“I don’t wanna go through life without trying…that would be the worst thing, I’d rather fail than not try.”– Bradley Cooper
It’s a big risk to follow your calling… Like Bradley Cooper said about “A Star Is Born”, he’d rather fail than not try. I was so inspired by the movie and his personal passion project that I dove into watching behind the scenes interviews with crew and cast.
In one video, Bradley said he wanted to tell a story about family and childhood, (those elements weren’t in the other versions, this is the fifth remake) and he said, “You can’t choose what moves you.”
This is what music is for me. Music is my passion and my love. Music has carried me through life’s ups and downs. Even on days where it feels like I am carrying A LOT on my plate (we’ve been so busy behind the scenes getting ready for our shows but I wouldn’t change this up for anything.
In 9 days, I will share the stage with Mick Taras at Hotel Cafe, Sunday 10/28, 7pm. This marks the 3rd time we’ve played to a packed house in the past year, and it is going to be super special.
(Drumroll please)
This will be the first time Mick is sharing his original songs since he’s lived in Los Angeles! As we gathered around the mic during rehearsal this past week, Mick nicknamed the band “The Pack” and it felt that way.
Maybe it was the bluegrass–that feeling as if we’ve all been playing for decades versus coming together to rehearse for a show.
Not only are the songs deeply personal, but it also carries and fills me the way family does. Loving, unconditional and sweet.
Come be a part of our Sunday Family 10/28/18. Purchase advance tickets here (and be automatically entered to win a VIP package of goodies from me) I hope you will join us…make sure you love bluegrass before you come down! ☺
It’s always a magical time at AMERICANAFEST, but this year was especially meaningful, weaving work and play together. Susan Dilger was my roomie for the week and we definitely painted the town red in Nashville! Susan is a DJ for KNCE 93.5 FM True Taos Radio so hanging with her is like having your own personal music insider guide. As soon we got off the plane, we were off and running. My publicist Jill Kettles, whisked us off to the NPR Music Kick-Off Party where we got to mingle with members of The Black Lillies and eat southern fried pickles!
The fun continued at the hatWRKs party, where we got to listen to the amazing music of Jill’s clients David Olney and Angie Aparo, while shopping for gorgeous custom-made hats!
There were so many highlights this year, but what was really meaningful for me was k.d. lang’s keynote interview by Ann Powers from NPR. At the end of the interview, Susan was able to ask k.d. the perfect question, about her performance of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah at the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Opening Ceremony. She lit up and I got Goosebumps!
As a practicing Buddhist, she talked about the quiet space within, how she meditated and grounded before her performance.
When she performed, she wasn’t really performing outwardly, but from a place inside where music flowed like a wash of calm.
This is the wash of calm I am bringing with me as I get ready for 2 back to back shows in the upcoming months. When I am in prayer and meditation, I am reminded of my faith and trust.
Tim Bluhm, singer-songwriter and Mother Hips front man was also an inspiration. We met at the AMA UK party and felt like kindred spirits. Tim’s music video “Raining Gravel” reminds me so much of my video, “Been a Long Time” with my dad and grandpa. It turns out Tim had to overcome a devastating accident and it was a spiritual awakening of sorts for him. His music is a reflection of that and it is for me too.
When I sing from my heart, I am present, not thinking of anything else. This is what I am going to try my best to anchor in this week.
With so many things on my to-do list, I will keep prayer and meditation a priority.
Below are some shots from the AMERICANAFEST and show details! Click on the links and get your tickets today…both shows are going to rock the house!
I’ll keep you posted with more news as it happens. ☺
October 28th Hotel Café at 7pm. One night only!
You don’t want to miss this; we will be playing songs from both our albums!
The countdown has begun! I’m on my way to one of the biggest weeks of music, AMERICANAFEST, in Nashville. I am so excited to meet with some of my favorite mentors and musicians. Mary Gauthier, my longtime mentor and friend is nominated for album of the year for “Rifles & Rosary Beads”. Looking at all of the nominees, it’s going to be a phenomenal lineup, (John Prine, Brandi Carlile, k.d.lang, Rosanne Cash to name a few). My publicist Jill and I are getting ready to put our best boots forward as we wear out our feet, our brains and paint the town red in Music City, USA. She has four artists she represents showcasing at the festival this year. Perhaps this year will set the stage for me to be #5 for 2019! #goals #dreams #passion #imnext ☺
Not to jump too much ahead as I still have a lot planned for 2018! After our hoedown in Nashville, I will be getting ready for Hotel Cafe on October 28th. Next stop will be my hometown to serenade longtime friends and family. There’s nothing quite like playing to someone who’s known me since I sang at church and in the school choir at Elk Grove High School. From solos and duets like “Teach Your Children Well” with Ruby Sketchley in 6th grade, to headlining at Goldfield Trading Post in Sacramento, we’ve sure come a long way! If you happen to be in the area November 17th, Mick and I would love to see you there!
Keep an eye out for another update from me in the coming weeks, I will be sure to take lots of photos while I am in Nashville!
Have you ever experienced what I call a “god shot”? That feeling when something feels so right?
When I first decided to ask Mick Taras to produce my album, “Been a Long Time”, I had a dream about him the night before. In it, we were recording an album together. The next night, I went to his show; he walked straight over to me and sat down. It was a sign it was meant to be.
And I couldn’t have asked for a better producer. His heart is in the same place as mine. As a Christian, he’s always listening and following God’s lead. He gets how important it is to be in divine flow. The title of his newest album “Do The Right Thing” sums it all up perfectly.
I am so honored and excited to share the stage with Mick next month. Mark the date on your calendar!
You don’t want to miss this; we will be playing songs from both our albums!
And if you purchase advance tickets you will be automatically be registered to win a VIP Package with an autographed copy of both our albums, plus some special surprise goodies! ☺
We can’t wait to share this dream collaboration with you! And for my hometown fans, I’ve got something special planned for you too on 11-17! More on that next week…go here to get a sneak peek!
For the past ten years, I’ve wanted to share my music with the world in a bigger way.
I’ve always loved how one great song can transform a scene in a film.
Since the beginning, I have been on a mission to find the most powerful tool I could use to help transform people’s lives. I began singing in church when I was 5, performing duets with my mom. I loved singing harmonies with her. In my imagination, I was transported to another place and time. I lived my daydreams in music. When we sang “America The Beautiful” in first grade, I loved hearing my voice rise to the high notes, feeling the energy of the crescendo lifted me up.
Around the same time, I remember going to see “On a Clear Day You Can See Forever” with Barbara Streisand. In it, she sees a psychiatrist under hypnosis to stop smoking and recalls a past life in Victorian England. Instantly through music, Barbara is transformed from a chain smoker into an elegant songstress. This marked the beginning of my mad love affair with music and films.
Music gives expression to feelings difficult to put into words.
Through many more movies and daydreams, music helped me find out who I was and what I was meant to do. Growing up, I had emotions I didn’t know how to express. Music gave me an outlet. So much love has gone into making these dreams a reality.
“The notes of the music lifting me up…”
And now it’s finally here!
Through the album release earlier this year (which I could NOT have done without you), I was approached by Westwood Music Group, a 30 year veteran in the music licensing arena, placing music in feature films and television. Fast-forward to today, I am excited to share they are now a part of my team!
This joint venture is taking my dreams into a new reality. It feels great to have WMG in my circle, reaching out to music supervisors on my behalf.
“Get ready Christine, you are going to kill it!” Vic Kaply shared with me. (He’s one of the partners) And I feel it. And I am bringing all of you with me!
So here are upcoming shows to mark “save the date” in your calendar. We are starting the party at Hotel Café on 10/28. Then it’s off to see the leaves change 11/17 in Sacramento, my other home away from home. (This is where it all began!)
I am a firm believer in celebrating every step of the way. Just think…you have almost 2 months to learn all the lyrics so you can sing along with me at the Hotel Cafe!
I hope summer has been as good to you as it has been for me. I’ve carried all of you in my heart since the Indiegogo campaign last summer. And in my mind, I am already planning the virtual dance party we will be having when I get my first placement!
(Imagine, end credits rolling for feature film X, by Christine Rosander)
I hope this finds you well rested after a 3-day weekend. I had an amazing weekend with family and close friends I’ve not seen in a while.
My heart and soul felt nourished to be back home in Elk Grove. From deep conversations and light-hearted moments listening to “The Black Lillies” with my dear friend Ruby, it fed me!
Christine and Cruz Contreras of The Black Lillies
Even though my health is still a work in progress experiencing ups and down (mysterious GI troubles) I’ve been telling myself to focus on what IS working in my life, trusting this too shall pass. I’ve been learning so much about myself through this journey.
The discomfort of not knowing when the burning sensation on my tongue is coming or going has taught me so much. I am noticing how easy it is for my head to go to the place of blame. (Did I eat something wrong? Is it an allergy to toothpaste? What if it lasts forever?) And at the same time, if I do nothing but observe this thought vs. creating a new “story” around it…the thought goes away.
This has led to a deeper love for myself, while being authentically ME.
Instead of seeing the chatter in my mind as “bad” or I “need” to be more positive, I am allowing myself to just be.
I realize how sensitive I am, but instead of seeing this as a fault, I am celebrating my sensitivity! I see and hear things others might not notice. I don’t miss a thing; it’s all part of my creativity and creative soul, my music and songwriting.
I brought all of ME to this past weekend, and I felt loved and supported by my tribe.
Brene Brown talks about the importance of true belonging in her new book “Braving The Wilderness”. Sharing authentically who I am in all moments helps take me out of my day-to-day world and into another. One of belonging, no matter how much time has passed since I last saw my friends and family.
I see this parallel with music.
Music bringing us together, creating strength in times of sorrow, hope in times of uncertainty and a reminder that love is available to us in any moment.
I am so grateful for the love I’ve received with “Been a Long Time” so far; from across the pond in the U.K. to Nashville Tennessee, the love is GLOBAL! My birthday is coming up soon (June 7th) ☺ another reason to start celebrating!
Will you shower me with some love this week by reviewing my album?
What is calling to your heart this Mother’s Day? For me, it’s been a week of reflecting on the qualities of being mothered, or mothering on many different levels.
When I am not feeling 100%, I miss my mother the most. I miss having a mother of my own to put me first.
I loved being able to pick up the phone during moments when life felt hard, to hear her voice, her reassurance, her love coming through.
My mother was a great listener. She listened and allowed me to share all that weighed on my heart. Today, I am reminded of her joy and her grace in the beauty I see around me. The flowers, the hummingbird flying outside my window; sometimes there’s so much going on it’s hard to see all of the signs, but I know she’s there.
My mother’s presence continues to uplift me and the lessons keep coming! It was from my mother that I learned about strength and trust. A few weeks ago, I leaned in deep, when I found out my stepson Loren was hurt in a bad motorcycle accident.
Although he is now grown, I understand how mothers never stop loving. The love I have for him is still as strong and deep as the day I wrote the song “Good Boy”. It’s been years since I made the decision to leave his dad, but I remember it like yesterday. I was worried how the split would affect him. I think as a mother, we never stop worrying.
Get your copy of “Good Boy” here!
Here is a link to Loren’s YouCaring Fund Page if you feel called to support him in his recovery.
I also have my mother to thank for the blessings that continue to grace me. It was around the same time I received the news about Loren, that my cousin Debbie emailed me about being featured in Blues Bytes!
Although I’ve never met Graham Clarke, I feel as though we are kindred spirits through his acknowledgement of “Been a Long Time”. You can read the review in its entirety here, but I want to share that my mom is all over it! You know how sometimes people may review a book or a movie, but without diving deeply into the meat of it? Well, Graham got it!
“The music has a gentle quality that blends Americana with blues and jazz on occasion and Rosander’s lovely voice carries the day. She pays tribute to her mother on tracks like “Honey For My Soul,” “Love Remains,” and “My Heart Believes It’s So.”
You will have to read it for yourself, but he ends by saying, “Been a Long Time is an album of simple beauty”.
And that is how I will end this post today—it IS the simple things in life that make it beautiful…the touch on a shoulder at the moment we are seeking love, a nod from a friend who listens with her heart, licks and purrs of affection from our pets, this is what we all hope for. Love and hope.
To all the mothers out there and all those who mother, may this Mother’s Day bring love and hope to you and yours.
Don’t forget the most important thing of all— to care and mother your self. Like the story about putting your oxygen mask on first, we cannot care for others if we are depleted.
If you need a pick me up, I am making “Good Boy” available for free through Mother’s day weekend! Go to my CD Baby page to get your free download! It’s track 4 on my album “Smooth Ride”.
“Joy is the most vulnerable emotion we experience, and if you cannot tolerate joy, what you do is you start dress rehearsing tragedy.” -Brene Brown.
Such wise words I think about often. What does Brene Brown mean by dress rehearsing tragedy? Basically, instead of feeling the joy and excitement in the moment, we feel a foreboding and worry that something bad is going to happen and wait for the other shoe to drop.
The first time I read that, it dawned on me that I sometimes do this too. I don’t allow myself to get THAT excited or hopeful, especially when I really want something.
When I spoke to my dad the other day, he wrapped our sweet call by reminding me to enjoy each and every day.
So I write to you today, from my sunny abode in Los Angeles. I am practicing being in joy, finding something to enjoy! Honestly, it’s helping me not to be on pins and needles as I await this Tiny Desk announcement for Friday.
If you don’t know about Tiny Desk Concerts, it’s a video series of live concerts hosted by NPR Music at the desk of All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen. The contest invites bands to submit a video of an original song, behind a desk of course! The winner gets to travel to NPR in Washington DC and play a concert at the Tiny Desk. Let me tell you, playing a Tiny Desk Concert at NPR is a big deal!
You’ve heard me on previous posts talking about taking a leap of courage and entering in this contest.
I thought of you when we made the video. It’s a bit tongue in cheek even though the song, “That’s How The Story Goes” is about the cycle of domestic abuse. I’ve done so much healing around it and have come a very long way– that I can look at this with a renewed perspective today. I can see the bigger picture and know what happened wasn’t because of anything that I DID.
NPR Music will be picking the winner this Friday, and from now until tomorrow, I will be reveling in the excitement and anticipation, and also acknowledging all of the ways this experience has brought me so much JOY.
I am sending some of that light and joy to you today, my dear music family. <3
Order a signed copy of the new album “Been a Long Time” with all the gorgeous artwork and lyric booklet.
When we are reaching out and sharing our gifts with others, it can feel vulnerable and tender. I sometimes have to take a pause after doing a FB live, posting on IG or after hitting the send button submitting one of my songs. It’s during these times that I reach into my inner reservoir of self-love and compassion.
I have to remind myself it’s not only me putting myself out there, it’s me + Spirit.
By anchoring in my faith, that I am walking alongside Spirit and being a conduit for spreading love and peace through my songs, I find the courage to keep taking action with nothing attached it to it. Reaching out gives purpose and meaning to my work. Even when it isn’t perfect, because we may never know whom we might touch with our actions.
I received a message from a fan recently…
“Dear Christine, My mom died Wednesday. It was her time to pass; she had just wasted away for so long. It was a peaceful and loving passing. I just played your CD over and over again.”
With Easter and Passover almost upon us, I want to remind you that life is a gift. Even when it doesn’t feel like it, there are gifts even in our pain.
We can choose to turn our pain into courage.
I was thinking about this as we were filming the video entry for the NPR Tiny Desk Contest “That’s How The Story Goes” is a song about empowerment. This song is deeply personal for me. It goes back to a time when my life felt like it was one perfect storm. My marriage imploded, my mom passed away and I had to start all over. I remember doubting myself when my first album was being made; the abuse was so rampant I barely recognized myself anymore. He was controlling about how I sang, what I wore, even down to how I ate. I remember one time, I was afraid to eat because he would yell at me about the noise the fork made as it touched my plate!
Fast forward to now, the strength, love and connection I have around me—this album is like a musical diary I’ve been keeping, the testament to my growth, my family and my mentors.
While I made this video for the Tiny Desk Contest, this video is also for you.
It has kept me taking inspired action through all of the dips and valleys without giving any thought to it other than “just do it.”
Look at whom I am keeping company with! (Yippee, imagine me jumping up and down in my living room.) We’ve made the TOP TEN! And I am keeping company with Chris Stapleton, and Margo Price. Can you believe it? This is with ME releasing the album on my own. Without a huge entourage or agent (yet 😉
This! This is what I want you to know this week:
“During the hardest times in your life, don’t give up. You don’t know where you will be led next, but know deep down inside, this brave, fierce, loving, compassionate version of yourself, is taking steps to transition to a version 2.0 of you. A new you, filled with gifts, turning whatever pain you are going through into quiet strength.”
A reviewer wrote last week that it’s been a long time from my last album to this one. I could have seen it through the lens of negativity but instead—this has nothing on me. It hasn’t been easy to self-release this album, but your continued love and support made it happen! Whoopee! Today, I can celebrate that!
I am proud of what I’ve done and who I’ve become.
5 years ago, I couldn’t have done it, and today I stand before you. I am going to keep taking next steps and I hope you will too.
Here are some behind the scenes photos from our Tiny Desk Contest Video Shoot!
When I was growing up, people used to tell me, “Don’t wear your heart on your sleeve.” “Christine, don’t be so sensitive”, or “Don’t be more sensitive than you are”. I carried that around with me for several decades. It affected how I saw and held myself, and contributed to how I began to protect my heart from others.
Except when it came to music. With music, I found safety, a container for all of the emotions and feelings I tried to hold at bay. I threw myself into my music and it became an outlet for me to heal. Making this album and the launch has been a roller coaster ride, but a good one!
Reading the recent review by Jazz Weekly really struck a chord. It’s touching to me that Jazz Weekly and others like The Alternate Root, parcbench.live and Don Crow at Nashville Blues Society are picking up on, “Heart and voice on sleeve”, the emotion that is throughout the album. AND ME!
Credit: Phillip Angert
Every one of us has had that “someone” who tried to squash our dreams. I am reminded of Kate Winslet being told by her drama teacher to settle for “fat girl parts”. And look where she is now!
Last week, when I first saw “Hard Habit” was charting at #10 on The Roots Music Report’s Top 50 Americana Country Song Chart, there was a part of me who thought, at first glance, it might have been an advertorial. Because I don’t have a gazillion dollars to pour into PR, because all of a sudden, I am keeping company with Chris Stapleton, who is #1 on the list and was on SNL a few weeks ago, because I don’t have brand recognition (yet 🙂 ) you can see where I might be going with this…
But I am not going to. You know why?
“Hard Habit” is getting out there because it’s got heart and legs…it’s got all of my heart poured into it and it shows! Yes, a huge PR budget will help get the song out, but it can also be lifted by the people (you, my musical family) and by my faith that this was all co-created with Spirit.
I remember when a famous music producer (I won’t name) bagged on “Hard Habit”, and when another radio promoter said it was “too different”. But with God’s grace, I kept going.
I’m not sharing this to prove them wrong, but to share with you, my music family…we are worthy!
Without having to prove ourselves to others, whatever gifts we have to share with the world are important. It is important by the sheer fact that we have created it and put it out into the world.
So please don’t forget, the next time you put your heart into something and “someone” puts you down …
You are worthy. You matter. Don’t listen and keep going!
Go shine your light this week.
And if you need some inspiration, here’s a video to get you going. Soul and Bone is my ode to rising from the ashes like a phoenix.
