Recording Begins Tonight! A letter to friends & family.

For my birthday last year, I was reminded of how amazing all of the people in my life are when they surprised me with the kind of gift I really could have never imagined receiving or feeling worthy of...

I got seriously choked up when they revealed to me that they'd started a secret fund and pooled the money so that I could finally record a full length solo album at my favorite studio.

It's an album I've been wanting to make and talked myself out of over and over again...

I'd been putting it off for years, I never felt like the songs were ready, or that I could afford the studio time...

Which songs should make the cut, which ones were "good enough" and I kept letting my head get in the way.

Really, I was putting it off because I felt like I wasn't good enough. Like I couldn't justify the expense because I didn't think it would mean anything in the end.

But they all helped me to remember that my songs are important to people, and it would mean something to all of them,

even if no one else in the world cared... and that's really the push that I needed.

I remembered the feeling of why I started playing in the first place, to take my experiences and my love and my pain, to digest all of it, to find the words for it, and that became sharing those words with people who might need to hear them in a certain moment, to feel a little more understood, or to feel a little less alone.. and in that I have found real connection with so many people over the years and many times found healing in the process as well.

It's been nine months since that unforgettable birthday party.. and over that time I've refined the list, and picked the songs that feel strong and cohesive, dug deep and figured out which stories I felt like I really needed to share...

I began playing acoustic shows consistently again, and got these songs about as polished as they're going to get. It's been great playing for all of you lately, and I really appreciate the responses I've gotten from these recent performances.

Now that I know what I want to do, its finally time to get started.

I'll be joined in the studio by some very talented musicians I've been lucky enough to call friends, that are going to help give these songs what they need, and I can't wait to see what becomes of this project.

To all of you who made this happen,

Thank you for believing in me all of those times I couldn't believe in myself. The gratitude washes over me still.

I'll be carrying your energy in the studio,

This one's for you.

RECORDING BEGINS TONIGHT!