Tracking, Tracking, and more Tracking.

     Wasssup guys! How ya been? I know a lot of you are on the edge of your seats waiting for my new music. I've been posting a lot of tease videos. Yesterday, we tracked the drums with Jimmy Paxson. Kim had told me that Jimmy was the type of guy that never went anywhere without bringing something. If he came over to someones house he always brought some sort of food or present. Sure enough when he walked in the studio he had a bag from Whole Foods and a magazine with the best chicken recipes. I was super nervous about meeting him because he's worked with so many big name artists like Stevie Nicks and Ben Harper. That all went away though when he started telling some hilarious jokes and talked about fishing.

     We tracked drums for a majority of the day. They sounded so killer it's not even funny. In between takes I also got to hear some great Stevie and Ben stories. I think that's been my favorite part of all this, just hearing the stories that these guys have. From driving a van 4 hours one night in the wrong direction and praying your band won't wake up and find out, to how they use to fight over who got the first call on a pay phone. Also, hearing what really goes on behind the scenes was just so cool.

     Once we finished with the drums, I recorded some more vocals. We had a little make shift recording tent thing. It was awesome. I even did a Passed Out Gold picture for my friend Goldy Locks (if you watch my video diaries you know what I'm talking about).

#PassedOutGold

     So that brings us to today! It's my last full day here in LA. I'm so sad. Don't get me wrong I'll be happy to sleep in my own bed again and finally see my sister, but I'm definitely going to miss good 'ole California. We're working on final vocal stuff (like background vocals) right now. I'm literally listening to Brad edit a few things while I'm writing this. It's a lot of clicking sounds and short fragments of music haha.
     I know I've said this a lot but the music is sounding so good. I'm dying for you guys to hear it. Please be patient! I love you guys!

xxC

My Facebook Page

Greetings From The West Coast!

     I have been in California now for 2 1/2 days and I love it! It's such a wonderfully laid back atmosphere. Sometimes I wish I were better with words because it's so hard to describe. Brad and his family are so friendly and nice. His nine year old daughter, Frankie, is like my new best friend. She also has a beautiful singing voice. And Brad's wife, Kim, is so much fun to talk to. The day I arrived Brad took me sight seeing at Hollywood Blvd. and a place that over looked LA. Then we went back to his house and fixed the song arrangements. We also recorded scratch vocals and guitar. Needless to say I was running on fumes because I was so tired.

     Yesterday, they took me bike riding at Santa Monica beach. We rode to Venice beach and back. 7 mile round trip. That was so amazing. It didn't even feel like 7 miles because of all the people watching. One thing I loved about the beach was that there were so many different types of people. A lot of people think that there are only weirdos in LA, but that's not how I see it. I think it's wonderful that there are so many eccentric people here. They're more accepting of being different. And yeah, okay, there are a few weirdos.... but the good kind. After the beach, Brad and I recorded some lead vocals till late that night.

     Today, we started working at the studio around 10:30 am and went till 8:00 pm. We just tracked guitars. Kevin was the bomb! He's so talented it's not even funny. I tried to get as much video for my video diaries as I could. Now that we have guitar, the songs sound so wicked. I'm just going to warn you guys, it's very different from anything you've heard from me. It has a really nice 70's rock vibe going on. I'm so excited to get to share it with you. 

     Tomorrow, we're going back to Studio Wishbone (Brad's studio) to record the drums! Jimmy Paxson (who also plays for Stevie Nicks) is going to be laying down his tracks. I'm super excited to meet him. So basically tomorrow's going to be another busy day. I'm going to try to edit my video diaries on the plane back home Thursday. 

     I wish you guys could fully experience this. I'm so in love with California. Stay tuned and keep up with everything on my Facebook Page! I've been trying to post pictures as much as I can. I love you guys! Kisses from the west coast! 

xxC

P.S. Sorry for any typos or improper grammar! I'm so tired and it was all I could do to just write this. :)

My Facebook Page 

I Have Some Big News!!!!!

     If any of you guys follow me on Twitter or Facebook you'll know that I have been teasing everyone about a big announcement. First of all, no, I am not getting signed to a record label. As amazingly awesome as that would be, the news is not quite as life changing. Although, it's just as big and exciting in my opinion. I'm sure you are thinking "Get on with it!" ....
     I'm going to be going to L.A. for the first time ever in about two weeks! Now before you get too disappointed on the news, there is something in it for you. I'm going to be working on two new songs produced by the one and only, Brad Smith! If you're not familiar with the name then I'll give you a hint. That wonderfully catchy song called "No Rain" that you hear on the radio sometimes? Yep, Brad wrote it. He is a founding member of Blind Melon. All you Melon Heads that are reading this know how awesome he is.
     Several years ago I worked with Brad on a couple of songs ("Run" and "Missing You") for my first EP. He flew out here to the east coast and stayed at my house while we recorded the vocals. I loved working with him so much that I've been dying to do it again. So, I sent him some of the songs I've written that had been accumulating over the past few months and told him if he had the time I would really like to work with him on some new stuff. If you don't know, Brad has been super busy with Blind Melon shows and recording the new album for his band Abandon Jalopy. When he came back and said that he was all for working on some new songs I was so happy. He even invited me to stay with him and his family.

     So, in two weeks I'm gonna be on a plane.... by myself.... flying to the west coast for the first time ever! Yep, you heard correctly! I shall be traveling solo. Words can't express how excited/anxious/nervous I am. I've never done anything like this before but I'm ready for the adventure. I'm also going to get to meet the musicians who are playing on my songs and be there while we track everything. I'm such a studio nerd so I can't wait to see the process of it all.
     For the next few weeks be prepared to see a bunch of stuff about this trip. I have a feeling the next few blog posts are going to be nothing but it. Don't worry, I will most definitely make a video diary or two of my experience navigating the airports and staying with Brad.



    There you have it! Sorry there aren't any fancy pictures, seeing as I haven't gone anywhere yet. As a prize for reading this long blog post I will leave you with a lovely looking Woodstock dreaming about music...



xxC


"Like" my facebook page to stay updated- Carson Hill Page
Website- www.carsonhillmusic.com

Lake Wylie Music Fest

     Wow, it's been a while since I've last written a blog! That's most likely because I've been so busy and I just haven't had time…. actually that's a lie. I'm just lazy. Haha. I thought now would be the perfect opportunity to share with you guys what I did this weekend.
     Saturday I played at Lake Wylie Music Fest. That was a completely new experience for me. The crowd was a bunch of people chillin' on their boats. IT WAS SO MUCH FUN! Honestly, that was probably the best acoustic show I've ever done. I had some really amazing crowd participation. People were singing along while on their boats or swimming in the water. It was like a massive party!

(Photo Creds: My Mom for pictures 1, 2 and 3)

(Photo Creds: Kelly Campbell for 4 and 5)

     I had a wonderful time and I would love to do it again next year. It seems like every acoustic performance I do just gets better and better. 

     I'm sorry this post is short but I promise another one will be on the way soon! My week is super busy. Expect a new video diary on my YouTube channel too! Also, if you haven't seen my last video diary of my recent trip to Nashville you can watch it here- Co-writing and Passed Out Gold… NASHVILLE 

     Thank you guys for reading! I've got some exciting stuff coming up so stay tuned! 

xxC

Carolina Camera!

     Some of you might have seen the video I posted announcing I'm going to be on Carolina Camera. And if you haven't….Surprise! I'm going to be on Carolina Camera next Wednesday at 9PM on WBTV Channel 3. I'll post a link at the bottom for my video with all the details (plus my dog named Chord helping me announce them).

     When John Carter and Kevin Marlow came out to film a few things for my segment I was super
nervous. I mean, I've done interviews before but none at my house. Needless to say I did a lot of cleaning. But the moment they got here they were both so nice. I had already met Kevin because he filmed some stuff at my cd release party, however, it was my first time meeting John Carter. He is just as friendly as he seems on tv. I had so much fun showing them some of the things I do during my day.

     I'm so excited for you all to see it! Thank you to Kevin and John for coming out and filming me. I'm so happy they took time out of their busy schedules to do this. It was such a fun experience. Also, thank you to my art teacher Mrs. Kristina Hill for coming and doing an art lesson for them to film. She helped calm my nerves a lot. 

(My Video Announcement)

Don't forget to tune in to WBTV Channel 3 Wednesday at 9PM! :) 

XXC

"In My Mind" CD Release Party.

     Hiya! This past week I had a CD release party for my new EP "In My Mind". I was so excited to finally get to celebrate several months of hard work with so many people who have supported me through it. When a CD release party was first suggested to me, I wasn't crazy about the idea. Mostly, because I'm the type of person who always worries that no one will show up. That's one of the main reasons I don't have birthday parties either; go on and call me insane. I'm so happy I did have a party though, despite my weird fear, because so many people showed up to support me. So. Many. People. We ended up having to open some doors in Bean town so everyone could fit in the room. You could say I was a little overwhelmed by all the love I had in that room. I know several people on Facebook told me they couldn't make it because of their jobs or family obligations, so I wanted to share a few pictures for anyone who get didn't come.

(My Acoustic band and I played a set)

(I'm not 100% sure who the courtesy of this picture is but THANK YOU!)

(One angle of the crowd.)

(Photo courtesy of Jan Jenson. Just another angle of the crowd. That isn't even half of it.)

(My Band. Left to right: Paul Graham, Gabe Nicholson, Myself, and Brandon Almond.)

(We had an unplanned karaoke after party. Brandon's son Silas was awesome!)

     All in all it was a wonderful night. I'm super blessed to know so many amazing people. I still can't get over how many showed up. We also had a camera man who came to film some stuff for a special they're doing on me for Carolina Camera! Yep, that's right CAROLINA CAMERA! It's going to air sometime in March or April. I'll let you all know. Again, thank you to anyone who came out. I really do appreciate it. Like I said during my thank you's Monday night, if I could name every single person who has helped me in more ways than one it would take all year. Thank you, Thank You, THANK YOU! I love you all so much. 

xxC

Snow Day *Insert Squeal*

     If you don't live on the east coast then you probably haven't been seeing all the stuff on the news lately about snow. In the words of my sister, "And the winter storm overreaction of the year goes to all of North Carolina". Here in NC we got just enough snow to enjoy looking at but places like Atlanta, Georgia had more than we did. When you live in the south a little bit of snow is a huge deal. Schools are taking several days off and people go buy tons of food to store up. The truth is we probably look a little crazy to northern people. 

     When I was little, snow days were one of my all time favorite things. We didn't get them too often but when we did my whole family would go sledding at my grandparents house, or walking through the woods. You couldn't pay me to go inside. Since we didn't get a lot this time, I had to settle for just walking through the woods. I took some pictures to share what my snow day in NC looks like. 

(The view from my room.)

(I was not prepared with snow shoes...)

(My dad found this deer scrape.)

(I found some deer prints.)

(I love this shot of my driveway)

(This use to be my Uncle Charles' boat. I love how the snow looks on it.)

(Lastly, my warm, cozy house.)

     I hope you all enjoyed your snow day if you had one. I kept singing "Do You Want to Build a Snowman" all day. Thanks for reading and hopefully I'll do another post soon! Love you guys!

xxC