They are here and they look awesome! Just hit play below to check out the unboxing video of our very first Glossy Soul t-shirts!
Glossy Soul T-shirts Are Here!
Glossy Soul's "Music To Succeed To" is Here!
I am so excited to announce that Glossy Soul's "Music To Succeed To" album is here! You can get your copy now by clicking this link:
Glossy Soul's "Music To Succeed To"
I had such a blast making this record. I have wanted to make a smooth jazz record for years! This album is what I call "Hip-hop Piano Jazz," which is just my term for smooth jazz piano music, but with a little more of a hip-hop production style. It is head-bobbing funky grooves with pretty piano melodies on top. It's catchy and fun, but also designed to evoke emotions in us that inspire us and encourage us to do amazing things in our lives!
Click HERE to get your copy now!
I think you will have as much fun listening to as I did making this record. Also, if you want to listen to some of the tunes off the album before buying it, you will get a chance to do that before making a purchase! So I hope you will click the "Buy Now" button below and check out Glossy Soul's "Music To Succeed To" today!
How I Learned To Love Music Again
It's weird how being a musician can actually make you hate music. That sounds crazy, right? But it really does happen to a lot of musicians. It happened to me. And it made my life so miserable. I knew that I needed to change that. And quick!
Just hit the PLAY button below to see how I learned to love music again!
The Making Of "Music To Succeed To"
I thought it would be fun to pull back the curtain and show you some footage from the making of Glossy Soul's "Music To Succeed To album!"
Just hit the PLAY button below to check it out!
What They Don't Tell You When You Want To Become A Musician
Being a musician is awesome but it comes with a lot of challenges. I wanted to share a couple things I wish I knew when I was starting out.
Just hit the PLAY button below to check it out!
How To Look Forward To Tomorrow
As far back as I can remember, I have always struggled with looking forward to tomorrow. I am constantly trying to draw out today as long as I can because I am always dreading the things I have to do the next day. And as you might guess, this can lead to a lot of bad habits. Instead of going to bed at a reasonable time, I stay up all night eating junk food and watching movies. I will do anything I can to keep the "dream" alive and not "give up" and go to bed. To those more well adjusted folk out there, this may sound like crazy talk. Who doesn't know to go to bed early so they can rise early and refreshed?
This guy, that's who.
And I know I'm not alone. I know there are many of us out there. Sometimes we call ourselves "Night Owls" but really we are just afraid to go to sleep. Going to sleep is like giving up. Going to sleep means we have to get up in the morning and do it all over again. It seems like too much to bear. Tomorrow feels like too much work and we want to avoid it as long as possible. I've been this way since I was a little kid. I think most kids don't want to go to bed. They feel like they are missing out on all the fun stuff if they go to bed before the adults. Most people grow out of this as they get older. And some don't. Some never stop feeling like they are missing out on something by going to bed early.
I often wonder how many more people would struggle with this if they didn't have a job that made them get up early. I mean, you won't keep a job for long if you keep showing up when you want to. I have almost always worked for myself. Being a musician, all my "jobs" are at night, so I am blessed with the gift of setting my own morning schedule. This is both a blessing and a curse, however, because no one is there to make me get up at 8 am. I can sleep until noon if I want to. Sounds like heaven, right? And don't get me wrong, it is awesome in a lot of ways. But you also become your own worst enemy because you start sleeping in every day and suddenly you aren't getting anything done. You know you need to get up earlier, but then the next morning comes and you keep deciding to sleep in. It's madness, really. How do we overcome this? How do we get to the place where we aren't fearing tomorrow but looking forward to it? How do we become so excited about tomorrow that we can't wait to get up in the morning?
After years of soul-searching, I have found these are the 6 keys to help me look forward to tomorrow and to get up and seize the day!
1. Excitement for what I want to do must outweigh the dread for what I have to do
This is the hardest one but the most important. We all have things we have to do that we don't want to do. But if our life is filled with those tasks only, we are going to get burned out very fast. It is really important that we have a clear picture of what we want to do with our lives. We need to find our true calling, our purpose, that thing that we were put on this earth to do. Then we need to have concrete goals that we are working to achieve. If we can get laser-focused on the things we want to achieve in life, then we can get up every day with an excitement to take another step closer to those goals. If you don't know what your one thing is yet, I would strongly urge you to do some soul-searching. It is out there, you just have to find it. And once you do, your life will change forever!
2. Must overcome the "Dread of the Physical"
It is crucial that we take good care of ourselves. We need to eat right and exercise daily. We all know this, but a lot of us don't do it and then wonder why we have no energy or why we are depressed. When you don't eat well, you don't feel well and then everything becomes harder because your body is tired, achy and lacking the nutrition it needs to function well. It is crucial you treat your body right. If you do, then you will be excited to get up and conquer the day!
3. Must overcome the "Fear of the Physical"
This one is very closely linked to number two. If you are not taking good care of yourself, fear can start to creep in and take over. We start to worry more about our health when we are not taking good care of ourselves and this uses up so much energy. It also causes a lot of unnecessary stress and can make us want to just stay in bed all day. But if you are eating well and exercising, you can feel good that your body is healing and doing the things it needs to do to stay healthy and these fears are destroyed.
4. Must have a clean and comfortable nest
Clean your house! I did an article about how to overcome negativity (you can read it by clicking here) and one of the steps in that article was also to clean your house. This is so often overlooked yet so important to our happiness and mental well being. We need a comfortable nest. We need to get up in the morning and know we will be in an environment that is clean and organized. When we live in a mess, our lives become a mess. So clean your house and be proud of your nest!
5. Must have strong relationships
John Donne said it best - "No man is an island." Human beings are not meant to live alone in solitude. We are social creatures. And I get it, some of us are introverts. I know I am. I love being alone most of the time. But I have learned that I cannot be alone all the time. I need good people in my life. I need love. And I need to be needed by others. We all do. We all need people that we can't wait to interact with. This can be family, friends or even just acquaintances we enjoy at work. This can even include pets. We just need someone we can't wait to get up and love and know they will love us back.
6. Must have music
Of course, I am going to drop this one in there. But it is really true for me and I think most people. Music is amazing. It's a game changer. And if you haven't tuned in to how much music can change your life, you maybe haven't found the right music yet. Keep exploring until you find the soundtrack of your soul. It's worth it. Some days it is only the excitement of the music I get to listen to that gets me out of bed. Music is powerful. And it will always be there waiting to help you get your day started.
Don't give up my friend. There is a path for you. Tomorrow should be a blessing, not a curse. Us "Night Owls" just need to find our own path to that blessing. It's there. Right in front of you. Just like tomorrow, it is waiting for you to discover it's beauty. So go to bed because a world of opportunity is waiting for you! See you tomorrow!
P.S. I have a playlist called Smooth Jazz Piano's Best that is one of my go-to's when I am struggling and need some music to lift me up! It's full of fun, groovy and inspiring smooth jazz that I think you would really enjoy! Hit the button below to get the playlist now. Don't worry, it's totally free!
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Ain't Nobody by Jeff Lorber
Ok I've been talking so much about this song lately I guess I should make it an official song that helps! A song doesn't have to have a deep meaning to make you feel good. Sometimes it's just the way it is arranged and the passion in the playing that takes you to where you need to be. This is one of those songs for me!
SONGS THAT HELP FROM SOUL MOTIVATION RECORDS
Mostly known as a Rufus/Chaka Khan song, "Ain't Nobody" is a typical love song lyrically. But the funkiness of the song has always been it's big selling point. Then when you put it in the hands of a musical master like Jeff Lorber, well, you have got something really great! I love almost every version of this song I have ever heard, but this one is my favorite. Groovy, musical and catchy as all get out! I promise you will be humming this one for a while.
You're welcome.
Want to hear more from Jeff? Get our secret playlist called "Smooth Jazz Piano's Best" featuring many great tunes by Jeff and many others! Available absolutely free for Apple Music and Spotify users. Just click the link below and start listening now!
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Top 10 Smooth Jazz Pianists
I have been a fan of smooth jazz since college. That feels like years ago now. Oh yeah, it was a lot of years ago, I guess. Anyhoo, I remember when I started listening to smooth jazz. It was overwhelming trying to figure out where to start. Who should I listen to? Who are the great artists? Who should I avoid? I don't want to waste my time with lame artists, right? Obviously, the best thing to do is just to dive in and find what you like. But where do you start?
I got you covered. Here is a list of my 10 favorite smooth jazz pianists. I'll also include some key tracks and albums to start you out on your smooth jazz journey. So light a candle. Dim the lights. And get ready to groove with the best of the best!
#10
Gregg Karukas
Key Tracks: Soul Kisses, Manhattan, Blue Touch
Key Album: GK
#9
Jonathan Fritzen
Key Tracks: This Way That Way, Temple of Dreams, The Standard
Key Album: Diamonds
#8
David Benoit
Key Tracks: Freedom at Midnight, Drive Time, Kei's Song
Key Album: Heroes
#7
Brian Culbertson
Key Tracks: On My Mind, You're My Music, Modern Life
Key Album: Dreams
#6
Gene Harris
Key Tracks: Sittin' Duck, Losalamitoslatinfunklovesong, Everything Happens To Me
Key Album: Gene Harris and The Three Sounds Live at the 'It Club'
#5
Bob Baldwin
Key Tracks: Summer Breeze, Stand Tall, I Wanna Be Where You Are
Key Album: Standing Tall
#4
Bob James
Key Tracks: Bali Run (Fourplay), 101 Eastbound (Fourplay), Since I Fell For You
Key Album: Fourplay
#3
Joe Sample
Key Tracks: Street Life (The Crusaders), Chain Reaction (The Crusaders), Spellbound
Key Album: Spellbound
#2
Ramsey Lewis
Key Tracks: The "In" Crowd, So What You Wanna Do, I'll Always Dream About You
Key Album: The In Crowd
#1
Jeff Lorber
Key Tracks: Ain't Nobody, Grasshopper, Do What It Takes
Key Album: Kickin' It
Want to hear more from these guys? Get our secret playlist called "Smooth Jazz Piano's Best" featuring all of these great players! Available absolutely free for Apple Music and Spotify users. Just click the link below and start listening now!
Come See What Is Your Soul Motivation? LIVE!
A little over 4 months after its release, I will be performing the songs off of my EP "What Is Your Soul Motivation?" on October 15th, 2017 at Foam, a club here in St. Louis, MO! I am really excited for the opportunity to finally perform these songs live. I will be doing most of the songs off the album as well as a couple choice covers you won't want to miss!
A big thanks to my friend Rick Kilian for putting this show together! If you have never heard Rick's music, you need to come October 15th and check it out. It's exciting, piano-driven pop/rock. If you dig Ben Folds or Elton John, you need to hear Rick's music. We will also be joined by another great St. Louis musician - Jason Nelson and his band. It's going to be a great night of music!
The best news is it is a FREE SHOW! Who does that, right?! We do! It is also an all ages show. So you have no excuse. Come on down October 15th and hang with us at Foam! The show starts at 8 pm.
What Is Glossy Soul? - A Facebook Live Event
Join us on Facebook Live as we talk about Soul Motivation Records' upcoming release - Music To Succeed To by Glossy Soul! We will be discussing the inspiration behind the music, revealing the album artwork, and best of all, giving away a FREE DOWNLOAD to all that attend of the first Glossy Soul song to come into existence! Hip-hop fans as well as smooth jazz piano fans will not want to miss this!
DATE: October 2, 2017
TIME: 8:30PM EST
Meet The Lotus Project
The Lotus Project is a mentorship program that encourages young women to strengthen their inner selves in order to reach their full potential and to recognize their value and beauty. It is built on the principles of sisterhood, inner strength, confidence, health, relationships, gratitude, and responsibility. But most importantly, it is founded and run by a really good friend of mine and quite an amazing woman!
LaRissa Deemer Paras is a teacher at the secondary level and has been teaching for 17 years now. She found a lot of her female students wanting to confide in her more and more about school, love, home life and more. While engaging in more and more of these conversations, she realized a lot these young women were not just whining about teenage problems, but were dealing with some serious adult type issues. Most of the time it came down to a matter of personal choice. None of these girls could see that they had a CHOICE. They didn't know they were worth fighting for and that a new mindset might make all the difference.
The Lotus Project was born.
LaRissa, along with some other very compassionate women, do regular events with high school girls teaching them to love themselves and to embrace the values that will serve them the rest of their lives to be the best they can be.
We here at Soul Motivation Records (Creative Services Division) had the honor of writing a theme song for the Lotus Project! We truly had a blast creating this song and worked hard to capture the vision and story of this wonderful group of ladies! A big thanks to Jesse Garland for providing the wonderful vocals on this track!
The world needs more amazing women like this spreading a message of love and strength among young women. If you are interested in getting involved with something similar in your area, here are some parting words of encouragement from LaRissa to her fellow female mentors:
"Mentors, you are making a difference in the lives of our young women. What a gift you are giving to them - the gift of your time and your love! The gift of finding their strength and their power in the world. And trust me, you will grow right along your girls. This is a thing of beauty!"
Be sure to learn more about The Lotus Project at:
And you can follow them on social media at:
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Soul Motivation Records on The Cerebral Entertainment Podcast!
I got the chance to hang out with James and Colt at The Cerebral Entertainment Podcast HQ a couple weeks ago! These guys are great and doing big things! Be sure to check them out on all social media platforms. We had a great chat about music, the state of hip-hop and fax machines. Take a listen!
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Break My Stride by Matthew Wilder
I love the 80's! I had some of my best years in the 80's. Growing up, wearing parachute pants, french rolling my jeans. Ok, don't ask to see any pictures. But some of my favorite music is from the 80's. There was so much color and life in the music then. So much optimism and hope. And even though the production was kind of cheesy sometimes, the message was great. And this one is no exception.
SONGS THAT HELP BY SOUL MOTIVATION RECORDS
"Break My Stride" is a song performed by American artists Matthew Wilder. It was released in 1983 as the lead single from his debut album, I Don't Speak the Language, and became a major hit single for him in 1983 and 1984.
If you need to be reminded of how awesome you are today, just the way you are, this is the song to do it. Don't break your stride baby!
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You Are The Universe by The Brand New Heavies
Oh man. I just recently discovered this gem of positivity while exploring some music on Spotify. How have I not heard this song before? This song is so great. Such a great positive message supported by an infectious groove. And such a great hook. I cannot stop singing "You are the universe!"
SONGS THAT HELP BY SOUL MOTIVATION RECORDS
"You Are the Universe" is a song by The Brand New Heavies, released in 1997. The song charted at number twenty-one in the UK. This song is such a jam. Happy and groovy this song could make Darth Vader feel good on a bad day!
Listen, enjoy and smile while you picture Darth Vader dancing to this song! You're welcome.
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Never Stop Fighting
I just got done watching the movie "The Beaver?" Have you seen it? It is a quirky and interesting movie starring Mel Gibson, Jodie Foster and some others. The basic premise of the movie is that a highly depressed CEO (Mel Gibson) finds help and motivation from a beaver puppet through which he communicates to the world. I know, kind of weird. But it is actually a pretty good movie. One of the big takeaways from the movie is the idea that what if everything isn't going to be okay? Meaning, some of us may always struggle with depression or other mental illnesses. It may just be in our DNA and there is nothing we can do it about that. The good news is, however, you don't have to struggle alone. If you have people who love you in your life, you'll be okay as they can help you through the hard times.
Do I 100% agree with this analysis? I don't know. Honestly, I often wonder the exact same thing. Maybe we are predisposed to what our mental health will be for the rest of our lives. But one thing I do know is that there is still something we can do about it. We can fight. Everyday we can get up and decide to fight for ourselves, fight for our mental health, fight for positivity in our lives. We still have the freedom of choice and we can choose how we want to feel everyday. Maybe happiness comes easier to some than others, that may be true. But we all have the opportunity to choose the pursuit of joy, peace and contentment. That much I do know.
I also totally agree with the movie that we don't have to do it alone. We are surrounded by loving, caring humans who believe in us. Even when we don't believe in ourselves. We need to embrace these relationships with our friends, families, co-workers and even casual acquaintances. And if we don't have enough of these loving people in our lives, then it is our duty to go out and find them. They are there you just have to go out and create relationships with them. I have certainly had times in my life where I felt alone and I felt like loneliness was my destiny. But then I realized that was a lie I was telling myself. I deserve to be happy. I deserve to have loving relationships. All I have to do is get up, go out, find these people and get them in my life. And what do you know, it turns out I wasn't alone after all!
The bottom line is even if we struggle with depression, we still can find happiness. Get up and choose to pursue happiness. Embrace the love that is all around you. And most importantly, never stop fighting. As long as we never give up fighting, we win!
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Soul Motivation Records Featured in the Gaylord Herald Times!
Thanks so much to Arielle Breen for an awesome article in my hometown paper: The Gaylord Herald Times! It is a huge honor to be featured in the paper of the town I grew up in. Be sure to check out the article and don't forget to share and comment!!
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Don't You Worry 'Bout A Thing by Stevie Wonder
"Everybody's got a thing but some don't know how to handle it." Man, right from the first line you know this song is going to say something great! Then add in the Stevie Wonder's musical magic and you have a classic song that will always help!
SONGS THAT HELP BY SOUL MOTIVATION RECORDS
"Don't You Worry 'Bout a Thing" is a song by Stevie Wonder from his 1973 album Innervisions. It reached number 16 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart and number 2 on the R&B chart. It conveys a positive message that we all need to hear regularly: don't worry because everything is going to be ok!
I would follow Stevie anywhere and he will not let you down on this one. Don't you worry about a thing!
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How To Beat Racism
I cannot remember a time in my life when racial tensions were as high in this country as they are now. In some ways it's good. At least we are talking about racism again instead of pretending it doesn't exist anymore. But it is also frustrating, sad and a heavy burden that most of us feel on a daily basis. We want this problem to just go away but it's never that simple. As long as people have free choice, racism will exist in some capacity. It's hard to know what we as individuals can do to help. How can one person affect change on a national scale? It seems overwhelming and impossible, but that's not true. There are many things that we as individuals can do to beat racism.
The first thing we need to do is stop giving attention to those who seek it. The KKK, neo-nazi's and white supremacists love to make a lot of noise and we love to respond with louder noise. We feel like it's our duty to get in their face and show them how wrong they are. We are angry and we feel like we can't just sit by and do nothing. But what if we did. What would happen if at the next white supremacist gathering there was no protest. No press. No attention. What if nobody showed up to yell at them? Imagine them having their assembly in peace. What affect would they have on the world then? Not much because no one would care. We give them the attention they want by protesting and yelling. We rev them up with our shouting and the next thing you know someone is driving their car into the crowd. And for what? What was accomplished by all of it? The white supremacists get the attention they want and we lose another innocent person in the process.
I know this is an unpopular opinion. How can you just sit by and do nothing? Don't you care? Aren't you worried they will take over the world if we don't resist? First of all, I do care. Quite a bit. But I am not worried about them taking over the world. I trust mankind. I trust our human nature. I trust that love always wins. I trust my neighbors, my friends and my family. I know that the many who love far outweigh the few who hate. There is no possible way they can take us over. All they can do is yell and scream and beg for attention. And I refuse to give it to them. See, they don't matter to me. At all. Their message is filled with stupidity and I have no time for stupid things. I only have time to focus on things that matter. I only have time to focus on those around me. Love my neighbors. Spend time with my friends and family. Teach the next generation how to love by showing them, not by screaming it at them.
That is how we win. We ignore their ignorance. We refuse to play into their need for attention. Instead we choose to love them. We choose to love our neighbors, our community, our friends and our famliy. And we love our children and show them the true power of that love. There will always be another group of ignorance trying to make the loudest noise. We need to stop wasting our time trying to be louder and start living the kind of lives that will truly change the world.
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Lovely Day by Bill Withers
Sometimes you just need someone to remind you that today is a great day. It is so easy to get caught up in the hustle of everyday life. And it's even easier to get caught up in the negativity of those around you. I have been miserable on the most beautiful, sunny days. I may be out driving around, running errands, and just whining the whole time about traffic. But if somehow I can remind myself to take 2 seconds and look up from my clenched grip at 10 and 2, I see the sun, the grass, the people. All the good stuff that was there the whole time and I realize it is actually a lovely day!
SONGS THAT HELP BY SOUL MOTIVATION RECORDS
Coming in at #10 on our 10 Greatest Songs That Help list (Click here to get the free PDF), "Lovely Day" is a song by American soul and R&B singer Bill Withers. Written by Withers and Skip Scarborough, it was released on December 21, 1977 and appears on Withers' 1978 album Menagerie. This song just reeks of happiness and choosing to make the day a lovely one.
Bill Withers is wise. Bill Withers is right. It is a Lovely Day!
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You Get What You Give by New Radicals
Not many bands break up before their album is released. Apparently New Radicals couldn't keep it together long enough to enjoy long term success, but at least they gave the world an uplifting jam before they said "Adieu" to the music world.
SONGS THAT HELP BY SOUL MOTIVATION RECORDS
This song is such a jam. It uses a very simple chord progression, but what a catchy chorus. And the words are great. Sometimes it is the simplest songs that tell us exactly what we need to hear. Just sing this one to yourself when you don't think you have anything left to give. I promise it will help.
Don't give up, you've got a reason to live.
Click the picture to get your free PDF!
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