Dear Friends,
I’m currently writing to you from the Bay Area, while all my worldly possessions travel across the country in the bed of a semi truck… on their way to Nashville! I made the decision to move somewhere between Chicago and Germany on tour last Fall, found a great house early this year, and will be moving next week. So excited to have a real kitchen again after a year and a half of floating… Come on over and I’ll cook for y’all. That’s right, I said y’all… I’m sure people won’t even notice that I’m not from there; I’m pretty sure “Wong” is a respected Southern name.
Got lots of news to share so here we go…
OPENING FOR ALEJANDRO ESCOVEDO IN SAN FRANCISCO
I was just asked to open for the legendary Alejandro Escovedo as part of KC Turner’s Concert Series! I believe this show is nearly sold out already, so if you’d like to come, get your tickets ASAP… Details are below. Can’t wait to play for you again SF!
FRIDAY MAY 16, 8 PM
KC TURNER HOUSE CONCERT SERIES
RSVP: rsvp@kcturnerpresents.com
LIVE VISUAL ALBUM UPDATE
Last January, I arranged my songs for a special ensemble of Violin, Cello, and Cimbalom and performed two online concerts to benefit one of my favorite charities, City Harvest. We recorded those performances and are creating a live visual album to give to all who bought tickets to the show.
Here is a trailer for the upcoming visual album, edited by the lovely Karen Shih.
Thanks to you generous and beautiful souls, we generated over $1100 in ticket sales that day! Special thanks to David Peters for lending us his space, and to the ensemble of Kiara Ana Perico, April Guthrie, John Astaire, and Morgan Karr for lending their beautiful talents and energy.
TO ALL WHO ATTENDED THE ONLINE CONCERTS: It’s taken me a bit longer than I had anticipated to edit (read: frantically teach myself Final Cut) and mix the tracks, but rest assured, your visual album is coming. Thank you so much for your patience!
If you missed the concert, you can still donate here and receive a copy of the album when it is released. 100% of proceeds go to City Harvest.
HELP MORGAN KARR’S “FALL BLIND” WIN AT THE 2014 INDEPENDENT MUSIC AWARDS!
Last year, I produced an album for LA-based pop artist Morgan Karr, and one of its songs “Fall Blind” was just nominated for Best Pop Song in the 2014 Independent Music Awards! Click here to listen to the track and click here to vote for us to win the Vox Populi Award. (Only takes a few seconds to register).
While it would be a great honor to win on a musical level, my REAL motivation for winning is: my good friend Vienna Tenghas also been nominated in the same category, and we miiiiight have a little side bet going for a fancy dinner… So as you can see, your participation has never been more important, people! Get out there and ROCK THE VOTE.
ROTANA TARABZOUNI DEBUT EP
I am currently working with Saudi Arabian artist Rotana Tabrouzani on her debut EP! Not only is she a talented singer/writer and a blast to work with (here’s a clip from one of our recording sessions), but this girl has got some serious guts for following her dreams. Becoming an artist can be a challenging path for any Saudi to take, but for a female artist it can be dangerous. I have so much respect for her desire to push the envelope and expand what’s possible for Saudi women in the world. Check out this article that delves further into her story… and look for more updates on this exciting project soon.
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That’s it for now. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your unwavering support. I am so grateful. See y’all in Nashville!
Much Love,
Alex Wong