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.

The Country Showcase live auditions were held January 28 in the Curb Cafe.  Eight country bands, including Go Home Gary, Matt Enoch, MacKenzie Leigh Wilson, Josh Mirenda, Kelly Tillotson, Nate Montgomery, Kaileigh Bullard, and Tristen Smith, were chosen to perform in front of peers and judges in order to determine who would play in the Country Showcase.  Shortly after the live auditions were completed, the judges came to a conclusion, selecting Matt Enoch, Nate Montgomery, Kaileigh Bullard, and Tristen Smith as the final four to play in the Country Showcase.

A crowd favorite not selected to perform in the Country Showcase was MacKenzie Leigh Wilson.  Wilson played her original Preacher’s Daughter, about a crazy preacher’s daughter, with a cover of Amazing Grace and I Saw the Light.  Wilson brought back the country gospel theme with her choice of cover songs, which the crowd enjoyed as they listened intently to Amazing Grace and clapped along to I Saw the Light.  Even though MacKenzie Leigh Wilson and her band will not be performing in the Country Showcase, you can find her singles “Butterflies”, “Cheating Love”, “She Plays You”, and “Tennessee” on iTunes.  She will also release her newer singles “Preacher’s Daughter” and “Every Little Piece of Me” in March.

The Country Showcase will take place February 11^th at 7pm in the Curb Events Center.

Charles Alexander, founder of Outside The Box Music consultancy and artist management, spoke at Belmont University this evening at a seminar presented by the Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business. Alexander, who doubles as a singer songwriter, was born in Malaysia and studied Bio Informatics in Rochester, New York- not your typical Nashville songwriting migrant.

“We now live in a time where if you’re going to be in the music business as an artist, the first people you want to be in touch with is your fan base, not the labels.” Alexander strongly encourages that aspiring artists or industry professionals establish a transparent relationship with their fans from the start.

“The number one thing that you must do if you want people to pay attention to you is figure out who you are and show them — once you present that, people will respond in ways you never expected.” Alexander enforces this statement with several stories about artists such as the Civil Wars and Striking Matches, who from the beginning, built their image independently, promoting themselves transparently as singer songwriter duos. “Artists often have a tough time being transparent with fans, they want to be cool and mysterious. Trust me, if no one knows who you are, there will be plenty of mystery.”

Alexander encourages students to adopt “a new mindset- to shift from music business participants or employees to active independent music entrepreneurs.” He explains to the audience that they must “figure out how you can take what you do in your art or work and approach it as an entrepreneur.” Alexander stayed after the seminar and answered questions. He was very willing to pour out his experiences to students, potentially saving time and trouble and enabling them to find what they do well and activate it as an entrepreneur.

Last Friday, the Curb College presented the first Entertainment Entrepreneurship Seminar of the year ,featuring alum and founder of Rabbit Hole Creative, Jake Jorgovan. Director of the Center for Entrepreneurship, Dr. Jeff Cornwall moderated the seminar, using well pointed questions to reveal the strategies Jorgovan used create a job for himself, to be his own employer- every aspiring entrepreneur’s dream.

Rabbit Hole Creatve was first conceived in the 15 year old Jorgovan’s basement in the form of a home studio. Today, the business designs and implements the supporting visual content for tours, cooperate events and functions for clients such as Paramore, Mutemath, and Dolly Parton. Every employee at Rabbit Hole Creative is a recent Belmont graduate, a testimony to the value in building relationships with fellow students.

Jorgovan attributes the success of his business to the solid, industry relationships he has both initiated and stumbled into. “Having that right interaction is often a stroke of luck, but you have to be prepared for it,” Jorgovan explains. During his time a Belmont, Jorgovan met two people at Curb College seminars that would prove very important to the success of his career: Mark Montgomery and George Flanigan. They both have served as industry mentors to him and have opened many important doors.

“I’m just now getting to the point where our value comes between live technology and video production. What I’ve realized is that at the end of the day, if you try to be good at everything you’ll be mediocre at everything- pick one thing and be the best at it.” Through his college years, Jorgovan was the classic, media renaissance man, but today he stresses the importance of finding your specific craft and expressing it: “Being specific about your trade works much better than rambling on about what you can do.”

Jorgovan’s conversation and experiences were revealing to say the least, a must hear for every student who plans to blaze their own entrepreneurial trail. You can find Jorgovan at the Rabbit Hole Creative headquarters down on Broadway plotting the approach for his up coming project with the band Journey- give him a call, get connected.

(Photo Credit- Travis Ball)

Music City Roots at the Loveless Cafe lured the leather boots, flannels and facial hair last wednesday night- as it rightfully does. Only this time a common scent filled the barn: the aroma of Belmont University. The Westbound Rangers, Leah Korbin, Shirock, Kopecky Family Band, and the Apache Relay- all Belmont Alumni or current students- pumped out bright and lively tones all night. The audience reciprocated the school spirit with a large serving of Belmont students and faculty. Dan Keen, Suzanne Clement, Sarah Cates, Dylon Walker, Stephen Bain, Alena Moran are just a small sample of the Bruins present that eve. If you missed the show, play it over and over at www.musiccityroots.com.

Monday evening the Mike Curb College of Entertainment & Music Business at Belmont University hosted a seminar featuring performing musician, author and Belmont Alum, Chad Jeffers. Jeffers, who is currently playing dobro (or resonator) on the road with Carrie Underwood and has toured with Keith Urban and Kenny Loggins, discussed his strategic and dedicated path that led him to where he is now. Don Cusic, Belmont’s own, moderated the discussion.

Jeffers associates the success he has received thus far with good fortune, not luck. “I’m not lucky. Lucky is buying a lottery ticket and winning big. I consider myself fortunate, which involves: preparation, making goals and moving forward.”

Jeffers’ tales of his experience as a full time touring musician unveiled some truth to the highly sought after, dream career. “Connecting with the crowd is what makes it all worth it. Some nights it’s a magical thing.” On the contrary, touring is a full time job Jeffers explains. “We play our show, get on the bus, drive 4-6 hours, soundcheck, hang out, then do it all over. Touring is like the film Groundhog day with Billy Murray; over and over.”

Jeffers is a highly passionate person who pursues all worthwhile experiences available. In regards to the student audience, he advises to utilize all the resources available. “The internships, that’s your bread and butter- they’re not always your calling, sometimes it’s figuring out what you don’t want to do. You only have to do it for three months, why not try it out?”

Apart from touring, songwriting, and playing sessions, Jeffers is an author and has just finished writing a book entitled “25 Notes for the Successful Musician.” The book reveals the ingredients that have built his career and relationships in the industry.

Jeffers ended the seminar with a soulful, instrumental jam on his dobro and then proceeded to thoughtfully answer a flood of questions from an aspiring student audience.

Wednesday evening at the Quonset Hut, the Mike Curb College of Entertainment & Music Business presented a Songwriting Seminar featuring Belmont Alum Rusty Gaston, owner and operator of the publishing company This Music.  Gaston reigns from Texas and moved to Nashville sixteen years ago to pursue a career in the music industry and attend Belmont University. Today, Gaston is a passionate and committed music publisher who fills his time plugging the work that his nine seasoned songwriters produce.

“I’m in the passion business, I live for Mondays. I’d rather work seven days a week because I love it. If you don’t feel the same way about your profession, you need to find something else to pursue.”

This Music, a joint venture with Warner Chapel, has seen fourteen award winning songs in its six year career and has provided number one hits with artists such as Blake Shelton, Josh Turner, Chris Young and Luke Bryan. Gaston’s day to day work involves being proactive and delivering the best songs to the right people, not simply waiting for artist’s to bite.

“My job is to harpoon something, not simply fish a song. I’m in the business of knowing what artists need, and if I don’t have it, I’m not going to waste their time.”
Gaston’s relationship with his writers is professional, prolific and most importantly, reciprocal. “A songwriter needs someone to be held accountable too, a coach, one to exploit their songs, so a writer can be financially successful. We’re a team.”

Tomorrow, Gaston speculates that his most recently cut song by Luke Bryan entitled “I Don’t Want This Night To End” will move from number two to the top of the charts. Recently, This Music has written songs for Martina McBride, Dustin Lynch and Craig Morgan. Even though This Music is seeing success and growth in catalog, Gaston is content with nine writers. He says that he can give equal, genuine attention to all of his writers and run a successful business.

Gaston impresses upon the student audience that passion, diligence, and commitment is essential. Songwriters in this town must produce the best work possible at all times. “Since this is a singles business, the only way you can get a song cut today is if someone (a manager, producer, artist) thinks it is a first single contender.”

Scott shared stories of being in the studio with the Beatles and the thrill of working with early analog recording technology. “Working with the Beatles was the best learning experience I could have asked for. They never wanted anything to sound the same, so there was always a need for exploring new sounds- the perfect learning experience.” Scott encouraged students to be okay with mistakes, “we’re human” and proceeded to point out a mistake he made on a George Harrison album that turned out to be a creative blessing.

Owsinksi talked about social media as a tool for the artist, the topic of his most recent book entitled Music 3.0. He revealed some interesting statistics pointing to the best time of the day for one’s Facebook status or tweet to be best received. Apparently, at  three in the afternoon a Facebook status will receive the most attention and four o’clock for a tweet.

Although Owsinksi and Scott operate in and appeal to different areas and eras of music, the sharing of their experiences and trade made for an inclusive approach to the recording industry. In fact, Owsinksi’s next, yet to be released project involves a collaboration with Scott: A novel entitled “From Abbey Road to Ziggy Stardust” which from the title, can be speculated to be filled with stories of the mystifying hours in the studio with the legends of early Rock n’ Roll.