At the end of June we returned to Nashville to spend two weeks at RMS Studios recording two more singles for our upcoming album. Now, for those of you who are unfamiliar with what recording is like, we want to assure you, there wasn’t a dull moment!
Working with Jake Jones and Justin Forshaw always pushes us to a new level, and this trip to Nashville was no different. We had a full schedule in the studio yet still managed to get our work done a day early. It is hard to describe studio life, it was such an easygoing, fun time; yet we worked hard continuing to discover and develop our sound as a band. We were able to record two new songs, but also make some awesome updates to some of our past songs, like “Chatter in the Room” with some new vocals and a feature performance by Jonathan Chu! What an honor to not only have him featured on our album, but also get to meet him in person! We also had the opportunity to work with Colton Dixon’s former vocal coach, Mark Thomas to bring a new and improved rock style to our vocal performances.
We also had Adrienne Beacco, photographer extrordinaire, come and do a full photoshoot with us! We can’t wait to share her amazing shots with you!
We are always blessed by the people who come and surround us and our project providing their support and guidance! Now that we’ve given you a brief overview, let us each share our own version of our two weeks in Tennessee!
From CJ’s Perspective:
“The past two weeks were beyond compare! So many people came to visit us to make my band feel welcome in Nashville since this was the longest we have ever stayed in Nashville to record. Our friends including Joey West (Disciple), Isaiah Perez (Spoken), Jonathan Chu (Skillet), Miss Nancy (our manager), our wonderful and goofy producers Jake and Justin and their families, Robert Venable (producer), Brooks Holt (We As Human) and girlfriend, and Missy Cordle, but also including the wonderful people of Franklin, TN. If only every downtown was that inviting, interesting, and welcoming. Can’t wait to go back for more!”
From Maggie’s Perspective:
“These past two weeks in the Nashville were so amazing! The very first thing we did was eat ice cream, so that's always a good sign. We met up with our manager, Nancy Matthews, for dinner that first night. Then Monday rolled around and the work had begun. We had a full schedule in the studio with Jake Jones and Justin Forshaw, and still managed to get work done early. It was such an easygoing, fun time, as we continued to discover and develop our sound as a band. When we weren't in the studio, we got to run around Nashville for our newest photoshoot, trying to get that perfect album look. We also had the privilege of catching up with some very good friends of ours: Disciple's drummer, Joey West, and Spoken's drummer, Isaiah Perez. We were very honored to not only have Jonathan Chu feature on our album, but also meet him in person. At the very end of the two weeks, we had fun attending a barbecue, including different variations of s'mores with Jake Jones and his family, Justin Forshaw and his family, Brooks Holt, and Elisha Helton. We are so very grateful for everyone who helps us along this journey of ours, and we can't wait to show the world just who GFM is!”
And last, but certainly not least, Lu’s Perspective:
“So I spent the last two weeks up in Nashville and I thought I’d tell you a little about it. As you know, I live in Florida and it takes about 22 hours to go to and come back from Nashville, but it was worth t because once we got there the fun began. In fact the first thing we did was change into some comfy clothes and go for ICE CREAM. There were a bunch of cool places in the area we were in, like ice cream parlors, FROYO, vintage shops, candy shops, restaurants, clothing shops, pottery making, juice bars, and so much more. I had so much adventuring especially with my manager. We had SO much fun making pottery and skipping down the road…. anyway it was also my very first time seeing FIREFLIES!!! We got mason jars and caught a whole bunch of them. But after that I forgot the door was not open and ran right into it, face first! PHEW! Good thing I didn’t break my nose for the photo shoot… oh wait that’s right, the photo shoot. I had so much fun being “pampered” and goofing around but the final products look GREAT! I also got to have a lesson with Colton Dixon’s former vocal coach, Mr. Mark.
So, that was all the extra stuff I did, but I haven’t told you about RECORDING!!! It was a blast, I looked forward to seeing the guys (Jake & Justin) everyday (okay, okay sometimes it was hard to get out of bed), and sometimes it was hard to do nothing all day but listen to guitar but on the days that I played my drums and sang my vocals it was AMAZING!!! It was SO much fun to hang out and talk to Jake and Justin. I also got to hang out with some fellow drummers Joey and Isaiah. Plus, I had the privilege to meet Chu who is also playing on one of our songs off of our upcoming album. And as you know we missed Father’s day with our dad so I may have made a rap for him, I said may! And we ended off the two week the best way you could ever do it… S’MORES!!!!! We also had to go big, way big, and not only do regular s’mores but Reeses’, Oreo, Snickers, chocolate crackers, Almond Joy, marshmallow, Hersheys, and Chips Ahoy s’mores. So I think that those two weeks were a SUCCESS!”
