Music Biz & All That Came With It
Performing Live Music isn’t just 90 minutes on stage, it’s a 24/7 job. Most musicians would agree that the road to gigs isn’t always paved. Between writing, arrangements, creating the music, rehearsals, equipment, marketing, web site, contracts, legal stuff, travel, and searching for venues, the time and efforts spent is a labor of love. When I began writing I had no clue that creating a band and touring would be so difficult (but so worth it).
Life experiences led to many songs that I wrote about a journey of survival and chasing dreams. Spending a lot of time at horse camp, I’d share the new tunes with friends and family to get a feel of what folks thought. The more I would play, the more ideas I would have. What started out as a simple melody would blossom into a finished product. When I would go out to an open mic night, people would compliment the songs, which gave me the confidence to keep going. So, I decided to take my guitar and go out and play everywhere I could.
During that time, I met a man, Roger Pratt, who wanted to introduce me to a band. A few months later, we were practicing the songs I had written, every week. Social Media was just starting to take off, and I utilized every platform I could to get Iron Cowgirl music out there. Learning how to create a web site took some time, and many phone calls to the web provider. Roger became my manager, drummer, as well as a great mentor. He believed in me, and I had never really had anyone who supported me so much, I was Blessed to know him. Sadly, Roger passed away in 2012, but his memory lives on in the music & memories we made.
Endless hours were spent emailing venues, trying to book a show. At times it was very discouraging, but that one venue who said yes, was worth it. Venues want advertisement, and that is exactly what I would do, advertise for them. Radio stations were always inviting and welcomed new music, so every opportunity I had to appear at a radio station, I would go. Performing for free at many venues led to other opportunities and advertisement so any time I had an opportunity, I would take it. It wasn’t about the money, it was about getting my music out there and trying to heal my heart through the music and the people I met.
The people I met were amazing! So many would share their experiences, and tell me how they could relate to the words I wrote, that is worth more than money.
Thousands of miles traveled, performing across the United States and Canada to spread the word of Iron Cowgirl Music and Chase Dreams!
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