I ever recorded. I also share a big announcement. If you need a little help and guidance moving the proverbial needle in your musician journey, tune in!

This episode is a two chapter reading of The Unstarving Musician’s Guide to Getting Paid Gigs. These chapters were the first two podcast episodes I ever recorded. Also in this episode, I respond to listener emails that discuss finding the right musicians to work with, teaching music for the right reasons, and one regular listeners take on the podcast. The book is based on my personal experience and time I’ve spent talking to other musicians. I wrote it to help other musicians get more of the gigs they w

Jason Davis loves helping music artists realize their dreams. He has founded several cutting edge entertainment companies including Radar Label Group (Jimmy Eat World, Plain White T’s, Neon Trees, The Unlikely Candidates), Awaken Records (Austin French), One One 7, Care For Kids, is the Co-President/Partner of Higher Level Booking Agency, and is an artist manager with First Company Management. Jason began his music career as a songwriter, but has become a serial entrepreneur and manager of major artists.

Glass Hamlet loves the songwriting aspect of music. His big challenge has been finding a community of fellow musicians and music industry mentors. Glass is a native of Moscow, Russia. In the late 90’s he moved to New York where be began an education in design and the arts. He’s applied his education and creativity to the professional worlds of fashion, acting, modeling, photography, and now songwriting. My conversation with this emerging rap artist explores all of this and more.

Daniel Stidham of Raid the Quarry chats with me about album release strategy. His band just released their first full album, Temporary Cemetery. The conversation begins with Daniel's thoughts on the album launch. We also touch on strategies for releasing a full album vs. an EP, how Raid the Quarry members collaborate to create songs, developing confidence in your own work, while being open to feedback, the business of making money as a band, strategic planning for expanding their audience, and more.

Nashville based singer songwriter Notelle recently made the move from collaborator to solo artist. She’s known for heavy messy pop with an electronic edge. In our conversation for this episode, Notelle is forthcoming with lessons she’s learning and advice that has served her well. She’s also forthcoming about her insecurities. We discuss imposter syndrome, leveraging uniqueness, the importance of work ethic, preparedness, quality content, and more.

I had no idea how rewarding it would be to interview the music artists I've had on the Unstarving Musician podcast. I wanted to do something a little different for the 100th episode. A best-of compilation seemed a fitting way to celebrate. I chose to feature segments based on listener downloads and inspirational value. Featured in this episode are Mark Wenner, frontman of The Nighthawks, Modern Drummer Magazine's Mike Dawson, Singer Lisa Leuschner Andersen, David Barrett, blues harmonica educator.

Mark Addison is a big fan of DIY recording, a seasoned music producer, songwriter, and co-creator of the iconic Tips Concerts series of Austin Texas. Topics discussed in this episode include the history of Tips Concerts, why Mark loves DIY recording, how he goes about selecting his production work, his collaboration recording projects, the many skills needed to succeed as an independent musician, the one thing that makes Austin so unique, and more.

Co-creator of the Profitable Musician Summit, Bree Noble makes her third appearance on the podcast in this episode. She’s a singer songwriter and educator with focus is empowering musicians to take control of their careers. Now in its 2nd year, Bree’s Profitable Musician Summit is an online conference that happens April 22-May 1. We talk about the event, Bree’s new book, her podcasts, tracking finances as a musician, Spotify playlists, earning affiliate income, and more.