Made Finals at GMA music week 2006
I just had the most amazing week up in Estes Park, Colorado at the GMA (Gospel Music Association) Music week 2006. I was stunned and totally thrilled to have made it to the top 3 finalists in the Contemporary vocal 2 category part of the competition. I walked away with third place winning the hearts of all the people who I shared my music and heart with. I feel so blessed for the experience. I've also walked away feeling even more excited than ever about my music and what I'm doing with it. I have no doubts that IÃ?m on the right track with this whole music ministry adventure.
The week was filled with so much growth for me. I learned more about songwriting, stage performance, industry things to be aware of, and networked and made so many new friends!
The most thrilling thing for me was when I found out I made it to the finals I called John to let him know. Little did I know just a few hours later he booked a flight that night to come see me sing the next day! He totally surprised me. I had never missed him so much in my life during that whole week. We have become such a team with this music ministry business and I really wanted him to be with me, and he was! To my biggest surprise! I couldn't believe it! Well that sums it up for you. If you'd like to re-live everyday with me then keep on reading for the details!
The GMA week kicked off on Sunday Night July 30th with a super worship night with Chris Tomlin and David Crowder Band. They rocked the house. Also that night I ran into some dear friends from my old home church Cornerstone Community in Simi Valley. It was a group that moved to plant a new church in Colorado from Simi Valley, CA. That was exciting to see familiar faces so we spent some time catching up! Also that night, when I got to the auditorium, there were advertisements on the seats for the CRW/IndieHeaven Compilation CD that I actually was just apart of last month. To my surprise they had the picture of the July issue on the back side of the paper and my picture was there along with all the other artists apart of the CD too. That was so cool! Just to inform you about that CRW Comp CD it's a CD that gets sent out to the Christian radios and if they like your song they will add it to their play list. So after the concert my roommate and I trucked all the way up to the other end of the YMCA to where our lodge was. What a hike we had every night, but it was good for us. No A/C in the rooms but we did have a fan. Thankfully the weather ended up being gorgeous everyday! Probably in the 70's and 80's with always a wonderful cool breeze.
My roommate for the week was my friend Lindsey, we both met at TX State this past year, and when we both found out we were each going to GMA week, we were so thrilled that we would not be alone. It was truly a blessing to be with Lindsey there that week. We even met some great friends too that we ended up all eating our meals with together everyday and our numbers added to us as the week went on. So it was never a dull moment. They certainly keep you busy up there. Everyday there was a list of seminars to choose from. Sometimes we would all split up and then compare notes at the end of the day.
Monday July 31st I woke up and could not breathe very well. I had been drinking soooo much water like they tell you to do in the mountains. But I ended up using my inhaler which I'm glad I had with me. So since I was not feeling well, I used the morning to rest. I ended up going down to the lobby where I met Elaine, the concierge at the lodge. Her warm spirit and love she showed me made me feel so much better by the minute. We had a nice conversation and I'm so glad we met. After we chatted I went back to my room to sleep. I met up with Lindsey and Gratziela for lunch and then came back to my room to get ready for my competition time which was between 2:30pm and 3:30pm. I was the last to sing in my group. I feel like I conveyed the song well and smiled a lot, hehehe. I was really having a hard time with the power of my voice since I had so much trouble breathing that morning. I walked away thinking we shall see. There were lots of good musicians there. I even met a girl by the name of Elizabeth Hunnicutt. She and I recognized each other from myspace.com, so crazy. Then I made it to a seminar and after that a bunch of us met up at the cafeteria for dinner. Every night the evening concerts started at 7pm. Also every night after the concert was Cafe Estes at 10pm. This was a coffee house setting concert where judges picks from the day got to sing. My roommate Lindsey was one of the judges pick tonight. So of course we all went to support her. She was super great!
Tuesday Aug 1st was a much more relaxing day. I was able to attend some really neat seminars today. The first was called Sometimes It Takes Two which was about the art of collaboration in songwriting. I also went to another seminar called Getting Gigs. They were both very informative and I took lots away with me. Today I also found out that one of my songs from my album made it to something called the Song DISCovery Listening Pannel. This meant that my song made it to a list of 13 picks from about 2000 entries to be reviewed on a panel during this GMA week. So my song would be reviewed on Friday. I was not expecting that at all, so that was a neat surprise. In the evening I hung out with my new friends, a couple, Katie and James. We ate dinner together, I learned about their life story how they met and then we went back to their room and share music with each other and even shared ideas with one another. It was great! Then the 3 of us headed over to catch to rest of the evening concert.
Wednesday Aug 2nd was another great day. I went to 4 different seminars today. I went to listen to Nichole Nordeman share her life story with us, she's pretty cool. I was so excited because she has always been a mentor of mine. She is an amazing songwriter! The more she shared with us about a certain time in her life, and the more I put two and two together, I knew she had to have been talking about the church John grew up in...so crazy. And the crazy thing was is that I agreed with everything she said about the church, pretty interesting. I also bought a DVD series today by the Tom Jackson. He's worked with pretty much everybody on helping to develop their stage presence, to what they say on stage and help the singer to create moments for the audience. That was great for me. Tonight concert was also amazing. Steven Curtis Chapman who I've been want to see forever was a very proud dad on stage that night. His two sons were playing in his band with him. I can certainly relate to that. So after the concert they announced who went on to semi-finals. I was certainly prepared to not go on, and there my name was on the screen. So exciting!
Thursday Aug 3rd Today I spent most of my morning practicing my song for semi finals. Then went to lunch and then to the practice rooms where I sang my song a few more times. On my way to semi finals though, I stopped by to pick up my adjudication sheets from the first round. To my surprise my remarks were not that great! All the judges said they heard power in my voice, but I just wasn't doing it...well, yeah...I could not breathe that day. So then I started to have second thoughts about whether I was going to be singing a good song for the Semi's. I had been practicing an original song called, "Breathe You In" which I knew I was taking a chance with anyways. This song, "Breathe You In," is a new jazzy style for me, but I thought it would show off my voice nicely and would show my originality. I called John and he gave me a pep talk and I felt better after that...hehehe. So I went in and gave it my all. Apparently I did well because later that night I found out I made finals. After the concert I was watching the screen with my friends. As I was mentally preparing myself I learned over and said to my friends...ya know guys I'm not expecting...and boom, my name was there in the top 3 list of vocal 2 category. All the contemporary vocalists were categorized by 3 different age groups. Ages 14-21, 22-28, and 28 plus. And there were about 70 people to start off with in each age group. I was in shock. What a surprise for me. I was so nervous now. That night Lindsey and I stayed up a little late talking in excitement and spending some good girl talk together. That was great!
Friday Aug 4th was a crazy fun and busy day! Probably one of the most exciting days in my life...I'll explain later. I started the morning off with a sound check for the finals night concert this evening. Then I went to some more seminars. The first one was called a Networking Roundtable where I got to meet and talk with producers, publishers, songwriters, business men, artist developers and other musician types. It was beneficial to getting lots of questions answered. I also attended the Song DISCovery Listening Pannel today, where my song called "Don't Let me Forget" was being reviewed. This was probably one of the most helpful things for me during the week. The panel of listeners included some great people like Shaun Groves, Kim Hill, Phil Sillas, David Edwards and Julie Reid. They really liked the song and gave me some wonderful constructive criticism suggestions. It was so helpful! I took so much from the session.
Later on I met up with John's parents, they were vacationing just a few hours away and when they found out I made the finals they drove out to see me. We were eating dinner and at about 6pm I get a text message from John that said, "Look at the door." My jaw dropped and I was shocked. Was John really here? I looked at Jo and Dick Keagy and said, "Oh My Gosh, I think John is here." They looked just as surprised as I did. I don't know how many emotions I was feeling at that moment, but it was a lot!!! As I was looking to see if John was really there, I get another text from him that says, "Man I ruined that, wrong building." He went to the cafeteria but we were eating in the restaurant that night. I was still in disbelief though. I ran outside to help guide him to us and I was so thrilled to see him. I couldn't believe it for like 30 minutes. HAHA. I was stunned, excited, happy, had joyful tears, and overwhelmed...just to name a few. Hehehe. So John surprised me good! What a wonderful husband! *Smile*
Well I sang that night and had a blast! I met so many wonderful people and had an amazing week. I really think IÃ?d love to go back next year to go to more seminars and meet even more people. I'd like to thank Michael and Linda Byrd who made it possible for me to go! Thank You so Much!
And if you made it this far in my story, thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed it. And if any of you are interested in GMA you should definitely go.
The week was filled with so much growth for me. I learned more about songwriting, stage performance, industry things to be aware of, and networked and made so many new friends!
The most thrilling thing for me was when I found out I made it to the finals I called John to let him know. Little did I know just a few hours later he booked a flight that night to come see me sing the next day! He totally surprised me. I had never missed him so much in my life during that whole week. We have become such a team with this music ministry business and I really wanted him to be with me, and he was! To my biggest surprise! I couldn't believe it! Well that sums it up for you. If you'd like to re-live everyday with me then keep on reading for the details!
The GMA week kicked off on Sunday Night July 30th with a super worship night with Chris Tomlin and David Crowder Band. They rocked the house. Also that night I ran into some dear friends from my old home church Cornerstone Community in Simi Valley. It was a group that moved to plant a new church in Colorado from Simi Valley, CA. That was exciting to see familiar faces so we spent some time catching up! Also that night, when I got to the auditorium, there were advertisements on the seats for the CRW/IndieHeaven Compilation CD that I actually was just apart of last month. To my surprise they had the picture of the July issue on the back side of the paper and my picture was there along with all the other artists apart of the CD too. That was so cool! Just to inform you about that CRW Comp CD it's a CD that gets sent out to the Christian radios and if they like your song they will add it to their play list. So after the concert my roommate and I trucked all the way up to the other end of the YMCA to where our lodge was. What a hike we had every night, but it was good for us. No A/C in the rooms but we did have a fan. Thankfully the weather ended up being gorgeous everyday! Probably in the 70's and 80's with always a wonderful cool breeze.
My roommate for the week was my friend Lindsey, we both met at TX State this past year, and when we both found out we were each going to GMA week, we were so thrilled that we would not be alone. It was truly a blessing to be with Lindsey there that week. We even met some great friends too that we ended up all eating our meals with together everyday and our numbers added to us as the week went on. So it was never a dull moment. They certainly keep you busy up there. Everyday there was a list of seminars to choose from. Sometimes we would all split up and then compare notes at the end of the day.
Monday July 31st I woke up and could not breathe very well. I had been drinking soooo much water like they tell you to do in the mountains. But I ended up using my inhaler which I'm glad I had with me. So since I was not feeling well, I used the morning to rest. I ended up going down to the lobby where I met Elaine, the concierge at the lodge. Her warm spirit and love she showed me made me feel so much better by the minute. We had a nice conversation and I'm so glad we met. After we chatted I went back to my room to sleep. I met up with Lindsey and Gratziela for lunch and then came back to my room to get ready for my competition time which was between 2:30pm and 3:30pm. I was the last to sing in my group. I feel like I conveyed the song well and smiled a lot, hehehe. I was really having a hard time with the power of my voice since I had so much trouble breathing that morning. I walked away thinking we shall see. There were lots of good musicians there. I even met a girl by the name of Elizabeth Hunnicutt. She and I recognized each other from myspace.com, so crazy. Then I made it to a seminar and after that a bunch of us met up at the cafeteria for dinner. Every night the evening concerts started at 7pm. Also every night after the concert was Cafe Estes at 10pm. This was a coffee house setting concert where judges picks from the day got to sing. My roommate Lindsey was one of the judges pick tonight. So of course we all went to support her. She was super great!
Tuesday Aug 1st was a much more relaxing day. I was able to attend some really neat seminars today. The first was called Sometimes It Takes Two which was about the art of collaboration in songwriting. I also went to another seminar called Getting Gigs. They were both very informative and I took lots away with me. Today I also found out that one of my songs from my album made it to something called the Song DISCovery Listening Pannel. This meant that my song made it to a list of 13 picks from about 2000 entries to be reviewed on a panel during this GMA week. So my song would be reviewed on Friday. I was not expecting that at all, so that was a neat surprise. In the evening I hung out with my new friends, a couple, Katie and James. We ate dinner together, I learned about their life story how they met and then we went back to their room and share music with each other and even shared ideas with one another. It was great! Then the 3 of us headed over to catch to rest of the evening concert.
Wednesday Aug 2nd was another great day. I went to 4 different seminars today. I went to listen to Nichole Nordeman share her life story with us, she's pretty cool. I was so excited because she has always been a mentor of mine. She is an amazing songwriter! The more she shared with us about a certain time in her life, and the more I put two and two together, I knew she had to have been talking about the church John grew up in...so crazy. And the crazy thing was is that I agreed with everything she said about the church, pretty interesting. I also bought a DVD series today by the Tom Jackson. He's worked with pretty much everybody on helping to develop their stage presence, to what they say on stage and help the singer to create moments for the audience. That was great for me. Tonight concert was also amazing. Steven Curtis Chapman who I've been want to see forever was a very proud dad on stage that night. His two sons were playing in his band with him. I can certainly relate to that. So after the concert they announced who went on to semi-finals. I was certainly prepared to not go on, and there my name was on the screen. So exciting!
Thursday Aug 3rd Today I spent most of my morning practicing my song for semi finals. Then went to lunch and then to the practice rooms where I sang my song a few more times. On my way to semi finals though, I stopped by to pick up my adjudication sheets from the first round. To my surprise my remarks were not that great! All the judges said they heard power in my voice, but I just wasn't doing it...well, yeah...I could not breathe that day. So then I started to have second thoughts about whether I was going to be singing a good song for the Semi's. I had been practicing an original song called, "Breathe You In" which I knew I was taking a chance with anyways. This song, "Breathe You In," is a new jazzy style for me, but I thought it would show off my voice nicely and would show my originality. I called John and he gave me a pep talk and I felt better after that...hehehe. So I went in and gave it my all. Apparently I did well because later that night I found out I made finals. After the concert I was watching the screen with my friends. As I was mentally preparing myself I learned over and said to my friends...ya know guys I'm not expecting...and boom, my name was there in the top 3 list of vocal 2 category. All the contemporary vocalists were categorized by 3 different age groups. Ages 14-21, 22-28, and 28 plus. And there were about 70 people to start off with in each age group. I was in shock. What a surprise for me. I was so nervous now. That night Lindsey and I stayed up a little late talking in excitement and spending some good girl talk together. That was great!
Friday Aug 4th was a crazy fun and busy day! Probably one of the most exciting days in my life...I'll explain later. I started the morning off with a sound check for the finals night concert this evening. Then I went to some more seminars. The first one was called a Networking Roundtable where I got to meet and talk with producers, publishers, songwriters, business men, artist developers and other musician types. It was beneficial to getting lots of questions answered. I also attended the Song DISCovery Listening Pannel today, where my song called "Don't Let me Forget" was being reviewed. This was probably one of the most helpful things for me during the week. The panel of listeners included some great people like Shaun Groves, Kim Hill, Phil Sillas, David Edwards and Julie Reid. They really liked the song and gave me some wonderful constructive criticism suggestions. It was so helpful! I took so much from the session.
Later on I met up with John's parents, they were vacationing just a few hours away and when they found out I made the finals they drove out to see me. We were eating dinner and at about 6pm I get a text message from John that said, "Look at the door." My jaw dropped and I was shocked. Was John really here? I looked at Jo and Dick Keagy and said, "Oh My Gosh, I think John is here." They looked just as surprised as I did. I don't know how many emotions I was feeling at that moment, but it was a lot!!! As I was looking to see if John was really there, I get another text from him that says, "Man I ruined that, wrong building." He went to the cafeteria but we were eating in the restaurant that night. I was still in disbelief though. I ran outside to help guide him to us and I was so thrilled to see him. I couldn't believe it for like 30 minutes. HAHA. I was stunned, excited, happy, had joyful tears, and overwhelmed...just to name a few. Hehehe. So John surprised me good! What a wonderful husband! *Smile*
Well I sang that night and had a blast! I met so many wonderful people and had an amazing week. I really think IÃ?d love to go back next year to go to more seminars and meet even more people. I'd like to thank Michael and Linda Byrd who made it possible for me to go! Thank You so Much!
And if you made it this far in my story, thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed it. And if any of you are interested in GMA you should definitely go.