Launching my first VMA!

I am getting ready to launch my very first Video Music Album!   Or maybe it's supposed to be called a Visual Music Album; I'm not really sure.   Basically, it will be exactly like Beyoncé's Lemonade! Except for a few minor differences:

  • Beyoncé released Lemonade in April; I am releasing Closet Songs in March.
  • Beyoncé made Lemonade in something less than two years, and I spent two and a half making Closet Songs.   I can't tell you what Queen Bey did with her production period, but I spent most of mine procrastinating.
  • I don't know for sure, because Wikipedia won't say; but I'm pretty sure Beyoncé's production budget was a little bigger (mine was $15.73, spent exclusively at CVS).
  • Lemonade sold 485,000 copies the week it was released, and 2.5 million copies in total.   I will not be selling any copies of Closet Songs--basically, I will be begging people to watch/listen (and, if they like what they see/hear, to share it with friends).

 

Closet Songs is a series of five music videos about stuff in my closet.   In addition to Yours Truly, it features the talents of:

  • Richard Travers, music director and pianist (for four of the five videos), who made all of the songs better in all kinds of ways
  • Linda Toote, much too accomplished a flutist to be playing on my goofy projects, but who does exactly that time and again because she is much too good a friend (and much too much fun) to say no
  • Julia Ansolabehere, who will very be soon be much too accomplished a clarinetist to be playing on my goofy projects, but who does exactly that time and again because I am her mother. Julia was also pressed into service as camerawoman for a couple of the songs
  • Steve Ansolabehere, cameraman for a few of the other videos, a job that will likely be his forever because he turns out to be very good at it
  • Special thanks to Rebecca Ansolabehere, Allison Hausman, Stella McToote and the West Suburban YMCA -- you'll have to watch the whole series to find out why!

 

Beyoncé dropped all 12 songs on Lemonade at once.   I, on the other hand, plan to drop one video a week for the next five weeks until all five tunes are online.   I have chosen this approach primarily because it allows me to fling around the phrase "drop a video" (three times in this paragraph alone!) -- much the same way as, when I go out for Indian food, I look for all possible opportunities to say the words baingan bharta.

I am choosing Wednesday because it is Hump Day, and I figure that folks may be inclined to fritter away a few extra minutes at the office by clicking around on YouTube.

So tune back in on Wednesday, when I will drop the first track!   And in the meantime, you might consider heading into town for some Indian food.  I'd suggest you order the baingan bharta.

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