Featured Musician/Performer: Cammy Enaharo

I love this lady! I found her music on SoundCloud a week or so ago and fell for it right away. There is a song on her account there called “Pedaling” that is so great. It feels as though you are actually riding around town on the front handle bars of someone’s bike. And I loved that she took something like a bike ride and took it somewhere deeper. One of my favorite things to discover in someone’s music or artwork is the transformation of something from mundane to meaningful and she does this very often and very well in her songs. Her sound, to me, is reminiscent of somewhere between that of Adele and Amy Whinehouse’s, but what makes hers different is that she paints her songs with a palette of colors that is a few shades brighter. Please give her a listen…or two…or three:). Find her on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/CammyEnaharoMusic
or on soundcloud (where you can find the “Pedaling” song mentioned above) at http://soundcloud.com/cammy-enaharo. Like her, follow her, leave a comment….show your love! Good luck to you Cammy! It is a shame that music like yours is nowhere to be found in mainstream media outlets….yet:)

The Dance (Prequel to “Little Star”)

Hello again. I have to say that I really look forward to post days. When I first began this blog, I wasn’t exactly sure what my motivations were. Now, though, it has become more clear to me that this is not something that I want more than it is something that I need. I need to share. I need to show my heart. To be open, transparent. Why? I think because I am such an introverted person…I hold everyone at a distance and guard myself so vigilantly. And despite the fact that anyone in the world can see this, it is here where I feel safe enough to be exposed. That is why, I think, so many of us are so drawn to the internet, to social networking sites. It allows for disclosure, but also allows us to pick and choose what we disclose, how much of it we disclose, and the manner in which we disclose. And, if you don’t like what I share or something doesn’t make sense to you, my ego is protected by the fact that I can’t see that in your face or hear it in your voice.

I think people just want to be known….really, truly known. We want to do what we can to make sure that when we die, we will have given enough of ourselves, shown enough of ourselves, for someone to say, “I knew her.” Maybe that’s just me, though.

Anyway, this is this week’s song. It was written as a sort of prequel to another song I posted a while back called “Little Star”. If you listen to both this new song, “The Dance” and “Little Star”, you may hear some similarities, but they are about two different, yet related things. Give it a listen. I posted two links because I noticed that the other songs I’ve been posting from SoundCloud are not directly accessible from phones and I-Pads. It may be that I am posting them incorrectly, but nevertheless, here they are, hopefully at least one of them works for you! Catch you this Friday for a new featured artist!

here are the two links to “The Dance”

http://w.soundcloud.com/player/? url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F41302977&auto_play=false&show_artwork=true&color=ff00bf

Janet Jackson’s “Again” (Acoustic Cover)

Good Wednesday to you!! It is finally SPRING!!!!!! I love it! The sun makes me smile. Anyway, this week I wanted to try out the recording feature on SoundCloud where you can record on your I-Phone or I-Pad and it posts directly to your soundcloud page. The song I chose to test it out with was Janet Jackson’s song “Again” —- one of my absolute all time favorites because of the vulnerability and the tenderness of the song.

Besides the fact that I love Janet and the song, I also just wanted so badly to learn how to play it on the guitar. It has a few chords, but the pattern of the chords keep changing and figuring the strumming pattern, for me at least, was a challenge. Actually, it still is a challenge because I have a lot of work to do before I can be happy with my playing. But, I got the bare bones of the song down and the way I wanted to play it enough for a rough draft.

I was REALLY hesitant to share it on SoundCloud and on here, but I thought I’d just do it because it is…well…honest. It IS where I am right now, at this moment, in terms of musicianship and acquiring a new skill. We aren’t supposed to be perfect from the moment we pick up an instrument. It takes time, years and years of practice. So, I am posting this….rough as it is….in hopes that when I look back in a few years and give it another listen, I will remember what it was like when I first began this venture and I hope I will be proud at how far I have come since. I hope the same for any new ventures you may be embarking upon or are thinking about beginning. It may seem daunting, the steps that must be taken, the effort and energy required, but if it is something that you truly have a desire for, do not let it deter you. Cheers, kudos, high fives to all of you who are brave enough to pursue your desires despite the challenge, despite how silly they may seem to others, despite whatever. Thank you for keeping up with me and checking in and for the kind words. I am so thankful to have a way to share my heart with people. Here’s another piece of it…

Featured Artist: Ghostpoet

Well, you probably noticed that there was no post yesterday. But, here it is. As I mentioned on the last post, I have just recently discovered SoundCloud and I am really enjoying finding new music on there. One of the first people I came across was this guy from the UK named Ghostpoet. First of all, I love the name. Second, he’s got some crazy stuff on there …very different from what I do, but I like it! I like Bob and Damian Marley, always have, and this guy has a little bit of that swagger but what he does isn’t really reggae at all. It’s got a bunch of different influences wrapped up together into one sound and I think it works. One of the songs I liked the best was his “Garden Path”. At the beginning he makes some sounds with his voice that make it seem like he’s clearing his throat or something. But, I like it because it gives the feeling of someone walking into the studio and just jumping into a stream of consciousness-type of performance. Check it out and let me know what you think and/or follow him on SoundCloud and leave him a comment.
http://m.soundcloud.com/ghostpoet

To get more info on him, shows, bio, etc., check out his website @ http://www.ghostpoet.co.uk

New Song and Soundcloud

(not actually my old house…just a pic:) )

Hello there! I took a week off, but have continued messing around with songs. I don’t believe I have done a true R&B type song here yet and I thought it would be good to do one since it happens to be one of the genres I grew up with as a kid. It is something I first wrote as a poem when we left our first home and all the emotions that I was feeling at the time (sometimes a poem turns into a song and sometimes a song — music — turns into a poem). It was the same mix of emotions I felt when I left home for college for the first time, when I left Hong Kong behind, on my wedding day. Saying goodbye to the past and hello to what lies ahead.

I decided this week I’d start sharing my songs through SoundCloud. I absolutely love it! Thank you to Raphael BlueWolf for putting me onto it. I’ve found such great music from some pretty cool people and have been able to share mine. I do not have all of my songs up on there, but there are a select few. You can find them all at www.soundcloud.com/monicadockery. Part of the reason I decided to start using it is because it is supposed to be better for sharing music, so please let me know if it accomplishes this task (any problems listening to the track or takes too long, etc.). I’d appreciate that very much. Hope you are all having a wonderful week! I’m planning on doing another “Feature Friday” this week, so stay tuned. Here is this week’s song called Nothing Lasts Forever

p/s —- Here are the lyrics ( I decided to start putting the lyrics in my posts to make it easier for you to find them, but the lyrics to other songs previously posted — most of them– are still at the “The Songs” tab at the top of this page.)

Nothing Lasts Forever

So many memories here we first made our home
Where he took his first steps
Tiny little footprints painted on the front porch steps
The lessons learned, the music of our lives filled
Our small and cozy space
And I know we’ll never hear the same music in another place

Forever forever nothing lasts
Forever forever nothing lasts

But it was time, as time always comes for change
We could try to delay, we could try to escape
But, it’d find us all the same
So instead of hiding from, we chose to run towards
The dwelling of our fate
And take the risks that come our way
Possibilities of a brand new day

Forever forever nothing lasts
Forever forever nothing lasts

Empty boxes, empty boxes all around
Stretched across, stretched across on the ground
We’ll fill them up with new dreams
Until they bust at the seams
Yes, the best has yet to come
And so we say goodbye with one last look
And one last cry
We knew this chapter of our lives
Could not go on

Forever forever nothing lasts
Forever forever nothing lasts

Featured Artist: Melissa Polinar

Hello!!! It’s Friday, hurray:)! I said on my last post that today I’d be featuring a new artist on here.  This time it is a beautiful, soulful woman by the name of Melissa Polinar.  I do not know too much about her on the personal level.  What I do know is that she is crazzzzy talented!  She’s been posting videos on youtube for a while now and has a pretty consistent following.  What I love about her apart from her smooth and silky voice is that she glows….literally, she GLOWS when she performs.  You can tell she is a good soul because it is written all over her face.  I am also so impressed with her skill with the guitar and the great control she has when she sings….every note is on pointe and her choice of inflection and varying dynamics is impeccable.  In short, she is awesome.  Here’s one of her original songs, a good friend of mine shared this with me and it just moved me.  Let me know if you like it too.  And, if you do, please show some love and support by leaving her a comment on youtube, liking her on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/melissapolinar, or on her own blog at http://melissapolinar.com/blog.  I predict your ears will thank me for this!