Rock and Soul Sisters

There is nothing like seeing three great artists, for free. The Hard Rock Cafe in Nashville had a CMA Fest stage with artists performing all week, and on Friday night three powerhouses from The Voice performed. Sarah Potenza, Kimberly Nichole and Meghan Linsey all brought in a crowd in downtown Nashville, where they performed covers and original songs. People were watching from roof tops, inside the Hard Rock and on the street, I wouldn't be surprised if you could hear the three ladies singing from across the river at LP Field.They were belting out songs like you can't imagine.

 If you are a fan of The Voice and watched this past season, you know what these three can do, but hearing them live was something way better. The three sang two songs together and each sang two originals and one cover that they sang on the voice. Each of them seemed grateful for the opportunity that the voice had given them, yet Kimberly Nichole seemed a little bitter over the fact that the show doesn't allow much room for individuality. She expressed that she could now sing whatever the f**k she wants to because she is no longer on the show. She didn't seem ungrateful for the Voice, but it made me wonder why she was saying all of these things when the show gave her a platform to become known.

I was 100% a fan of every song the three sang on The Voice, each night they got better and better. It's also great that Potenza and Linsey both represent Nashville in two different but powerful ways.Witha similar style of Janis Joplin, Sarah Potenza can rock just about anything and I am obsessed with her. Maybe I will get lucky and see her around town. I wish the majority of America was into her as much as I am so she could've gone further on the show, but she represented her genre and love for music well. Meghan Linsey is quite the artist, and she really can sing just about anything with ease. Her soul, yet country take on songs are different yet so amazing. Kimberly Nichole really blows me away with all of her range and how amazing her voice sounds live, it's obvious why I wanted her to go to the top three.

I truly was blown away by the talent these three have, and I hope they go far. As they call themselves, the Rock and Soul Sisters, that's exactly what they are.

Country Knows How to Party

I'm Last night I had the privilege of attending the CMT Awards and it was quite the night. Me, the girl who doesn't like country, knew a majority of the songs and was dancing all night. Being two feet from the stage and seeing it all for free was amazing. If I'm being honest the best part was seeing Billy Ray Cyrus' luscious locks up close. 

The performances were pretty spot on, and the jokes were mildly comical. The fact that I got to see Keith Urban and Jake Owen debut their singles was quite an amazing thing. I would have to say that Jake Owen performance of Real Life was by far my favorite. Jake got everyone so hype and he performed really well as he glided across the stage. Luke Bryan comes in with a close second due to the fact that he really knows how to work a crowd, and well he is Luke Bryan. The girls around me were crying over Sam Hunt and Jason Aldean, which I can't blame them because I've done my share of crying over famous singers. Being so close paid off when Sam Hunt came out into the crowd during his performance, I got to snap a quick selfie. 

This picture even got me on national television and the big screen in the arenas when the cameras were filming. It was a pretty great moment if you ask me.

I was for sure blown away by all of the people performing and how gracious they were of their fans helping them achieve all that they have. The nights big winner, Carrie Underwood, seemed so surprised that she kept winning. I sure wasn't surprised, she is a solid 20 out of 10 in all aspects. 

I really had an amazing time at the CMT Awards, and I can't wait to go back next year and experience it all over again. Thanks again to Audience Company Nashville for giving me the chance to go! I'd give this award show experience a Rainna Rating of 20/10. 

Here are some pictures I got of the presenters and performers! 

Lady Antebellum opening the show.

Lady Antebellum with guest Zedd.

Chip Esten and Chris Carmack, stars of ABC's Nashville.

Reba 

Little Big Town presenting Female Video of the Year

Carrie Underwood accepting on the behalf of Miranda Lambert for their song, Somethin' Bad.

Luke Bryan performs Kick The Dust Up

Carrie Underwood performs Little Toy Guns

Tod Arnold and Arnold Schwarzenegger 

Keith Urban performs his new single John Cougar, John Deere, John 3:16

Jake Owen performs Real Life.

CMT Awards

I may not be the biggest fan of country music, but I am super pumped for the opportunity to go to the CMT Awards on Wednesday! Thanks to Audience Company Nashville, I picked up my wristband to sit on the floor among a plethora of fans and celebrities. Some of the biggest names in music will be hitting the stage in Nashville and I am so excited to be able to witness it all live, instead of on TV. There are so many talented artists performing and nominated for awards that I think I will barely be able to control myself. I think I'm most excited to see Carrie Underwood and Keith Urban perform, and I'm sure if you listen closely you will be able to hear my screams on TV. 

Nashville is such an accessible place, with limitless opportunities to see amazing artists. If you want the opportunity to see the awards just like me, you can go to the 6th Avenue entrance of the Bridgestone Arena on Monday 6/8 at 10am, Tuesday 6/8 at 3pm, Wednesday 6/10 at 8am. If you're doing this you must carry a photo ID, and I REALLY suggest getting there early or you may be down the block in line. It will be worth the wait for sure. I can't wait, and I hope you get to see my shining face on TV. 

Check out Audience Company Nashville on Twitter at AudCoNashville and on Instagram at AudienceCompanyNashville

Catfish and The Bottlemen

Right now this band is becoming my greatest obsession. Definitely check out this band, Catfish and The Bottlemen. Despite the strange name, this band is far from being strange and I can't stop listening. Their lyrics, guitar, the lead singers voice, they're actually really good. My favorite song of their debut album, The Balcony, is by far Rango but there isn't a song I don't like. This band is alternative rock but it has an upbeat sound. Honestly, it's great for all moods and just an all around great album. I'd give it a Rainna Rating of 5/5. Recently I was phone less, and found myself dying to listen to this album and one of the first things I did when getting a phone, was turn on this album. So check out a Catfish and The Bottlemen because you'll be hearing a lot more from them soon. 

Fleetwood Mac // Nashville

My family and I were beyond blown away on Wednesday by the talents of Fleetwood Mac. It was a concert like never before, surely exceeding any expectations. Despite the fact of being a band for more than forty years, they are still powerful and a great band to see live. Not to mention the fact that after sixteen years, Christine McVie is back on stage joining the others. Despite being in a sold out arena, it felt intimate with the voices echoing, and everyone singing back.

The show felt personal, Stevie Nicks commenting on performing Landslide in every show they have ever done, Lindsey Buckingham speaking on all the band has publicly gone through. Of course mentioning the fact that McVie is finally back. These moments are what I love most about shows, the conversational parts and the stories. My favorite story was told by Nicks, telling everyone how she met Lindsey in high school, but never doing anything musically together until college. It made me wish I was there in the sixties with them, especially when Nicks mentioned opening up for Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin.

 I was amazed at how flawless they sounded, and the solos were absolutely fantastic. Mick Fleetwood, killed his solo on the drums, which seemed never ending in the best way possible. Of course, Lindsey shredded his guitar many times and with an explainable amount of energy. I admit, I don't know much about Fleetwood Mac as a whole, but I loved Stevie Nicks. Having an opportunity to see them all was so awesome, and I surprisingly knew more than I expected. Getting a chance to go to concerts like this, is so important and people my age should always take the opportunity to go learn about what our parents listened to. Not only that, but learn where a lot of musicians get their inspiration. I didn't see very many young people there, but I'm not sure if I had expected to.

You could see the passion on their faces, and see how much fun they all had performing. It was a solid two and a half hour show, and it looked as if it would have never ended. My favorite performance had to be "Rhiannon". I absolutely loved how the bands harmonies sounded, and everything was flawless. Well, maybe my other favorite performance was "The Chain". Is it really possible for one to decide? I can't forget to mention how perfect Stevie's voice sounded. If only I was blessed with such talent.

Fleetwood Mac definitely knows how to work a crowd, given their experience. I hope that I will be able to see them again before they stop being a band.

Here are some pictures that I took!

Snow Day Playlist

Living in Nashville, the average temperature here at this time of year, should be in the 50's. Instead, the city sits in a few inches of snow with temperatures in the 30's. I haven't seen a full week of school since the start of February. With all of these snow days, I've had to do something besides sit on the couch. I decided to make a playlist that is a good mix of music to keep me entertained during hours upon hours of sitting inside. There is no need to worry, it's not one of those gloomy rainy day playlists either, there is an abundance of those. This is one of those playlists that will make you feel pretty good, at least that's what it does for me. So here I am, just sharing a nice playlist with you from my Spotify, so please enjoy.
https://play.spotify.com/user/1215395388/playlist/6Oum8mjwIp9zEQWpOhI0H9?play=true&utm_source=open.spotify.com&utm_medium=open

Olivver the Kid x Halsey

In nearly every post that I write, I say that the concert that I saw was from my favorite artist. Well here I go again with saying that on March 26th, I will be seeing a few of my favorite artists. Halsey is going on her first headline tour The American Youth tour, with special guests Young Rising Sons, and Olivver the Kid. Not to mention, every date is sold out. To say that I am excited is quite the understatement.

OLIVVER THE KID

I have been following Bryan Sammis, Olivver, through his journey since day one. He used to be the drummer in one of my absolute favorite bands, The Neighbourhood, until he decided to go solo in the start of 2014. I remember being so surprised that he was leaving and questioning so much about what the band would do from then on out. The Neighbourhood is still doing great things, but I am just as happy that Bryan made a decision to go his separate way and create such great music that he does. He has already gone on such a journey and it is amazing to watch him grow as an artist. In April of 2014, he relased Purge. In the video for Purge, you see a discussion by different characters played by Sammis, all of them seem to say things that he sees in himself, all negative. Playing himself, he gets up and leave the room and goes through a total transformation, cutting off his hair and shaving his beard. He could be possibly becoming himself, or getting rid of all those old labels. It is a bold video, making him open and letting the world know his flaws. He is a raw artist, letting people know him as he was or is.

In October, he released his first solo EP, Freak. According to iTunes, it has 5/5 stars and I think it is well deserving of those 5 stars. My favorite song off of Freak would have to be Not Going Home. It talks about loving and accepting something or someone you don't know and don't understand, and doing all of these things and experiencing all of these things and never going back to what you know. All of the songs off of the EP are so intimate and I love every story he tells. That is what I love about artists, when they tell a story so well you cant stop listening to it. Bryan also has his B-Sides, honestly I don't know if this is like an unreleased EP or what, but its great for what it is. My favorite song off of B-Sides is for sure Revvival. You really have to listen to his music to find your own opinion. But listening to his smooth, soft voice never gets old.

HALSEY

I have so much anticipation built up for this concert it is unreal. I cannot wait to hear Ashley's (Halsey) raw vocals on stage. She is something different in the music industry and that is what I love about her. She speaks about those things that is not "normal" for women to sing about and she tells stories about what she has gone through in such an effortless way.

Her debut EP, Room 93, was released in October. Just like Olivver's, her EP has a 5/5  stars. To pick a favorite song is almost impossible, and my favorite song changes according to the day. Today my favorite song would have to be Is There Somewhere. She talks about not wanting to fall in love, but she did. The way she writes is something beautiful to me. Talking about how her love begins and where it ends, all of what she wants in a relationship and how those things hang over her.

The way she interacts with her fans is also such a different kind of fan-artist relationship. She treats them like friends and humans- which is what we are. For her tour, her VIP was only $25 for a small intimate meet and greet where you just get to chill with her and take pictures and of course you get some special merch. That is what I love about her, her love for the people who got her where she is, she doesn't hold back and she stands up for what she believes in. Whether she has blue hair, pink hair, brown hair or grey hair, she is who she is and you can't change her bold and daring personality. I'm so glad I found an artist like her, and her fans love her for way more than just music.

Her debut album with Capitol Records should hopefully be coming out in the near future, and I hope its soon because I'll probably die if I have to wait much longer. I can't wait to hear her stories and her words and of course, that wonderful voice that gets me every time.

 Olivver the Kid's Freak EP- https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/freak-ep/id930254245
Olivver's B-Sides- http://olivverthekid.com/
Halsey's Room 93 EP- https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/room-93-ep/id930637389

Sam Smith Nashville

Sam Smith came back to Nashville better than ever, hitting up the Grand Olde Opry and stood on the infamous circle. I was lucky to stand in the crowd and witness this amazing man hit every note with ease. Opening with my personal favorite, Life Support, the crowd was in awe but they were singing along with every word. There were people of every age and race and the crowd absolutely adored him. The entire show was an inside look of his process of writing, and how much it utterly sucked to literally be, in the lonely hour. He prides himself on the fact he writes all of his music and how much he has progressed as an artist, hoping that his old and dishonest music never gets to see the light of day.
Behind him stood a full band, three backup singers and a cellist and they assisted in the beauty of the music. Smith seemed extremely thankful for every member of the band and never forgot to lot the crowd know of his gratitude. During the show, it was hard to not realize how much gratitude Sam has for his fans, as he continued to thank everyone for their support and for getting his album to number two in the United States. He was humorous, throwing in a joke here and there about how his album was just a sad album and he hopes to God the next one won't be as painful to write. I am sure that as a song writer, to write such an emotionally powerful album, you have to go through lots of heartache to come out with something as well done as he did.
I must admit, that I shed a few tears during the show, just in awe of the effortless talent. Closing out the show with his most famous hit, Stay With Me, fans cheered louder than ever and it was extremely bittersweet. To me, the greatest moment is when the artist steps on stage and the worst is when they step off. This seemed to prove true when Sam left, it was over so quickly and the audience almost seemed heartbroken. Maybe if I think about the pain I felt when he left the stage, I could write half the album Sam Smith did. Now we must wait for another masterpiece from the man himself, and sit through many, lonely hours.