Journal

June 15th, 2010

OK, so I've been crap about keeping this thing up to date! I'll try harder - I promise.

 I'm a HUGE Aerosmith fan, and they are the only band left on my short-list of bands that I need to see live before I or they are no longer around (REM, Springsteen, and BB King have been taken care of.)  I had tickets to see them last summer, but they cancelled the show.  I heard they were coming back around this summer and was hell-bent on getting presale tickets last week.  

On my way into work I was listening to 95.5 KLOS and they mentioned they would be giving away tickets.  As a longtime listener, I knew people sometimes called in with music trivia for the DJs and would win free tickets just for providing content for the show!  I figured it was worth a shot, so I started calling in.  I got through, they put me on the air with my trivia segment, and I WON TICKETS!!!!   

It was so much fun to be on the air with these folks that I listen to every morning.  One of the questions involved lyrics to a song they couldn't figure out, so they jokingly asked me to sing it, which I did.  When they commented on my voice, I mentioned the band, and actually got to promote last week's show on the air!!  The best part about that...PEOPLE SHOWED UP!!!  Two tables of awesome people, actually.  So thanks Mark & Brian for the plug - and welcome to our new friends!  

Many of you know that I am a slave to two masters - 80s Rock and Musical Theater.  I watched the Tony Awards on Sunday night and thought the show was fantastic.  Sean Hayes was a very gracious host, Green Day kicked ass on that stage (though I didn't care for American Idiot as a musical and I'm really glad Memphis won,) and I'm so excited to see Promises, Promises.  I was most impressed by the sense of community in the theater industry, which you really don't see on other awards shows.  Every winner gave a humble speech about the people that helped them get their big shot and wouldn't let them give up on their dreams.  Very inspiring.  I just wish there were more new musicals with original score.  Jukebox musicals are fun, but I love this art form, and hope to see more breakouts like Rent, In The Heights, and Next To Normal next year.  I hope more and more young people get introduced to theater to keep those Broadway doors open and stagelights on.

That's it for now. Feel free to email me at mara@marasong.com to say hi, let me know what you thought of the Tonys, who's on your short list to see live, If you prefer Mark & Brian or Kevin & Bean, or anything else you might want to chat about.   

See you out there in the world!
Mara

January 3, 2010:

I hope you all had a fantastic holiday season. Mine was awesome!

At this time of year, I usually take a (public) look at the resolutions I made last year, rate myself on how I did in keeping them, and then make some (public) resolutions for the year ahead.  Please do take a moment, because in the end there, it’s actually all about YOU!  :-p     

It was at the New Year’s Eve gig last year that I realized I was kind of miserable and didn’t know why. I reviewed the Landmark Forum, and realized that I was pushing people away in all areas of my life, and the more unfulfilled I felt, the more I pushed.  The impact on people around me (probably you!) was that they had to deal with an inconsistent and stand-offish Mara, and the impact on me was living half a life without the benefits of being close to people.  I did this out of fear, and once I saw that my position was reversible, I started making little changes.  Little choices in how I would react to things - personal decisions on how to deal with unchangeable circumstances.  Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t, but I kept practicing.  By summer, I was enjoying the overwhelming fruits of my efforts – I was happy, surrounded by friends (new and old), booked solid with gigs, and really enjoying every second of life.  Still am!  

So yeah, looking back over my 2009 calendar, I got a new car (Diesel Jetta – highly recommend!), new job, new drummer, new band logo (thanks Erika!), re-launched Marasong.com (thanks Roselan), had a nice write-up in the paper, finally got a wireless mic (and promptly returned it!), and finally saw Springsteen (thanks Lauren!)  But what stands out the most - what I’m truly grateful for - are the fans who I finally allowed to become friends; the amazingly warm and hilarious staff at The Lighthouse and the other clubs that we play who take such great care of us; and for every person who stepped foot into one of our gigs this year.  Making you smile gives me the full and complete life that I love, and I thank you for the honor and privilege that it is to entertain.  There’s plenty more rockin' to do in 2010!  

In comparison to what I got, the resolutions that I actually made seem so small!  But tradition is tradition, so like bad fruitcake and two-months of Christmas music at the mall, here we go:

1. Open for major national touring act with The Big Rockstars.
Nope.  We did play some great shows in cool places (Labor Day on Catalina Island!) but no opening spots.  0%

2. Write new songs to be placed with A-List artists and film/TV. Ante, Pancho, and I wrote a fantastic song which I am pitching around, but no placements yet.  50%

3. Do more background singing and studio work. Nope 0%

4. Maintain new website with new content, photos, video, and interactive opportunities for fans and friends. Ha – looking at the site today, I posted two photo albums and updated the News page six times in the past 12 months.  Shocking.  My emails are good though, right?  I say 50%.

5. Add one new monthly venue for band or acoustic duo - perhaps in Hollywood? We did indeed add one new regular venue, and that was Crimsin in San Pedro.  It’s every other month - and not in Hollywood - but it’s a start.  50%  

And now…2010!  
1. Book the band a weekend of gigs in Vegas.
2. Experiment and play with booking gigs in Hollywood.
3. Continue to be open and connected to the people around me.
4. Create opportunities to develop myself as a vocalist and a leader.
5. Get home to NY to see my family at least three times!

I know it sounds cheesy but I do love you all (especially you who got to the end of this!) and I wish you and the people you’re connected with the happiest of holidays, and all the best in 2010.    Please do reply and say hi, or tell me your New Year’s Resolutions, or how I pissed you of last year, or your song requests, or whatever you got.  I’d love to hear from you.  

See you soon!
Mara  

March 22, 2009:

Hey all!

I'm spending a beautiful Sunday in Southern California with my lovely webmistress of many years, Roselan.  With mixed emotions, Roselan is teaching me how to edit my own website!  This way I can keep you all up-to-date on what's happening here with the Big Rock Stars and without having to interrupt Roseanne's busy days.  I'll miss her random commentary, but I know this will be good for both of us in the long run.  Thanks Roseanne!

Meanwhile, all is well here in the land of the Big Rock Stars.  I'm working on our summer bookings, and we're learning some ROCKIN' new songs to add to the set for The Lighthouse on March 28th.  I don't want to blow the surprise, but the set will include Van Halen (making use of a recent truce between Ante and I regarding Dave vs. Sammy), Janet Jackson (with a LOT of cowbell!), AC/DC (by popular demand), and one of my favorite oft-forgotten 80s rock songs of all time (you'll have to come and see!) 

More to come, but I gotta finish my web lessons.  Thanks for reading, and I'll see you out there in the world!

Mara

January 1, 2009:

Hey all!

Welcome to the new site! Click around and let me know what you think. I'll be posting journal entries when I have anything at all interesting to say…whenever that may be!

A very good way to start, for those who are not on the email list (which you can join for free HERE) or those who missed it, every year I make some New Year's resolutions and rate myself on how I did with LAST year's resolutions. Let's see how I did.

Resolutions from 2008:
1. Open for major national touring act WITH The Big Rock Stars.
Nope - didn't happen. I still have faith that this WILL happen, the right opportunity just hasn't come up yet. I'll roll this over to 2009, but a big 0% for now.

2. Write new songs to be placed with A-List artists and film/TV.
I'm VERY excited to say that I got a final demo of a song (which I wrote with the brilliant Richard Harris) on NEW YEAR'S EVE 2008 so that counts! The goal is to have this track (called "Invincible") placed as-is in film and TV, and get a successful tween/Disney type artist to re-record it for a 2009 release. It's on my MySpace page if you'd like to hear it. 100% on this one.

3. Do more background singing and studio work.
YES! This I did, and I loved every second of it. I sang backup for Corey Feldman's Truth Movement again this year, which was a lot of fun. I also lent lead and background vocals on eight songs to a very talented country artist called Mark Miller. He's finishing up his album at my old stomping grounds, Proving Ground Studios, for 2009 release. I'll keep you posted if you'd like to check it out. I also gave a live demonstration of two new musical theater pieces at the Academy of New Musical Theater, filled in for 80s band Identity Theft, and sang on a TV and radio jingle for shopping mall in California. 100% for me on this one.

4. Launch ALL NEW marasong.com (FINALLY!)
I tried to do this earlier in the year with a new web company, but it didn't work out. However, I started work on it with Roselan (my web mistress of seven years) BEFORE the end of the year, and we are unveiling the finished product to you today... February 10, 2009. It's close, so I'm giving myself 90%.

5. Continue becoming more myself, choosing what "is", and being open to whatever the big ol' universe has in store for me.
100%. This philosophy has gotten me through a lot this year, and I continue to choose creating my present and future, regardless of my circumstances. I've gone through three major life changes in the past few months, and all are putting me on a fantastic path for 2009.

And now...Resolutions for 2009. Some will seem rather familiar. Hey, if it ain’t broke…:
1. Open for major national touring act with The Big Rockstars.
2. Write new songs to be placed with A-List artists and film/TV.
3. Do more background singing and studio work.
4. Maintain new website with new content, photos, video, and interactive opportunities for fans and friends.
5. Add one new monthly venue for band or acoustic duo - perhaps in Hollywood?

Here's some other random stuff I accomplished in 2008:
Knocked BB King & REM, off of my "See Them Before They Stop Touring" list, which also includes Aerosmith and Bruce Springsteen.

Got demo video done for band (see it on MySpace).

Welcomed special guest Pete Byrne from Naked Eyes to The Lighthouse (check out the PHOTOS).

Rocked out on stage at House Of Blues at Rock & Roll Fantasy Camp with Cliff Williams (AC/DC) and Nick Mason (Pink Floyd). (photos are on MySpace).

Went into a store and actually purchased Chinese Democracy! (Never thought the day would really come!)

That’s it for now. See you out there in the world!
Mara