Tag Archives: talent

Oct28

Setting Up Your Home Music Studio

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Setting Up Your Home Music Studio

Do you have a passion for music? If so, then you likely know just how costly such a hobby can be. It’s fair to say that it’s often quite expensive to develop a love for music, as finding the cash to be able to afford to pay for professional studio time might cost a lot more than you have to spend. However, this doesn’t have to dampen your creative spirit. In fact, there’s an excellent solution: why not build your own home music studio? You’ll be able to record and edit your own tracks for a much smaller fee all in the comfort of your own home!

Having your own music studio can certainly take your music career to new heights, and it truly couldn’t be any simpler to begin designing and building your home studio today. So, what are you waiting for? If you’re ready to discover more, then check below to uncover some of the best tips and tricks that you can utilize to create the most amazing music studio before you know it:

First Things First: Prioritize Soundproofing:

The first and most important aspect of a home music studio is top quality soundproofing, as the last thing you want is angry neighbors knocking at your door. Having to deal with complaints day in and day out will certainly block your vibe and ruin your flow, so it’s a risk that just isn’t worth taking.

Investing in top quality soundproofing will help you to avoid this issue, as well as improve the end product of the tracks you record in your home music studio. Good soundproofing can easily block out any noises from outside of your recording space, so things like passing traffic won’t be heard in the background of any of your songs. Sourcing the correct soundproofing for your unique space is key, so take your time to look around for the best fit.

Find Quality Equipment:

When you’ve laid the foundations of your music studio with top soundproofing, it’s time to invest in a range of quality equipment that you can use to record and edit your tracks…

It’s fair to say that many artists start off with nothing more than a laptop and a pair of headphones, so if you have a limited budget then don’t worry about trying to splash out on anything more. Whenever you do have the funds, investing in a quality microphone and speaker set should be your next priority. If you wish to take your home music studio to a whole new level, then you can take the opportunity to source a variety of instruments, amps, and more to allow for all manner of musicians and artists to record in your space. Whenever you do decide to buy some instruments, make sure you get musical instrument insurance – just in case.

Once you have your soundproofing and key pieces of equipment, it is up to you to design and decorate your space. You can also add some color changing LED lights to your home music studio, as this can take the atmosphere to a whole new level!

Featured Image By: Pexels

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Oct24

Attracting & Keeping The Best Talent To Your Company

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Attracting & Keeping The Best Talent To Your Company

In order to maintain a successful company, it is essential to have the best talent working for you. The best way to attract and keep top talent is by implementing policies and practices that appeal to them. In this blog post, we will discuss four ways that you can keep your employees happy and engaged. By following these tips, you will be able to reduce turnover rates and improve productivity in your workplace:

Offer a competitive salary and benefits package:

In order to attract top talent, you need to offer a competitive compensation package with other companies in your industry. This includes offering a fair base salary and providing benefits such as health insurance, retirement savings plans, and paid time off. Employees will be more likely to stay with your company if they feel they are fairly compensated.

You should also consider offering perks and bonuses to attract and retain employees. These include flexible work hours, stock options, or tuition reimbursement. Employees appreciate being rewarded for their hard work and these types of perks can help you stand out from other employers.

Promote a positive work/life balance:

The best employees are those who are happy and engaged in their work. To promote a positive work/life balance, you should offer flexible work hours and the ability to telecommute. This will give your employees more control over their time, leading to increased productivity and satisfaction. Ensure your employees have access to quality childcare and eldercare resources. This will help them feel supported in their personal lives, and they will be more likely to stay focused on their work when at the office.

Create high-quality skill development opportunities:

The best talent wants to be challenged and given the opportunity to grow. If your company can provide employees with opportunities to develop new skill sets like with ITIL 4 certification, you’ll be more likely to attract top talent – and keep them. One way to do this is to invest in employee training and development programs. These range from formal courses and certification programs to on-the-job training and mentorship opportunities. By giving your employees a chance to learn new skills, you’re making your company more attractive to prospective talent and increasing employee engagement and retention.

Foster a positive and supportive company culture:

Your company culture should promote positivity, collaboration, and respect. Employees should feel like they are part of a team and that their contributions are valued. If your employees feel like they are in a toxic or damaging environment, they will be more likely to seek employment elsewhere. Make sure that your company values are evident in everything you do, from how you treat your customers to how you interact with each other. Promote a culture of open communication and respect and encourage employees to give feedback.

Implementing these four policies will result in a happier and more productive workforce. By following these tips, you’ll be able to reduce turnover rates and ensure that your company has the best talent working for you.

Featured Image By: Pexels

Apr23

My Wedding Glam Squad

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My Wedding Glam Squad

Hi! Johnny and I will be having a very small wedding that literally took no planning for accommodations for our ceremony. It will be short, sweet, and simple – exactly how we want it. However, preparing our wedding looks was a totally different story and a lot of thought went into it so we can show out on our big day. I am so thankful to have the ultimate wedding glam squad tending to me and am honored to be able to showcase their talent at my wedding. I have a very specific look in mind and it would not be able to be achieved without the genius of the following:

Anna:

Anna has been my hair stylist since I was eight years old and absolutely no one but her is allowed to touch my hair. She is also one of the few people who has seen part of my top secret wedding look – that’s how much I trust her! I live for my time spent with Anna at the salon and I can’t believe almost twenty years later she will be doing my hair for my wedding. Time and time again, I will use the word “nontraditional” to describe my wedding style and my hair is no exception. In fact, the suggestion Anna made was something that I didn’t even know existed, so we are all in for a treat!

Katie:

My makeup test run with Katie was beyond what I was expecting and I had never felt so beautiful. She took every vague idea I had, ran with it, and came up with the results I had in my head but couldn’t quite put into words. I have never had my makeup done professionally before and it felt like Katie was painting the most gorgeous picture as she airbrushed away. I cannot wait until my wedding so she can do it all over again. 😀

Gabby:

Gabby is my go to girl when it comes to my nails and I already know exactly how I want my claws to look for the big day. It took me a long time to find the right nail tech for me and now that I have found her, I could never imagine anyone else sharpening my talons to perfection. I recommend her to everyone who compliments my nails and I love seeing her work on my friends who go to her now too.

Emily:

Other than four tattoos, all of the rest that I have have been done by Emily and I will most definitely need a touch up session before the wedding. I am so proud to be a walking billboard for my dear friend and her amazing talent and cannot wait for my tattoos to pop in my wedding dress. Emily is, easily, one of the best tattoo artists in my area and her work blows me away – especially her work on myself!

I cannot wait to share in my wedding day with my favorite gals because they truly make up the ultimate wedding glam squad. I know that I am in the best hands with all of them and having my wedding appointments scheduled in their books eliminates any stress for my big day. ❤

Who was a part of your wedding glam squad? Who is your go to person for your hair, makeup, or nails? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Jan10

Hosting A Fun Family Game Night

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Hosting A Fun Family Game Night

Many of us have exhausted a range of activities in the midst of societal lock down. We’ve baked, we’ve cooked, we’ve tried foreign cuisine, we’ve read, we’ve relaxed. So, it’s understandable if you’re feeling restless or irritable once your options for activities have been depleted. Not being able to ‘get out’ and enjoy the warm weather (by virtue of it being winter) also limits us a little more. You shouldn’t feel guilty for feeling irritable, as a lot of people are – myself included!

But what’s best for when you’re feeling irritable? To us, playing games and having fun with our family members can really help. Games help us act creatively, to compete in safe settings, and moreover, to have fun and a laugh. Hosting a fun game night with the family can be lovely then, and perhaps a weekly tradition.

But what sort of game nights could you have with the family? Your board game collection is a great place to start or you could order a couple of games online for something totally different. Why not also consider some of the following options?

Word & Quiz Games:

It can be fun to test your general knowledge or show off your Words With Friends skills with a word game. My personal favorite word game is Scrabble and using a descramble words tool can help you buff up before the games begin. Memory games, general trivia, and even games like timed ‘random Wikipedia journeys’ can be a great idea. These games will help you get a brain workout by the end of them! And who’s to say they aren’t competitive?

Video Game Parties:

If you have any video games consoles and games that offer cooperative play, you will be in for a blast. Four play Mario Party can be phenomenal, for instance, helping you enjoy a range of mini games across a players board, building stars, and dunking on others as you go. You’re sure to have fun with Mariokart, Keep Talking, And Nobody Explodes to show you what friendly competition is all about. We would also recommend Human Fall Flat and Fall Guys if you’re looking for something comical and cartoonish.

A Homespun Talent Show:

It can also be a wonderful idea to enjoy a homespun talent show, one that helps you feel connected, appreciated, and able to express your silliest joys. Perhaps you and your partner can do a magic show for the children, while they can lip sync and play air guitar to their favorite song. It sounds very silly, and it is! The goal is for everyone to be grinning from ear to ear. You can all judge and score each act and work up to the semi finals and finals over the course of a weekend. It might be a bit of work, but the outcome will be well worth it!

With this advice, we hope you can enjoy a fun game night with the family – and no doubt end up having a ball. You will feel much better afterwards too! 🙂

Featured Image By: Pexels

Sep24

Guilty Pleasure: Dancing With The Stars Edition

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Guilty Pleasure: Dancing With The Stars Edition

Hi! I have plenty of guilty pleasure TV shows that I am always eager to put on when I have the apartment to myself on Wednesday evenings. Johnny has band practice so when I get home from work I plop myself in front of the TV and binge to my heart’s content. We’re talking America’s Next Top Model, My 600 Lb. Life, Dr. Pimple Popper, and most recently: Dancing With The Stars.

I used to be a HUGE DWTS fan back in the day and would tune in season after season with my parents. This bonding time was officially dubbed “Middle Aged Monday” and I lived for it. Despite such fond memories of watching the show, I became uninterested after a while. I was so sick of all of the crappy reality stars and D list celebrities that the show just fell by the wayside.

However, when I learned that one of my favorite figure skaters, Johnny Weir, is competing this season, I snapped back like a rubber band and turned my free Wednesday evening into DWTS time. Because I haven’t been watching in forever and also COVID, I didn’t realize how much the show has changed.

Not only is Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews not hosting but Len Goodman is also not a judge, replaced by Derek Hough. Len will be popping in from time to time this season via video chat as it is not safe for him to travel from England at the moment. This switch is fine because I adore the Hough siblings. But if Tom and Erin aren’t hosting, then who is? Tyra Banks, of course.

Now, normally, when I hear “Tyra Banks”, I am stoked. I love her often times more than I love myself and I was ready to see her in action. Unfortunately, she was so GOTDAMN annoying I was almost ready to fast forward her talking. All she did was speak about herself, try to relate dancing to modeling, and give meaningless commentary. By the end of the episode, I had a Tom and Erin sized hole in my heart and felt completely unimpressed by this swap.

Despite not being a huge fan of the new hostess, I forgot how much fun DWTS is. The costumes, the fantastic music, excellent judges, uber talented pros, and (occasionally) enticing celebrities makes for TV heaven for me. I so enjoyed seeing stars like Johnny Weir, Nelly, AJ McLean, Skai Jackson, and Nev Schulman take the floor and all it made me want to do was take up ballroom dancing myself.

Dancing With The Stars is a perfect show for me to put on after work because I can still get chores done and make my dinner during celebrities I don’t care about. I’m already ready for them to “trim the fat” by eliminating the people who don’t have a change in hell of winning. But, for now, I am okay with sitting back and watching the spectacle. 🙂

Do you watch Dancing With The Stars? Who do you think is going to win this season? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Apr7

April 2020 Funky Time Jams

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April 2020 Funky Time Jams

Hello! We are officially one week through April and what feels like one thousand years in self-isolation. So, music has definitely been a big part of helping to make the time go faster. There’s something about playing a familiar song while tucking into a good book that is so comforting – especially when it’s so easy to feel unnerved even in your own home. This is the music that has been keeping me company as yet another day in quarantine passes by:

^^^ And, as always, I have no rights to these songs or videos!

A random compilation, I know – but this has been such a random feeling time. Everything just seems so up in the air and I never know what mood I’m in. Sometimes all I want to hear is top forty hits all day. Other times, I want nothing more than to time travel back to the 50s and 60s as I eagerly await for the completion of another day.

While Ohio is under a stay at home order, I have been clinging to a schedule and normalcy. This means following along with my music listening times daily like when I’m in the shower or writing in the morning. It’s nice to hear something that puts me more at ease when I’m trying to relax or upbeat tracks when I need to get ready for work.

Familiar things are my friends right now and the songs above have all been there at some point during this whole ordeal. Whether that be to save me from boredom or to hype me up, there’s nothing better than some Old Faithfuls!

What have been your favorite songs lately? What do you play to fight the lock down blues? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Mar12

March 2020 Funky Time Jams

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March 2020 Funky Time Jams

Howdy! One of my clients at work absolutely loves oldies style music. This has definitely opened a whole new genre to me and I am actually pretty obsessed. I find myself humming the catchy, poppy tunes constantly and feel like I always have an earworm in my head of songs from the 1950s. Before, I was a-okay with just hearing this music for fifteen hours of my work week but I’ll be goddamned if I say that I’m not listening to it all the time now! Especially some of the following:

^^^ And, as always, I have no rights to these songs or videos!

Now, don’t get me wrong, I love music of all kinds. I dabble in all genres and I always enjoy hearing things that I haven’t heard before. But, after being exposed to this golden era of music, I can honestly understand why people say “they don’t make music like this anymore” because it’s one hundred and fifty percent true.

I just love the talent behind all of these short and sweet songs. The big band instrumentals, the amazing vocals, and the way I want to get up and dance to each song is something that I don’t hear or feel on the radio today. Hearing modern remakes of all of these classics would be cool but nothing will ever beat the real thing.

I feel like I’m traveling back in time when I listen to the oldies and from now on you can find me posted up at The Hop! 😀

What are some of your favorite oldies? What genres of music have you been exploring? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Mar10

Essentials For Your Home Recording Studio

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Essentials For Your Home Recording Studio

Music has been a big part of cultures around the world for centuries, but it seems like independent and aspiring music producers have become more prevalent in recent decades. Thanks to innovations in technology and music-making equipment, at-home production is more accessible than ever before.

Even if you don’t have room for a full studio in your home, there are some fantastic instruments and music-making tools out there that don’t take up a lot of space. One of these is the Alesis v25, which is a 25-key MIDI keyboard with drum pads. Despite not being as popular as other 25-key MIDI keyboards out there, Alesis v25 reviews make it sound like an excellent choice for producing music and beats at home. It’s also one of the most affordable at $179 retail.

Top Keyboard for Recording Music at Home:

The Alesis V25 is a very intuitive and powerful MIDI keyboard for at-home music production. It has 25 keys, eight drum pads, and four rotary knobs to expand the melodic range and chords you can produce with the keyboard. You can even play bass lines.

  • Full-sized, semi-weighted keys prevent cramping in hands and fingers
  • Velocity-sensitive drum pads for adding beat patterns
  • Responsive rotary knobs to fine tune effects
  • Plug-and-play technology for a simple USB connection and digital audio workstation (DAW) detection
  • Compact, portable, and lightweight (5.4 pounds)

Once you have the ideal keyboard for making music, it’s time to stock up on some other home recording equipment to mix, edit, and refine your work.

Essential Audio Recording Equipment:

Your home recording studio or station should include some critical pieces of equipment, but you don’t need to pay an arm and a leg for it. The list of essentials is quite short and you can find proper quality equipment for affordable prices both online and in stores like Best Buy and even Walmart. The leading necessary audio recording equipment you should have includes:

Microphone:

Home music production cannot be achieved successfully without a microphone and long-lasting mic cables. For home recording, cardioid microphones are best because they help reject any sound coming from behind you. While you can easily spend over $1,000 on a quality condenser microphone and stand, there are several excellent options for $300 or less.

Mic Stand:

Be sure to get a quality mic stand as well! You don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on a high-quality microphone, only to knock it over and ruin it. There are excellent mic stand options for any budget, and you can probably spend less than $50.

Headphones:

Your smartphone earbuds won’t do for home recording, so be sure to invest in a good pair of over-the-ear headphones for mixing and monitoring when you’re recording. Before you buy, compare the specs based on your needs. Look into the headphones’ drivers, impedance, and sensitivity.

Audio Interface:

A USB audio interface is necessary to connect your headphones, microphone, and speakers to your computer for editing and mixing sounds. You can probably find what you need for less than $200, depending on the kind of system and types of features you require.

Pop Filter or Shield:

An inexpensive and essential piece of equipment for any home recording studio is a pop filter or pop shield, especially if you’re recording vocals. Pop filters not only protect your mic from vocalists’ spit, but they also block “plosives” and maintain the quality of your vocals. You can probably find a quality pop shield on Amazon for less than $30.

Speakers:

Decent studio speakers or monitors are a must for any home recording studio. Without them, you may find that your work sounds very different (and less-than-desired) when played outside of your studio headphones. There are countless different speakers to choose from, but a few things to consider are amplification, placement in your studio, size, listening distance, and connection to your audio editing equipment. For a direct link to your computer or audio interface, a USB connection will do, but for interfaces with balanced outputs, you’ll want a balanced XLR or jack input.

Acoustic Room Treatments:

When recording from a room or space in your home, you’ll need to think about more than just any sounds from the outside. The reverb of sounds within the recording area can affect the audio as well, so you will need to install acoustic panels and diffusers on the walls to create an accurate acoustic environment and make your sound better. You can make your own panels and DIY bass traps for a fraction of the cost of acoustic treatments, which can get pretty pricey.

DAW (Digital Audio Workstation):

A DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) is the program that you will be recording and arranging your music in. This is one of the most important pieces of equipment you’ll need for your home studio. Luckily, there are many affordable, and even many free DAWS available for musicians on a budget.

Use the tips above, start recording your tunes, and maybe you’ll catch your big break!

Featured Image By: Reinhold Schlager from Pixabay.

Jul12

Three Ways For New Musicians To Get More Exposure

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Three Ways For New Musicians To Get More Exposure

When you tell people that you want to be a professional musician, a lot of them will probably say that it’s never going to happen. The music industry is so competitive and only a tiny fraction of people that dream of being musicians actually make it, but why shouldn’t you be one of them? You could be, as long as you’re willing to put the work in.

There are a lot of different things that you need to do if you want to break into the music industry but one of the first, and most important steps, is exposure. If you’re going to make it, you need people to hear your music (and love it) so you can start building a bit of a following, that’s how you’re going to get yourself noticed by a record label. Getting that exposure is tough, especially when you’re up against a lot of competition, but there are ways to do it. These are the best ways for new musicians to get exposure for their music:

Focus On Gigging:

There are now more ways than ever to get your music out there and we’ll come onto those later, but for now, you need to focus on the old fashioned way; get out there and play for people. When you’re first starting out and you’ve got a few songs, you need to start playing as many gigs as possible. You’ll get people to hear your music and hopefully, start to build a bit of a fan base in the local area. You’re not likely to get booked for gigs if nobody has heard of you so open mic nights are the best place to start. They’re always running so do a quick search for open mic near me and start playing. You’ll get to play one or two songs and hopefully, if people like you, then you might be able to start booking more regular gigs.

The next step, is to get some support slots playing with more popular local bands. This is a great way to get your music heard by fans of your genre and if you play well, they’ll become fans of yours too.

Soundcloud:

Soundcloud is one of the best places to put your recordings so people can discover them. It’s also important that you have music online so if people come to your gigs and like you, they can download some of your songs to listen to and share with their friends. There’s a lot of stuff on Soundcloud so you need to do things to make yourself stand out. Obviously writing good songs is the most important thing but you should also ensure that you have good production values, as well.

Social Media:

Social media is the best way to promote pretty much anything these days and music is no exception. Start a dedicated musician page where you can post links to all of your new tracks when they go up on Soundcloud. You can also promote any gigs that you’re doing so you can get a bigger crowd to the venue. Look at other bands and artists on social media to see how they promote themselves, their gigs, and new music. For example, established bands, such as SWMRS with drummer Joey Armstrong have long been using social media to promote themselves successfully.

These are the three best ways to promote your music when you’re first starting out and they should help you to build a following in your local area!

Featured Image By: Pixabay

Jun19

The Digital Era’s Effect On Our Insecurities

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The Digital Era’s Effect On Our Insecurities

It’s hard to exist in a world with access to social media ‘round the clock. Instead of seeing real people, you see idealized versions of beauty and celebrities with unattainable airbrushed looks. Try as we might, natural beauty is not natural enough when they need to be on the cover of magazines. In this digital era, it seems like everyone’s insecurities are magnified. If all of the constant focus on beauty is making you feel insecure, here are some tips that you can do to start loving yourself a little more:

Hair Care:

Your hair is your crowning glory, they say. It makes sense that people want to care for their locks because of how much it affects their appearance. However, no matter how shiny you think your hair already is, when you see hair product advertisements, suddenly your hair is not smooth enough, colored evenly enough, or straightened sufficiently. Ads and commercials get some editing help, of course, but the message is already evident. You need to change your hair products, perhaps consider switching to herbal hair care, and love your curls rather than killing them with heat from styling every day. All of these changes you’re considering will be helpful because they are overall good for your hair and will show positive results over time.

Body Image:

Hair is just one part of the body, and it can already give you so much insecurity. What more if you don’t have the “perfect” body? Lots of people have uncertainties stemming from a negative body image, and this is brought on by the lack of love for different body types in the beauty industry. Even now that there is room for plus size models, we still see them conforming to the hour-glass shape that the industry has deemed ideal. Thankfully, some big names in the industry are choosing to release their unedited photos to show their fans that, though it might look like it in magazines, they do not have a perfect body. Everyone’s body is different and beautiful, and the more that this is normalized, the better for body positivity movements.

digi1

Talent:

When you look at celebrities, they always seem to be oozing with talent. They have a good singing voice and can dance, too. They also look good in everything they do. Some are good enough to be chefs and others can speak several languages. When you compare your skills with them, you think you fall short. The thing is, you should not be comparing yourself with another person, be they a celebrity or not. Each person has different skills, and instead of telling yourself you’re not good enough, you should focus on self-improvement. Celebrities train rigorously to learn what they need for their craft; you should also try to improve your skills and not knock yourself if others do it better. They all started as beginners, too.

The digital age has given us some of the most advanced features and gadgets we could have asked for. However, it also highlights some of our biggest insecurities. It’s up to you to take that power away from them by loving yourself!