AMIE PENWELL: News

"Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back-- Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth that ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now."

-Goethe

"And the day came when the risk [it took] to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to bloom."
-Anais Nin

" Worry is no preparation, and is a great thief of time."

-Sarah Ban Breathbach

Happy Days of Winter to You All!

A few words spring to mind when I think of 2011. Productive, overwhelming, muddy, expensive, triumphant, messy, focused. Ok, a few more than a few. 2012 is going to be interesting, not for any prophecy, or predictions -I just think it's going to be interesting.

I think that if you are committed to a creative dream-a dream of any sort for that matter, it has a way of pushing you into spaces in your self you never knew were there, never thought you'd go, never thought you'd survive. I have been tested to the hilt making music emotionally, mentally spiritually, financially.

Here is a conversation I have about 12 times a day.

Everyone:  "How's the record coming? Done yet? What is your next step? Do people even make records anymore? You just need someone to give you a break, well good luck with that."

Me: "It's going great, almost there, not sure what to do, or how to release music in 2012, I don't know if anyone is making records, but I do. It's taking so long because  it's way more expensive than one would imagine."

I have been outstandingly supported. My Kick starter campaign was awesome, but not nearly enough. It takes A_L_O_T to make a record....but i'm getting there half a paycheck at a time.

I spent a few days with Ben Leinbach (Jai Uttal) this week finishing up 3 songs to give Reto Peter (Green Day, Counting Crows) to mix, to give to a fancy entertainment lawyer in hopes he will want to shop me for production, record, and licensing deals, with anyone who is looking for music like mine. Let us pray for it all!

Every test, frustration, sleepless night, or check written is a new opportunity to commit, to look, to examine a motive, to royally fuck up, to remember not to take myself  too seriously. Most of all to keep going.  So I do, I will, I have to. I have made a commitment to song. I will remain faithful.

My calves burn, my knees are shaking, the peek in sight.

Yes, I will keep going.......

Love,

Amie

SATURDAY NOVEMBER 5th 8:30

CLICK LINK TO SEE POSTER

http://www.amiepenwell.net/images/wellingtons-31_resized.jpg

I am delighted to report that two of the 8 songs are complete for my 3rd record. They have arrived to their final mix. I needed the triumph, with so many details to put together it get's blurry to say the least. It can feel like you have done almost nothing, and BLAMMMO  a year and a half goes by and there is the leader of the pack mixed and ready for it's audience.

Making a record is  series of small victories driven by an illogical force made up of creativity, nature, timing, talent, intense scrutiny, editing and patience.  Only the song will tell you when it's done-never the other way around. There is no denying that these forces are in charge. In some ways that is a relief. It makes me feel like I'm part of a bigger picture  I can only see a few inches of.

I'll be a part of Bazaar Stock 4 again this year. I will be on at 5:00.

Sat., October 8, 10:00am-10:00pm

@ Bazaar Cafe

5927 California St
San Francisco, CA 94121-2105

After over a year and a half of false starts, abrupt stops, changing of guards, re- writing, re- recording, scraping songs, sculpting, shaping, listening, listening and listening over again, Jaimeson Durr and Amie Penwell will begin to mix the first couple of songs on the new Amie Penwell record tomorrow at Hyde ST. in SF!!!! How's that for a run on sentence?

Hey All!

Summer has zoomed by like the Road Runner. I've been headed toward my own finishing line with record # 3 as well as working on Composer Jack Perla's Poets Cabaret Project. Lot's of time in the studio, more time rehearsing. I'm learning loads from this master of Jazz, Opera and of all things musically complicated. Time signatures i'm not used to, ranges and ways of singing unfamiliar. I think the over all result is a broadening of my creative skope, new found wells of self esteem, and the deep joy of working with masters of their craft.

Both Records will be released in 2012.

On a different musical note, I am opening up my time to  being a songwriting mentor. I am continually approached by people asking for my help with everything from their songwriting,  how to shape, when to stop, how many verses? what is a chorus? HOW DO YOU WRITE A GOOD SONG? I keep getting asked if i'm for hire. Well now I am...

I have been had 20 years of experience using music as my main tool of transformation. I have faced a lot of fear, sifting through low self esteem, facing it and finding musical ways of letting it go. I have learned how to put records together, faced terror through performing. I have learned how to write good  (sometimes great) songs and I'd love to guide you through your own musical transformations.

Welcome to the birth of my new company Three Prong Song.

For further inquiry you may contact me at:

amie@amiepenwell.net

or call at 415-250-9038

"Amie pulls no punches emotionally, always singing straight from the heart in her haunting, heartfelt alto"

Hey Everyone,

My friend Tika Hick is in surgery as I post this. Please read the wonderful  from Tika's favorite musician- Michael Franti

The community of people who come to our shows is so diverse, and every day I am moved by the lives of people I meet at our concerts. Every now and then I will meet someone so remarkable that I am moved to tears and action.

A few weeks ago I met a woman named Tika Hicks at the Harmony Festival in Santa Rosa. She... had contacted our office about meeting me, because she was coming through a very difficult set of challenges in her life. Within the span of one month her and her boyfriend David lost their home to foreclosure, became parents to a beautiful newborn boy Indigo, and then suddenly Tika was diagnosed with breast cancer.

Any one of these events is challenging unto itself, but to have them all happen one after another is almost too much for any of us to handle. When I met Tika, David and their baby Indigo, Tika had just finished 3 months of chemo-therapy.
She looked as you might expect, with hair missing, and hollowed cheeks, except for one detail that one would not expect... a huge smile of gratitude. She introduced me to her bright eyed son and I took a photo with him. She wept as she described how my music had helped her get through this rough period in her life. Her man was equally sincere in his gratitude. Despite all they had been through they still had each other and Tika told me that having cancer was just another of life's many challenges that she would face bravely, knowing she had found her life's partner in David and had a healthy baby, she would survive cancer and they would make it through this rough time together.

One month later Tika's doctors informed her that her sickness had developed and that she would need to undergo a double mastectomy this July 20th. Tika, David and Indigo, decided that they would take a trip to Maui for a few days vacation in order to prepare for what they both knew would be a traumatic life changing surgery. While at the beach in Maui last Saturday July 16th, David was standing on some rocks near the ocean's edge when a rogue wave struck him and he fell into a blow hole in the rocks. In front of friends and many gatherers, he drowned and was washed out to see where his body has yet to be recovered.

Tika has now had to return to Marin County, California, without the support or even body of David, to undergo this urgently needed double mastectomy procedure on Wednesday.

I spoke to her on the phone today and will be visiting her tonight. I will find out how we as a community of music lovers can best support her. We will be setting up a way that people can make donations on www.michaelfranti.com and will be doing a benefit acoustic show for her and her son on August 10th in San Francisco, CA at the Little Baobab restaurant.

I know that you all who enjoy our music are some of the most loving and compassionate people on this planet. Please stay tuned for more details and spread the word to all in the Spearhead music community, as more details come out on how each of us can help Tika and baby Indie.

Hey Everyone,

Here is Episode #2. I hope it is useful.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xoSyy2BjaA&feature=channel_video_title

If you like what you see and hear please pass it on. Press the LIKE button on my FaceBook Artist Page here:

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=752933067#!/pages/Amie-Penwell/225741130707

or subscribe to my YouTube channel here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xoSyy2BjaA&feature=channel_video_title

or sign my email list here:
http://www.amiepenwellnet

I promise to keep these episodes coming along with a new record in a season or two from now.....

See you soon!
ap

Hey Everyone,

I have begun a weekly Vlog series on the art and craft of becoming a rock star one day at a time. Please share it with your friends.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjXCvne6nCs

I could also really use all of your email address's. I have ignored that part of things and need now more than ever to let you in on the rapid progress, the upcoming record and the shows to follow.

Please visit my website and sign up! or you can write to me directly at:
amie@amiepenwell.net

This year is already very amazing. Tune in it's getting really cool....


love amie

How grateful I feel today indeed! We raised  $1740.00 OVER the amount I asked for!!!! That makes $5240.00 in total so far! Wow!!

If you didn't get a chance to pledge and would still like to be apart of history you can email me directly and I will let you know how.

amie@amiepenwell.net

I will spend the next few weeks getting organized while Amazon collects the funds an puts them into my account. I just booked the photographer Kristin Gerbert and have taken the majority of July off to work with Jaimeson Durr at Hyde St. doing the last of the recording, mixing and i'm not sure where I will do the mastering, graphic design, and website, but that will all come together.

 Right now I am just going to let myself feel the wealth of support that just came my way from all of the wonderful friends, fans, and people I have yet to meet.....

Thank you, Thank you, Thank You!

love amie

Hello to you, and you and you!!!

My Kickstarter Campaign to raise money to finish recording my 3rd record has been fantastically successful. With 20 backers,  in one week we have reached my initial  goal of raising $3500.00!!! I have been humbled by the generosity, and out pouring of enthusiasm on this long, hard road of following my dream.

Now comes the second week and round #2. Here is what I am proposing.....

Would you be willing to sacrifice $25.00 to help me press cd's and start the VERY expensive process of promoting the record? Let's put $25.00 into perspective....

$25.00 = 5 lattes-  a cheap dinner  -a couple burritos and a couple soft drinks- a pizza-  a few drinks at the club .....You get the idea.

If everyone who knows me, supports me, is a fan, or a supporter of me and my music in ANY way, your sacrifice of $25.00 would make  the difference between this record getting a fair shake out there in the world, or not. Oh yeah, did I mention that this $25.00 pledge comes with a copy of the new record and a signed poster?? Here is a SNEEK PEEK at the past year of recording....

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1917324102/rewind-same-tune-give-me-something-new

Thank you for your love and support,

ap

<embed src="http://www.amiepenwell.net/publicfiles/Rewind_Same_Tune__2.mov" autostart="false" />

PRESS LINK VIDEO WILL COME UP

<iframe title="YouTube video player" width="640" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/IevNummFZCo" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

<iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/20932854" width="400" height="225" frameborder="0"></iframe><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/20932854">"The Eyes of Thailand" trailer (2011)</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/windyborman">Windy Borman</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.</p>

Listener voted independent radio Somojo, whose cover I was on February of 2010 has informed me that I won runner up for Pop artist of the year!!!! There were over 6,500 votes cast in total. I feel very honored!! You can check out the other winners and runners up at:  http://www.somojo.net/index.php?t=polls

Thank you Somojo listeners and a BIG  thanks to Kevin White for creating such a wonderful site!!

Somojo 'Artist of the Year' Awards 2010



Pop Artist of the Year - Sol Skugga
Runner up - Amie Penwell
 

A couple of exciting developments are going on that I wanted to share with you.
 Harwood Podcast Network and I filmed a show over the summer and is
currently being seen on iTunes, TiVo, Roku, Boxee and many of the new
internet-enabled HDTVs. Earlier this month, BlackBerry approached them and asked to
include my podcast on their official podcasting app. 
That show will now be available to folks who use a BlackBerry!

Also, Harwood has been approached by YouTube to become one of their partners. 
you can check out the episode here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDrD1CEWrqU