Winning My First Music Award and More Golden Moments – August 2023 Wrap

From winning my first music award to making the cover of my local newspaper, August truly turned into one of the best months for my songwriting journey yet. I’m forever grateful for my ISSA Awards experience and the magic that has followed, so I’m beyond excited to share my August highlights.

Winning My First Music Award at the ISSA Awards in Atlanta

During the first weekend of August, I traveled to Atlanta for the International Singer Songwriters Association (ISSA) Awards, where It Is What It Is won the bronze award for USA Female Album of the Year. Though weeks have gone by since this life-changing moment, it still doesn’t feel real. Being an award-winning songwriter is something I’ve worked so hard for, and now, one of my biggest music dreams has become reality.

I put together a very special blog post from my trip, sharing highlights, photos, and videos. I hope you’ll check it out here.

Thank you so much to all my Butterflies for celebrating this moment with me. All the kind messages I’ve received mean the world and I’m blessed for the love.

My Cover Story in the Penn-Franklin News

As if winning my first music award couldn’t get more magical, I made the cover of the Penn-Franklin News, my local newspaper. I’m still trying to wrap my mind around this. Huge thank you to the staff for featuring me on the cover and printing an article about my ISSA Awards win. I’ll never get over this.

I wrote a blog post about this amazing opportunity, and you can read it here to learn more about how my feature happened and how surprised I was when I found out I made the cover.

My Interview with the Creatives

I’m delighted to share a fun interview I did with the Creatives in the UK. I’ve done interviews for them before, so it felt fantastic to be welcomed back.

In my interview, I chat all about the ISSA Awards and my new album coming next year. I loved doing this one, and you can read it here.

My Interview on the Kayden Gordon Show

The interview fun continued with my appearance on the Kaydon Gordon Show. This was my first time on the show, and I can’t thank Kayden enough for having me.

During my interview, I talked about the ISSA Awards, my author journey, Write on Track, what’s next for my music, and so much more. This is a great interview to get to know me and where I’m at on my various creative adventures. You can listen to it here.

Two Wonderful Days at the Murrysville Farmers Market

I’m so lucky I had the chance to play at the Murrysville Farmers Market twice this month. These were my first two performances as an award-winning songwriter, which made them extra special. Playing the songs on It Is What It Is especially hit different.

As always, I put together a set highlights video. This one has clips from both days. I hope you enjoy watching it.

Coming in Second Place for the ISSA Female Multi-Genre Artist of the Month

My incredible August ended with finding out I came in second place for the ISSA Female Multi-Genre Artist of the Month. After over 9,500 votes cast since the beginning of the month, my Butterflies helped me take second place in the competition. This is truly mind blowing. Over the past couple years, I’ve embraced being a multi-genre artist, so receiving this level of recognition for following my heart and creating music I love was the icing on the cake.

Reflecting on August and Looking Ahead

August was so good to me. Winning my first music award has opened many doors, from my music receiving airplay on new stations and doing interviews to making the cover of my local newspaper. I feel like the moment I got presented with my award began a new chapter in the metaphorical book I’m writing as a songwriter. Everything I’ve done so far led me to my moment on the stage, and now, my ISSA Awards crystal is serving as a reminder of my talent and dedication to my dreams. I’m very excited for all I’ve been working on behind the scenes for my new album and can’t wait to keep creating authentic music.

Speaking of my new album, I’m over the moon to share that I wrote a song called “Kaleidoscope,” which will be the last song on the album. I knew in my heart something was missing from the project, and once I got the idea for “Kaleidoscope,” I realized it’s the perfect eighth song. I love this one so much and can’t wait to record it soon.

Looking ahead, I have a ten-hour studio session in September, along with playing at the farmers market for the last time this year. Also, with National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo) not far away in November, I’m going to keep plotting and researching for my new book, which is a young adult locked room thriller. I already have a lot sorted out and can’t wait to develop my ideas further.

So, that’s a wrap. August has left me feeling so thankful and hopeful for the future. I’m excited to keep chasing my dreams and can’t wait to see what’s next on my journey.