Bel Session presents The Lonely Biscuits, performing “Butter.”

Ms. Doolittle says she was tone deaf as a child, allowed to stay in choir because they loved her dynamism and happy face, but asked to lip synch. But some time later, after a few months of dedicated practice and “lots of praying,” Doolitle suddenly discovered she had a beautiful voice. At Belmont University she became a background vocalist, and was determined to be what she called a “first call vocalist” (the first person that gets a call anytime backgrounds were needed). As students listened attentively, Doolittle told about her journey from being tone-deaf to American Idol famous, to all the exciting adventures she has had post-Idol. Her newest venture will be acting in Cinderella with the Nashville Symphony on April 15th in association with Steven Curtis Chapman’s Hope Foundation.

The curious crowd was able to tweet questions to ask Doolittle, and she patiently and happily answered each one. When asked what her best advice was for students today, she said it was threefold: one, to learn all parts of the industry from performance to publishing and contracts, two, to take hold of every possible chance for music experience available, and three, to always be kind to your fellow classmates. Doolittle’s entire band is made of Belmont alumni, and she says many of the industry people she works with are from Belmont, as well. “The people you meet in school now are the people you’ll be working with in the future. Be kind. Be very kind,” she reminded students. After the hour, as students filed out into the Wednesday morning sunshine, the inspired looks on their faces seemed determined to do just that.

Nashville songwriters Matt Wertz, Dave Barnes and Gabe Dixon conversed freely about their musical careers to audience of attentive Belmont students at the Quonset Hut last Tuesday evening. Drew Ramsey moderated the discussion, inquiring about the events that encouraged the songwriter’s to proceed musically. Gabe, Matt and Dave rounded the session out with a few songs, displaying the raw product of their diligence, talents, and as Barnes calls it “God’s handy work.”

Al Kooper, a hugely influential musician, songwriter, and producer of the 20th century, paid a visit to Belmont University’s Quonset Hut to share his wildly, rich life story. Although Kooper boasts incredible credentials from his fifty-year music career, he is most famous for his work with the legendary singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. Belmont Professor Mark Maxwell, who is currently teaching a class on the history and influence of Bob Dylan in the music industry, moderated the discussion. The Quonset was packed full of attentive students and faculty- Kooper’s old buddy Mark Volman even showed up to cheer him on.

Kooper toured with Dylan for many years and played organ on his “Like a Rolling Stone” and Blonde on Blonde album. Kooper has also played on a plethora of works for artists like The Rolling Stones, George Harrison, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Peter Paul & Mary, BB King, Tom Petty, and Trisha Yearwood. In addition, he discovered Lynyrd Skynyrd and produced other artists such as Ray Charles.

Kooper had a seasoned appearance and told concise, potent stories with a husky tone. What an honor it was to spend time with Mr. Kooper, a true legend.

At the Country Showcase, Tristen Smith, known as “Tristen T-Bone Smith” by fans, told the audience he was going to close them out with a good show. He was the last performer, and the three performers before him had been wonderful.

Matt Enik opened the show well with his fun, upbeat style of country. His opening original song, It’s Natural, was his strongest.

Kaileigh Bullard brought some sweet southern femininity with a bright smile and swirling skirt.  Her strongest suit was her violin playing, especially on display with her version of The Devil Went Down to Georgia.

Nate Montgomery gave us a little old time country by using the intro and first verse of Luckenbach, Texas. He has the lowest and grittiest voice of the four, a little less pop country then the others.

All three acts were excellent, so could they have saved the best for last? Tristen Smith, only nineteen years old, gave the performance of a seasoned touring artist. He was fun, relaxed, and made use of the spacious stage. He has a perfect voice for popular country, and was a superb guitarist as well. Judging by the audience’s cheers, it was no surprise that the judges quickly announced Tristen the winner. We’re looking forward to more from this talented country singer, and we’re sure this is only the beginning!

Ben Cooper & Gordon Kennedy made their annual visit to Belmont University on Wednesday to share a few songs and stories, and to reassure the students that as Belmont Grads, they’re doing just fine.

Cooper and Kennedy showcased several co-written songs written for Ricky Skaggs, both released and unreleased. They told the story of their unlikely collaboration with Skaggs, which entailed a genre jump on Skaggs’ part- from the traditional bluegrass over to the Beatles like appeal that Cooper and Kennedy were putting out. “We write songs that we believe in. If we would have tried to write songs for Skaggs we would have missed the boat entirely” says Kennedy.

Cooper shared a bit about a new endeavor of his wife and Songbird Camp [www.songbirdcamp.com] – “a retreat where songwriters come together outside of life’s distractions to collaborate, create and rejuvenate in a holistic environment geared toward the creative potential of each writer.” In its second year, Songbird Camp takes thirty songwriters to Deer Run Retreat for a weekend to promote the ‘understanding of not only how to write unique and authentic songs but also how to creatively monetize their art in and beyond the traditional model.”

With guests like Gordon Kennedy and Matt Wertz lending their talent to aspiring songwriters, Songbird Camp sounds is the ideal opportunity for students to get outside and integrate themselves in the world and craft of successful songwriters.

Stay tuned to the release of Ricky Skaggs’ next album, it’ll showcase the craft of Cooper and Kennedy, and more importantly, display the potential of Belmont bred talent.

Students of the Mike Curb College of Entertainment & Music Business at Belmont University received a full serving of tales and talents from the wonderful world of radio promotions last Monday evening. The Radio Promotions team from Black River Entertainment, moderated by Belmont’s own Rush Hicks, revealed the mobile, exciting, and persistent nature of the business.

Black River Entertainment’s Radio Promotion Team is made up of: Rick Baumgartner the VP of Promotion,  Joe Carroll the Director of Promotion for the midwest,  Brian Rhoades the Director of Promotions in the North East, Megan Good the Director of Promotions in the Southeast, Bill Lubitz, the West Coast Director of Promotions and Rachael Wollstadt, the Office Manager a.k.a Most Valuable Player. All members have a diverse, yet hearty background in promotions of some form.

The team describes themselves as “warriors on the road” in which they often compete against thirty plus other promoters who attain the same motive: to get radio stations to play their songs. “Its a relationship market” says VP of Promotion, Rick Baumgartner. “Building relationships is the only way you can get a song played.”

“Billboard charts and Media Base are the main ways that we track our progress as promoters” says Brian Rhoades, Director of Promotions in the Northeast. Nashville based Office Manager, Rachael Wollstadt checks the charts every morning to see how many spins their artists are getting, then calls the team and fills them in on whether their ‘road warrior’ tactics are prevailing or not.

“This is not an easy job” says VP of Promotions Rick Baumgartner. Although the reward of artist exposure that Black River Entertainment pursues is often a rare arrival, the team is high in spirits. The promotion team, in their entirety, has the dynamics of a rowdy sports team who celebrate the joy of playing the game rather then sulking in the results.

It’s that time of year again! It is time for some Bruin Baseball.  On this year’s team, you may not recognize a few of the players.  Well, that is because the Bruins have added 10 freshmen to the team, which seems to be the hot subject for Belmont Baseball this year. Head coach Dave Jarvis shows excitement for this large group of freshmen, saying, “They have an outstanding talent level that gives us a tremendous amount of potential for our future.” When asked if he had any worries about having such a young team, he responded by saying, “I understand that we’re going to go through growing pains this spring,” but Jarvis does not seem to be too worried about this large and talented group of freshmen.

I had the opportunity to interview one of these prized freshmen, Jamie Ritchie, to get an idea of a freshman’s view on not only this season, but also on Belmont baseball as a whole.  Playing for a Division I Baseball team is a honor.  Knowing this, Ritchie shows excitement in having the chance to play on such a great team, yet he remains slightly nervous, just as the other nine freshmen probably are, due to the higher pressure and intensity of playing at Belmont compared to a high school team.  The new players feel this pressure even in practice as they strive to seek the approval of the coaches, and hopefully get the position they desire.

Even though the freshmen are the talk of the team, Jarvis is very impressed with the team as a whole.  “As far as character and leadership,” says Jarvis, “I am very pleased with what I have seen from this team so far and I think it is very comparable to some of the best teams that we’ve had in the past here at Belmont.”  Jarvis is proud of the team, and is very excited about what the season has in store.

In preparation for the season, practice has increased its intensity, and Junior Josh Davis feels the team is “steadily improving.”  Due to the season starting up, the team has been focusing more on baseball’s details, like bunt coverage, rather than the basics that were extensively worked on in the fall, which were mostly for the coaches to get a better feel for the new players and the team as a whole.  The main strength of the team, according to Davis, is the team’s intensity, which is a huge characteristic for any sports team to have.  Pitching will also play a vital role in this year’s season, as heard from both Davis and Ritchie.  With such a young team, the lack of experience can be viewed as a weakness, but having the first 13 games at the home field of Rose Park should help out the new players by not just playing where they practice and are comfortable, but also by having Belmont fans there to cheer them on from the stands.

In this year’s schedule, the team will not only be facing the familiar opponents, but also teams never faced before.  Jarvis, excited about the schedule, says “I think it is going to be a very challenging schedule… but I also feel like it is a schedule that is going to do very well as far as preparing us for our Atlantic Sun Conference.”  The Bruins will be starting off the season at Rose Park today, February 17th, at 4:00 against Evansville in the Music City Classic.  Also to be played this weekend are Kansas, Saturday at 2:00, and St. Louis, Sunday at 1:00.  “They are very solid and fundamentally sound teams,” says Jarvis about the teams to be played this weekend, “so this weekend will be a good measuring stick for us as far as what we’re going to see in our competition this season.”

Come out and support your Belmont Bruins as they kick off the season with the Music City Classic this weekend!

February 3rd was both the online release of Garrett Hinson’s debut album, “Hollowbody”, and his debut performance at The Listening Room with his backup band, The Side Cars. Over the hour set, Garrett and the Side Cars played fourteen tunes consisting of both originals from his new record as well as covers.

Right off the bat, Garrett and The Side Cars showed their talent and musicianship with an old original tune, “Be a Rock”. Garrett’s vocals were dead on and remained constant throughout the entire show, belting his heart out and hitting each note on guitar flawlessly.

Garrett clearly has a natural gift for music and a knack for being on stage. The audience loved every minute of his performance, and reacted positively with applause following each song, especially after crowd favorites: “Among the Weeds”, “Lovers, Suitors, Outlaws”, and “Bread and Water”.

He kept the crowd entertained between songs with his sense of humor, and had the room roaring when he referenced his youtube video for “Lovers, Suitors, Outlaws”, and the whopping 78 views it currently has.

Katey Alegre of The Side Cars had a chance to sing as well, during their cover of “To Make You Feel My Love”, and Tim Edwards caught the audience’s attention during his guitar solo in “Sight-Seeing Blues”. Alex Jones kept a steady rhythm on bass guitar, and Bo Kitzman’s steady tempo on the drums was able to keep the band tight and together in the pocket throughout the entire night.

Garrett and The Side Cars’ set flew by without a dull moment. They will be playing next at the Curb Cafe on March 1st, so don’t miss your chance to see an inspiring  performance.

Garrett Hinson’s debut album, Hollowbody, is now available on iTunes here:

http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/hollowbody/id497597196

You can also listen to the singles, “Among the Weeds” and “Lovers, Suitors, Outlaws” from Hollowbody on Youtube here:

Among the Weeds: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLm004R_CiY
Lovers, Suitors, Outlaws: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qedMYZJ6-bk

Monday Evening, Rascal Flatts’ tour manager Mike McGrath stopped by Belmont University to reveal the duties, thrills, and enjoyment of his job. Presented by the Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business, the seminar provided some very relevant, first-hand insight into the highly sought after professional world of tour support.

McGrath moved from southern California in which he worked in the computer/technology industry to Nashville in 1986 and was ushered into the position as a tour manager by his brother. After he gained some traction, McGrath was hired as a tour manager for The Judds due to his proficiency with computers- which at the time was proving to be an essential tool for the management of large-scale tours. Today, Mike’s knack for computing has lead him to double as the tour accountant for Rascal Flats.

McGrath’s current tour management position with Rascal Flatts includes the orchestration of over seventy shows a year,  eleven trucks, eleven buses, a crew of over a hundred hands and a sneaky fan club who “seem to always find ways of spending more time with the artists.”

“It is one of the only jobs where you get out of bed and your instantly at work” Mike says. McGrath rises at nine and is on the job as soon as he rolls out of his bunk. His first question of the day might include “where are the good showers at?” The crew of over a hundred all have to shower at the venue, so by the time McGrath rises, it is sure that the early rising production crew has discovered the best amenities.

McGrath tells many stories during the hour which included both good and bad endings during his time on the road with Reba, the Judds, and Tim McGraw. He also shared some valuable touring wisdom: “Never overdue security it draws attention… always put the privacy dividers up in limos- limo drivers are notorious for leaking gossip to the tabloids.”

McGrath, who was recently inducted into the Martial Arts Masters Hall of Fame and is a state-licensed armed security guard puts much emphasis on the security and safety of his artists while on the road. He aims to educate everyone on the touring staff about self defense and makes sure to delegate local police and security at every show.

Addressing the Belmont student audience McGrath states, “What you do works here. We’ve had six Belmont grads on tour with us.” McGrath patiently answers questions and greets students afterwards, and then gets back to work; planning for his departure to Jacksonville in the morning.