Thinking about moving to Nashville to pursue music? Here’s why I quit my job, pulled up stakes, and learned to spell honky-tonk.
Read on and let me know what you think in the comments below!
I was trying to explain to my family why I was moving.
It was my last night in Reno and we were all sitting around a long table at a Mexican food restaurant. My father and stepmother were there, as were my step-sisters, their spouses, and grandparents.
The chips were mostly eaten, the plates mostly empty. The last round of drinks had been ordered.
My dad and step-mother had just finished their toast – a tearful “best-wishes” that betrayed some of their fears about my venture into the “music industry.” It was obvious that their worries extended beyond the financial troubles I might face, but included the effect the industry itself might have upon their son.
“You’re there to write and to play, son” my dad had just finished saying, “not to party.” This elicited a few laughs, and some stern nods.
After they sat down, I stood up.
I thanked my family for coming to this going away party, and for everything they’d done for me over the years.
“You may be wondering why I’m going,” I continued, “why I chose to quit a promising job, a steady career, and leave my hometown.
“The truth is, I love sounds. I always have. My mom loves to remind me of the time, as a small child, that I became very excited when I recognized, on the radio, the Albinoni theme that had been used in a movie called Gallipoli – a movie I’d watched months before.”
“Not just that I enjoy sounds,” I continued, “but that I get a very physical, visceral response to hearing music. This response is heightened when it’s music that I’m playing, and discovering.”
“Writing songs,” I concluded, “stumbling upon melodies… it all creates a very real, pleasurable feeling in me, and I’ve got to chase it.”
I thanked them again and sat down. We all finished our dinners and everyone drove home, slowly, in the first snow of that winter.
I don’t know if they believed me, and I don’t know exactly how music affects other people. But I do know how it affects me, and that I’m addicted to that feeling. It’s an addiction I’m happy to have, in the sense that it pushes me to create beautiful things for myself and for the world.
I’ll be the first to tell you I don’t know what we’re doing here in life.
I have found though that art, in its many forms, seems to create the strongest feeling in me when it communicates some of those basic human emotions and experiences that we all undergo – art that is honest about what it is to be alive.
Music, in particular, is one of those things I can dive into and come up for air, hours later, not knowing where the time went and feeling energized and alive. In fact, I wrote a whole blog about pursuing that very sensation, here.
I value such art, simply because it’s a tangible reminder that I’m not fully alone in this world. Others are experiencing similar joys, and difficulties, realizations and wonder.
If I get to make more of those reminders, through my music and through my actions, to share with others (and with myself)… well then, I’m living the life I choose.
~Cecil
ps – I’m supporting myself (and releasing one, studio quality song per month for, well, as far into the future as I can see), by generous listeners and readers like you. Check out my Patreon page – a simple $5 pledge gets you free downloads of each monthly song, as well as exclusive content (song ideas I’m working on, updates on shows, news from traveling, and more). It allows me to take you along on this journey I’m on, as a full-time recording artist. Every little bit helps, so thank you in advance for your consideration!
