If you’re a new parent or just behind on Mothers Day and haven’t sorted out a gift for the mama in your life I have you covered with some amazing gifts for music loving moms.  Some of these are instant gifts and others will depend on your delivery times. There’s even one that’s custom made by yours truly. Check them all out below. Vinyl Of The Month Club     How fun is this? Get them a subscription to this Vinyl Of The Month club and they will get a new must-have vinyl every month. If anyone wants to send this my way I would love it!! ha! My Album, Moth To The Flame&n ..read more

Happy Earth Day!! Y'all know I love nature and try to make small choices every day to lower my impact on the planet. This hit even closer to home these days. As a new mom I want my daughter to be able to appreciate all the beauty of mother nature. From the Great Barrier Reef to the Rainforests of Brazil…  Here I am enjoying these beautiful trees in Kauai with the little peanut in my belly about a year ago :) It may feel like the little things you do don't really make a difference but I truly believe that if enough of us make small changes they do add up. Plus, putting our money towards p ..read more

Wow you guys. What a great discussion about what I shared last week on the blog. The comments on Facebook here were really interesting... I was going to respond all at once but ended up responding individually and wanted to share it here too.  There’s a lot of food for thought in the comments about alternate streaming models, discretionary income spending and just the general overall perceived value of music and musicians as well as lots of support for music and musicians.  I personally feel better just having that dialogue and conversation. I think people realize that the system is ..read more

Learning new songs is a great way to learn music. You can dig into the songwriting and can appreciate the lyrics, form and all parts of songwriting at a deeper level. You also are often learning new chords, strumming patterns and techniques and the whole time you’re working at getting those new tools under your belt you’re gaining a new piece of rep you love.  Here are the steps I take and some of the techniques and things I’ve done to learn a new song going all the way back to my first violin and piano lessons, my opera studies in college and even now as a full time singer/songwriter. Wh ..read more

One of the perks of being a musician is hearing so much new music and becoming friends with so many of the artists who’s music I love. The relationships provide an even deeper understanding and appreciation for their songs and work.  I wanted to share some of the music I love today... My good friend, Nathan McEuen has been inspiring me with his music for years. You’ve probably noticed us touring together, him being a part of my band and sharing one of his own songs when I opened for Bon Jovi or seen one of my favorite videos, us singing his song “Lately.”  I’m always drawn to heartf ..read more

Since today is National Pet Day today I wanted to share a little love to my two feline friends and shout out some of the amazing pets I get to love on when I’m on the road.  Often I miss my cats when I’m touring but I get to meet lots of lovable furry and feathered family members to make up for it. My brood is usually camped out on top of or inside my gear – I would like to think it’s because they love me so much that they don’t want me to leave but I think they just like to be higher up on things and try out new textures they can’t normally get into or onto.  Here’s some photos ..read more

One of the first tools I picked up for my musicians arsenal was a capo for my guitar. If you’re just starting to play you may have seen other people using them but not known what they are or what they do.  Capos clamp down across the fretboard to essentially shorten the length of the open string available to resonate when strummed or plucked.  Essentially they allow you to change the key of a song while still maintaining the same chord shapes.  Many manufactures make different styles that clamp down, maintain pressure with a spring or wrap around your fretboard.  For most o ..read more

As a singer and touring musician I have collected a bunch of tips for staying healthy on the road even when you’re not getting sleep or eating the healthiest.  Here are my top 7 tips for fighting off colds  1. Gargle with warm salt water You can do this before you go to sleep, when you wake up and if you feel a cold coming on you can do it throughout the day. If you’re traveling, bring some little salt packets with you – you can even steal them from your favorite fast food spot. But you’re not eating fast food right because you’re being healthy right? :)  This will ease a sore t ..read more

I first had the idea for this video a while back.     The concept was simple, I wanted to make you ask yourself who wake up next to every day... who you invite into your bed.     I had realized how obsessively I checked my iPhone and computer – often first upon waking up and last thing before going to sleep – even in the bathroom (don’t judge, you know you do it too! And, on it I was constantly being bombarded with messages and information but no time to digest what I had read, watched and learned before being bombarded with the next message.     I ..read more

Last week marked the anniversary of my first arena show opening for Bon Jovi. ...my Bonjovirsary. ?   I’ve been reflecting about the whole experience. I had such an impact on me that I’m not sure I’ll be able to put it all into words but I want to describe at least some of what happened and what I felt through the whole experience.  I applied to the contest to open for him for what I believe was my 3rd time. I’m a big believer in not giving up and just going for things. Most things I’ve done in life have come about because I was persistent.  The Bon Jovi team ..read more