A few years ago (EDIT: almost 3 years to the day) I was invited to play in the very small town of Warsaw, Indiana. I played a small festival the night before in East Lansing, MI called Middle Of The MItten, and most of what I remember about that drive was that it felt pretty long, but it brought a smile to my face to see all of the horse and buggies when I started to get into Amish Country. I was invited to play by a friend Laura K Balke, who I had been in contact with, but never met, because of my friend Zachary Gibson, who directed my music video for the song Leave Them (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzyDC0QLCsk) and had also directed one for her, and so we corresponded over email for a while, but never connected until then. That show was a lot of fun and it was at a Tattoo Parlor along with Grey Gordon, Pink Balloon Band, and Ryan Kerr and a band called The Great Flood Catastrophe. I remember Laura and I bonded over a mutual affection for Taylor Swift, who, at the time, was not considered cool. She was still a country singer for the most part, but we both loved her album “Speak Now”. (I still do.) Later in the year, Laura, Grey, Ryan and I played again together in a nearby town along with a band called Dino Riki (Ian from Pink Balloon Band was in this band, so it was pretty much the same lineup as the first one.) On the way to that show, I remember passing horses and buggies with kids on the back seat area looking miserable in the hot sun wearing their all black outfits and going very slow. I remember flying past them at 30 miles an hour, feeling like I could relate because i had no AC in my car. The show was great time, and I had always wanted to come back, but for some reason I never did. I always imagined it to be very far away, even though for a while now I have been living about an hour from there. Fast forward to a week or so ago, and Ian from Pink Balloon Band got in touch because he saw that I would be playing in South Bend, and suggested that I come by his place to film a little live session at his place on my way to South Bend because it was close by. I didn’t realize it was close, and in my excitement I drove out to Warsaw today (technically yesterday because it’s 3:45am). We shot this video of the song “Smoke” from my album Methodist Girls, and i’m grateful for the funny way life works and the random people we meet along our journey. I really enjoyed catching up with Ian- he’s a great person and an inspiring one to be around. After a late night conversation at Steak N Shake, I headed back to my place, thankful.

sleepily filmed late last night on my iphone in one take for the NPR Musictiny desk contest. feels strange to say but i can relate to this song lately.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bXWpCDRfb0