[SPEAKER_00]: Hey, hey everybody, this is Free Bagwell and this is my podcast.
[SPEAKER_00]: I'll leave it hands.
[SPEAKER_00]: We're talking to my friends.
[SPEAKER_00]: They love it.
[SPEAKER_01]: people need to know how awkward this is.
[SPEAKER_01]: Just me sitting here reading paragraphs and paragraphs to me to you and my dog by ourselves.
[SPEAKER_01]: Hello listeners, this is Bre Baguau with your only vans into your message coming live to you from the RV by the way.
[SPEAKER_01]: Honestly, I'm feeling a little bit of pressure writing this this year.
[SPEAKER_01]: Last year's in the year message was one of the biggest and most widely shared podcast episodes ever.
[SPEAKER_01]: I got so many texts about it and still
[SPEAKER_01]: Maybe more than a few artists felt heard and seen by what I said, maybe some patrons felt enlightened and shared anger with the state of the music business.
[SPEAKER_01]: Maybe it was just pure honesty lacking the total gloss over and glow of social media.
[SPEAKER_01]: It was in a total debut downer of a message, but it sure wasn't glass half full in December 2024.
[SPEAKER_01]: I almost didn't put it out because the team and I felt it had an overall sad tone, despite all of the encouragement and highlights that I sprinkled in.
[SPEAKER_01]: Shiny Tasty Sprinkles don't fix a weird as hell cake, I guess.
[SPEAKER_01]: which is what last year was, weird.
[SPEAKER_01]: Everyone is feeling it and saying out loud, things are just weird, man.
[SPEAKER_01]: So what are they saying this year?
[SPEAKER_01]: What are people like me and honestly, people will not like me at all, but artists who exist in the same music that's spear, spear, saying in 2025.
[SPEAKER_01]: Before we dive into that, hang with me, I read a post recently that made me tear up instantly.
[SPEAKER_01]: Don't coat me, but it was something about 2025 being the Chinese zodiac year of the snake, with this being the year that we shed metaphorical skin and things and people and identities that don't service.
[SPEAKER_01]: It can leave us feeling raw, exposed, etc.
[SPEAKER_01]: But it's a transition year and it's making way for something better, tougher, and more powerful.
[SPEAKER_01]: It talked about overworking and perfectionism becoming suffocating and how letting that go feels tender but as much needed and beautiful.
[SPEAKER_01]: Everyone in our circle still complains that the music business is now video editing, never ending content creating, being contacted on 18 different platforms 247 and oh yeah, still putting out music at light speed or risk eating left behind.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's still high on everyone's, this is total BS and impossible and I'm overwhelmed all the time list.
[SPEAKER_01]: But what's changed and what artists are saying or starting to say is that it feels like we're carrying less about how heavy it all feels.
[SPEAKER_01]: It says if we understand the assignment now, but we aren't throwing a tantrum anymore.
[SPEAKER_01]: We're done stomping our feet, we've taken the homework given to us by society, however and fairly.
[SPEAKER_01]: We put it in our backpacks and we go home.
[SPEAKER_01]: Then we take it out, either shake our head at it and toss it aside or work on it begrudgingly.
[SPEAKER_01]: But we don't let it weigh us way down on our shoulders like it's the end of the world if we don't get famous on TikTok.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's still a lot of seemingly, seemingly impossible workload that most of us don't like, but it's just part of the job now.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm sure a lot of people don't like aspects of their jobs either.
[SPEAKER_01]: By the way, if you feel every day like this wet blanket of unfair content homework is about to suffocate you, you have my total permission to ring out that blanket with all your anger, hang it up to dry and let it exist as just the blanket that it is.
[SPEAKER_01]: A layer on top of you that should only keep you warm with likes and comments and views from those who love what you do instead of ironically leaving you cold and miserable.
[SPEAKER_01]: I know you just want to write and sing and I do too, friend.
[SPEAKER_01]: One reason that this all feels a little less heavy overall is due to the transparency that is trickle down to levels below the tip top of the music industry.
[SPEAKER_01]: We all now know that you can pay influencers to use your songs to help it go quote unquote viral.
[SPEAKER_01]: Anyone can get a list of them along with their prices.
[SPEAKER_01]: Same goes for Spotify listing that you can seriously multiply your stream numbers overnight with just one paid playlist.
[SPEAKER_01]: You can hire internet gurus to make you trend on Google searches where you shouldn't or don't organically belong.
[SPEAKER_01]: In today's climate, it feels like we're all collectively nodding our heads like, oh, okay, we get it.
[SPEAKER_01]: The tricks and information are becoming more accessible to us all and not only industry secrets anymore.
[SPEAKER_01]: I was shocked when I heard and recap last year that 100,000 songs a day are uploaded to Spotify.
[SPEAKER_01]: Now that's old news, and the overwhelming clutter is just a fact that lays around all day and is only mildly annoying, another bog to sludge through, no big deal.
[SPEAKER_01]: So did some people actually and organically go viral on TikTok?
[SPEAKER_01]: absolutely, they are very rare cases.
[SPEAKER_01]: Of course, some of them that did go viral may have more behind the total luck curtain, and if they do, good for them, because the wizardry is similar to what it's always been.
[SPEAKER_01]: Money, or a person that can actually pull the poutier strings for an artist, or maybe, just maybe, it's the divine combination of luck, talent, money, timing, and magic.
[SPEAKER_01]: however it looks, I'm done hating on it.
[SPEAKER_01]: I never really did actually, but I do hate being told almost every weekend that I should try to get famous on TikTok.
[SPEAKER_01]: Did you just wait in line 30 minutes to tell me that, bro?
[SPEAKER_01]: Also, I've done some of these behind the scenes moves.
[SPEAKER_01]: This year, I paid to be on a big playlist.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm monetarily advertising on social media.
[SPEAKER_01]: I just posted a trending idea on TikTok, well, my team posted it, I still don't get on TikTok because I'll end up watching an hour of makeup how-to videos or get mad that there are 100 fake Bribaguo accounts when I search myself.
[SPEAKER_01]: Fake Bribaguo is still killing it out there by the way, y'all.
[SPEAKER_01]: Bottom line is that cash money turns the tide and big cash money can create the tide, but that's nothing new.
[SPEAKER_01]: Because the thing about the music business is that it has always been messed up as messed up as the art is beautiful.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's a shifty history of smoke and mirrors, and as we often say it on this podcast, nobody really knows what they're doing and they never have.
[SPEAKER_01]: Everybody's kind of guessing and we're all figuring it out as we go.
[SPEAKER_01]: National acts and bigger management have more of a roadmap, but it's not a guarantee by any means.
[SPEAKER_01]: Everyone's constantly pivoting and shifting, but I really can't, I really believe we are doing it less with the weather health and hikoviral and I can't.
[SPEAKER_01]: And more with the, let's play the stupid lottery, giving the dice attitude.
[SPEAKER_01]: We now know that hitting it really big, like selling out stadium big and doing it pretty much overnight is as lucky as a lightning strike.
[SPEAKER_01]: And we all don't have the same chance at that, and that's okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: The reason that it's okay is because of the pendulum swing that AI is creating, in my opinion.
[SPEAKER_01]: People are craving live music and human interaction at shows with an energy that I can just feel.
[SPEAKER_01]: People don't know what's really anymore on the interwebs, but you know what is real for sure.
[SPEAKER_01]: Everything I do at a live show and everything that a lot of my friends do at live shows.
[SPEAKER_01]: They may be some tracks here and there, but in our genre we are singing live, playing live, and interacting as ourselves in real time.
[SPEAKER_01]: Who would have thought that would create such value?
[SPEAKER_01]: Thank God it did and it feels like it's still moving in that direction because it's really all that most of us know how to do.
[SPEAKER_01]: My fear is that ticket fees, scammers, and the overall price of going out to a concert has fuller further polarized our audience.
[SPEAKER_01]: I've a show coming up where a table for is $173.39 and general admission is over $40.
[SPEAKER_01]: That plus Ubers and drinks feels like a lot for a Wednesday, even though it's almost sold out e-ha for it worth.
[SPEAKER_01]: That is one of the reasons why we are being increasingly picky about shows and playing less than ever before, which is still a lot, don't worry.
[SPEAKER_01]: In 2024's message, I talked about the absolute grind not being worth it anymore, and it's because we have to make ourselves and our show a true vent, just like the big stadium acts do.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's not $10 at the door for a packed midnight rodeo on a Thursday on the way to New Mexico anymore.
[SPEAKER_01]: It used to be that easy, but that ended with COVID.
[SPEAKER_01]: Since then, we've dried our tears, pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps and have now shifted from survival mode back to entrepreneur mode.
[SPEAKER_01]: Now we are carefully crafting schedules around markets in a way that we will be scarce there, but not absent.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's more of a jigsaw puzzle than a pile as much on the plate view of routing and booking.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's another beauty of shifting, shedding that identity of a person that's on the road 200 days a year.
[SPEAKER_01]: Is this because I've been doing this so long?
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't think so.
[SPEAKER_01]: I see plenty of young ins writing, staying home, keeping their other jobs, et cetera, and only taking shows that make sense financially and or doing what's interpreted as cool.
[SPEAKER_01]: That works today, and I believe that's a smart move, which is really great news for them and their livers.
[SPEAKER_01]: I couldn't afford to do that when I started because I was all in, afraid missed opportunities would mean I wouldn't be asked again or I couldn't pay my rent.
[SPEAKER_01]: I really wouldn't wish 15 shows these month on each month, on anyone, except that it was equally as fun as it was hard, so to say super duper freaking fun.
[SPEAKER_01]: I do and I don't miss the good old days.
[SPEAKER_01]: One last AI note, a lot of us record music with session musicians.
[SPEAKER_01]: If you don't know, these are some of the baddest of the bad, mostly residing in Nashville, but also elsewhere too.
[SPEAKER_01]: When I was at Sony ATV for example, I would get to record three of my songs in one demo session with some of these top players.
[SPEAKER_01]: They were considered some of the best because they were so incredibly good, but most importantly so incredibly quick.
[SPEAKER_01]: And 30 minutes you could have a Nashville quality, incredible, knock you off your feet demo of a song, you brought in with just you in a guitar.
[SPEAKER_01]: 30 minutes was absolutely mind-blowing back in 2012 when I had my publishing deal.
[SPEAKER_01]: Now, an app can spit it out, spit out the same in mere seconds.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I'm not talking about a crappy version either.
[SPEAKER_01]: According to my boyfriend, who knows better than me, we're talking about good tone, good quality, good sound.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then do you want to hear the song as a Jamaican beat?
[SPEAKER_01]: Just ask the app.
[SPEAKER_01]: It would be lying to say that that's not freaking terrifying because it is.
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't want those session musicians and those track guys and those producers who rely on rapid recording to not have jobs.
[SPEAKER_01]: The people that are the best in the business, but not the name in flashing lights may be the most at risk.
[SPEAKER_01]: This makes me sad because their talent has been utilized forever and is no less important and definitely not less impressive than the songwriter.
[SPEAKER_01]: I talk a lot about my shows, whoops, I talk a lot and my shows about defining success.
[SPEAKER_01]: I talk a lot on this podcast about being annoyed that people tell me to hang in there when I'm incredibly happy with my life and grossing an impressive sum of money.
[SPEAKER_01]: The net is not impressive because I'm spending money on waiters, life jackets and flares from the music swamp to tell the helicopter circling to look at me, look at me and save me but not the other guys.
[SPEAKER_01]: But I know deep down, if I was playing in stadiums, it would still be content days, TikTok dance pressures, and all the same problems, just with a larger audience and probably more mean comments.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's why I'm really working on shedding the skin of doing anything that doesn't serve me.
[SPEAKER_01]: I've built a big business.
[SPEAKER_01]: My podcast is in the top 10% of all podcasts in the world.
[SPEAKER_01]: I have great shows, great fans, great friends, a great band.
[SPEAKER_01]: My time in talent is valuable and so is yours.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm protecting what I've built and defending it with Vinno.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's exciting to think that what we've worked so hard for as live and constantly touring musicians is becoming a rarity in the world.
[SPEAKER_01]: And though it may feel like your voice isn't cutting through, I promise it is.
[SPEAKER_01]: Hang tight, you little snake, shake it all off and grow stronger.
[SPEAKER_01]: Thank you producer Kyle for everything you do.
[SPEAKER_01]: This podcast is truly one of the absolute highlights of my life.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, I made it to the end!
[SPEAKER_01]: Kyle's here!
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm wearing my Kyle shirt.
[SPEAKER_05]: That was beautiful, and makes me so excited to read your book.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, that book that Rachel Lloyd texted me the other day and asked me if I wanted, because you know, we do that songwriting group where you have to turn in this song every two weeks.
[SPEAKER_01]: I've been out of it for like six months and I haven't really written at all, it's sad.
[SPEAKER_01]: But I told her about my book and she wants to write one too, so we might get in like a a book writing accountability.
[SPEAKER_01]: So, you know, I could consider that a chapter, right?
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: And consider last year as a chapter, and I really do want to write that book.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm excited.
[SPEAKER_01]: Thank you.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's fun.
[SPEAKER_01]: It took me a long time, though.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: That takes me like three hours.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then I think, and then I edit, and then I think, and then I edit.
[SPEAKER_05]: Wait, you wrote that, and only three hours?
[SPEAKER_05]: Oh, I think that's like a terribly long time.
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, to like process everything and make it some stuff.
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, I think that, you know, when you told me we're going to do this, then my wheel start turning, just like the song game.
[SPEAKER_01]: I might write the song in an hour, but I've been thinking about it for two.
[SPEAKER_05]: Sure, sure.
[SPEAKER_01]: So I wouldn't think about it for a long time.
[SPEAKER_05]: Well, it was very well written.
[SPEAKER_01]: Hey, thanks.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Paul said that too.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm a writer, Kyle.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's what I do.
[SPEAKER_01]: But I do want to make it on my book.
[SPEAKER_01]: I just, it's a daunting task.
[SPEAKER_05]: For sure.
[SPEAKER_05]: You've got a lot to talk about, though.
[SPEAKER_01]: I think I do, and I think that.
[SPEAKER_01]: What we do is kind of talk to people all year long, and it doesn't, you don't realize that your information gathering, when you're talking to your friends, you're like gathering data, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: And then at the end of the year, you can kind of pull all that data and find a theme, which is wild, because I wouldn't think that that's what I do, but that's kind of what I do, and that's what you do.
[SPEAKER_01]: And we get to do it more in depth because we have this amazing podcast, can you believe how many,
[SPEAKER_01]: I was looking at our episodes this year, we had a good year.
[SPEAKER_01]: It was a year of shedding skin, it's a year of transition for the pod, but I really feel big things are coming.
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, people, just the fact that someone like Josh Krutchmer was like, my goal was to be on your podcast this year.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's wild.
[SPEAKER_01]: Right.
[SPEAKER_01]: And we had so many good guests.
[SPEAKER_05]: We had to travel a lot.
[SPEAKER_01]: We got to, we did episodes in Steamboat.
[SPEAKER_01]: We did episodes in Americana Fest in Nashville.
[SPEAKER_01]: Red River 87 50 festival how to sell people are sponsoring the podcast and having us do the podcast at the festivals That's that's a new form of contract that my book in agent was like what how do I Nicole she is it's really Well, yeah, but it's been awesome.
[SPEAKER_05]: This is like you said this is one of my the highlights of my life.
[SPEAKER_05]: I get so much fun doing this.
[SPEAKER_01]: I hope so.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah
[SPEAKER_01]: We need, we're about to get some really good sponsors, but I do want to say that at the top of this podcast.
[SPEAKER_01]: A, thank you so much to our sponsors.
[SPEAKER_01]: We have not had to really try sponsors kind of reach out to us, which has been really beautiful.
[SPEAKER_01]: But our listenership has grown and we are kind of taking this podcast to the next level on our own backs, and we kind of really need some more sponsors.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, definitely.
[SPEAKER_00]: Right.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, I mean, our gear.
[SPEAKER_05]: This is a funny thing that I wanted to mention are we we record this thing with like a little mobile interface and two iPhones and somehow people don't know that which shocks me because a lot of people in this industry like you said create content for a living so you think you'd kind of pick up on that so I guess we don't need to upgrade but we would like to so if you want to help support that would be awesome.
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, Kyle wants to upgrade because we get here and it's like a roulette.
[SPEAKER_01]: We never know what battery percentage my phone is going to be on.
[SPEAKER_01]: So if we could just get some cameras, then we wouldn't have to be like, did you charge your phone?
[SPEAKER_01]: Did you charge your phone?
[SPEAKER_05]: I believe cameras have the same issue.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, but you would be on charge of the camera.
[SPEAKER_01]: No, that's true.
[SPEAKER_01]: So yeah, it would probably be totally fine.
[SPEAKER_01]: Your phone isn't ever dead when we get here.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm mine is always like a- It's pretty good.
[SPEAKER_05]: We've been consistent.
[SPEAKER_05]: So now that you're saying that, both phones are going to deduct their own pockets.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, I think, I mean, remember the twin, we had the twin rivers growls on this year.
[SPEAKER_01]: All right.
[SPEAKER_05]: I screwed that one up.
[SPEAKER_01]: Love them.
[SPEAKER_01]: No, no.
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, we had one glitch.
[SPEAKER_01]: But they were surprised that we used
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, the equipment that we use.
[SPEAKER_01]: Skinny Armadillo Justin sent us two new microphones.
[SPEAKER_01]: That was nice.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Thank you.
[SPEAKER_01]: We are getting gifts all the time.
[SPEAKER_01]: But I think I think we're going to bring back t-shirts.
[SPEAKER_01]: I was just thinking, why don't we have merch again?
[SPEAKER_01]: Because they went fast.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, they did.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then I never reordered them, so be on the lookout for only vans merch.
[SPEAKER_01]: Maybe we use that money to buy a new camera.
[SPEAKER_05]: Hmm.
[SPEAKER_05]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_05]: I like that.
[SPEAKER_01]: You like that?
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Coming up with live ideas on here.
[SPEAKER_01]: Hmm.
[SPEAKER_01]: Um, I made a list.
[SPEAKER_05]: Cool.
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, you kind of touched on it in your message, but do you have, like, what are just talk about some of your goals for next year, like, what do you, I mean, you mentioned something before we started recording.
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't know if you want to talk about that.
[SPEAKER_05]: But,
[SPEAKER_05]: ideas what was it what you and Paul are getting into I don't know if that's something to talk about
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, you know, diversifying our income streams.
[SPEAKER_01]: I think you get to a certain point of your life where the roller coaster is exhausting.
[SPEAKER_01]: For example, this last two weeks, I took off on purpose because I needed a break and I know I needed a break and I needed to catch my breath.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I'm still struggling with the idea that I like kind of lose my identity when I'm not on the road playing a show and I have no idea what to do
[SPEAKER_01]: We talk about this on podcast a lot too, but like when you wake up in the morning You know a million things to do and nothing at all actually right nothing that you have to do if you write a song Is it gonna turn into a dollar?
[SPEAKER_01]: You don't know if you you know go record it's it's gonna actually cost you thousands of dollars if you You know make a real that's great, but then you just gotta do that again So
[SPEAKER_01]: I know that I have the space in my life because I'm touring a little bit less than I used to be where I could wake up and if I had something else like for example a different business that Paul and I want to own then I could work on that for the first four hours of my day and still have the whole rest of my day to do whatever it is that we do and be on the road because I mean I
[SPEAKER_01]: two-week tours, for example, where we go out for Ashley and I for two or three weeks straight, probably twice next year.
[SPEAKER_01]: But as far as playing shows, if it's not really good money, or it's not really cool, or it doesn't make sense, and I'm not really going to do it.
[SPEAKER_01]: And that's really fun.
[SPEAKER_01]: But so I just took, I guess, back to the point that I was making, which was I just took two weeks off.
[SPEAKER_01]: And when you're just spending money, and like I went to Vegas with Paul,
[SPEAKER_01]: and you have no income, it's not new, it's fun.
[SPEAKER_01]: Because you're like, I'm not making money again for another 13 days.
[SPEAKER_01]: So perhaps we wanna, we're exploring owning something else and getting it into something else where we would have a little bit more consistent and come stream.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's a goal.
[SPEAKER_05]: Well, I'm like you and Michelle, and also many other guests have talked about that.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'll make it to where this music thing can be more fun.
[SPEAKER_05]: Right.
[SPEAKER_05]: It takes so much pressure off and you can still do all the same things and you can still be motivated to like send those emails and stuff But it's more rewarding and like the way it used to be when we were little kids when we were little kids and it was fun and there are places that I don't want to put anymore But they'll pay good and if I raise my price they'll keep paying it right where I'm like
[SPEAKER_01]: borderline offended every time I go there by something that I don't want to do that anymore.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I don't want to feel like I have to do that anymore anyway.
[SPEAKER_01]: So be more picky, play, you know, play only great shows that make my heart happy.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then yeah, maybe it adverse for the income stream.
[SPEAKER_01]: What about what about your goals?
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, I've got a couple um it's interesting because I'm kind of um I'm like battling that with my music stuff right now.
[SPEAKER_05]: Like I'm I'm playing a lot of shows that I don't enjoy.
[SPEAKER_05]: I played more shows this year than I've played in any year in my life and it's been great and I've I've paid my bills for the first time as with music you know.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's awesome and it's it's a great feeling but
[SPEAKER_05]: some of those shows really hurt.
[SPEAKER_05]: I played a show the other day that I've played multiple times and it's just a acoustic money gig and one guy came to me about halfway through the show and said, hey man I think nobody's clapping because you sound so much like the radio and that kind of like felt great and burned at the same time because you know how it feels to play a show when there's like a bunch of people there and nobody's clapping.
[SPEAKER_05]: Right.
[SPEAKER_05]: Tough but then it was also a nice compliment and he was sitting there enjoying it and I saw him and he was kind of like feeling me you know because
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay, okay, totally because at first I was offended and then I was like, wait, right.
[SPEAKER_01]: He's like, you're really, you're really good.
[SPEAKER_01]: Right.
[SPEAKER_01]: And actually, that's really interesting because I did go to one of your shows recently that I was like thoroughly enjoyed my friend, Danny, and I went and we had the best time.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I think you also have really good pitch.
[SPEAKER_01]: Hmm.
[SPEAKER_01]: So like,
[SPEAKER_01]: So I need to mess up more and get there attention.
[SPEAKER_01]: Try to sing a little bit more flat like the rest of us, but maybe like that's so that is a compliment.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I'm going to be saying yeah, don't feel bad that nobody's clapping.
[SPEAKER_01]: But that kind of goes along with my message, which we're used to nobody clapping after COVID.
[SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
[SPEAKER_01]: People stopped clapping at the same time.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's just the weirdest thing.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's so weird.
[SPEAKER_01]: And they might be having the best time, but they're not cheering.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I was watching a video of, we watched a documentary, the muscle show is talking to me with my family the other day.
[SPEAKER_01]: And like, people are just out of concert and they're just yelling and they're just loud and they're clapping and they're screaming and they're, and they was in the seven to use.
[SPEAKER_01]: There's no phones, there was no TVs on, there was no distractions.
[SPEAKER_01]: I think that the way that people concert is just,
[SPEAKER_05]: different but it doesn't offend me anymore like that's nice of that guy to say but you're like oh we're used to this now still bothers me I gotta get I gotta figure out how to get over that because I'm definitely gonna be playing gigs next year where people aren't paying attention and I'm just there to make some money you know but it bugs me um two or three songs after that comment was made a woman came up and requested seven songs that I had already played
[SPEAKER_05]: Oh boy, you're like already played it, already played it, yeah, and then we finally got to one We finally got to one that I hadn't played and so I played it a couple songs later She didn't pay attention, of course.
[SPEAKER_05]: She was just like in the back talking to her buddies or whatever But she had a stack of cash like you know how at restaurants they'll do the thing where they put cash in the table Oh, yeah, and take money away every time you do something.
[SPEAKER_05]: They don't like for your tip.
[SPEAKER_05]: Oh, no She literally did that like standing in front of me with money
[SPEAKER_05]: okay I don't like that at all and it's like you're you're telling me you haven't been paying attention at all which is fine you don't have to you're not obligated to pay attention but like you have to understand that this is upsetting at you know like I'm here to to play my music for one and I get it that you don't know my songs but also like I'm playing these songs that you want to hear and I've already played them.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's tough, man.
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay, that's a good thing.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's so wild.
[SPEAKER_01]: And your fuse gets shorter.
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, my fuse's gotten shorter.
[SPEAKER_01]: The older you get, and the better you get, and the better shows that you get.
[SPEAKER_01]: Right.
[SPEAKER_01]: Then you don't, you have like less tolerance for that stuff.
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I think it's okay to be like, hey, you're being offensive.
[SPEAKER_01]: But would you probably did.
[SPEAKER_01]: But also.
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't have a good slapback ever because I'm processing the fact that people that this is happening, I can never have a good real time come back because my brain is still figuring out that this person is taking away money as I look like I'm also, I don't need your $5.
[SPEAKER_05]: Exactly, I don't care about the money, but it's like you're doing that to be rude, right?
[SPEAKER_05]: Like what's the point of what are you trying to do there?
[SPEAKER_01]: And a guy in Vegas came up the other day and he goes, he goes, are you legs?
[SPEAKER_01]: You think you're legs are long enough?
[SPEAKER_01]: And I was like, what?
[SPEAKER_01]: I was watching Paul show, which always happens whenever he's playing, someone comes and talks to me.
[SPEAKER_01]: He goes, you think you're legs long enough?
[SPEAKER_01]: And I said, what?
[SPEAKER_01]: Is I do you think you're legs long enough?
[SPEAKER_01]: And I was like, what are you saying?
[SPEAKER_01]: And he's like,
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, you, I'm saying your legs are really long, you know, God gave you some long legs, which then he throws like, God in there, which I'm like, okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then I said, I have brains, too, because I'm just a dirty old man forgive me.
[SPEAKER_01]: And he puts his arm on me and I was like, absolutely not.
[SPEAKER_01]: Like, I'm just floored by what people say, but what people say to musicians,
[SPEAKER_01]: I was just a girl in that moment, but what people think is appropriate to say and also the fact that Zach Bryan could have been sitting over there singing and sounding like as good as you or less good as you.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then everyone would be freaking out.
[SPEAKER_01]: So it's like, it's has nothing to do with your talent.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's not.
[SPEAKER_01]: It has nothing to do with
[SPEAKER_01]: How good, yeah, and then they're like, play something we know and you do and then, I don't know, they're hoping it's so complicated, but I know I try really, really hard not to take things personally, but if I'm having a bad show, I can almost feel myself starting to crumble inside, or bad response, I guess.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_05]: And that's another thing we should be.
[SPEAKER_05]: That's like the Lyman thing and NFL where they don't get the respect they deserve.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's like we go through so much shit and obviously you go through five times as much shit as I do as a woman and with the success that you have.
[SPEAKER_05]: People don't realize how hard that is to to deal with the emotions of just little small things and then still put on a face and put on a great show.
[SPEAKER_05]: That's like the hardest thing about this.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's really hard and and the lineman get millions of dollars.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's the thing.
[SPEAKER_01]: I would I would put up with it.
[SPEAKER_05]: They get tiny amount of money compared to the quarterback.
[SPEAKER_05]: That's true.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's true.
[SPEAKER_01]: But yeah, I don't know.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's a really tough one.
[SPEAKER_01]: But because I feel like I would be able to put up with a lot more if I had a lot more.
[SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
[SPEAKER_05]: Of course.
[SPEAKER_05]: But you know, it's interesting.
[SPEAKER_05]: And we've talked about about that a lot, but I've played money gigs.
[SPEAKER_05]: where I'm making a lot more than I would normally make.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I've still had a hard time with like the like private gigs.
[SPEAKER_05]: When people, you're getting paid a ton of money.
[SPEAKER_05]: You should be happy to be there.
[SPEAKER_05]: But then people aren't paying attention and it sucks.
[SPEAKER_05]: Because like I think we really do this for, and maybe not even in a egotistical way, but we do it for the attention.
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, we want people to hear our talent.
[SPEAKER_05]: And regardless, at least for me, regardless of the money, it's hard when people just don't care.
[SPEAKER_01]: totally I know it's and you're absolutely right because and sometimes the hard part that I have with it is seeing firsthand how much another band gets offered for a private show versus what I get offered for a private show and if it's twice as much and the people still aren't paying attention how does that feel fair.
[SPEAKER_01]: If they're not paying attention to you at that price then
[SPEAKER_01]: Then I need to raise my price.
[SPEAKER_01]: I want nobody to pay attention to me for double what I'm getting.
[SPEAKER_01]: So yeah, money probably wouldn't fix that issue.
[SPEAKER_01]: But what's weird about it is if you talk to, you know, I just talked to one of the biggest Texas countries stars the other day who had a private party where no one paid attention.
[SPEAKER_01]: He was upset about it.
[SPEAKER_01]: And it's like, it still happens kind of no matter.
[SPEAKER_01]: who you are or the biggest of the big ones, they don't play private parties anymore because there's no worth it for there.
[SPEAKER_05]: Right.
[SPEAKER_05]: The brand.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: The brand and for their heart.
[SPEAKER_01]: Mental health.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Exactly.
[SPEAKER_01]: Which I'm glad we're talking about more.
[SPEAKER_01]: Mental health stuff than we used to and.
[SPEAKER_01]: I do love what I do, what is funny now is I'm having a hard time evaluating what I think is going to be a bad gig or a good gig.
[SPEAKER_01]: Sometimes I'm like, this is going to kill the bands all excited and then it's not what me thought.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then sometimes I'm like, this is going to suck and then it's amazing.
[SPEAKER_01]: So that's been weird for me this year, do you have, I mean,
[SPEAKER_05]: yeah it's been hard to gauge for sure yeah i mean we've played some some i played a lot more full band shows this year than previously and it was kind of that exact situation where like the ones we were excited about ended up not being very fun it's all depending on the energy and there's no way to know you know like you could be going into a place and there could be 500 for me 500 people there or 20 people there and usually unfortunately the 20 people crowd is way more engaged than the 500 crowd so
[SPEAKER_01]: Or how good it fills up fills to have, for example, we're doing the post coming up.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's almost sold out, which that's what I talked about in my opinion.
[SPEAKER_01]: But it's it's small.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: But it's going to sell out and there're going to be people who paid a lot of money to be there and who care.
[SPEAKER_01]: Right.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I think that is the one upside I guess to ticket sales.
[SPEAKER_01]: Burt ticket fees being way higher is people are kind of like I'm going to get my money's worth and that's going to be paying attention Right, maybe and you're maybe leading out the people that are just coming to meet chicks or whatever Which those people aren't at my concerts.
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, I need to figure out how to get
[SPEAKER_01]: the younger ones, so I consider to get the young guys on a concert, that's something that has not happened for me, but at least the people that are my fans are able to buy the tickets and they're really kind, you know.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's just growing that pie, because my core fans have been my core fans for so long, and it is growing, but things like my Patreon or everything's kind of growing really slowly, and with the podcast we have like a huge hit right at first,
[SPEAKER_01]: and it's growing.
[SPEAKER_01]: So that's good.
[SPEAKER_01]: We're going up, but it's grabbing people and if you're listening to this, people's attendance bands are so short that whenever people say that they love our podcasts, I say, awesome, where do you listen?
[SPEAKER_01]: Because I want to know, I say, oh, we just watch the clips on Instagram where we watch the clips on TikTok.
[SPEAKER_01]: And that's cool and all, but man, if you have the time to turn this on and binge it or when you're driving or something, we'd really appreciate it.
[SPEAKER_05]: Well, the funny thing is they don't know that I make those clips and I choose the most boring parts of the podcast to put in the clip.
[SPEAKER_05]: So you're
[SPEAKER_01]: You're missing out on the Goodsau.
[SPEAKER_01]: I didn't know that.
[SPEAKER_05]: That's not true.
[SPEAKER_01]: OK. That was a good thing for me.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's, but you don't put in the really dumb things.
[SPEAKER_01]: I say, which are funny, but you've got a tune in.
[SPEAKER_05]: I also need to issue a public apology to you because the thumbnails, the photos, it's been a goal and a mission of mine to choose funny faces.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I don't know if you enjoy that or not.
[SPEAKER_01]: I love it.
[SPEAKER_05]: I've had to change a few for the guests respectfully.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, but guess or like, what are these?
[SPEAKER_01]: Absolutely not.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm just trying to capture the moment, you know?
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: No, I love it.
[SPEAKER_01]: You can tell that I'm either a thinking really hard or a mouse open, or I'm laughing, not it's okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't mind.
[SPEAKER_01]: If it gets the click and we get the money, what about in terms of
[SPEAKER_01]: shedding skin.
[SPEAKER_01]: Do you relate to that at all?
[SPEAKER_01]: You released a really great record this year by the way, congratulations.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's so good.
[SPEAKER_01]: I was playing a little bit of it for Paulian this morning because we listened to it when it came out and then I was like revisiting it this morning just because it sounds, it sounds so good like you should be really proud of that.
[SPEAKER_05]: Thank you.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, that was an interesting one.
[SPEAKER_05]: I you know that was kind of like a like a passion project.
[SPEAKER_05]: It was really low budget and easy to produce I didn't promote it as much as the record I put out last year And people found it which was great.
[SPEAKER_05]: I've got a lot of good feedback on it, but I I don't know.
[SPEAKER_05]: I still kind of don't know how I feel about it because those are collections of songs ever written like over the last five
[SPEAKER_05]: or so years and they were all kind of in the same vein emotionally very different from most of the stuff that I do a lot of my like primary music's more like rock electric guitar stuff like that and I just wanted to like kind of prove something to myself and I guess I did because I put the record out but I don't know what I guess I didn't have an in goal there with that record it's just kind of like a collection of pretty sad songs that I wanted to share and I did it in a unique way you know
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, you said, I mean, they are very pretty songs, but they're.
[SPEAKER_01]: I think they sound great.
[SPEAKER_01]: I think it's kind of a blend of genres that feels very natural.
[SPEAKER_01]: It doesn't feel like maybe that's the point is that you didn't have an in goal in mind and then it came out as it should have came out and existed as it should exist, which is so lovely if we could just do art with that in mind.
[SPEAKER_01]: And maybe I don't know if you're experiencing this, but I mean, I'm putting out two songs next year that I recorded a year and a half ago.
[SPEAKER_01]: because of budgeting and I just want to give them the right light that they deserve.
[SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
[SPEAKER_01]: But I get, you get song fatigue where you're not as excited about the songs.
[SPEAKER_01]: So someone like me, I was really excited to hear those songs, but they might be five years old to you, so it might be.
[SPEAKER_05]: Sure.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[SPEAKER_05]: No, I mean, I think so.
[SPEAKER_05]: Like I've, I just went into record last week, three new ones, and they're all pretty fresh.
[SPEAKER_05]: So I'm like really excited about those.
[SPEAKER_05]: So I guess, yeah, I,
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, the songs on that record that I put out this year also were all like true stories and that's that was kind of the idea behind that project Um, I'm not generally a true story guy.
[SPEAKER_05]: Um, like I'll take taking experiences from friends and stuff because it's easier for me to like kind of tell a story For something that I've seen rather than experienced.
[SPEAKER_05]: Um, so yeah, I don't know.
[SPEAKER_05]: I guess to answer your question.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, I kind of like write us along and then move on from it
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, that's great.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's like a historical documentation record for you.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, for sure.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, and that's honestly that's the thing I'm most excited about to be able to listen back to that record over the years and just kind of like see how I feel about those memories and stuff that's pretty cool.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's really great.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm songs from the Canyon.
[SPEAKER_01]: You can get your own Kyle shirt that I have on today.
[SPEAKER_01]: I love this shirt.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I don't know what I was what it was.
[SPEAKER_01]: bringing up in me today, but kind of, do you remember the point in your life where it was like the luminaries had just came out or something?
[SPEAKER_01]: Or like a mumford and son's like that kind of like be sure.
[SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
[SPEAKER_01]: Like there's the tiniest touch of that.
[SPEAKER_05]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, like that Poppy full key stuff for sure.
[SPEAKER_01]: But not cheesy.
[SPEAKER_05]: Right, right, right.
[SPEAKER_01]: Because when I was a kid, yeah, it's so good.
[SPEAKER_01]: Anyway, thanks.
[SPEAKER_05]: You're welcome.
[SPEAKER_05]: Before we dive into recapping the year, I wanted to talk more about the mental health stuff.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_05]: My biggest goal for myself this year.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm not really a resolution guy.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm just more like a goal guy.
[SPEAKER_05]: And this is a little heavy and personal, I guess.
[SPEAKER_05]: And you know this about me, but I used to be more really obese when I was a kid.
[SPEAKER_05]: So I have a strange relationship with like health and my weight and stuff like that.
[SPEAKER_05]: So I learned a lot about myself over the last couple of years and my goal this year is to rather than feel like I'm running away or chasing health to appreciate my health.
[SPEAKER_05]: And it's going to be really fucking hard, but that's my, that's like my number one priority for next year is to learn how to do that because it's so stressful and so overwhelming trying to feel like I have to constantly be better and eat better and work out harder and all these things and it just feels like I've done that with other things in my life and so if I can figure out how to do that, I just feel like I'll feel so much more whole.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh my gosh.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's beautiful.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: I am always self helping.
[SPEAKER_01]: You know, self helping.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's what I do best.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I just read one.
[SPEAKER_01]: I can't remember what book it is.
[SPEAKER_01]: That sucks.
[SPEAKER_01]: But
[SPEAKER_01]: At the end of the day, I always look at my two lists and like what you didn't do.
[SPEAKER_01]: And it just is like grading, that happened to me.
[SPEAKER_01]: So yesterday I did it for the first time where I wrote down everything that I did.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then at the end of the day, you're like, I did 50 things.
[SPEAKER_01]: Like I did so many things.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I think that's the same kind of shift because you're not changing anything other than your outlook.
[SPEAKER_01]: Right?
[SPEAKER_01]: And how healthy that can be and how all of the things
[SPEAKER_01]: Buddhism and Zen and all those things.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's end gratitude, journals, and the universe, and all those things that I'm really into is really just perspective and sometimes I feel like I come in here and I'm like, that, like I'm a little bit of tornado and how's I was like, what's you gonna come in in my band too?
[SPEAKER_01]: And it's like, I would love to walk in here just,
[SPEAKER_01]: piece of uncommon and be like, how are you doing today?
[SPEAKER_01]: Like, that's what I, the person that I want to exude, you kind of, you know, my tour manager and my friend and I, so you kind of get a little more than you said, but, but it is shifting your perspective into, like, this is the person that I want to be, and for me as your friend looking at you, that's what I want for you.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's really what I want for you.
[SPEAKER_01]: And that's what you want for me.
[SPEAKER_01]: You don't need to feel like I'm failing all the time.
[SPEAKER_01]: Right, right.
[SPEAKER_01]: Shortcoming, and I want you to feel happy, and I appreciate your hair.
[SPEAKER_01]: And honestly, we're all just trying our figure best.
[SPEAKER_05]: Like, absolutely.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's hard.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, but it's fun.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's so fun.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: I wouldn't trade it for anything like those times when you're...
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, I miss it right now, because I haven't seen those idiots in a long time, but when you're vibing with your band and you're all laughing and you're eating pizza and you're, you have a good show and everything's just funny, there's really nothing better than that in the whole world, which that kind of keeps me going.
[SPEAKER_01]: I know that that has been kind of a shift for me was playing more acoustic shows and less band stuff this year, which has been a little hard because if you're not playing all the time, you're not
[SPEAKER_01]: keeping your chops up all the time.
[SPEAKER_01]: We can't change the show as much as things like that.
[SPEAKER_01]: And so
[SPEAKER_01]: making that shift has been hard because that camaraderie is part of my gasoline.
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah, totally.
[SPEAKER_01]: And so much fun.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, I miss you guys.
[SPEAKER_01]: Did they even listen to this podcast?
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm not going to tell them, let's just say, I don't know if they do.
[SPEAKER_01]: I did one of them does.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, Vince.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Vince is on Patreon.
[SPEAKER_01]: He gets it early and ad-free, which you can give on Patreon, too, for the Lolo price of $5 per month.
[SPEAKER_01]: Nice.
[SPEAKER_01]: Even though we love our sponsors, I hate to offer that.
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay, great.
[SPEAKER_01]: I love that.
[SPEAKER_01]: What about musically anything.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm going to double down this year.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yes.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, this We talked about that whenever I was a guest on the show last year when everyone was My my fuel aside from the camaraderie like you were talking about is is just the grind of it the struggle Not necessarily the people requesting seven songs that have already played but the the struggle of the booking I'm really business oriented at least in this business.
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't think I would succeed in any other business
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm just going to go twice as hard as I did last year.
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't necessarily know what that means.
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't know if I'm going to send twice as many booking emails or if I'm going to try to find an agent.
[SPEAKER_05]: But I'm just going to go harder and try.
[SPEAKER_05]: And people tell me this a lot.
[SPEAKER_05]: I just, I do everything as far as, so not, I'm not trying to like ask myself up or anything, but like I try everything.
[SPEAKER_05]: Um, I've done the paid playlists.
[SPEAKER_05]: I've done all my own booking.
[SPEAKER_05]: I've worked with other agents, you know, non-exclusively and I do the social media thing really hard and none of its worked out in a viral way, but it's all worked out like you said gradually.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, so I'm just gonna see if I can Increase that gradual climb just a little bit next year
[SPEAKER_01]: I love that and there is definitely value in like I think we're teaming up with like making the motor cars to do some co-headlining stuff to maybe take a little bit of the pressure off of ourselves for ticket sales when you're doing you know 100 ticket events a year that's so heavy and I just get so exhausted because it can go really well one night and then the second it doesn't go well for a show I'm like I should quit and I'm terrible.
[SPEAKER_01]: I got to cut that out and maybe cutting that out is taking a little bit of the pressure off of myself because I Wanted I couldn't wait to get to do those kinds of shows and now that I'm doing those kinds of shows and like That like the other day I opened for Kevin Fowler in East Texas because I was off like it was whatever we went I sold almost every bit of merch I had I played 45 minutes with Paul like I paid pretty well like I got to hang out with Kevin You know, it was like this is fun.
[SPEAKER_01]: I forgot
[SPEAKER_01]: And then the bar hired us, we're going to play our own show there next September.
[SPEAKER_04]: Awesome.
[SPEAKER_01]: So it did what it was supposed to, which is like, get me in with that owners, whatever.
[SPEAKER_01]: And we're going to go back, but now I'm already like, oh gosh, okay, I got a cell.
[SPEAKER_01]: Kevin told this means I could, what do I think I can sell on that burden?
[SPEAKER_01]: And I don't want any of this to think that this is the bird in that, like you said, we crave and we love and like we we really work for it and we want to see what works and what doesn't.
[SPEAKER_05]: And we complain about it a lot.
[SPEAKER_01]: But yes.
[SPEAKER_05]: But that's just because we're trying to figure it out.
[SPEAKER_05]: That's not because we hate it.
[SPEAKER_01]: and the only way to process these things are to talk about it and talk about it with other people and you know hey our Facebook ads working for you like what when i'm doing what i found i was you know i'm spending 150 bucks for a show and i told somebody i was spending 150 bucks i'm getting like
[SPEAKER_01]: thousands of clicks on this ad.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then I sold 140 tickets.
[SPEAKER_01]: Like what?
[SPEAKER_01]: What is the disconnect there?
[SPEAKER_01]: And they're like, oh no, I spend 500 bucks a show.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then I'm like, oh, maybe it's just this year quantity or what, you know, what's what are you spending and why and how what's working for you?
[SPEAKER_01]: Or should I just hire an influencer and forward to post about my show at the Bob's next time?
[SPEAKER_01]: Maybe
[SPEAKER_01]: Maybe he's a different route, not I did have a good turn out, but it wasn't sold out.
[SPEAKER_05]: Well, yeah, and you get screwed the year I was with you at Billy Bobbs, because it was like negative 20 degrees outside, snowing and hailing, and there's still was like, what, 1000 people shut up to that show?
[SPEAKER_01]: It was still good, but yeah, they shut down the whole stock yard.
[SPEAKER_01]: So they was icy, like, then the bars were open.
[SPEAKER_05]: Oh, yeah.
[SPEAKER_05]: It was crazy.
[SPEAKER_01]: My parents' flights got canceled.
[SPEAKER_05]: It was so much fun.
[SPEAKER_01]: It was actually very fun.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, you bought us all the vests and the green shirts.
[SPEAKER_01]: I bought everybody green shirts and it was, yeah, we didn't.
[SPEAKER_01]: This year we did Pandana.
[SPEAKER_05]: Oh, nice.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then my friend, McCayla, from more than music creations, love you, girl.
[SPEAKER_01]: She made us all matching Pandana, as we went and picked out, like, sorape, fabric from Hobby that'd be, then she made a bandana for Whiskey.
[SPEAKER_01]: and I started sobbing because it was a key thing I've ever seen.
[SPEAKER_01]: Well then, I just had the idea to tie that bandana around my boots, so this is an example of it.
[SPEAKER_01]: Look, that's it.
[SPEAKER_01]: So I bought boobandandas.com, and I reached out to me.
[SPEAKER_01]: But you bought that domain?
[SPEAKER_01]: I bought the domain.
[SPEAKER_01]: What?
[SPEAKER_01]: And I reached out to the manufacturer, some waiting to hear back.
[SPEAKER_01]: But that might be something that I do next year because I did American flags.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then I put it on Etsy.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I was like, show your patriotism, handsoned in the United States.
[SPEAKER_01]: And they sold immediately.
[SPEAKER_01]: Wow.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then, so I, and then people want them, you know.
[SPEAKER_01]: So I might, I might launch a product next year.
[SPEAKER_05]: do it.
[SPEAKER_05]: That's awesome.
[SPEAKER_01]: The thing is the business books that we read, you can kind of sell things before you have them to just see what the demand is, and people want them.
[SPEAKER_01]: So I'm trying to get the prototype and get the, but it's a lot of work.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's not really something I have the extra cash for in the winter.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: but it comes spring when things start into lighten up and I might put some cash into a fashion product which is something that I love.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's awesome.
[SPEAKER_01]: I want to do more things I like to do a Kyle.
[SPEAKER_05]: Absolutely.
[SPEAKER_01]: Which is, make money!
[SPEAKER_01]: I hate to say it, but
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, I don't think either of us are really that motivated by money.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's obviously a part of the grind to grow your, or to raise your prices throughout the years, or if you go viral instantly, and then hopefully not crash and burn, but I think we both do it because we really care about it.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I really care about it and I really care about keeping my band and I really care about keeping this RV maintained and we need a new trailer and we need it and all of that is just all tied back to cash.
[SPEAKER_01]: You know like you literally can't keep doing what you love if you don't have any money and into weird business like the price of recording is higher than it's ever been and we're making less than a penny, a fraction of a penny for streams.
[SPEAKER_01]: in Southwest sucks and hotels are expensive and I know Southwest was the one thing we could count on being cheap and it's gone that's gone and then hotels are like double and so you know think in this gas is down right now but that's about yeah but the cost of us doing business is so high I mean people are floored when I'm what my break even is for a night I mean the fact that it's cheaper to get a Airbnb with five beds now in most places than three hotel rooms is absolutely
[SPEAKER_01]: insane.
[SPEAKER_01]: We Airbnb a lot and people are always offering their houses, which I don't usually do, but you know, sometimes I don't know.
[SPEAKER_01]: We ought to do it.
[SPEAKER_01]: Nothing against people or anything, but sometimes I come out.
[SPEAKER_01]: There's like one eyelash on my forehead and we don't as I think the thing is to, I can't.
[SPEAKER_01]: stay up on my partying on the road.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm trying to take better care of my body, not drink during the weeks, you know?
[SPEAKER_01]: Yes.
[SPEAKER_01]: Just, I'm trying not to die.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm still trying to figure that out.
[SPEAKER_05]: My band, they're all older than me, but somehow they go harder than anybody I know.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I'm sober, so I'm like sitting in the Airbnb until 4am trying to hang with them.
[SPEAKER_01]: Do you do what you have drugs?
[SPEAKER_01]: Do you drugs?
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't do anything.
[SPEAKER_01]: Good for you.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, I do lots of nicotine and caffeine, and that's it.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, you do some zinning, that's, that's great, though, because I do want to say that when we're talking about mental health and we're talking about physical health, there's all these memes and reels and whatever about millennials and how we all go hard because that's when college, we don't be your ponging and all of that came out be your ponging, and whatever.
[SPEAKER_01]: We've been highly trained for this point in our life, but
[SPEAKER_01]: seeing a lot of people that I truly admire being completely powerless to alcohol, I never understood it and then you get older in the music business and you're, I know exactly what alcohol is doing to my body.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm not using it as an upper.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm not using it as a downer.
[SPEAKER_01]: Alcohol is a numbing agent and when you're on a roller coaster ride,
[SPEAKER_01]: all the time where one day to the next can be the highest height of the lowest low and you're doing that for 15 years like you kind of crave something that makes that a flat road.
[SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
[SPEAKER_01]: And that is very dangerous.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then you go on the road and then you get nervous so you have a shot to take the edge off.
[SPEAKER_01]: And then I get home and I want to see Paul and we want to go have wine and dinner and then it's
[SPEAKER_01]: You know, then you're looking at the counter and being like, okay, you're drinking this many days and it can become a problem really, really quickly.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I just never understood it until I got there and then I was like, okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: I totally get it.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I'm sorry for anybody that is struggling with that.
[SPEAKER_01]: Like, please reach out, get help because it's it's not easy and it's free.
[SPEAKER_01]: One of the things we get unlimited free alcohol.
[UNKNOWN]: Right.
[SPEAKER_01]: You look in that cabinet up there and people come to do your main greets, people bring wine whiskey, beer, and good stuff, too.
[SPEAKER_01]: Good stuff.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: Richard Vinyok was on this podcast this year.
[SPEAKER_01]: He brought a bottle of whiskey and a bottle of wine, and we are very thankful our wine fridges overflowing, but, um, and it is so nice that people don't don't know, so you don't stop bringing that's not, don't mess and interpret me here.
[SPEAKER_01]: But I am saying it's a very, it's the one free thing that you have all the time.
[SPEAKER_01]: But it's not, it's not good.
[SPEAKER_01]: I haven't, I haven't, I'm not drink for three days.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, good.
[SPEAKER_01]: Thank you.
[SPEAKER_01]: Nice.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's a good job.
[SPEAKER_05]: So, and this is not to call you out at all, but that was something I wanted to talk about because for me, I never felt like I had a dependency.
[SPEAKER_05]: I just knew that once I started, I couldn't stop, right, and tell you I went to bed or whatever.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I knew that was problematic, but I never viewed myself as an alcoholic, even though there's lots of alcoholism in my family.
[SPEAKER_05]: Um, but it took me until I was, what, I guess I've been so over two years of 28 to realize that I was masking things that I needed to be experiencing, right?
[SPEAKER_05]: I, like, I have some anger issues and I've got some avoidance issues and things like that, and it never dawned on me until like one specific point in my life that like I personally was was using it to avoid those things.
[SPEAKER_05]: and I can't say my life's got an easier since I quit drinking definitely being in bars like the whole playing a show and then sticking around afterwards to hang out without having a drink is is very difficult.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's like I feel like the most awkward human being on earth and I'm figuring out and I'll get there.
[SPEAKER_05]: But I think that's what I'd say.
[SPEAKER_05]: Anybody who drinks a lot, but doesn't feel like they have to drink every day, at least ask yourself that question.
[SPEAKER_05]: If you feel like you're avoiding anything, whether it's like childhood trauma, if we want to go that far back, or just like how hard your day is at your normal day job.
[SPEAKER_05]: just just be aware of that, think about it.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm not trying to convince anybody to be sober.
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't think that's the best thing for everybody.
[SPEAKER_05]: I personally just couldn't handle it.
[SPEAKER_05]: So it took me there.
[SPEAKER_01]: It was really nice talking to Adam Hood, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: Who's over and out?
[SPEAKER_01]: And he said, the anxiety's still there.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: The awkwardness is still there.
[SPEAKER_01]: So, and that's Paul and I talk about it a lot.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's like the alcohol.
[SPEAKER_01]: We both prefer to play without alcohol, especially him.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's so technical.
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: But him going out to do the meet and greet to the people.
[SPEAKER_01]: If you're an awkward or a shy person or you know, which actually people assume that I'm not, but I'm kind of an I'm pretty I feel like pretty much anybody is not going to go nuts and down for you, but like in a large crowd of people, especially whenever all the attention's on you, that's just a hard situation to be in
[SPEAKER_01]: And you never know what anyone's going to say.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: You were there the other night where that this guy, well, it started with Vince saying we should put a GoPro on you just for the things that people say to you at merch.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I said, oh, we're at this bar.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's going to be totally fine.
[SPEAKER_01]: This crowd is no one's going to say anything offensive.
[SPEAKER_01]: And it was like, one thing after another, and I'm looking at Ashley and she's like, we should have got the GoPro because I mean, this guy put his arm around me and he said, here, take a picture with me.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm going to show it to my daughter and tell you, my new girlfriend.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I said, and he put his arm like, kind of really run my ways.
[SPEAKER_01]: I said, hey, man, don't do that.
[SPEAKER_01]: Like, I got a boyfriend.
[SPEAKER_01]: He's like, it's fine.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's fine.
[SPEAKER_01]: He snapped the picture.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I go, well, I hope she's,
[SPEAKER_01]: I can't remember how I said it, but basically I was saying, I hope she's not like, old enough to know or that this is weird, you know, and he goes, oh, she's 17 or something, and he walked off.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I was, I just hated all of that, because I told him, like, I have a boyfriend.
[SPEAKER_01]: This isn't cool.
[SPEAKER_01]: I kind of pushed him away.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I tried my best and he did it anyway against my,
[SPEAKER_01]: wishes and totally ignored how how I was feeling yeah and I looked at and it's like I had my glass of wine there It's like that's why I drink yeah, but the drinking isn't gonna make that go away because I'm still mouth about it right it doesn't but at the time it makes you at least be like okay.
[SPEAKER_05]: I got a line of people I want to live in the moment temporarily but then it just pushes everything back totally totally I think that don't know to me in pretending
[SPEAKER_05]: So why did everybody, was it COVID that made everybody lose common sense?
[SPEAKER_05]: I guess that specific issue is a little bit more of a respect thing and I feel like that's always been an issue.
[SPEAKER_05]: But like I feel like this year, it's just been more apparent than before that most people, or a lot of people don't have common sense anymore.
[SPEAKER_05]: They don't understand.
[SPEAKER_05]: Like, like back to that woman who requested her this song, she came up and did that in the middle of a song.
[SPEAKER_05]: Like, and I just, I can't wrap my head around so many interactions with people where it's just like, you're not using your brain at all.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I don't know, or I think we're so in star influencer culture that, you know, someone was like, how come there's nobody here at one of my shows?
[SPEAKER_01]: And I was like, really offended, I thought there was a good crowd.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, right.
[UNKNOWN]: And
[SPEAKER_01]: It's almost, you know, when I get on my phone, what suggested to me is stadiums, you know, L.A. Laney, like, those are the faces that are popping up.
[SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
[SPEAKER_01]: And the, and the ZEC brains and the, those are the things that are popping up.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I feel like people are so enamored with stars that if you're accessible at all in human form, then you're not a star and that you were different.
[SPEAKER_01]: Is that what I'm making, you said?
[SPEAKER_05]: No, yeah, I think so.
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, that's the world I'm in, because I'm trying to figure out how to sell tickets at all.
[SPEAKER_05]: So I'm looking at guys like Braxton and Hudson and those dudes who are outstanding and they deserve everything they have right we're dealing gossets and other big one for me You know, I I don't think and I'd say this often it's kind of corny, but like I don't think that I deserve sorry I don't think I'm owed anything But I feel like I deserve just as much
[SPEAKER_05]: 100% I feel like that too and that's I feel like that's a healthy mentality but it's hard right because like I'm working really hard I'm playing a lot of shows.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm spending a lot of money on advertising.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm making the records.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm putting out good quality product right and you see the sustainable growth, which is the only proven way to do it So it's it's good and it's like reassuring but at the same time.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's like The amount of times I've played a show
[SPEAKER_05]: I played a show recently and I kind of was Matt.
[SPEAKER_05]: I was like, bothered by something that happened.
[SPEAKER_05]: And so I was like, fuck, I'm going to play a song that I want to play.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I play a Taylor Swift song.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I saw a guy making fun of me in the crowd.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I'm like, I kind of expect that, you know, you've seen that.
[SPEAKER_05]: Because I wear a Taylor Swift hoodie sometimes.
[SPEAKER_05]: And people have given me shit for it.
[SPEAKER_05]: And it's like, whatever, I'm going to be me.
[SPEAKER_01]: I love Taylor.
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh, her new record is really good.
[SPEAKER_05]: But then at the same time that guy's girlfriend or a girl that was there with him was singing along.
[SPEAKER_05]: So it's like, what am I, what am I doing wrong?
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, and I guess that's the thing.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's hard to feel like I'm not.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's hard to feel like I'm doing everything right or that I'm not doing something wrong.
[SPEAKER_05]: Um, and I guess that's the battle, like I'm, you know, there's nothing I could be doing other than spending a shitload of money that I don't have to, to get these people there.
[SPEAKER_05]: But it does feel like there's no middle ground anymore, like the world you've existed in.
[SPEAKER_05]: Right.
[SPEAKER_05]: I mean, you've surpassed that now and I think you'll stay there as long as you want to.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I understand it probably doesn't feel like that, but from my perspective it feels like you can sustain.
[SPEAKER_05]: at that level you're at and maybe even a little bit higher for as long as you want at this point, hopefully way way large.
[SPEAKER_05]: Well, that's the goal.
[SPEAKER_05]: Of course.
[SPEAKER_05]: But for me, it feels like I'm at my peak until I jump the 10 steps that used to be there.
[SPEAKER_01]: I see what you mean.
[SPEAKER_05]: So like there's no I'm selling I'm selling zero tickets basically.
[SPEAKER_05]: And my next step is to sell a thousand tickets.
[SPEAKER_01]: I see that makes subtle sense and that's exactly what I said about the rock and rodeos on Thursday was the routing gig that you just got, anyone could get it.
[SPEAKER_01]: It was not that I was, I deserve to get it or I was selling out rooms.
[SPEAKER_01]: I wasn't selling out rooms, but you just were because it existed.
[SPEAKER_01]: They would hire you for Texas Country Thursdays or Wednesdays and you would, there would just be people there that were supporting the overall genre.
[SPEAKER_01]: Exactly.
[SPEAKER_01]: That doesn't happen anymore.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: So that is interesting because
[SPEAKER_01]: And it's also, there's a ton of people who can't get any gigs.
[SPEAKER_01]: So it's like, we are thankful, but it is timing.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's really funny, because I've always felt like I've had bad timing.
[SPEAKER_01]: So maybe in that sense, I did at least have some timing.
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: But I firmly believe that, like,
[SPEAKER_01]: It's hard to even say because I want to be like, you're not a your peak because you're not.
[SPEAKER_01]: I mean, you deserve so much more, but you are actually good.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I really feel like eventually the cream rises, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: You might just be in a different way, but I had some in the other day that I know has told me, has told someone else while she can't tell tickets, you know, I bet she wishes she could tell so tickets.
[SPEAKER_01]: They're still like that stigma when I'm like,
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm selling more tickets than a lot of people that I know that I've always wanted, but I'm not selling out stadiums and you're still talking trash about me.
[SPEAKER_01]: So it's like, to me, to for me to get to that next level, that's going to take a big manager or a big deal, which I don't even know if I'm going to find or ever.
[SPEAKER_01]: And so that's hard when it's completely out of my hands.
[SPEAKER_01]: And so, that's kind of, we have the same problem basically.
[SPEAKER_01]: You're feeling like it's a little bit out of your hands because if there was an accept, you would just take it.
[SPEAKER_04]: Right.
[SPEAKER_01]: And so what I, and instead we're doing everything we possibly can in hopes that we can jump.
[SPEAKER_01]: Interesting.
[SPEAKER_01]: Uh, flu.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's a lot to think about.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, for sure.
[SPEAKER_01]: Wow.
[SPEAKER_05]: That's a lot of fun.
[SPEAKER_01]: But I think I think you have to.
[SPEAKER_01]: You've established Yourself your a serious Businessperson, which I you know, I was talking to Aaron Watson the other day.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's like that's a serious business person.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, right?
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's a person who has
[SPEAKER_01]: place themselves and identify to themselves as an underdog, his records called the underdog, he's an independent person who's like screw-knashful and it's like really worked in his favorite to put himself as that image.
[SPEAKER_01]: So for me, some people will come up to me, he happens, oh, you should do what Aaron Watson does and just be independent and do that.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm like, that's exactly what I'm doing.
[SPEAKER_01]: But how come you don't think that I'm doing that?
[SPEAKER_01]: It's because I haven't told them what to think.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I think that someone like you and someone like me, we're not in the business of saying, here's what you need to think, which people that are a little bit more narcissistic than you have no problem doing.
[SPEAKER_05]: Sure, absolutely.
[SPEAKER_05]: And not saying that.
[SPEAKER_05]: I've tried, I guess that's a hard thing to fake.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_05]: You know, like I'm, I definitely feel like I do have some narcissistic tendencies, but I guess not to a certain degree that it benefits me.
[SPEAKER_05]: I don't know, it's interesting, because like I've tried to do something that's not manipulative narcissistic.
[SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[SPEAKER_05]: I'm just, I'm not the kind of person who's going to tell somebody how to think.
[SPEAKER_05]: So it's hard for me to cut through at least on social media that way.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I've tried, but I think it just doesn't come across as authentic.
[SPEAKER_01]: I know.
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, because we are not those people.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: And the world needs artists like you and me.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I think that I'm, my hope is that.
[SPEAKER_01]: And it's honestly not my hope anymore.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's the the thing.
[SPEAKER_01]: Right.
[SPEAKER_01]: People that listen to this podcast that tell me that pull me aside that text me that send me emails that are like, this is a very important podcast.
[SPEAKER_01]: What you guys are saying is very important and I love it and I appreciate it.
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: So it's not even my hope.
[SPEAKER_01]: Like that's what we are doing and like this conversation included is.
[SPEAKER_01]: Letting other people know that you're not alone in filling the way that you feel and you're not alone in filling like you deserve more And it's okay to feel like you deserve more because you probably do because it's art It's not who cleans the best teeth.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's not who you know if there's no metric who makes the best product?
[SPEAKER_01]: It's like it's so subjective and it's so unfair.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, really
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, that makes me think too about like me and you talk a lot about like uplifting friends and stuff.
[SPEAKER_05]: And in the scene or even if they're in different industries like me and you both you more so than me.
[SPEAKER_05]: I actually feel like I owe a lot to you and I'm sure you know that.
[SPEAKER_00]: What?
[SPEAKER_00]: No.
[SPEAKER_00]: You're very.
[SPEAKER_05]: You're very serious business person as well.
[SPEAKER_05]: But I mean like especially this year you've opened a lot of doors for me.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I don't even know if you were trying to do that but you've really like offered me a lot.
[SPEAKER_05]: And I'm very appreciative.
[SPEAKER_01]: Well, I thank you for saying that and acknowledging it.
[SPEAKER_01]: I will do anything for you that I can't always, because I believe in your talent, but also your very smart person who works very hard, which is like near and dear to my heart, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: Because that's how that's what I love in a human being.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I don't do things for other people, neither do you expecting things in return.
[SPEAKER_01]: But I do appreciate when they are acknowledged, and I do appreciate that you recognize it and tell me because and that you don't be a little bit like that is important to me.
[SPEAKER_01]: Because when you work hard and you do get things and you know, I try to be a good person, so to you, and I believe it comes back in the form of karma.
[SPEAKER_01]: People have done things for me, absolutely, and I appreciate them too.
[SPEAKER_05]: You're going to talk about the opposite whenever you do things for people and they just don't give a shit.
[SPEAKER_01]: They're like, that was beneath me.
[SPEAKER_05]: Right.
[SPEAKER_05]: But that's how it goes.
[SPEAKER_01]: No.
[SPEAKER_01]: I think that time, this is what I want to say.
[SPEAKER_01]: Time shakes everything out.
[SPEAKER_01]: Okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: You know, if something's happening to you right now or something feels sad to you or whatever and you know that it's wrong, I think time will eventually reveal people's to character people's to intentions.
[SPEAKER_01]: And it might feel unfair right now, but, man, I really love going to sleep at night, knowing that I am authentic to myself and genuine and appreciative and try to be a kind person.
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: And that's okay.
[SPEAKER_01]: And time, you know, whatever.
[SPEAKER_05]: I also think that a lot of people in the world feel better about life because you are the way you are.
[SPEAKER_01]: Thank you!
[SPEAKER_01]: Oh no, I mean, that's gonna get me.
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't, at the end of every year, I really evaluate everything, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: And at the end of last year, I was like really hoping that by the end of this year, you know, things would be just so much better.
[SPEAKER_01]: We're dealing with a lot of rainwater city issues where we can't move into our new house.
[SPEAKER_01]: And there's been some crazy taxes, stuff come along,
[SPEAKER_01]: And so I just get always really reflective at the end of the year, but the beginning of the year brings a lot of renewed energy for me.
[SPEAKER_01]: And I'm really excited about next year and what the podcast is going to do next year.
[SPEAKER_01]: What you're going to next year, what I'm going to do, and honestly, we have done a lot of great things and I don't want to.
[SPEAKER_01]: I don't want to be down too much about it, but it is a really hard life, and we choose a hard life.
[SPEAKER_01]: And so at some point, you want it to circle back and give you a pat on the head, right?
[SPEAKER_01]: And the pat on the head is sometimes a great show, but for me I want that pat on the head to be $1 million.
[SPEAKER_01]: or someone to come drill a well on our property for free.
[SPEAKER_01]: You gotta throw it out there.
[SPEAKER_01]: You never know what you're talking about.
[SPEAKER_05]: Y'all have gotten a lot of celebrity help on this project.
[SPEAKER_01]: We really run, made our countertops here.
[SPEAKER_01]: I can't believe it.
[SPEAKER_01]: Some of our Angie Rogers Band helped with our drywall and our woodworking.
[SPEAKER_01]: And yeah, we've had a lot of really great.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, people are good like people are so good that it makes me it makes it hard for me to wrap my head whenever around whenever people don't have good intentions Right, and you know what's what's what I'm finding out more is that when you know who you are A lot of people say I'm too nice whenever I wish you you know.
[SPEAKER_01]: I'm not as nice as people think I am pretty nice.
[SPEAKER_01]: Thank you But people say I'm too nice and I can't be in either way.
[SPEAKER_01]: I need to can you
[SPEAKER_01]: people that are not the way that I am are masking giant insecurities.
[SPEAKER_01]: Sure.
[SPEAKER_01]: People that are, you know, rude and business or have intentions that are not clear.
[SPEAKER_01]: Those people are masking giant insecurities and the thing that they're insecure about is that they know your genuine and they're not.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's what's happening.
[SPEAKER_01]: And so, you know, can I be a little bit more bold and business?
[SPEAKER_01]: Yes, but also I hired an agent who's really bold and business.
[SPEAKER_01]: I hire a PR team that is really bold in business they are so I don't have to be so I can protect the person that I am and that's also okay Yeah, we don't talk about that enough You know, and I need I mean the other day I had a really hard conversation with an employee I'm capable of being that person because I have to be as a manager of people and the leader I'm capable.
[SPEAKER_01]: It's not that I'm not capable.
[SPEAKER_01]: Is that I don't want to be that person all the time.
[SPEAKER_04]: Yeah
[SPEAKER_01]: And I don't want to be, I don't want to hide my intentions.
[SPEAKER_01]: And you, what my intentions are, to bring good art into this world and to lift other people who bring good art into this world up to.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: And if that's my purpose on this earth, then I'm okay with that.
[SPEAKER_05]: That's great.
[SPEAKER_05]: I feel like money makes things easier, but vulnerability is the key to happiness.
[SPEAKER_01]: That's beautiful.
[SPEAKER_01]: Paul says that money amplifies who you are.
[SPEAKER_01]: If you're a good person, it makes you bad.
[SPEAKER_01]: I would absolutely agree with that.
[SPEAKER_01]: If you're a bad person, it makes you worse.
[SPEAKER_01]: I love that.
[SPEAKER_01]: How many great rich people have you met?
[SPEAKER_01]: I've met so many great rich people.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, there's definitely not a number between.
[SPEAKER_05]: It's either like you suck or you're the best person ever met.
[SPEAKER_01]: That is so true.
[SPEAKER_01]: If you're a mediocre rich person, it's really confusing.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, reach out.
[SPEAKER_05]: Let's have you on the show.
[SPEAKER_01]: Let's have you on the podcast.
[SPEAKER_01]: You're kind of stuck with your kind of awesome at the same time.
[SPEAKER_05]: That's hilarious.
[SPEAKER_01]: That is so funny.
[SPEAKER_01]: My gosh.
[SPEAKER_01]: Do you think we did it?
[SPEAKER_01]: Do you think our phones are dead?
[SPEAKER_05]: Probably.
[SPEAKER_05]: We should chat again.
[SPEAKER_01]: I think we're good.
[SPEAKER_05]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_01]: You're a great person.
[SPEAKER_05]: Happy New Year.
[SPEAKER_01]: Happy New Year, only Vansus Nerd.
[SPEAKER_05]: I want to give a shout to our friend Shelton, who got engaged in this week.
[SPEAKER_01]: I've been watching this video.
[SPEAKER_05]: I really started crying.
[SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
[SPEAKER_05]: I can't even cut myself or else in this.
[SPEAKER_01]: No.
[SPEAKER_01]: No, leave it in Shelton.
[SPEAKER_01]: We love you.
[SPEAKER_01]: To the Shelton's everywhere.
[SPEAKER_01]: We also love you too.
[SPEAKER_05]: He's one of the best.
[SPEAKER_00]: See you.
[SPEAKER_00]: Take a bite.
[SPEAKER_01]: Bye.
[SPEAKER_00]: Slowly.
[SPEAKER_00]: I've been apart for too long I was only like a sweater So when you come back home From all your travels in can you