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In this episode Tanya Winch and I meander through her journey in music, art and life. She and I are mutually acquainted with Brian Wolff. Brian is a musician and host of the Greetings From Wherever, a podcast about artistic inspiration and the creative process. Thanks to Brian for recommending I feature Tanya on this podcast. My conversation with Tanya is extra casual. I had a very nice time getting to know her. We chat about her single Cupid, her vinyl collection, her day job, her beginnings in LA, the making of the video for Cupid and Tanya’s release strategy. We also talk about why I started the Unstarving Musician podcast. This leads us into conversation about The Unstarving Musician’s Guide to Getting Paid Gigs. Tanya plays guitar and piano, she teaches music for guitar, piano and voice. I’m pretty sure she owns a pair of tap shoes. She’s high energy and yet she shares a moment of humility and vulnerability that I left in the episode for you to hear. This was so I could say, she’s totally worthy, and so are you. Whatever it is you’re feeling unworthy of, stop that. As a fan of the podcast once said to me, accept whatever good things life brings and embrace it. Please enjoy my conversation with Tanya Winch. Support the Unstarving Musician The Unstarving Musician exists solely through the generosity of its listeners, readers, and viewers. Learn how you can offer your support. Visit our Crowd Sponsor page Mentioned in this Episode TanyaWinch.com 14 podcasts musicians should be listening to in 2021 YouTube live stream of this episode (uncut/unedited) Greetings From Wherever Episode 20- Tanya Winch (Songwriting) Related Episodes A Hidden Album Collection Discovery–Ezra Vancil (Ep 42) Visit UnstarvingMusician.com/Podcasts for related links, episode transcripts and past guests. Sign up for the Unstarving Musician email newsletter at UnstarvingMusician.com Stay in touch! @RobonzoDrummer on Twitter  and  Instagram @UnstarvingMusician on Facebook  and  YouTube

My guest Anna Larson shares her passion for music, story telling and beauty for this episode. I found her in my email inbox one day not long ago. She sent me a textbook perfect pitch asking if I’d be interested in having her on the podcast. We talk about that email and more. Anna has been playing piano since childhood, graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a music degree, is a piano teacher, and has a background in theater production, sound, lighting, and performing. She’s recently taken to growing her knowledge for the marketing aspects of music. We drill down on why she champions her email list over Facebook and how she sees marketing as an essential aspect of her art and the sharing of beauty. Anna also explains her enjoyment of merging video with music. She gives a great example in her approach to the video creation and recording process used for her recent release Cocoon. I really enjoyed this part of our conversation, finding it both relatable and inspiring. I believe that Anna considers herself a writer above all else, and that her writing is a standalone gift that she merges with music and media. Support the Unstarving Musician The Unstarving Musician exists solely through the generosity of its listeners, readers, and viewers. Learn how you can offer your support. Visit our Crowd Sponsor page Mentioned in this Episode AnnaLarsonMusic.com Pond5 Royalty-Free Stock Video and Music Library A Hidden Album Collection Discovery–Ezra Vancil (Ep 42) Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means I make a small commission, at no extra charge to you, if you purchase using those links. Thanks for your support! Resources The Unstarving Musician’s Guide to Getting Paid Gigs, by Robonzo ConvertKit for Musicians Bandzoogle – The all-in-one platform that makes it easy to build a beautiful website for your music No Booker, No Bouncer, No Bartender: How I Made $25K On A 2-Month House Concert Tour, by Shannon Curtis More Resources for Musicians Visit UnstarvingMusician.com/Podcasts for related links, episode transcripts and past guests. Sign up for the Unstarving Musician email newsletter at UnstarvingMusician.com Stay in touch! @RobonzoDrummer on Twitter  and  Instagram @UnstarvingMusician on Facebook  and  YouTube

Roopa Mahadevan is a leading Indian classical vocalist and crossover artist in the South Asian diaspora. She's normally based out of New York City, but had temporarily relocated to San Jose, California during the pandemic. She has roots in the South San Francisco Bay Area, so the move was an easy one. Roopa collaborates with a myriad of artists in jazz, world music, and R&B/soul genres. She also performs full-length Carnatic vocal concerts and accompanies some of the world's leading South Asian dancer/choreographers. We spoke about her then newish album Roopa In Six Yards: A Carnatic Playlist by Roopa Mahadevan. She shares her desire to do more albums with her crossover group Roopa In Flux and all the trepidation that comes with doing something new and different. We also chat about our mutual acquaintance with Bollywood blues artist Aki Kumar, who has appeared on this podcast three times. Find links to most everything discussed in the show notes for this episode. Find Roopa at RoopaMahadevan.com There's a bit of cutting room floor chit chat at the very end of the episode, post credits. Hope you'll stick around for that. And I hope you enjoy my conversation with Roopa Mahadevan. Support the Unstarving Musician The Unstarving Musician exists solely through the generosity of its listeners, readers, and viewers. Learn how you can offer your support. Visit our Crowd Sponsor page Visit UnstarvingMusician.com/Podcasts for related links, episode transcripts and past guests. Sign up for the Unstarving Musician email newsletter at UnstarvingMusician.com Stay in touch! @RobonzoDrummer on Twitter  and  Instagram @UnstarvingMusician on Facebook  and  YouTube Mentioned in this Episode RoopaMahadevan.com  Roopa on Patreon Bijayini Satpathy on Instagram Kitka Women's Vocal Ensemble Related Episodes Aki Kumar Signs With Sony Music India (Ep 118) Bollywood Blues Man Aki Kumar on Gratitude, Humility, and Band Dynamics (Ep 113) Aki Kumar on Chicago Blues, Bollywood Blues, Harmonica, and Performing (Ep 23) Unlocking The Voice Within—Kelly Atkins (Ep 145)

Justin Paul breaks down the history and evolution of DJ music and culture in this episode. He is a friend and business partner of producer musician David Franz, who was featured in episode 203.   Justin himself is an educator and consultant in the music space. He's worked in A&R, music production, television and as a performing DJ. I asked him a number of questions about the DJ world, confessing that I know little about  it. What he shared was an insightful look at the history and evolution of DJ music and culture. Justin also talks about his particular brand and style of music and why he fell in love with the DJ world. He restored my faith in musicianship by sharing that he prefers to include live instrumentation in his music.   There's an easter egg segment at the end of the episode, after all the credits and signing off. Hope you'll stick around for that too. Please  enjoy this conversation with me and Justin Paul.   Visit UnstarvingMusician.com/Podcasts for related links, episode transcripts and past guests. Sign up for the Unstarving Musician email newsletter at UnstarvingMusician.com Stay in touch! @RobonzoDrummer on Twitter  and  Instagram @UnstarvingMusician on Facebook  and  YouTube

Peter Rand is the co-writer of my latest release New Gods Part 2. He is also a two time offender on the podcast, first appearing in episode 177. Hear New Gods Part 2 Peter is a member of the collaboration platform Kompoz having contributed over 800 tracks. When I signed up for Kompoz last year, his track New Gods was among the first I heard. At that time it was keyboards only. I contributed a drum track via Kompoz and eventually asked Peter if we could create a private collaboration to be published by yours truly. He agreed and New Gods Part 2 was born. In this Interview Peter and I talk about the early stages of New Gods Part 2, the contributions made by bassist Steve Strom, guitarist/audio engineer Chris Raspante and myself, the evolution of the cover art and more. We also discuss my thoughts on releasing early demos exclusively for Robonzo Insiders. Please enjoy my conversation with Peter Rand. Visit UnstarvingMusician.com/Podcasts for related links, episode transcripts and past guests. Sign up for the Unstarving Musician email newsletter at UnstarvingMusician.com Stay in touch! @RobonzoDrummer on Twitter  and  Instagram @UnstarvingMusician on Facebook  and  YouTube

LA based producer Lars Deutsch shares his thoughts on artist development and the typical struggles of emerging artists. We're acquainted by way of mutual friends at SoundStorming, the musician/fan collaboration app for iPhone. At the time of our conversation in February of this year 2021, Lars was excited about an artist he'd been working with. That artist is Amiena. Our conversation was well timed on the heels of another artist development related episode with Davis Franz (episode 203). My discussion with Lars  touches on the artist development world, his own broad career, struggles of the emerging artist, audio branding, sync licensing, what to consider before engaging an artist development company, and more. Easter Egg After concluding the interview Lars shared more thoughts on the business of artist development We were still recording and I decided to let this part of our conversation be bit of bonus material. It's good stuff, so listen to the very end past the episode credits. You'll be glad you did. Check out Robonzo's new single New Gods Part 2 at Robonzo.com Mentioned in this Episode LarsDeutsch.net Lars on Behance 'Halo' by Amiena SoundStorming Online Collaboration And The Always-On Music Industry–SoundStorming (Ep 173)     Visit UnstarvingMusician.com/Podcasts for related links, episode transcripts and past guests. Sign up for the Unstarving Musician email newsletter at UnstarvingMusician.com Stay in touch! @RobonzoDrummer on Twitter  and  Instagram @UnstarvingMusician on Facebook  and  YouTube

In this episode I speak with David Franz, founder at Underground Sun, about career advice for musicians, productivity shame, how to best market yourself as a musician, and staying creative in crazy times like these. We also mention his biz partner Justin Paul, who will be featured in an upcoming episode of this podcast. David is also an instructor/content manager for LinkedIn Music Education (formerly Lynda.com), author of books on ProTools and home studio recording, videographer, and musician about to release his first album. At the time we spoke (Feb 2021), final tracks for his debut album had been sent for mixing. David will be an important case study for Underground Sun, as this is his first ever solo album. The album is planned for release this Fall of 2021. It was very fun to talk about his release, because at the time we spoke, I'd recently released my first ever single and was working on releasing my second. Our time speaking went fast. He's super fun to chat with. Hopefully we'll be back in touch soon. Please enjoy this conversation with me and David Franz. Visit UnstarvingMusician.com/Podcasts for related links, episode transcripts and past guests. Sign up for the Unstarving Musician email newsletter at UnstarvingMusician.com Stay in touch! @RobonzoDrummer on Twitter  and  Instagram @UnstarvingMusician on Facebook  and  YouTube

British guitarist and composer Timothy Reid found a creative outlet in online collaboration during the pandemic. He found this podcast on his daily train commute in Osaka Japan. Lucky me (and you). He and I share the common threads of Kompoz.com and Peter Rand, who is a prolific member of the collaboration website Kompoz. Like me, Timothy was drawn to one of Peter’s compositions and has since recorded music with him. Timothy has also recorded with several other artists on and off of Kompoz. Our initial conversations leading up to this interview were about Timothy’s enjoyment of this podcast, which was heartwarming to hear. Peter Rand co-wrote my latest release ‘New Gods Part 2,’ which dropped last Friday May 28th 2021. This means you can stream, purchase and or download it on most of the popular music services. Find direct links to some of those platforms on my website Robonzo.com. New Gods Part Two is my personal homage to Zeppelin, Genesis and prog rock with a little social commentary. I hope you’ll check it out, share it, download it and maybe add it to one of your playlists. Timothy and I talk at length about his collaborations on Kompoz.com, how Kompoz collaborations helped him during the pandemic, his past and more recent work, and his musician life in general. Both Timothy and Peter Rand are prolific and versatile writers. You can find them both on Kompoz.com. You can also find Timothy at TomothyReid.com.  See the uncut video version of this conversation on YouTube (link below). I hope you enjoy my chat with Timothy  as much as I did. Audio Note I recorded the intro and mid-roll for this episode in a hotel room using the Trackd Music app for iPhone. My usual usual microphone and audio interface setup didn’t make their way into my suitcase. Trackd Music to the rescue. I could have used my iPhone voice recorder, but Trackd Music is built for making sonic sense of a room, wherever you are. Visit UnstarvingMusician.com/Podcasts for related links, episode transcripts and past guests. Sign up for the Unstarving Musician email newsletter at UnstarvingMusician.com Stay in touch! @RobonzoDrummer on Twitter  and  Instagram @UnstarvingMusician on Facebook  and  YouTube

Helene Jæger has an intriguing outlook on writing music and lyrics relying on the conscious and unconscious awareness plus intuition. She leans on stream of consciousness writing methods to create music under the moniker of Holy Boy. Helene was born and raised in Norway, completed much of her education in England and has been based in Los Angeles since 2016. At the time of this conversation, she had recently released a single covering The Doors classic ‘Riders On The Storm.’ It was to be part of a collection released as a debut album in 2020. Helene made the decision to wait, in light of the pandemic and its impact on the music business. We speak about this plus her writing methods, the music of her childhood, L.A., her band, plans for live streaming, and the future of that unreleased album. Visit UnstarvingMusician.com for related links, episode transcripts and more. Stay in touch! @RobonzoDrummer on Twitter  and  Instagram @UnstarvingMusician on Facebook  and  YouTube

Multifaceted drummer Mike Dawson has refocused his career on studio work, teaching, visual arts and of course drum gear. Prior to the pandemic, he was a gigging machine, managing editor at Modern Drummer Magazine, and co host of the Modern Drummer Podcast With Mike And Mike. He’s more recently become Chief Creative Officer at Drum Factory Direct, which as the name might imply is all about drum gear, including just about every tiny part imaginable. Mike’s return to the Unstarving Musician was as much an opportunity for me to get caught up on all his recent life changes as it was an opportunity to celebrate episode 200 the Unstarving Musician. Mike also appears in episodes 1, 25 and 50 of this podcast, all three of which are among the our most popular episodes. In this conversation Mike and I talk about his increased involvement with the visual aspects of his work in music and drums. We also talk about recording, the details of his new gig at Drum Factory Direct, the future of upcoming events, a new podcast he was working on when we recorded this conversation, my drum kit, which has taken a climate beating here in Panama, his new home base of Pittsburgh, and re-prioritizing life. We also laugh a lot. That happens quite a bit here on the Unstarving Musician, laughing. Please enjoy my conversation with Mike Dawson. Please visit UnstarvingMusician.com for related links and episode transcript. To stay in touch, find me on Twitter and Instagram @robonzodrummer.

Create, cultivate and connect are words that carry special meaning for Joy Ike. They are the basis for a music coaching and mentoring program she calls Cultivators. Her professional background in PR and marketing enables Joy to offer unique perspective to the emerging artists with whom she works. She’s also a freelance writer, which includes articles and blog posts for Bandzoogle. We recorded this conversation in late December of last year 2020, at which time I was on the cusp of releasing my first single ‘On Top Of The World.’ It was the perfect time to ask what she sees in artists who are better at getting their work out into the world. Her response to this line of questioning wasn’t exactly what I expected, yet it was enlightening. Also in this conversation, I attempt to understand what got her from publishing and PR to music artist and ultimately to artist consultant. We also discuss her strict childhood, house concerts, zoom concerts, her single Wearing Love (new at the time of our conversation), her percussive musicality and more. Joy is herself a very talented singer musician. I love her voice in fact. Check out her work at JoyIke.com. Please visit UnstarvingMusician.com for related links and episode transcript. If you'd like to reach out and say hi, you can find me on Twitter and Instagram @robonzodrummer.

Michael Gilbride somewhat recently released his debut EP 'my name is not kaiser' and the single 'Say Hello,' from that EP. The animated video for 'Say Hello,' which you can find at telcomusic.com or the show notes for this episode, is amazing. Michael and I discuss the animators behind the 'Say Hello' video, the stories behind the telco project, his biggest challenges writing and recording the EP, and how music became therapy for his OCD. At the time of our conversation, he had another single on the way. That song 'Minus Nine' was released on January 8th of this year 2021, which coincided with my first ever single release. He was apologetic about this, but I thought it was awesome. I just finally listened to 'Minus Nine,' and it's great. Michael's music has a great pop sensibility. I had a laugh at his mild preoccupation with aging out of music at 25. I'm old enough to be his dad, but we didn't get into that. Please enjoy. Please visit UnstarvingMusician.com for related links and episode transcript. If you'd like to reach out and say hi, you can find me on Twitter and Instagram @robonzodrummer.

Brian Wolff returns to the Unstarving Musician to discuss his transition from performing with a high energy rock band into live streaming as a solo artist, plus the changes that have brought him to a new chapter of his music career. We also discuss his live streaming setup, Patreon, nurturing his creativity through writing things down more often, the terrifying moment of doing his first live stream performance, including the absence of in-person feedback and his Greetings From Wherever podcast. You can hear me in episode 15 of Greetings From Wherever. This is Brian's fourth appearance on the Unstarving Musician. We met on the socials sometime in 2018, and I really enjoy speaking with him. I had the pleasure of spending time with him in Austin back in 2018. Great guy! I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Please visit UnstarvingMusician.com for related links and episode transcript. If you'd like to reach out and say hi, you can find me on Twitter and Instagram @robonzodrummer.

Sylvia Rose Novak joins me for a round-two conversation from the great outdoors of Alabama. There are lots of birds and nature sounds in the background, which I think add to the experience of our chat. We recorded back in November of last year 2020. I asked about her then latest release Bad Luck, but she was hard at work on her next release. We talk about the forthcoming album too. In this conversation, Sylvia and I talk about her departure from folk to rock and her push toward a harder rock sound. She also shares her personal experience living with ADHD and bipolar disorder. I ask her about her many tattoos, how she gets out of her own head, and why she thinks some musicians struggle to get the gigs that they really want. Sylvia told me her forthcoming album has a punk rock sensibility. While that may be an oxymoron, I totally get it. The Unstarving Musician is all about independent music and doing what we love as musicians; so do your thing Sylvia Rose and have fun doing it. I hope to one day see Sylvia and her band play live. Please enjoy my conversation with Sylvia Rose Novak. Please visit UnstarvingMusician.com for related links and episode transcript. If you'd like to reach  out and say hi, you can find me on Twitter and Instagram @robonzodrummer. 

Since 1990 Reverend Raven has opened for B.B King, Gatemouth Brown, Pinetop Perkins, the Koko Taylor Band, Junior Wells, the Fabulous Thunderbirds, Tommy Castro among many others. He and I are acquainted by way of mutual friend The Worldwide West Side Guitar Man Johnny Burgin. Reverend and Johnny have been pals since '99. We recorded our conversation in November of 2020, during which time I had asked several former guests for their thoughts on personal branding. Johnny Burgin was among those asked and in his reply, Johnny suggested I speak with Reverend. We had a great conversation about his growing up on the South Side of Chicago, how his stint in the Navy helped him find success with Reverend Raven And The Chain Smoking Alter Boys, how he acquired so many amazing testimonials for the band, life since the pandemic, his predictions for the coming year, and some of the questions I've been asking as research for the 2nd edition of the Unstarving Musician's Guide to Getting Paid Gigs. And a wee bit more. Please visit UnstarvingMusician.com for related links and episode transcript. If you'd like to reach  out and say hi, you can find me on Twitter and Instagram @robonzodrummer. 

At the center of collaboration and music discovery is Trackd Music and Grant Tilbury-Jaiswal. Grant is head of Artist Relations and A&R for Trident Cloud Limited and Trackd Music. Trackd is a recording and collaborative platform for iPhone that is changing the way many musicians create and share music. In this conversation, Grant shares his thoughts on the latest version of Trackd, the art of attracting and retaining fans, the joy of music discovery, the demographic range of Trackd Music users, his weeky Facebook and Instagram lives with featured Trackd Music artists and more. Most exciting to me personally is the fact that Trackd Music is featuring my latest song New Gods Part 2 in a streaming exclusive on their platform. Please visit UnstarvingMusician.com for related links and episode transcript.   If you'd like to reach  out and say hi, you can find me on Twitter and Instagram @robonzodrummer.

Abe is extremely committed to the experience of recording records and playing live shows, because he loves connecting with people in the flesh. This is how he gets his music out into the world.  In this second appearance for the podcast, Abe and I discuss pandemic driven changes in music, painting, the release of his latest single, what a good gig looks like to Abe, why performing live is so important to him, his subscription based art club, and our shared pandemic pessimism. You can also hear Abe in episode 67 of the Unstarving Musician. Our conversation is somber at times, given the impact of the pandemic, but I found myself giggling like a little girl throughout. There was so much laughing and giggling on my part, that I decided to edit some of my laughter out. It's not that Abe's comedic per say. I guess I was just that happy to be spending time with him. He's an inspiring artist and human being. I'll likely post the uncut version of our conversation on the Unstarving Musician YouTube channel. Please enjoy this conversation with a wee bit less laughter. 😁 Visit UnstarvingMusician.com for related links and episode transcript. If you'd like to reach out to say hi, you can find me on Twitter and Instagram @robonzodrummer.

Brian Wolff returns to the Unstarving Musician to participate in the Unstarving Musician survey, in which I ask some of the best independent musicians I know questions about creativity, social media, live streaming, community building and more. This is Brian's third appearance on the podcast, and I have a fourth interview with him in the can, so to speak. That interview will drop in late April or early May. Brian is a founding member of the Austin based rock band Fair City Fire, turned solo artist. Brian also has a new podcast called Greetings From Wherever, in which he interviews creatives about their creative endeavors. I checked it out, really like it and recommend you check it out too. It's available on all the audio platforms where podcasts are found. You'll even be able to hear me on an upcoming episode of Greetings From Wherever. Stay tuned for more on that. You can also find out about Brian's music on Patreon @BrianWolfMusic. Please enjoy this conversation of survey questions with me and Brian Wolff. Mentioned in this Episode Brian Wolff on Patreon Greetings From Wherever Podcast Touring, Podcasting and Rocking with Fair City Fire–Brian Wolff Please visit UnstarvingMusician.com for related links and episode transcript. If you'd like to reach out to say hi, you can find me on Twitter and Instagram @robonzodrummer.

Alyssa Trahan recently participated in a survey for the forthcoming second edition of The Unstarving Musician’s Guide to Getting Paid Gigs. I decided to conduct the surveys by phone and to make an episode of this particular conversation, because Alyssa’s responses are so insightful and inspiring. As a side note, Alyssa is is now an official two-timer, this being her second conversation with me for the podcast. The format is a little different, because I was conducting the interview based on survey questions. Consequently, I sound like I’m reading questions from a script, all while diligently taking notes. Kind of silly if you think about it, since we were recording. At the time, however, I didn’t know I’d end up using the conversation for a podcast episode. It turns out I’m using a few of the conversations I had for the survey as episode material. This was a particularly good conversation though. Alyssa is firing on all cylinders, in my humble opinion. There are of course things she could be doing better, which she admits; but she’s still killing it. Alyssa discusses some of the pandemic driven struggles she’s experienced over the past year. She shares several openly vulnerable moments, and this is one of the many things I love about her. There was a ton of valuable stuff in this conversation. Possibly my favorite was what Alyssa had to say about new music release strategy as it relates to video and the importance of content in general. Please enjoy this conversation with Alyssa Trahan. Please visit UnstarvingMusician.com for related links and episode transcript. If you'd like to reach out to say hi, you can find me on Twitter and Instagram @robonzodrummer.

Steven Keene says his songwriting routine has never resembled work. To the contrary, he’s always written in the moment and as inspiration strikes. Yet he’s had a consistent and prolific songwriting career. Steven grew up in Brooklyn New York, and honed his skills in the Greenwich Village scene of the late 80s, early 90s alongside Beck and other noteworthies. The day we spoke, he had a new single out. That single was called “Cause I Can’t Have You.” Since then, the full album “Them & Us” has been released. Steven toured regularly for years, but in 2019 decided to focus on writing and recording. He says he’s had the pleasure and good fortune of doing so with players who have worked with the likes of Lenny Kravitz, Bon Jovi, and Springsteen. He told me that Dylan his #1 influence. Steven has actually played with a few of members of Dylan’s Rolling Thunder Review tour and backing band. I had to ask Steven about playing at CBGB. He did not disappoint, sharing stories of gigs at there and The Bottom Line in the 90’s, alongside Beck. We talk about his songwriting methods and routines, as well as his sentiments on the state of music amidst the pandemic. Yet Steven is thrilled to be recording and like all of us, he looks forward to a time when the music business has reshaped itself. Please enjoy… Visit UnstarvingMusician.com for related links, episode transcript and more.