For those of you that don’t know about this idea, it’s basically a structured comment where you lead with a positive, follow with something that needs to be improved, and end with something positive. I know, it’s so standard right, but it works doesn’t it? If I tell you that you’re a beautiful person, say you have oddly shaped feet, and then end with how much I like your haircut, the hope is that you’ll only remember the positive things and forget that I insulted your feet. But it also leaves you wondering if you can do something about those horrible feet you have without hurting your feelings :)

In practice last week I realized that I was using this technique on myself, and it was actually working, even though I knew I was doing it. Basically I would start practice with warmups, pushing new tempos. Then I would go into some hand foot combinations that I already knew how to do. But from there I started pushing into areas that I’m weak, like left hand lead stuff, sight reading, Latin and Jazz grooves that are extremely difficult. Just when my confidence was in the gutter (aka, I was improving on playing), I switched gears and played some songs that I already knew how to play. Rinse. Wash. Repeat.

This is a SUPER effective way to practice drums. I mean SUPER effective, and I bet it would be effective in anything you’re trying to learn or that you’re working on at your job, in life in general, this idea can be applied. The idea here is the mask your growth phase in between things you’re already good at doing. It really honestly works so well. I have major growth as a musician each practice, but at the end I don’t feel horrible about myself, cause I ended doing something I was good at.

I know, it’s cheesy. Try it though. See how it works for you. Try it at the gym, at your office, with your family. Trust me, if you want to see results you have to go through the middle part of this sandwich, but that’s the good stuff!! Surround that with positive energy and watch yourself sky rocket!!

The truth about networking and the music business is that there is no formula, there is no way to know what one person is looking for as opposed to another, it’s a game of educated guessing. But hey, you have to start somewhere, so let me give you guys a few building blocks from my experiences and you can take them and apply them to your own situations.

1) Network with the Right People

Make sure that you’re networking with the right types of people for the gigs that you’re looking for. If you want to play Country music, don’t network in the CCM market all the time. That’s okay too, but make sure you’re hitting your target most of the time aiming for folks that know about the markets that you’re trying to get into. Also – I’ve found that though I love spending time with other drummers, they are not typically the best source for gigs. I know for me, I don’t want to give away any of the money that pays my mortgage, and neither do the big time musicians in Nashville. So you have to be careful with this one, hanging out and talking music is awesome, but trying to get them to help you find a gig is usually not going to happen. Sometimes I do look for fill-ins for gigs, but it’s extremely rare that it happens, so you’re better off networking with guys who play something you don’t play if you’re looking to get a gig out of it.

2) Be Persistent – Don’t be Annoying

Persistence and Annoyance are a very fine line, one that I know I skate a lot of times. I skate the line a lot with producers in Nashville. I want them to remember my name, know who I am, etc, but I never want to be annoying to them. I realize that they want to work with guys that they enjoy being around, so being annoying is a quick way to get out of their address book, but then again, if I’m too quiet nobody knows that I’m in town looking to play sessions. I’ve found that you do have to reach out to people that you may or may not know sometimes, but you have to do it in a very humble way. Tell them who you are, tell them what you’re doing, tell them who you’ve worked with without name dropping, and just try to approach it in a way that says I’m here if you need me.

3) Natural is always better

This is very much related to the point made above. The best relationships that I have with producers, players, engineers have all come from natural meetings. Like – I was doing a session – they were on the same session. Or we played a bar or church gig together in town and we got along really well. It’s not the typical cold call, email, or Facebook message that tends to get me the contacts, it’s usually taking the gig that pays very little for 2 hours that I wanted to turn down that I chose to take, that manage to get me the best contacts. So keep your eyes and ears open, take everything that you get asked to do. Never turn down a gig because if you’re smart you can use even the worst gigs to make some of the best contacts that you have. And guess what, when they get a call, they’ll be thinking of you.

4) Action after Response

Once you do make a valuable contact, a big next step is to respond. So say I’ve been trying for months to meet up with this producer named Brent. Brent finally emails me saying that he can grab coffee with me on Monday at 10am at starbucks. This is not where you say, oh can you do 10:30, or I hate Starbucks, let’s go to wherever else. This is the time to just say yes. Rearrange your day if you have to but don’t give him any reason to change his mind about hanging out with you, because again, this could be huge and you’ve worked so hard to get them to contact you. Count your blessings and make it happen as best as you can.

5) Attitude Wins

The final point is the biggest. Have a great attitude in emails, phone calls, facebook, twitter. Be careful not to be negative in general because that’s a sure fire way to lose contacts. Negativity is a disease in this industry, and the diseases is widespread -  be part of the solution for this anytime you can. This will make a positive impression on your new friend and make them want to work with you instead of just hanging out. Trust me, from experience, I’ve turned down work before because I couldn’t stand the attitudes of the other guys on the gig, and I’m new to all of this, so just imagine if you were around thousands of folks for 30 years, you’d be the same way! So keep it up, keep it positive, happy. Make a great and lasting impression.

I was recently asked in a little interview that I was doing for my college what I was doing 10 years ago. As I was reminiscing about where I’ve come from as a musician it really reminded me of where I’ve been, and how important that’s been to my career development. 10 years ago I was playing for a rocking band in Westminster, MD called Kill Patrick. Kill Patrick was a four piece band. Steve Boughan on bass and Vocals, Steve Bohli on bass and vocals, Eric Thomas on guitars, and me on drums. 10 years ago we were rocking bars in MD. I was ambitious to be different musically from everyone else, and the dream was to be in a signed band. I loved Primus, Tool, Incubus, and a slew of hard rock bands, country music wasn’t even on my radar.

I remember not having a clue what getting signed meant. Not really knowing all the things that I know about the music industry now. It was about making music with my friends. Sometimes I long for those days where music was just about music again. Where it wasn’t a business, where I could just drum and be done with it. But then – I think I would miss all of the fun industry things that I’m learning along the way at this time in my career.

Thought maybe you guys would enjoy a little tune by the old Kill Patrick called “Push the Flux”. I truly love these guys and hope that one day I can sit in with them again! Cheers to making music for the sake of making music!  www.killpatrickmusic.com

Here is me playing with Kill Patrick at a battle of the bands many moons ago. Crazy how different things are these days :)

Click here to view the embedded video.

To quote Bob Wiley in the movie “What About Bob?” – “the simplest way to put it… I have problems.” haha. I laugh every single time that I think about that movie, but in some really strange way I can completely relate to the character Bob in that movie. No – I’m not afraid of getting diseases in public – but the reality is that we all have fears, some of which are quite simple to conquer, others can be crippling and can stop us from doing the things that we have been given the talents to do.

I think many of you would be shocked to know that I have a crippling fear of being on the tour bus. Sometimes I lay in my bus at night and shake, sweat, try to catch my breath. Sometimes I have to hide in the back lounge playing video games, not because I love video games, but because it helps take away the fear. So imagine being in this situation. You’ve worked your entire life to become a great musician, you’ve worked through crazy situations, and you’ve managed to build a career in an industry that can be terribly difficult, and while the world thinks I’ve reached some conquering cliff in your life, you’re actually terrified of the doors that have opened

The Confession

I’ve had problems with my stomach since I was a little kid. I can remember having issues in the car all the time, getting car sick, or just needing to stop to use the bathroom several times on a 45 minute trip. What I thought were distant memories of something in my childhood are actually roots to a problem that has been crippling me for years, and could destroy the very gift that God has given me, to play drums, on tour. Having stomach issues are part of the problem, the other part is that I have emotional damage attached to those issues that have compounded over the years, and little things can add up to be big things if you don’t catch them in time.

The reality of touring is that it isn’t always glamourous, I love the fact that I have the privilege of riding in a multi-million dollar tour bus, but just imagine finding $10,000,000 in cash but paper burns your hands, that’s kinda how it feels. Tour buses don’t have functional bathrooms, and without going into details, you get sick on a 10 hour bus ride – it can be not only physically miserable, but it can be emotionally damaging as well, embarrassing, humiliating, etc. It just plain sucks sometimes. But with me it’s not a matter of “if” it will happen, more when and how bad.

What’s the Deal?

So – here is the deal. This is not a woe is me post, there is a point and I promise I’m getting there. I’ve been struggling with this for years. I’ve had times where I’ve loved touring on the bus, and I’ve had nights where I’ve cried myself to sleep in my bunk. So you may ask, why do you do it? Well there are several reasons.

For starters, I love the fans, I love being able to share my talents with people, I love moving people with music on a big stage, the energy, the power that music can have on people’s lives, and I believe that God can use that to allow me to help inspire people. So it’s not just about me, though I do LOVE playing my drums. Secondly – I love the people that I tour with. Lauren is an amazing artist, every player, crew person, and manager that is on this team are fantastic, not only at their positions, but as human beings. I truly love these people. So that is another huge reason why I am out here still. Finally, it boils down to passion, I’m more passionate about my passion than I am afraid of my fears. It’s really funny and ironic if you think about it, one of the biggest joys in my life is also my greatest fear. Wonder if that was planned on purpose? Why would I ever face this fear without the temptation of something that I love so much like drumming?

Be Encouraged!

So what’s the point of all of this? It’s about asking you what are you afraid of? What is it in your life that you won’t do because you are afraid. Maybe you’re an amazing singer with stage fright? Maybe you’ve been in love with someone for years but you’re scared to tell them because what if they don’t feel the same? Cancer? Death? What scares you?  How does that fear effect your life? Are you letting that fear destroy opportunities for you? Because if you are – I’m here to tell you to QUIT NOW – in the end though it can be tough dealing with these fears in our paths, if you don’t deal with them you could miss out on your dream gig like I almost did. You could miss out on the thing that you’ve been waiting for just because you weren’t willing to take the shot based on fear. Rational or Irrational, fear is fear, we need to all join together to help each other beat these things!

I’m still working through these issues. I appreciate friendly prayers, but just know, I’m praying for you guys that you won’t allow things to get in your way, and as I continue to pursue this career looking for grace around every corner, just know that it didn’t come easy for me, and it may not come easy for you, but sometimes the hardest roads are the ones that are most rewarding to travel. Chase your dreams without relenting. Never quit even when the odds are stacked against you, this is how you will find out who you really are.

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Without sounding like Chris Farley doing a motivational speech about a van, you really CAN do whatever you choose to do, if you have a plan, the tools, and the desire to execute the plan that you have. Here’s my deal, I believe that the plans I come with in my life are from God, but even if you don’t believe that, say you think it’s just chance, well chance is just chance, unless you have a plan. Truthfully some of my best laid plans end up not working, and that is usually in God’s plan, but what I learn along the way of those “failures” are usually the things that land me the best things I’ve ever gotten in my life. My wife is a perfect example of that… I had to be a failure at many relationships before I got it right, and when I got it right, it’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. So now I’m thankful for those times when I wasn’t successful.

The same holds true in my music career. People have this funny perspective that I’ve come out of nowhere, that one day I was hanging out at home hoping that I’d get a big gig, and then magically it just happened. If you could hear me laughing right now. I practice 3-5 hours a day, I still do that, I even practice on tour, all the time.  I’ve worked, marketed, setup meetings, begged, and even groveled a little bit to get even to this level, but it is far from over for me, and it’s far from over for you too I’d bet.

So my point, it’s so easy to focus on the things you can’t do. For the last few weeks I’ve been focusing really hard on that fact that I “can’t” practice as much on tour… what does that do? That causes me to lose confidence, microscope my playing, get down on myself, and feel fearful. In my mind that’s God losing the battle for our confidence in Him, and in ourselves. We are listening to lies, and we’re buying into them. We give over to the can’t voices, and then we’re not accomplishing anything.

So – a few days ago something shifted. I started thinking about what I could do on the road. Well I have a practice pad, so I focus my time on honing in my abilities with really advanced hand techniques, focus on timing, and focus on showmanship things like stick twirls and flips, etc. Is that as good as 4 hours on my kit, no it’s not, but when I’m on my kit 4 hours a day, I’m not doing those other smaller things, and they all add up. I also have been spending time working on ear training, charting, things that contribute to making myself a better musician overall, and a better person, and my attitude is much better towards myself because I’m focusing on the things that I “can” do right now!

So – what do you take away from all this craziness – well first of all – you don’t want to end up living in a van down by the river :) And you need to get rid of the “can’t” in your life. Start focusing on what you can do to improve your musicianship, your talents, your job, your family, your body, whatever you need work on. Forget the things that you can’t really change that want to smash your desires, and spend your time working on the things that are going to boost you and build you up. Avoid other negative people that are going to bring you down, find people who will build you up no matter what. Those are some building blocks to success as a drummer, musician, person, carpenter, doesn’t matter, you can apply this anywhere.

Be positive, find joy in your circumstances, and drop the word “can’t” from you vocabulary.

James 1:2 – “Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy.”

About Risen
Risen is a custom drum shop based out of Minneapolis, MN. They are a 100% custom drum shop in that you pick everything from the shells, sizes, hardware, colors, finishes, bearing edges, composition, pretty much anything to do with the drums, you have the option of choosing them. This has enabled me to get different configurations of different shells. As a studio player I like having options that sound unique and you can definitely get that from these drums. I have several Maple kits now and am working on Mahogany kits for tours next year.

Aside from being amazing craftsmen these guys stand by the belief of Christ Risen, and they work hard to have a company that honors God with their work, and that really makes it something special to me.

How I Found Them
I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting Keith Anderson – the owner – but we’ve become good friends through many phone conversations about drums in the past few years. Back when I was drumming on the road with 33Miles I had the opportunity to play a Risen kit in Houston, TX. The church that we were playing in had a custom maple kit from them. I remember it was a tan satin finish with wood hoops. About 10 minutes into playing the kit I literally wrote down on my charts at the time that I wanted to get an endorsement and play those drums for the rest of my career. So here we are a few years later, and the dream came true.

The Long Story
A few years ago my buddy JP who plays for Echoing Angels put me in touch with Keith over at Risen, a few conversations and a few months later I had my first kit. I’m being honest here, I’ve played a million drums being on the road for the last several years, very few kits have ever sounded as sweet as my Risen Kits do naturally. The drums really manage to speak on their own, they have their own voices, and require very little external processing to make them sound massive. Also they always look amazing, from the basic satin finishes all the way to the crazy sparkle stuff and their wicked wraps, every kit always has that certain look about it that screams, “hey you, of course I look amazing, but just wait until you hear me…” haha.

If you’re looking for drums for studio work, tour, church, or pretty much anything I’d highly recommend that you talk to Keith. If you are on a budget, even their used kits stand out in the market and they hold up super well, I’ve had my kit on the road for 4 years now and it’s in perfect shape, and it sounds better than ever.

Just wanted to take the time to tell you how much I love these guys. Hope you all will check them out and get a chance to enjoy them too. Though I’m a self-admitted gear head, I’ve learned over the years that your drums are your voice, and they allow you to express yourself. These drums have always pushed me to be more expressive and they provide such a powerful voice for the work that I do musically.

http://www.risendrums.com

Today we celebrate one of my best friend Emmett’s 32nd birthday and I have a mixed emotion of both sadness and joy. Sadness because I miss him so terribly bad. Joy because I have so many incredible memories of being his friend. I’m sitting in a hotel room up in Massachusetts preparing for a show tonight in a country bar with Lauren and band and I just keep remembering funny stories about times we had hanging out. I miss those times so badly.

I carry Emmett’s snare drum case with me everywhere, and you’ll rarely see me on the road without a Team Emmett bracelet on. In fact, Emmett’s case appeared with me holding up my computer on The Ellen Show. I loved that you could see Stallings in bright white up there,  and the wristband can be seen on my hand on all of the shows we’ve done, live and recorded. I know they are small simple things, but they remind me of how fortunate I was to know him, and I know he would be so proud of me if he was here, and that helps keep me going when I’m worn out and tired, just knowing that he’s smiling about all of it. I can’t wait to see him and talk again and tell him about all this, he’s going to love to hear it.

Today as I play and work and live life I just can’t help but thank God again for the gift that Emmett was and still is in my life. I love you buddy, Happy Birthday!

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This past week on the road with Lauren Alaina has been a whirlwind of radio promotion events, rehearsals, TV performances, airplanes, hotels, and new experiences for me. It started out heading out to Kansas to do an event with a radio station for 1,000 screaming high school kids. It was an acoustic show with a small band, but it was super tight, and a great performance.

Then we fly up to Baltimore with WPOC to help promote a Breast Cancer fundraiser day at Turf Valley. I laughed the whole time I was staying there because I actually went to my senior prom in the hotel. I could remember my date, dancing, the fear about life, what was I going to do, would I make it as a musician someday? We were literally down the hall from all those memories, except this time, I was living out the dream I’ve had for so many years now. The show was great. They raised about $7,000 for cancer research, I got to see some of my aunts and uncles, and my mom and dad. It was a blessed day for me.

From there, we flew up to NYC for several days. I had a day off and wandered the city with my new friends. The city has always been overwhelming to me, but I could remember being on Broadway and seeing shows with old friends back in high school. I remembered ice skating near central park one Christmas; and again, I found myself living out my dream that I had when I was there as a kid.

The next day we arrived on the set of Good Morning America; the sun was far from being up. My stomach was in knots, I was sweating and nervous. As soon as I got inside, it was an amazing feeling of excitement and nervousness. I got my drums ready to go – sitting behind my Risen Drums, with my Paiste Cymbals, Evans Heads, Vater sticks in my hands, I had immediate peace about the performance. We had a chance to sound check everything, ran through the song a few times, then we headed off to get make-up done. After make-up, I got dressed, put my in-ears on, and started to nervously warm up on my practice pad in the hallway. About 20 minutes passed and we got the call to head down to the set.

As I was watching them interview Lauren, I was overwhelmed with happiness, feeling like all the work, blood, sweat, tears, practice hours, charting, networking… it was finally starting to pay off in a huge way. When they signaled me to start the song, I stopped thinking, I just fell into my drumset, and let my body do the work instead of thinking about it. Zach (The Band Leader) smiled at me about halfway through the song, it was going so well, it was like a dream come true.

When we hit the final beat of the song, I was like, oh my gosh, I did it, I made it through my first real live TV performance, and it was actually pretty awesome. All I could think about was the call from my wife afterwards, how much she supports me, how much my family, friends, and teachers had all played such a huge part in this. Afterwards, I took a million pictures, waved to the crowd outside, talked to fans in the studio there, and then went out for a celebratory turkey club with french fries :) haha. It was the best sandwich ever…

So that was my first real run with Lauren. Pretty awesome stuff going on. Don’t forget to catch us on The Ellen Show this coming Friday Oct. 21st!!

Hey Friends,

I hope this finds you all doing well. I’m actually sitting in the hotel in New York City trying to prepare myself mentally for the next few days of playing for all of these T.V shows, I’m so excited that I can hardly sit still. Of course listening to music always manages to calm me down. A few days ago my good friend Paul Reter released his debut solo album called “Paper Dreams” – I played drums on a good bit of this record – but check it out for the songs more than anything, they are all really cool, different styles, different feels, but overall I love listening to this one, and I would love it even if I didn’t play on it :) So if you’re looking for something new to buy that’s breaking the mold a little bit, check it out!

If you guys are interested please check it out here: http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/paper-dreams/id470663346 Thanks everybody and I’ll look forward to seeing y’all tomorrow morning on Good Morning America with Lauren Alaina at 7am on ABC, or in New York City if you’re so inclined to stand outside that early in the morning. haha.

Be blessed!

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There is a really long story that goes along with this, if you want this version, please email me, but let me give you the short version. A few weeks ago, I was contacted by the band leader for Lauren Alaina, asking me if I was interested in playing drums for her. Lauren was the runner-up on this last season’s American Idol, and though I didn’t watch the season, I knew who she was from YouTube, and I jumped at the chance to work with her. She is in the process of releasing her debut country album called “Wildflower.” I was excited right away, so I went into rehearsals really hopeful and ready to rock some country music.

So we did a few full band rehearsals. The other players are fantastic. I won’t steal their thunder by posting their names, but I was in heaven working with these guys. Then Lauren came in to sing with us; she is an amazingly talented young woman, who has as cool of a personality as she does a voice, and it immediately clicked. She has so much experience already working with bands and working the stage, so it was a pleasure! So after working with everyone, meeting and working with Lauren, and a lot of prayer, I have decided that this is absolutely God’s will for me at this time in my life. So here comes the whirlwind. (Smiles).

Over the next several weeks, I will be making appearances with Lauren on national television shows. I will also be with her on a lot of her radio and promotional dates including a night at the famed Grand Ole Opry here in Nashville. She will be playing her upcoming new single “Georgia Peaches” on Good Morning America (Oct 11), Live! With Regis & Kelly (Oct 13); The Ellen Degeneres Show (Oct 21). For times, please see the Network’s websites and it should have your local listings.

I have also solidified artist endorsements with the following companies over the last several weeks. Some I’ve been with for a while now, but my deals are locked in tight and I am so excited for this. Risen Drums, Paiste Cymbals, Vater Drumsticks, and Evans Drumheads. This opportunity with Lauren is such a blessing and is already opening doors for me.

If you are interested in purchasing her record please check out her website at http://laurenalainaofficial.com

So I want to take this time to thank you all for your prayers, support, and love over the past several years of work that I’ve done to get to where I am at this moment. People think these opportunities happen over night, but they never see the sacrifice and work and prayer that it takes to get there. So I want to thank you all for being a part of this with me, and covering me in prayer as I’ve worked my way through this crazy town called Nashville. I appreciate all of you guys and I’m humbled and thankful for each of your friendships.

Be blessed, hope I see ya’ll out there with Lauren. Hope you’ll buy her record to support her, she deserves every bit of success she has already, and obviously, the more the merrier :) If you want to see our first acoustic show together you can view that here : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyREDpI3_WU&feature=related

Be Blessed,

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