Arch Town

Well, Minneapolis came and went, even if I left a little early. I took my first week vacation on tour, and went home to see friends, family, did a little work as a vocal coach for TLC’s The Singing Office (coming this summer), and enjoyed the much needed warmth of Southern California.

I can safely say, that despite the cold in Minneapolis, a thoroughly enjoyed it! The downtown area is vibrant with commerce, people, energy, and... jeez, I sound like a promoter for the city. I missed some of the more suburban areas, but I did drive through a few times. The areas outside of downtown feel a bit like Melrose Ave in Los Angeles, where you can really walk and be somewhere. If you’re walking most places in LA, you’re not really anywhere, but in a chasm between one place and another.

There are a few moments that stick out in my mind:

Nathan, Matt, and I went to “Fogo De Chao”, a Brazilian BBQ restaurant, which is like a reverse gourmet buffet. Instead of you going to the food, the food comes to you. We had a great time, and a great meal. And I think the phrase “hit a wall” comes to mind in the amount that we ate. I feel a bit guilty.

A group of us sang The National Anthem at the Twins Home Opener against (my pseudo-team) The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Yeah, don’t get me started on the name... it’s a hot button issue in Southern Cali. We sounded great, the arrangement was great, and afterward, enjoyed a mild, lukewarm baseball game (not a lot of drama, not the best pitching, etc, etc). But we had a suite, and that, my friends, makes all the difference.

I got to hang out with the casts of Drowsy Chaperone and High School Musical, and learn how their experience is different from ours. And of course, we talked about business and the like. So whatever. I made some new friends.

The Mall of America is big, but a mall none-the-less. I did it. End of story. Sadly, I did not get to ride a roller coaster. The one I wanted to ride was broken.

Rock Like A Man was phenomenal! We sold over 200 tickets pre-sale, and had a full house the night of the show. Everyone was so fantastic, and it was a great release for us, as musicians and performers. It was just a night of us doing what we love, and sharing ourselves with the audience. I sang “Spirit of Radio” by Rush. When I first presented it to the band, and I’ll be honest, they sounded a bit intimidated. But at the performance, they were flawless! I, however, was not. In the beginning of the number, I was trying to feel the music and do my “rock” moves. However, I got a little to crazy, and the microphone came out of the stand! Trying to recover, I grabbed the mic cable, and tried to flip it up, Roger Daltrey style. That failed as well, as the mic came out from the cable! Thankfully, I was able to recover quickly, and regained my composure before the vocals started. I yelled the song a bit that night, but for me, RLAM wasn’t about sounding perfect. It was about having fun. And man, did we have fun. Overall, we raised over $11,000!

Aaaaaand, I got to play Frankie again! I love playing the role, and I had so much fun. My confidence was up, my voice felt good, and found myself feeling grounded in the role. I can’t tell you how much of a pleasure it is to work with the guys up there, and share the story with the audience.

So, I am actually writing this from my airplane seat, on my way to St. Louis. Who knows what Missouri will hold for us. My dad says it’s a great place, but I hope that holds true without having a car! All I can say is this: the forecast for tomorrow is sunny and 75 degrees. Hooray!