I guess I will start with the highlights (I will skip over the low
lights...)
I grew up in Kingsport Tennessee. As far back as I can remember, I
sang. When I was really young, I would put on shows for the family.
My Mom would make herself comfortable on my waterbed (oh come on, it
was the 80s...everybody had one!) and I would sing every song I
knew. She would give me pointers and pretend that she was the
judge...long before American Idol. I imagined that I was on a big
stage with spotlights and fog and millions of screaming fans. When
the song was over, I would open my eyes and there would be just my
Mom, sitting on the waterbed, sipping coffee, smiling.
I sang in talent shows, weddings, contest...whatever I could do to
satisfy the dream whenever it fit into my packed schedule of
cheerleading, soccer, swim team, friends...you name it, I did it.
I went to East Tennessee State University. At the time I felt like a
total failure because I hated it. I loved being on my own. I just
was not interested in school. So, when I heard about an open
audition at Dollywood, I went. There were days of callbacks and
dance auditions, group auditions, solo auditions. Eventually I
landed a part. I quit school, semi reluctantly...ok,I’ll be
honest... I over-joyously crammed my Volkswagen bug with everything
I owned and moved the day I found out I had a part! I remember
rehearsing for Dollywood's opening ceremony that year, standing with my new musical friends
and thinking, "I can’t believe they are gonna pay me to do this."
That was a life changing moment for me. I will never forget that
feeling. I knew then why I was so uninterested in school. I wasn’t
called to be a teacher (or whatever) I was meant to be a performer.
I loved it. and that feeling has grown and fed on itself ever since.
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In 1994 I moved to Nashville. I knew no one except my brother who
played basketball for Belmont University. I lived with him and four
of his basketball playing roommates for the first year. They were
all very protective of me. When I would go sing at open mic nights
or talent shows, one or more of them would go with me...to cheer me
on, to watch out for me...and probably to pick up girls....Either
way, I was glad they were in the audience.
I grew frustrated with only singing a few nights a week though.
After all, I had moved to Nashville to be a star, but basically I
was a waitress. A singing waitress, but a waitress. SO, I put a band
together and hit the road. That sounds so easy when I write
that....but believe me, it was not. There were auditions for the
band which looking back is hysterical. We were in a warehouse doing
cover tunes. But I didn't even have a gig booked yet. I took the
auditions SO seriously too. I even video taped them, so I could
review the guys I liked the best...OK, and laugh at the dorky ones.
Eventually I found a band and lots of gigs. We did hit the road. we
played everywhere as the Hillbilly Gypsies. It was a strange
struggle of an experience. I loved it and at the same time it was SO
frustrating for me. I mean, I wanted to be in Nashville, but I was
on the road most of the time. The band was changing nearly every
week. The gigs were varied...some were amazing and some are too
scary to think about now. Standing outside of the gig one afternoon
in the middle of South Dakota I decided that the Hillbilly Gypsies
should be done. And we were.
Shortly after that I had my daughter, Madeleine. At that time I
thought I was probably gonna have to put my dream of being a star,
singing for a living, to rest. Then, like a miracle, one day I got a
phone call form Jeff Carlton who at the time was the head of a
publishing company called Hamstein Publishing. He offered me a
writing deal. He said he thought I had something to say. That phone
call changed my life. From that moment on, I felt like the songs I
had always written were worth something. Hamstein was a very
nurturing place for me. I loved everything about it. It was
encouraging and supportive. I grew in my songwriting in leaps and
bounds. I am thankful for that kind of springboard.
Still the elusive dream was the record deal. I had begun writing
with a guy named Lee Miller who was also a writer at Hamstein. We
clicked. I learned so much about song writing from him. I mean I had
always written songs, since I was a little girl. But I didn't know a
lot about the commercialism of songwriting. It is an art all its
own. Lee and I wrote every Wednesday for about 7 years! We also
worked on my Curb project together. If you ever heard a song of mine
on the radio, before 2008, then Lee is the one who produced it. I
love the music that we made. From some of the craziest demos to some
amazing sounding records, I loved all of them.
My record deal came and went. I was on Curb records form 2002-2007.
During that time I was able to do some amazing things. I was on a
big tour (Toby Keith/ Rascal Flatts 2003). I was able to see a lot
of the country through the multiple radio tours I was on. I was able
to have many dreams come true, like 3 videos, 6 singles on the
radio. Four of those making it into the top 30 countdown. That is
pretty cool to think about. I am proud of the work that I did there.
On some days I am a little disappointed that I was never able to
have my album in stores, but bygones will drive you crazy.
In 2008 I had a beautiful little boy, Jackson. I began writing songs
for a fantastic publishing company, Bro n' Sis Music/ Carlin
America. I created my own record label, Madjack Records. My husband
and I produced and created and slaved over my debut CD called
It's Time.
It's Time is a collection of the songs I have always
believed in (re-thought, re-recorded and re-vamped) and new songs
that I absolutely love! It was hard choosing which songs would go on
the album. I write A LOT of songs...and everyone has their
favorites, so it was tough. But when I hear it altogether, I think
we chose really well. and at the end of the day, all you want is an
album that you are proud to give to people. I am very proud of
It's Time. |
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Now I've got a new album ready. It's
called Coming Out Of The Pain. Recording this album
was an incredible process. I loved being in the studio, building the
tracks with amazing musicians, but mostly I loved singing the songs.
I sang all the vocals at our house while Jack engineered. I was
barefoot and usually in my pajamas with about a thousand candles
burning down to the wax. Then I would fall asleep listening to Jack
add guitar parts or sing the backgrounds parts as they floated up
through the vents from downstairs. I will always remember that
feeling of possibility... the glow of hope that came from making
this record. This is who I am. I'm Amy...a dreamer...a singer...a
believer. I must admit that it is very strange to write the story
of my life or at least the story of my musical life so far... But I
do think it is better this way, hearing it straight from me. Much
better than some guy I don’t know writing a story about what he
thinks of me, dontcha think? |
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