5th of July Blog update

Finally we had a roaster of a week in Dublin, but still nothing compared to what most of the Europe has had. In fact it has hit dangerous levels in many places. I know this might sound silly to those of you living in warm climates, but most houses around central and northern Europe do not have air-conditioning. So dealing with extremely heat becomes just that little bit more difficult. Stay safe my friends.

With good weather this time of the year I also get plagued by hay fever. Some of you might have followed my escapades during the week 😀 I was over in Germany performing few festivals with Sliotar last weekend, and even though I could feel the hay fever hanging around, my usual antihistamine did the trick to control the symptoms. But once I got back in to Dublin, I got reminded that no one does grass pollen hay fever like Ireland 😉 Monday was bad, Tuesday was worse, Tuesday night and Wednesday morning was basically unbearable. I struggled through my rehearsals in the morning and booked a time with my doctor. The picture on this page is me in the doctors reception trying to look cool, but feeling like crap!  He prescribed a concoction of super-duper antihistamines and steroids, enough that I need to get my liver levels checked in August… Good thing I’ve been off the drink for a while now 😉 But I must say, over night I went from feeling completely incapacitated to fully functioning human being. Way to go doc!

And what did I learn this week?

I learned how much I enjoy what I do. Sounds strange, I know… But bear with me. At the back of my mind I was dreading last weekends trip to Germany, as I had been off the drink for a while now. You see having the “craic” (not drugs, it’s an Irish term, read more about it HERE) with the lads on the road involved getting drunk. This time I decided not to do this. But what if I would not enjoy it? Well to my surprise I actually enjoyed my self more. I know not everyone wants to hear that, so let’s just say It worked for me.

I learned that no one does grass pollen quite like Ireland.

I learned how silly it is to try to be a “strong man.” If you suffer, suck it up and go to see your doctor!

I learned how extremely important it is to have friends around you who support you, no matter what it is you decide to do, and how important it is to do the same to them.

So that’s the core of my lessons. How did you do? What did you learn this week? Let me know in the comments below.

June was another record-breaking month on my blog. which makes it solid 6 months of growth 🙂 But at the back of my mind I am just waiting for that crash. That little voice that keeps nagging, surely it can’t keep going like this… On another hand it is that voice that makes me work even harder 😉 So let’s have a look at what got posted on my blog this week.

This weeks song “Who am I to You?” seemed to have hit home for many of you. Thank you for all the shares 🙂 Check it out here:

Who am I to You?

On my resent trip to play few festivals, I once again noticed few little tricks that make all the difference between a successful festival band and the amateurs. Here are few of my tricks to become an artist festivals love to book:

How to become an artist festivals love to book

Here’s a few tricks and tips how to look more professional in the music business:

Quick tip 126 Professionalism is part of everything you do

I decided to start a new short form category, where I share artists and their work I love. I also asked you to contribute by Emailing me suggestions to [email protected]. I already got some great suggestions, turns out my readers have great taste in music 😉 The part one features the wonderful Nate Maingard:

Share love, music and art Part 1

Finally after many years the music industry are matching the new music release day worldwide. Read all about it here:

New music Friday

Often the best way to sell, is in the beginning of a new relationship no to sell. Confusing? Read more about it here:

Quick tip 127 Don’t sell yourself

Touring life in general is great. But when things go wrong, the road can turn into a dark place. Here are some of my war stories from the road:

War stories from the road

Music business is a constant battle. To succeed you need to be positive:

Quick tip 128 Be positive

It still surprises me how so many people have this unrealistic expectation of entitlement in the music business. Read more about it here:

Unrealistic expectations of entitlement in the music business

No, I am not telling you to go naked, what I mean is… well, read all about it here:

Quick tip 129 Expose yourself

There is a new update on the way to the Twitter direct messages. Read all about it here:

Quick tip 130 Twitter update

I have no strict schedule for these “Share love, music and art” posts, but I got a feeling there will be quite few popping out shortly 🙂 The part two features the late Bert Jansch, a master of emotional and tasty songwriting and fingerpicking:

Share love, music and art Part 2

So that wraps up another busy week on my blog. In fact this blog you are reading right now is actually number 13 of the week! So before you go, just two quick reminders, this weeks song is also available for a download right now at: https://jpkallio.bandcamp.com/track/who-am-i-to-you I am also committed to post the song lyrics on the Bandcamp page. The other reminder was about what did you learn this week? Post in the comments here and lets share our experiences. Have a great week!

J.P.

The author J.P. Kallio is a singer songwriter
To get EIGHT of his songs for free go HERE