I'm not saying I'm in any way responsible for Brandi Carlile's growing fame, but I will say I called it years ago.
See, in my 20s and early 30s I worked for AOL Music (I know, I'm a dinosaur) and we worked with artists and record labels and it was fun -- but not the party I'm sure you're imagining right now.
Occasionally, along with the BIG NAMES we needed to keep the website viable, the record labels would send over emerging artists they wanted us to meet and get behind. Sometimes we did and sometimes we didn't.
I remember the day Brandi Carlile came into our conference room. The label guys would all meet then the emerging artist would trail behind and introduce themselves. They usually had a box of CDs for us. I remember about a half-dozen artists we met this way.
Brandi stood against the wall of our conference room with twins Phil and Tim who play guitar and introduced herself. I remember being mesmerized by her voice and the shy way she held herself. We're in a corporate conference room, not a stage, with florescent lights and poor acoustics, but despite that, she sang two songs with the twins harmonizing along. I was across the room and she looked at me for awhile and ... I was completely BLOWN AWAY.
I was awestruck. I probably teared up. What an angelic, soaring voice! If iPhones had been around at the time, I would have recorded the whole thing and pleaded for a selfie and autograph. But, alas, these were the dark ages.
Needless to say, I took as many CDs as I could, handed them out to friends and family and swore up and down she was going to be the Next Big Thing.
This was probably around 2007. The Story, her debut CD was on repeat on my iPod. And The Story, was my absolute favorite song of the year.
Ok, so fast forward to this year, Brandi has sold out Madison Square Garden, sells tons of records and is a Grammy winner and an emerging star that so many people are now talking about and appreciating. She's even on mainstream RADIO!
And yup, I had almost nothing to do with her success other than following her career and buying every album ... but I'm still so super proud that someone so amazing is making it in a very tough business.
And let's say it: especially being a female songwriter/singer who doesn't wear short shorts and doesn't have dancers on stage.
If you're not already a fan ... I highly recommend checking her out. And go back list and find some great early songs. "The Joke" is the currently buzzing song, but "The Eye," "Josephine" "Keep Your Heart Young" and so many more.
Oh, and in case you're wondering, we also met Matt Nathanson (super charming) and I got early CDs from Pablo Nutini and Ray LaMontange and I loved them both immediately.
Related Links:
Here's a "Take Note" video with Brandi Carlile
More of my music posts
See, in my 20s and early 30s I worked for AOL Music (I know, I'm a dinosaur) and we worked with artists and record labels and it was fun -- but not the party I'm sure you're imagining right now.
Occasionally, along with the BIG NAMES we needed to keep the website viable, the record labels would send over emerging artists they wanted us to meet and get behind. Sometimes we did and sometimes we didn't.
I remember the day Brandi Carlile came into our conference room. The label guys would all meet then the emerging artist would trail behind and introduce themselves. They usually had a box of CDs for us. I remember about a half-dozen artists we met this way.
Brandi stood against the wall of our conference room with twins Phil and Tim who play guitar and introduced herself. I remember being mesmerized by her voice and the shy way she held herself. We're in a corporate conference room, not a stage, with florescent lights and poor acoustics, but despite that, she sang two songs with the twins harmonizing along. I was across the room and she looked at me for awhile and ... I was completely BLOWN AWAY.
I was awestruck. I probably teared up. What an angelic, soaring voice! If iPhones had been around at the time, I would have recorded the whole thing and pleaded for a selfie and autograph. But, alas, these were the dark ages.
Needless to say, I took as many CDs as I could, handed them out to friends and family and swore up and down she was going to be the Next Big Thing.
This was probably around 2007. The Story, her debut CD was on repeat on my iPod. And The Story, was my absolute favorite song of the year.
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| At My First (FINALLY) Brandi Carlile Concert |
And yup, I had almost nothing to do with her success other than following her career and buying every album ... but I'm still so super proud that someone so amazing is making it in a very tough business.
And let's say it: especially being a female songwriter/singer who doesn't wear short shorts and doesn't have dancers on stage.
If you're not already a fan ... I highly recommend checking her out. And go back list and find some great early songs. "The Joke" is the currently buzzing song, but "The Eye," "Josephine" "Keep Your Heart Young" and so many more.
Oh, and in case you're wondering, we also met Matt Nathanson (super charming) and I got early CDs from Pablo Nutini and Ray LaMontange and I loved them both immediately.
Related Links:
Here's a "Take Note" video with Brandi Carlile
More of my music posts
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