Rachel Millman singing our national anthem Friday May 27 at The Mets / Phillies Game

I am very excited to announce that Rachel Millman, from The Music Mentor is singing The Star Spangled Banner on Memorial Day Weekend. What an honor for Rachel and thousands of people will hear her amazing voice.

Congrats to Rachel!

The Land Had a Dream Free download in honor of Earth Day 2011

Free download for one week htpp://www.denisemarsamusic.com

Everything is Always Changing

Hi there this is TMM aka Denise Marsa checking in with some updates about our project and some overall feelings I have about the state of the world we live in. I must preface this post with: I am in a deep and profound state of pondering regarding our TV series and its development, the careers of the young artists I guide and manage, my own desire to release my second body of work and the fact that I planted seeds around our front yard… and it has rained often since then and the grass is actually growing and recouping from this past drastically winter winter we had this year on the east coast. Lots to ponder. and I realize typing helps to aggregate the thoughts.

We hear about change every day. More and more people write about all the new apps and websites and new friends and the companies going up and down and/or on their way down, the couples breaking up, the new companies, the new couples, all around change. Things change and there seems to be less time to accept the changes… it goes out into the universe. And it may change again. A few times.

So my question is and again I am pondering… is all this change (change is attractive to the artist in me but I also know being constant as an artist is equally important) creating a sense of unstable expectations? In my humble opinion it is. But by the time the unstable expectations either stabilize or not…whatever expectations that may have been on the table or under way…may have changed. And so to quote David Bowie- at a time when change was in fact so difficult to grasp for so many…when houses in America were built to look exactly alike…until great architects and their followers challenged suburbia “cha cha cha changes.” Are true dedicated bloggers the last of the constant thinkers? People get fired for blogging things their companies dislike or disagree with…are we always inspired to speak our minds?

I mentor young artists to be who they are, at any given moment. And they seem to be, at least that is how I perceive them.
Cheers,
dm

The Music Mentor Stars Spring Update

Hello music fans!

This is Catherine Felegi. We have lots of exciting news to share with you about the stars from Music Mentor TV. We are starting to pitch the show, so please share our link with family, friends, acquaintances, neighbors, whoever! We are trying to boost our numbers on Youtube and we need your help!

Here’s an update on all The Music Mentor stars.   

First up, Rachel Millman.As some of you know, her career has sky-rocketed as of late.   Recently, she appeared on NBC’s Today Show and blew New York away with her amazing singing ability. Rachel will be performing next at The Bitter End on Saturday, April 2^nd at 8:00 PM. Make sure you check it out! She’s always excited to perform for her fans there. Next, Friday, May 27^th, Rachel is going to go national when she sings at the New York Mets versus Phillies game at 7:10 PM! Watch her appear on television for the first time since her NBC appearance, singing the National Anthem for all the fans at Citi Field. This summer, Rachel is going to put on the ritz and head over to the prestigious nightclub, Feinstein’s at Loews Regency for their summer series on Sunday, July 31^st at 8:30 PM.  

Next, teen pop artist Dane Michael Glynn wowed the audience gathered at Morristown High School the weekend of March 25^th when he performed as lovable substitute on the football team, Bobby Randall, in the classical 1920’s musical, “Good News.” The audience was impressed by the musical talent of this 16-year-old singer. He’s also being called for a lot of film and TV auditions, so he is being kept busy!

Nicole Berke also had an exciting week. On Wednesday, March 23rd, Nicole performed for the students at University at Wyoming, drawing her biggest crowd since working with The Music Mentor. Nicole and The Music Mentor are discussing Nicole’s next release and it looks like it might be a live CD recorded at a popular venue in Portland…stand by! The Music Mentor is working with Slipknot Productions on a summer tour for Nicole Berke. We will keep you posted.

Finally, we have news on The One and Nines. They are almost finished recording some new songs! We hope to be able to provide you with some new music from this very hip, sophisticated band very soon.

That’s it for now everyone! Thanks for reading and be sure to keep following us at The Music Mentor!

-Catherine

The Music Mentor Shares With Popular Blog

The Music Mentor Denise Marsa wrote an article for the popular music blog We Are The Kids. Written and maintained by music lover Natalie Dickinson, We Are The Kids is a site where young people gather to share their thoughts and ideas and to discuss all types of music! Denise agreed to write  two music industry related blogs for We Are The Kids.

Check out the link below to see what The Music Mentor has to say!

http://www.wearethekidsblog.com/post/4028655830/picking-and-reaching-out-to-a-mentor-by-denise-marsa#

Karaoke – Japan Style!

Konnichiwa, Music Mentor fans!

It’s Catherine Felegi and I am back and well from Japan! All I can say is that was an exciting trip that I’d prefer not to repeat when I go back to Japan in three years. My prayers go out to Japan and all its citizens suffering due to the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear reactors.

When I told Denise Marsa (aka The Music Mentor) my plans to go to Japan one of things we discussed was my taking note of the music scene in Japan. What I found to be the most prevalent about the music scene in Japan, was the “karaoke scene.” Now, I know that some of you are right now thinking, “What, you mean, like stand in a bar, beer in hand while you croon Spice Girls out to dozens of strangers you will never see again?” Well, not quite.

Some of you might not realize it, but karaoke was developed in Japan, specifically in the Kobe region. Singing has always been popular in Japan since ancient times when a person would get up and start singing (no matter how badly) and everyone else would laugh and keep time with their hands. Since then, the inebriated singing of random people has spread to places like Europe, Korea, Southeast China, and the U.S.

Karaoke became a hit and some people even started downloading songs and karaoke players onto their computers to sing at home! Well, of course, singing at home where the neighbors can hear (and become VERY annoyed if you want to sing at all hours of the night) proved a bit troublesome so the entertainment industry came up with a solution for that: create huge buildings where people can pay to sing to their heart’s content!

Being a bit of a karaoke fan myself, my friend Sara and I trekked over to the nearby Karaoke-Kan, a ten-story building with soundproof studios in which music fans can stumble on in, order a drink or two and sing for a few hours for a set price.

Sara and I each shelled out ¥1,500 (about $20) and were given a soundproof room on the fifth floor overlooking the city of Asakusa, a vibrant city that was slightly reminiscent of Time Square, only much less car traffic and more bike traffic, to sing for an hour and a half. In the deep blue room was a flat-screen television, flashing lights for when you sing, two microphones and a small device to choose a song (either English or Japanese. I, of course, stuck to my native tongue). We ordered our drinks and proceeded to sing our hearts out for the time that we had!

Karaoke-Kan offers a lot more than just singing. The company also offers video games for patrons to play when their throats get a little sore from all those high notes they are hitting. They have an extensive drink and food menu, totaling 12 pages! A bit more than the local Applebee’s, right?

The power of music is astounding and the popularity of karaoke bars shows the amazing way that music infiltrates everyone’s lives, in America with karaoke nights going all the way to Japan in their soundproof rooms to sing. Partaking in Japan’s music culture has truly been a wonderful experience.

Keep on singing!

-Catherine

Throwin’ Rocks at The Moon TV debut Rachel Millman

Throwin' Rocks at Rock Plaza!!

What an amazing experience! Rachel and the band rocked. I want to go into some detail about the experience…Music is important and it was really important on that day. Important for viewers to experience Rachel Millman, her voice and her song.

It was a rough day at the studio with lots of bad news coming in. A terrible local bus accident and Japan. and the news anchors Pat Battle and Erika Tarantal kept it together and stayed focused and at the top of their game. I was so impressed with all. and the crew and musicians…we all joined forces and put out the best energy.

This was Rachel’s first time on TV and she had to work even harder at keeping her focus. At not feeling the pain and sorrow and sadness. I reminder her and the band how important music is at times like this…and the responsibilities musicians have especially at times like this. how she needed to focus and feel the music so others could feel it through her. and she delivered. she knew

Very powerful moment. we will post the performance if you missed it Sunday morning 3/13. Kudos to Jennifer Millman and Sharon Raifer.

Best,
The Music Mentor aka DM

The Music Mentor /KMPR/ Content Editor experiences Japan first hand 3/11/2011

Hi all, Denise Marsa here with an e-mail I am going to publish from our CE, Catherine Felegi. Catherine contacted me a few months ago, as she was eager to add more writing to her experiences/resume and I was excited to work with someone who loves and desires to write. I like Catherine’s voice, which is a term I learned when working at McElderry/S&S in children’s books. Though my focus is music…I have also mentored a few young people in other areas…and as my working with Catherine is also in the form of mentoring…I wanted to share her e-mail with you. Since she sent it out to several people…all of whom were very worried…the e-mail came as a relief. She was at work on 3/9/11 and we wished her a safe trip, and warned her about the rumors of a Tsunami. She said she was not going to be near the area. and I gave her some American dollars to bring the office back a treat from Japan. the treat is now her e-mail and knowing she is safe. Imagine a young lady from new jersey travels to japan for the first time and has an experience beyond her wildest imagination. Read about it in her own words…her personal experience of the earth shaking in Japan on 3/11/11. She sent the e-mail on 3/12/11.

______________________________________________________
Hi everyone!

So, I’ve been getting worried people on Facebook asking me what happened with the recent earthquake. I’ve decided to send out a mass e-mail to everyone (family, friends, work, etc) to let you all know what happened and to let you know that I am safe.

So, after a 14-hour flight (complete with watching Anjanna Anjanni (a Bollywood movie), Julie and Julia and The Hangover as well as two one-hour long TV shows), Sara’s mom (Mrs. Winters) and I landed in Japan at Narita International Airport. Sara was going to check into the hotel before we arrived, take the train to the airport, meet us by our gate and we would take the train to the hotel all together so we could grab food and call it a night.

Well, obviously, it didn’t happen that way. Mrs. Winters and I got off the plane and were instructed that all foreigners were required to get their fingers printed and a photo taken of them in order to enter the country. Fair enough. While waiting in line to get all this done, there was a low rumbling. At first, I dismissed it as a plane taking off. I’m a Jersey girl, why would an earthquake even enter my mind? Then I remembered Cherry, my co-worker, telling me about an earthquake that had happened the day before in northern Japan and it hit that this wasn’t an airplane. The Japanese were going about like it was business as usual, as though this were a regular occurrence, so we thought nothing of it at first. Then, when the rumbling kept going and got louder, we saw people duck to the floor. Immediately, we did the same, packing tightly together with another random girl who had apparently had never gone through an earthquake either. Once it passed, Mrs. Winters and I stopped a stewardess who laughed it off, telling us it was probably just a 4.0 on the Ritcher scale and that we should expect a small aftershock but nothing big.

We decided to go grab our luggage and head over to our meeting place for Sara, chatting about how scared we were by the earthquake and how we had never felt anything like that before in our lives. While we were waiting by the entrance of the airport, we felt a low rumbling. Not good. Before, we just had to worry about a piece of dry-wall clunking us on the head. Now, we were standing under the arrival and departure sign and were surrounded by windows all over. Some people who worked at the airport told everyone to get outside. Amazingly, everyone was the picturesque description of calm! Very few people were racing to the door. Mostly, everyone went outside and were laughing, taking photos and video of the event and just amazed by how strong the after-shock was. Admittedly, I have some footage of this myself.

The only problem was that Mrs. Winters and I now no longer knew if Sara was around or if she knew how to find us, since security was pushing everyone further and further into the parking lot and away from the building. Mrs. Winters and I were walking up to random Japanese people, asking if we could borrow their phones to call up Sara’s international phone. Most informed us that they would try but the cell phones were down due to the quake. Even the internet was down for quite some time. Finally, we found a woman named Masana. This woman is a SAINT. Not only did she repeatedly attempt to call Sara, she also texted her, e-mailed her and informed us that she would not leave us until Sara, Mrs. Winters and I were all together again.

We got tremor after tremor and, after being outside in the cold for quite some time, we were informed that we could proceed inside at our own risk. The trains were down and the highways were shut down (so no taxi nor bus). We would just have to wait until everything was up and running again. Sara was stuck on the train coming to the airport but she was fine. She was sitting next to a Japanese man coming over and was watching the news for a bit, seeing the damage from the megaquake that hit Japan. We found out later that this was an 8.9 on the Ritcher scale! What hit Narita was only a small taste, that was from an aftershock!

Mrs. Winters, Masana and I were staying in the airport trying to get warm when we saw another obviously American woman walking around, looking a bit panicked. We found out the woman, Maureen, was also suppose to meet her daughter, Megan, at the airport and that Maureen could not get in touch with her daughter due to the quake. It turned out Megan had taken the train and was probably stuck as well, though we weren’t sure. Maureen then introduced us to Peter, an American boy studying in America she randomly met who was meeting his parents at the Narita airport so he could show them around his university and give them a taste of Japanese culture. Instead, his parents flight was re-directed to a different part of Japan to avoid the quake and now, since all transportation systems were down, he was stuck at the airport. We all kind of made an unspoken pact that we would help one another and not leave one another.

I can’t stress enough to you how much of a saint Masana is. She did not complain once about not being able to get her luggage (luggage claim was in the basement, which was closed off until later that night due to safety reasons) and did not mind that the Americans were scrambling over one another, using her phone to call Sara and Megan’s international phones repeatedly, asking for help to text and e-mail and using her Galaxy (think of a Nook or an iPad) to access what little internet signal we picked up to e-mail home and let everyone know that we were safe.

Everyone in the airport was helpful as well. Mrs. Winters and I were constantly trying to find a way to call home and, while the Galaxy could e-mail, it couldn’t access Skype to call home. We jumped from person to person who had a computer out and every time someone had an internet signal, we were told that we could use it to call our loved ones, no questions asked. We all chatted, even when we didn’t understand one another that well, and tried to keep one another’s spirits up and kept telling one another we would get out soon, the trains would start running and the highways would open and this would be nothing.

Well, of course, this isn’t how it ends. The airport workers came onto the PA system (thankfully, Peter speaks fluent Japanese so he and Masana translated everything for us) and told us that they heard rumors of another earthquake, possibly worse than the last one, and we would all have to stay at the airport for the night. The Japanese Red Cross came and handed out sleeping bags, Ritz crackers and blankets for everyone to use to sleep for the night. Masana, Maureen, Peter, Mrs. Winters and I all found an area that we thought was sufficient, though freezing cold, that we would use for the night.

If you know anything about me, you know that I am a busy body who likes to move around both mentally and physically. After five seconds of sitting down, I decided I had to get up and move. The airport, mind you, is nothing like we have at home. It is much smaller, almost like a C-shape. I was able to walk the length of it in ten minutes. Walking back to our little home base, I saw a girl with shocking orange hair bowing, excusing herself to all that past. Sara! She had gotten off the train and hitch-hiked nine hours to the airport to get to us! Needless to say, we were the two girls in the middle of the airport, screaming our heads off that we found one another. I literally grabbed her wrist and ran back to where her mom was to bring her back with her family.

While it was all well and good that we found Sara, we all still had to stay at the airport. Maureen still hadn’t heard a single word back from Megan, though we assured her that her daughter must be fine. Peter was anxious to see his parents but was constantly looking on the brighter side of the situation, constantly laughing. I don’t remember seeing him with a worried look on his face. Masana was rather quiet but she did not seem concerned. The airport opened more of the areas, including the luggage claim, so she was able to get her bags. We re-located our little base upstairs to a much warmer section which was far away from windows, in case we did get another earthquake.

Peter, Masana and I went exploring for most of the night (even though I only got two hours of sleep on the plane over and I slept 3:00 AM – 6:00 AM at the airport, I am still not tired! That’s why I am stealing Sara’s computer to write you this novel of an e-mail!) and, while we were joking around and having fun, we did have quite a few tremors that, at points, had me ready to drop to the ground again. We saw that the television stations were tuned to the news. Peter translated for me, explaining about how the epicenter was in Sendai, which isn’t terribly close to us, fortunately. The New York Times dubbed the quake a megaquake and said that the 8.9 issue was the largest earthquake that Japan had seen in over a century. Tsunamis followed, hitting the city hard. Most of the footage that Americans are seeing, from what I’ve noticed on the internet and what I’m hearing from others, is actually from Sendai, not from Tokyo or Narita. It was quite eerie, combined with the fact that there were 13,000 people at the airport with us stranded because of this quake, a lot of them from other countries who had fortunately buddied up with a Japanese speaker.

By the next morning, we had a bunch more tremors (only one that was apparently severe enough to wake everyone in our group up other than myself and make them consider going outside again. I always knew that I could sleep through an earthquake!) but they had died down to almost nothing. Think about being on a ship and feeling the rocking of the waves. That’s exactly what the tremors felt like from then on in. The trains were still not working. Maureen was stressed she hadn’t heard from Megan yet so Sara decided to give her a call. We reached her! Her train got stuck, much like Sara’s but, instead of allowing the passengers to leave like on Sara’s train, the employees who worked for the train company told everyone that they could leave if they wanted to but it would be best to just bunker down for the night, keep the train doors closed and wait until the morning. Somehow, her train managed to get her to the Narita airport (even though they stopped working again right after? We are still trying to figure this one out) and got her re-united with her mother.

Now, with everyone together, we all agreed that, once the train opened, we would ride it together as far as we could and make sure that everyone was OK. The currency exchange agency opened so I was able to grab some yen, we all ate a hearty breakfast and, by 9:30, we were told we could go on the train and start heading out.

Needless to say, this was all incredibly exciting but, as much as I partially had fun with it, I would not want to do this again. Something about a potential hit in the head by an arrival/departure board just doesn’t seem too appealing to me a second time around. Now, Sara, her mother and I are in Akasura, which is a hop, skip and a jump away from Tokyo (which only got some damage from an aftershock). Peter met up with his parents in Tokyo, Megan and Maureen went straight to their hotel for some much needed rest and Masana headed on home. Fortunately, before we all parted, we exchanged contact information. It only seemed right after surviving an earthquake together.

I should probably get going now. I am playing alarm clock for Sara and Mrs. Winters, since I just can’t seem to sleep! I just thought this was a fun story to tell and I wanted to make sure everyone knew that we were all safe. Thank you everyone for the well wishes and, while I am having fun here, I wouldn’t mind being home where the earth doesn’t move quite as badly!

See you all on the 21st!

-Catherine Felegi

DON’T FORGET!

Hope everyone is having a good weekend so far!

Don’t forget to tune in to WNBC’s Weekend Today TOMORROW Sunday, March 13th between 6 and 8:30AM. If you haven’t read the blog in a while, our very own Rachel Millman will be performing around 6:45 AM.

If you’re not an early bird- be sure to set those DVRs… you don’t want to miss this!

In our thoughts and prayers….

On behalf of everyone at KeyMedia Public Relations and The Music Mentor we would like to offer our condolences to all of those suffering from the terrible tsunami and earthquake in Japan and those surrounding areas effected by the aftermath. Our thoughts and prayers are with you at this difficult time.

Let’s help by texting the words REDCROSS to 90999. $10 will be donated to the relief efforts.

Best,

Ashley