When Does MY Break Come?

In an interesting turn of events, I suddenly find myself mired in a three-interviews-in-less-than-two-weeks run, meaning, where I’m the guest this time instead of the host.  The most recent (and second) of those came yesterday during a show that was being streamed live across Facebook, YouTube, Twitch, and even BandLab.

During the discussion for their new “Crimes Against Folk” podcast, co-hosts Ashley E. Norton and Ed Williams – better known as the folk/Americana duo Whitherward – asked me to share a story from my years of experience in the business.  I told them one of just many (many) examples I have been witness to as an artist manager, publicist, jack-of-all-trades.

It was a for all intents and purposes last-minute booking that I got for a client who was going to be traveling to Melbourne, Florida.  It’s on the other coast of the Sunshine State, two-and-a-quarter hours from here in Tampa.  I made the drive over there and got to be the point person for what would be a terrific connection.

You can go back and watch yesterday’s interview to hear me give the story in more detail, but essentially, an audience member who referred to himself as “just a realtor who’s been here for six or eight years” told me he was impressed by my client and still had some connections back in California who might be able to help.  Lo and behold, he put some feelers out over email and it resulted in me sitting in a coffee shop in Hollywood a couple months later with a bigtime producer/songwriter who has worked with some of the biggest names in the business.  I’m proud to add that to this day, he and I are still in touch and do get together whenever I travel to the Los Angeles area.

If you stay with yesterday’s interview long enough you also hear me tell a story of being in Nashville with the same client, and – you never know who will be in the audience, especially in Nashville – a publisher approaching after one of her live performances, saying how impressed she was with my client and let’s talk!

Heck, as recently as a month ago on Episode 332 of “Now Hear This Entertainment,” singer, songwriter, guitar player Noah Guthrie (pictured) told me about being a semi-finalist on season 13 of “America’s Got Talent,” performing (notice that I didn’t say dancing) on ABC’s “Dancing With the Stars,” and, being on the hit TV show “Glee.”  And when I asked him how that last opportunity came to be, he told a great story about having performed a house concert in San Francisco and someone who was in attendance that night finding themselves a couple weeks later with a casting director from “Glee” who described a role they were having trouble filling and this person saying, “I know exactly who you should get.”  And boom, from doing a house concert, Noah Guthrie ends up getting on a TV show.

For that matter, go back and listen to Episode 322 and singer, songwriter Adrianna Foster (pictured at top) – now based in Miami – telling me about getting her big break (heck, one of her big breaks) – when she was a kid!

The moral of the story is, you can’t hang your head and say, “All these things happen to everyone else.  When will it be my turn?”  The fact is, while you shouldn’t just sit back and wait around and wait around to see when it will take place, you can take comfort knowing that these opportunities are occurring regularly.  Put yourself out there and have a positive attitude and remember to be grateful when you’re the next story someone is telling about breaks that have come for entertainers.

Maybe you’ve already experienced this yourself?  Tweet at me to @NHT_tweets to let me know.  Alternatively, use Facebook, LinkedIn, or even email to continue the conversation.