 About This Blog Thanks for stopping by the blog of singer/songwriter Dan Coyle; I'll keep this little gem up to date while on the road, writing, recording, and meeting my fans at shows. This may give you some insight into just how weird I can be - and all of the weird things I enjoy. There will be stories, poems, rants, musings, and other forms of writing that my feeble vocabulary cannot contend with. Hope you enjoy! Main Blog Page Older Blog Archives | May 23, 2011 Interview With Dan Coyle Here is the text of an interview that I did last week with Alex Greenwood. Alex is a successful PR professional, indie novelist, and blogger. Stop by Alex’s website and give it a look. He’s a very intelligent, very outgoing, all-around great guy. Interview Text: Longtime readers of this blog will remembersinger/songwriter Dan Coyle, a folk artist who has done tremendously well at marketing his music–and himself–using social media tools. Presently, he’s taking a break from his European tour, hanging out in the south of France, writing new material. We interviewed him via email–Dan talks about his use of social media to meet new people interested in his music as well as stay connected to his longtime fans. Dan is one of the kindest souls you’ll ever meet. I’m proud to call him friend–though I envy him his travels! After a moment of intense envy of his cool life, I let the man behind the music talk about his Twitter addiction, wild requests from fans and the occasional knife fight on the road. How long have you been making music and why did you start? I started in about 2006, writing my own songs. I never really meant to start making music, I just enjoyed playing the guitar and had always written poetry. One day this song just came up and leaned on my ear as I was walking down the street. I rushed home to write it down. About ten minutes later I had my first song, “Break Me Into Pieces” which later became the first track on my debut album, “Briar St – The Acoustic Sessions.” I guess after opening myself up to writing my own songs, I really enjoyed the process and it still boggles my mind how it comes about. I always like to do things that boggle my mind, so I suppose that’s why I’ve kept at it. How do you market your music? I use (maybe overuse) Twittera lot. It has yielded me some great connections, sold some CDs, and made me fans. Of course I have a Facebook fan page too, but Twitter seems to work better for me; I like the constant contact. This brings me to my most important “marketing” strategy: which is to make real connections with warm bodies at live shows! I like to actually sit and engage people who come out, really get to know them a little bit. Sometimes this can be a little overwhelming, and sometimes people take it to the extreme, but overall it has been my greatest asset as far as making people see that I’m a real person and am interested in what they have to say. What tools do you use to reach and stay connected to fans and prospective fans? I have a newsletter that I send out every 2-4 weeks, which people can sign up for athttp://dancoyle.fanbridge.com (and they get a free MP3 download when they do!). As I said before, I like to use Twitter. My Facebook fan page is cool because it has songs and video on it for people to play, it can be found athttp://bit.ly/ltWBxC. Another great place is YouTube, since I’ve started posting a few videos each month. Folks can always send me a message or leave comments there as well. Why do listeners like your music? Ha! Who knows? I never really know what people are going to like or dislike. In fact, my favorite songs are usually some of the least popular with my fans and vice-versa. I think that I am building a wide array of different songs. Some are upbeat, and I’ve even caught people dancing to them. Some tell a story, others bring out the sadder points of life, some are melodic and meant to just be fun, and so on. I think having several different kinds of songs out there it gives people something to connect to. Everyone has their own likes and dislikes. Some people only listen to melodies, some listen for the lyrics, and some do both. I often notice that when someone tells me what his or her favorite songs are, I can pretty quickly tell how or why they listen to music. This ended up to be a very long answer (what a surprise!) for something that I can answer in fairly short form: people connect to certain songs of mine, find some truth in it, or build a relationship to what that song is; I think that’s it. Why folk? It’s just what comes to me. I never set out to write any certain kind of music, like I said before I never truly set out to write any music. The best way that I can describe it is this: I can feel a song coming, like you can feel the rain coming. When this happens, I just let it sing itself to me. I can’t really change it, or I ruin it. It comes up to me and leans on my ear; I just have to listen and let it be what it is. Thus far the songs that have come to me happen to be singer-songwriter, modern folk oriented. Why that is, I cannot truthfully say. Would you consider writing/singing in some other genre? I will listen to any song that comes to me. My 2009 “Bliss in Motion” release is a good example. There is electronic, funk, jazz, and world music on that album. All of those songs came to me in six days. I never wrote them down, I didn’t do anything to them. I set up a keyboard, drums, mics, etc, and just listened to them and gave a voice to what I heard. So yes, I will recount whatever I hear regardless of what genre it might fall into. Do your folk sensibilities present any particular PR/marketing challenges or advantages that other music genres do not? I’m not sure, I don’t really think about it. When I do my “marketing” I just try to be myself, and people seem to appreciate that; which is good for me. Where is your music available? I always prefer if people purchase my albums directly from me athttp://dancoyle.com/7, this gives me an opportunity to sign the albums and include a little thank you note, which I always do. I also have a page where they can get MP3 downloads directly from me athttp://mp3.dancoyle.com. But I know that people love iTunes, so I have all of my songs available there. My direct iTunes link ishttp://bit.ly/a8gfta, Amazon ishttp://amzn.to/g4JMQ8 and at CDBabyhttp://bit.ly/jzFpY2. Folks can find my music anywhere that music is sold online. Ever get any strange fan mail? Of course! I get the occasional “Do you have a girlfriend” or sometimes “boyfriend!” Sometimes people tell me what a certain song of mine means to them, which is always very interesting to me – in a good way. Nothing too odd I suppose, pretty much what you would anticipate. Regardless of what people write to me, I always enjoying hearing what they have to say! What are you working on now? I’ve written seven new songs in about five weeks, which I will put on a new album that I’m going to record in Berlin in August and release in September. I’m leaving room for about three more songs to come my way, if that happens; which I think it will. Also, I’m on a year-long tour in Europe which is going really well. Those things are keeping me busy. You’re an American on tour in Europe–does that help or hurt you as you try to sell out venues and sell music there? It seems to help. I think a lot of people are interested to hear someone from another country (or continent) and see what they’re all about. For the most part it has really worked in my favor. I’ve met a lot of great new fans here, and have been selling a lot of albums. My fans are always the best at sharing my music with their friends and turning them onto me and my music, which means more than I can tell you. Any regrets about going the indie route? Not at all. It has given me the opportunity to grow my career at a rate that I’m comfortable with, to tour when I want, write the songs that I want, and show people who I really am. I think it’s important to me to have a genuine representation of myself out there, and no one can do that better than me. Any advice for musicians/singers/songwriters just starting out? The age-old question. I get about 3-5 musicians writing to me per week asking for advice and it’s really hard to say. It truly depends on what they want to accomplish, what they’ve done, and what they’re willing to do. As a general piece of advice I will always say a few things: Do it for the right reasons. Make music because when you’re doing it you can’t get enough, and when you’re not doing it it’s all that you can think about. Don’t pursue fame and fortune as your main goals for making music. Also, you have to be willing to do whatever it takes to continue. There will be many more roadblocks than there will be people who are encouraging you to keep going, and you have to be able to overcome that because there isn’t any other option. If you have those things, you’re well on your way to a long and successful career. Anything unusual happen on tour in Europe so far? We saw a knife fight in Paris at about five o’clock in the afternoon on a busy street, right across from the Moulin Rouge actually. That was interesting. We saw the beggars on the streets of Prague who prostrate themselves, head down and hat extended. We were nearly stranded getting back to Berlin after a show in Dortmund, Germany when our ride canceled at the last minute. Oh, and we were accosted and interrogated by the customs officer as we were entering England, but that was no surprise. Other than that, London was rainy, Berlin was awesome, Prague was beautiful, Paris was breathtaking, and the south of France is warm and cozy – all of these things have been very expected! If people want to see more about our European adventures they should check out the blog “Of Revolt” athttp://ofrevolt.com. It’s very well written (not by me) by my wonderful fiance who is on this fantastic trip we’re taking. Thanks for taking a break from songwriting and living the good life to chat with us, Dan. Well, thank you so much for this interview, and for all of the folks who take the time to read it. I truly appreciate each and every one of my fans and the amazing work that they do spreading my music around. May 16, 2011 L'Oustau de St Marc After weeks of relaxing and writing new songs in the south of France, I was very excited to be playing my first real show in what felt like a long time. It was a beautiful setting, truly Provence, filled with equally beautiful people. See photos relating to this blog post here. We arrived with plenty of time to set-up, sound check, make a nice display of CDs, and wait for folks to start stopping by. There was food, wine, music, and art on a gorgeous sunny day, what could be better? My friend Apryl Zarfos Anderson had invited me to come play the event. She was displaying some of her artwork, and is very talented. I was very honored to be included. You should take a look at her work here. As the crowd rolled in, I actually started to get a little nervous! It began to feel like a long time since I had played a show, and being outdoors can create it’s own challenges, but we pressed forward. I played two sets, the first about 45 minutes long, and the second about 60 minutes. Every little smile that came my way from the crowd was very welcomed, especially during the first set! As the nerves wore down and I settled in, it ended up to be a really fun show. As is the norm in settings like this, people were happy to hear a few cover songs mixed in with my own. I had some particularly nice compliments after playing “Homeward Bound.” We sold several CDs and made some new Dan Coyle fans, which is always the most exciting part! After the show we packed up and went back to Apryl’s for drinks, food, and Pétanque. If you ever visit the south of France, be sure to find the time to seek out and play some pétanque, it’s a lot of fun. After all was said and done, we dragged ourselves home to sleep. What a great day it was! Thanks so much to Apryl for having me and all of the folks who came out and enjoyed the day. Amsterdam is only a few weeks away, and as exciting as that is, I already know I will miss Aix-en-Provence. May 9, 2011 Mount St Victoire After several days and weeks of relaxing in the south of France, we finally got up, got out and did a little something. Mount St Victoire is a beautiful mountain here in the south, which was a muse for the famous painter Cezanne; and we hiked that sucker! To see photos relating to this blog post click here. Finally rising before 10am, we had time to get some food in our bellies, gather all the water, pack a bag, and head to the bus. We were dropped off at Maison St Victoire, where we grabbed a map of the hiking trails and began our search for a nice starting place. This being the first bit of exercise that I’ve done in quite some time, I was initially pretty winded from the hike, but as we eased into the climb all was going smoothly. The views from the trails on the mountain are astounding! We hiked for a few hours and saw some climbers repelling up the steep, rocky side of the mountain; brave souls all. Finally we happened upon Cezanne’s Refuge, which was equipped nicely with benches and picnic tables! After filling our bellies (again) with a fresh baguette, vegetables and cheese from the market, we knew it was time to begin our decent. If you ever decide to go hiking up and around a mountain, here is some advice: just go back the same way you came. We thought it necessary to “see something new” so we took another path that would lead us down, and we would then need to cut across the foot of the mountain a few kilometers to get back to Maison St Victoire, where the bus would pick us up and bring us back home. Needless to say, the first path lead exactly where we thought it would, but the second path...not so much. It abruptly came to a dead-end with no apparent way to remedy said situation. Feeling a bit tired and less adventurous than when we began, we decided to back track all the way to the road and just walk along the side until we reached our destination. Not fully knowing if it was the correct road, we powered on, kilometer after kilometer and then a roof appeared. It was Maison St Victoire! We had done it! It was a great day, and we’re planning to go back again to make a little music video at the base of the mountain. With my mediocre writing skills, I don’t think this blog post does the hike or the mountain proper justice; so be sure to see the photos that I’ve posted! May 2, 2011 R&W: Relaxing and Writing It has been just over two weeks since arriving in the south of France to take a short break from the hustle and bustle of touring. Our time hasbeen filled with wonderful wine, bread, cheese, fresh fruits and veggies from the market, and writing new songs! As much as I love touring and playing my music to wonderful crowds night after night, it does get tiring. Playing a show (and really giving it your all) is much more exhausting than you might expect. After playing a two hour set, I usually feel like I’ve run a marathon, attended a wedding and subsequently a funeral. It can be extremely exhausting mentally and physically, which is why some breaks in between are well-deserved and well-received. After playing dozens of shows in London, Berlin, Unna, Sarstedt, Kiel, Prague, Paris, and Aix-en-Provence in just ten weeks, this break has been very welcomed. More importantly, it has given me an opportunity to sit with pen, paper, and guitar, writing new songs for an album that I will record in August and release in September. I haven’t yet decided if this release will be a full-length album, or a five to six song EP. Either way, I think that the songs will be some of my best and I’ll be happy to take them on the road to new cities, eyes, ears, and budding fans. In anticipation of the upcoming album, I will be releasing a video of each song that will be included, on my YouTube channel. I hope you will give each of them a look-see, leave comments, tell me what you think, and pass the link along to friends and family! Tomorrow we are going to investigate some ancient Roman ruins, which will be our first day of “travel” in over two weeks. As much as R&W can be great, the itch to travel still burrows deep inside of me! Lastly, I’ve just added free previews of all of my albums at http://dancoyle.com/7 -- please take a few minutes to click around and listen; if you hear something you like, grab yourself a CD or MP3s. I appreciate all of your support very much! April 25, 2011 C’est La Vie As you might already know, or can likely tell from this blog title, I am relaxing rather comfortably in the south of France right now. The sun is shining, absolutely everything is in bloom, and I’m writing new songs! To see a video relating to this blog post clickity-click here. Some good things are happening here in France. Aside from having an amazing start to my 2011 tour, daily baguettes, nutella, fresh fruit and veggies from the market, I’ve been writing songs for a new album that will be recorded in August and released in September. I wrote the song “C’est La Vie” while we were in Prague actually. I locked myself in our hotel bathroom, turned on the water so no one could hear, and turned out this song a little while later. This is maybe not the most romantic story of songwriting, but so be it. I like the song so much that we decided to do a little video of it to get it out into the world. An Australian friend of mine showed me some videos while we were in London of “take away concerts.” More or less they are impromptu videos of people playing their music in public, or some other non-conventional setting. He recommended I give it a try and see what happens. Once “C’est La Vie” was written, I knew it was the perfect song to try out my first take-away-concert video. We found a narrow, mostly uninhabited street here in France and I let loose with my new song. I’m very proud of this little video, and everyone has really enjoyed watching it. Give it a look-see, I think you will find that it’s four minutes of your day very well spent! April 19, 2011 Thank You Paris! After spending two great weeks in Paris, I now sit writing this blog post in another beautiful city, Aix-en-Provence. We are situated in a room in a great house in the south of France where the sun shines bright and the people are friendly. See photos relating to this blog post here. Paris is one of those cities where, if you’re like me, it’s nice to spend two solid weeks there in order to see everything without running around like a tourist with their head cut off. The weather was warm and sunny and we really made great use of our time. I played two wonderful shows in Paris, one on April 9 and the other on April 15. This left plenty of time for sightseeing in between, oh and some much needed rest! I played to a couple of nearly-full houses both nights and the crowds were very supportive and energetic. Some new Dan Coyle fans promptly purchased CDs after the show, and it was everything that makes life a little more worthwhile. I’ve posted some great photos from Paris on my photo page, which you should promptly go take a look at after reading this. We packed our bags (once again) and headed to the south of France where we are renting a room in a house for six weeks. Not only will this be some time for much needed rest and relaxation, but I am planning on writing songs for a new album here. I spoke to a sound guy in Berlin who is going to help me record the album in August, set for release in September...so prep your ears for some new tunes! Soon we will be exploring the south of France from the luxury of our one- room by taking day trips to neighboring cities and the beach; yes, the beach. Thanks for checking in and thank you to all of the wonderful Europeaners who have come out to the shows. Now it’s time to rest and write, but I will still be here updating my blog so check in frequently! April 12, 2011 Sightseeing in Paris We’ve been in Paris for nearly a week and a half and have had some nice time to rest, which is always welcomed while on tour! As one might expect, sightseeing around Paris in April is pretty much spectacular. See photos relating to this post here. We ventured up to Sacre Cour to visit the famous church on the top of a hill overlooking Paris. We had seen an incredibly beautiful church in Prague, that I’m not even sure the name of, which was certainly even more beautiful than Sacre Cour. Not being too enchanted by the inside, we enjoyed the view down the steps, walked around Montmartre and had a picnic in the park...Springtime joy. Waltzing through the “adult” section of Paris, we found “Pussy’s” (not kidding, check out the photos) which boasted that they had “Hot Pussys” inside. It was pretty amazing. Next door was the famous Moulin Rouge and various other seedy spots. I felt right at home. There is a lovely garden walk near the Louvre where we actually spent two days people watching and enjoying the flowers. More baguettes and cheese in the park completed the day with satisfied bellies. Saturday night I had a really fun show in Paris. The crowd was lively and very supportive; who could ask for more? Now, with a few new Dan Coyle fans in Paris, we are about to enjoy another week of sightseeing before going to Montmorency to play at a great venue. I’m excited for next week when we will be in the South of France taking a few weeks off to write some new songs for my next album, which should be expected this autumn. Au revoir from Paris! |