Quote:Don't Waste Your Money on Live Shows

12-10-2015, 02:03 PM
And CERTAINLY don't waste money on a meet and greet! December 3 in Dallas was a joke.

No Scott Bradlee. NONE of the faces being promoted on all the recent videos, except Casey Abrams. This formula is over. They've derailed. I waited a year for my schedule to align in any nearby city they would be performing in. What a let down. Even Bradlee is off doing new things now. THIS is why they don't tell you who will be appearing. Classic bait and switch. They post updated videos every week but hire regional people to fill the tour slots. It's your money so think twice before going. I'd like my money back and an apology for duping the audience.

(12-11-2015, 08:50 PM)john Wrote: Some back and forth on the PMJ boards about this issue. Similar to some of the discussions here weeks and months ago.

Quote:New Video! “Last Christmas,” Vintage Andrew Sisters-Style. Happy Holidays!

Cristina, Ariana, and Sara all have rich, colorful voices that lend themselves so well to these kind of vintage remakes, as well as having a great onstage chemistry (Ariana and Cristina are even roommates). Although we didn’t have much time to rehearse, all three of them were quick to learn the arrangement, and Ariana – a massive Andrews Sisters fan – came up with a few of the vocal harmonies, as well.



As you can see, I played up the “sister” dynamic between the vocalists and Melinda a bit in this video. Melinda, who can also be seen in the PMJ remake of “Umbrella,” showed her acting chops by mastering the facial expressions of a sulking little sister, jealous of her older siblings that are constantly in the spotlight. Thanks to a bit of holiday kindness on the part of clarinetist Jacob Scesney, it becomes a “Cinderella” story by the video’s end.

Quote:Don't be a perfectionist or else you'll never get anything done, ever

...making YouTube videos almost didn’t happen for me. Let’s go back to 2009:

[video]

^^That was my first viral video. It was a ragtime medley of ’80s songs that I had actually been performing since 2002, but never recorded. I was afraid that if I recorded it, all my technical flaws would be put under a microscope, and I wouldn’t be able to live up to the expectations that I had created for myself in my head. Sure enough, when I did finally record it – making a whole bunch of mistakes in the process – I was a bit disappointed with the results and afraid to release it. I finally worked up the courage to put it on YouTube, but shared it only with my friends. I even played up the fact that I recorded it spontaneously, so it wouldn’t look like I had actually put any effort into it.

Imagine my surprise when, the next day, it racked up over 10,000 views in a few hours and was featured in viral news blogs all over the internet. Yes, some of the comments were negative, and said all the things I was afraid they would say about my piano technique (and then some). A funny thing happened when I experienced that criticism, though: It didn’t bother me that much.

I realized that I had spent a good seven years in perfectionist limbo – time that could have used to create. I had rationalized that I just wasn’t ready…for seven years. Experiencing the criticism that I so feared firsthand showed me how little it actually mattered. I began to think of each new video as just a snapshot in time, nothing more. I was finally free to create.

...The Beatles wrote hundreds of songs, and most of them weren’t hits. History tends to remember artistic successes, while artistic “failures” are usually forgotten. The upside of creating art completely dwarfs the downside. If that still isn’t convincing enough, keep in mind that most critics just follow the fashions anyway, making “good art” largely subjective. On pretty much every Postmodern Jukebox video, you will find both, “This is the best video you’ve ever done!” and “Meh, not your best work” in the comments. I’m not sure which is true, nor am I really all that interested. I’m already busy working on the next one.

...It takes real courage to be an artist; if it didn’t, everyone would do it. Don’t wait till you’re ready. Don’t wait till you’re older. Be impatient, and it just might work out for you…



…just don’t read the comments.

-Scott

Quote:With Star Wars: The Force Awakens smashing box office records this past week, we recorded this special medley of famous Star Wars themes to feature tap dance sensation (and occasional C-3PO cosplayer) Sarah Reich.