It was a pile in the truck kind of road trip for the boys when they were told to be in Nashville, TN for their record label showcase at 3rd & Lindsley, one of Music City’s most prominent venues.
This showcase was the culmination of five years of work. Rowdy started out in the dives, bars, and clubs of Las Vegas, and now, he had the opportunity to bring to Nashville what Las Vegas already knew, a great talent with showmanship that can be duplicated by no other.
The two and a half day trip brought many stories as one could imagine. From almost falling over the edge of Hoover Dam, to the snows of Flagstaff, the fish-tailing on black ice in Gallup, getting hit on in the bathrooms of an Arkansas truck stop, to the below freezing weather (14 degrees mind you) of Nashville. It was a trip to remember. Not to mention the amount of food that was eaten in the Denny’s, Cracker Barrel’s and Waffle Houses along Route 40. Good thing the truck cab had windows. That’s for sure.
We pulled into town and the first stop was Treasure Isle Recorders, the studio that recorded Rowdy’s album. All the gear was brought in, set up and turned on. We all couldn’t wait to make some noise in that most famous place. The next day found us back in the studio, going through the set list and making some last minutes changes that we knew would catch the ears of the labels and talent agents that were going to be showing up.
The day of the showcase was electric. Everyone was showered, shaved, and had their best clothes on. The green rooms were huge, everything you could ask for or desire, and a palpable excitement could be felt in the building. You could sense the tension coming from the crowd. How can these Las Vegas kids possibly be good enough to play in Nashville? Well, we showed them. They were up on their feet and trying to sing along to songs that they were hearing for the first time. It was a pretty amazing feeling being up there as we were putting it all on the line and leaving every bit of ourselves on that stage. Not only did we pull in crowds and curiosity seekers from Nashville, but we got to meet and see folks from: Warner, Curb, Black River, Blackbird, Broken Bow, Sony/RCA, Big Machine, William Morris and Artisan, just to name a few. Many of the writers from the album were there and they were so excited and appreciative to hear how we played their songs and how it was the way that they envisioned the songs to be. For all of us, it was quite a humbling experience to know that we are the carriers of hopes and dreams for many people and they, in turn, really support and truly believe in what we are doing.
Music, it is something that you have live, not just listen to.