Starry Starry Night

@KayHanley

This isn’t to bash AI in Chat or Claude. I’m just sayin’ – because there is and will continue to be an onslaught of non-human made music, and material that can’t be performed BY a human, what will be of more and more value, in my opinion, is self-contained songwriters who can deliver in the flesh.

That was quite a sentence.

Last week I hosted a small fundraiser in my yard on behalf of SONA, you know – that little organization that could. What we aimed for was an intimate evening that could provide a few grants in support of songwriters and composers facing hardship.

Who doesn’t need some therapy when AI is replacing everything that they’ve worked for.

And yes, boo-hoo. We’re not alone, but this is my tribe and I feel for everyone coming up who is not going to have the same experience as I did. I mean it was always hard but now…😳

Everybody BYOB’d everything. Their beverage, their cheese, their popcorn, their chair.

We crossed our fingers for good weather, and what we got were magical stars twinkling in the Laurel Canyon sky.

Bleu

Some songs were filled with emotion, life experience, observation. Some were hysterically funny. There was a rock anthem stripped down into a ballad, revealing lyrics you might have missed on the radio – a familiar hook, sung by a songwriter who wrote it.

I stood behind the gathering and noticed how entranced everyone was. Engaged. Grateful. Happy to be there.

I have to wonder… do people value music made by humans more now, because so much of what we hear isn’t? The storytelling – the Bluebird, of it all. We’ve always loved live music, but is it becoming even more cherished as it becomes a rarer and rarer commodity.

After all, when we stream music, we really don’t know what we’re getting – if it’s not a band we know. Shouldn’t there be a warning on playlists for material that’s computer generated? So if we choose to opt out on principle, we can? Like ingredients on a can of soup. So we know what we’re getting.

Obviously, I think so.

I digress.

@Verskotzi

Anyway, I’m considering hosting more Under the Stars salons for performing songwriters – an intimate space to share work and find community. Attendees can toss a 10 or a 20 into a pot, and anyone who’s navigating financial challenges can put their name in a hat. At the end of the night, we draw a name, and that person takes home a modest, no-questions-asked boost to help cover a few therapy sessions, or whatever kind of support they need most.

@StaceyMusic

Raffle aside, we’d all get a restorative, rich experience. A slow-cooked meal instead of protein bar. A lobster instead a fast-food fish sandwich. As we did last week.

Live music is medicine. We need it now more than ever.

Bring it however you can.

Thank, Laurie Geltman, for the photos.

I mean, Come On ⬇️⬇️⬇️

Thanks for being here.You can subscribe to my blog here.Get a signed CD or a copy of “Confessions of a Serial Songwriter.” And here’s My Serial Songwriter Facebook Page! 💋Stay tuned for my new YA novel What A Girl Wants 💙