We Are Nashville

Well a bit has happened here in Nashville since I last posted:

1. It rained. And rained. And rained. And people died.

I've had the unfortunate privilege to spend much of the last two weeks working in the homes of people who have lost most or all of their possessions. It's unfortunate for the obvious reasons, but it has been such an honor to meet all these amazing strangers, see how resilient and thankful they are in the face of such devastation, and help them move on to the next phase.

Now, in all reality, that next phase is several weeks and months down the road for most of them. But I love that I'm in the position to be available during that time, and to hopefully be able to see them through to the other side and maybe even come out of it with some new friends.

2. Apple is closing Lala.com.

Over the last two years, I had come to depend on Lala for getting me through the work day. The ability to listen to almost any song I ever wanted on demand was nothing short of god-like. And yet everyone saw this day coming as soon as Apple purchased the site in December. Now I hang my hope on the chance that Apple is going to shut Lala down in order to open a similar cloud-based music service under the iTunes umbrella shortly thereafter. Two weeks left and counting.

3. I've got people in Australia.

Well, almost. I am in final negotiations with a company out of Australia to collect on behalf of my clients in the Australasian territories. It's a big confidence boost for me, and gives me hope that I can lock down representation (what is referred to as a "subpublisher") in Europe and the Pacific Rim with the same ease.

4. I "wrote" a song.

That's right, I'm in the process of joining ASCAP as a publisher, and in order to do that you have to own a copyright. So I'm also joining as a writer and saying that I "wrote a song" and "posted it to my MySpace", which I have since "deactivated". I know it's lying, but when the GM of the company says to send the documents through him so he can make sure things go through, I feel OK about it.

5. I have my first Top 10.

My first administered single should be Top 10 this week! I'd like to think it has another seven or eight weeks before it peaks... that's the dream anyway.

Due to the lack of Lala, I am going to try to find another site that will let me post songs to my blog. Until then, go to http://www.thekicksrock.com and download their debut album and their new single for free! Great modern rock and roll; Kings of Leon meet the Beatles.