- Mixing, Mastering, Co-Producer, Keys (Blame) & Trumpet (Simply in Love)

It all started with this guy right here. After a turn of events that allowed our paths to cross yet once again, Demetri was the first person I wanted involved in this project. After a couple of Face-Time calls in February of 2023, we were ready to dive in. Demetri's musicianship, skill and quality in taste help give this album an aesthetic identity, one that has his fingerprints all over it. Whether it was a tasty trumpet solo on "Simply in Love" or Vintage mastering techniques for songs like "Counter" and "Blue For You", Demetri went the extra mile to make this project come alive. Not only was it his talent that played a part, but it was also his intentionality, kindness and friendship. He cut me deals left and right, when I was reaching the end of my budget, he came and saved the day. Gestures like this are rare in this industry, and I'm glad that I found a rare one. Thank you Demetri, let's do it again sometime.

- A&R, Editor, Co-Producer

Most of the time, I prefer to work “lone-wolf” style. But one of the few exceptions, is a dear friend of mine Caroline. Our collaborations go back to our college days, where we were basically songwriting partners. Whether it was fleshing out full ideas, or just being a listening ear, Caroline and I had an efficient and effective songwriting process. When I was writing and choosing songs for this project, I had to have Caroline’s skill of identifying which songs would work and which would not. For 2 months straight we face-timed every week to look at a catalog of over 25 songs that could’ve made the record. Caroline diligently listened and sifted through the catalog to help identify which songs had the most potential and which ones needed to be cleaned up. Once we found the songs, we went line by line to make sure every lyric was clear, concise and pointed towards the overall theme of the record. Her suggestions, critiques and edits were filled with honesty and wisdom, and this record would not be what it is without the refined songwriting skills of Caroline Ward.

- Drums (Blue For You), Percussion (Say that You love Me Again), Songwriter (Money), Co-Producer (Blue For You), Songwriter (Money)

For those of you who don’t know, Christian is my cousin, and ever since we were young we had dreams and aspirations of playing music together. A few years ago, those dreams started to come true. Most of the time, we are a package deal. There is no other drummer that I trust more, and no other drummer that I believe is more talented. It can be rock, RnB, Soul, Pop, whatever the genre or style, he’s gonna nail it. Though I knew most of the drums would be programed on this project, I knew I need his magical touch on multiple songs to give it the “Life” it lacked in its current state. When we wrote Money together, he encouraged me to re-write the verses and to re-tool the song so that it could actually mean something. That advice alone transformed the song. When I was recording Blue For You I told him “You produce the song, I’ll do whatever you tell me”. And he did just that. Everything you hear on that song, from the delays, to the instrumentation and even the feel of the guitar solo, Christian produced. And he produced it beautifully.

-Bass (Say That You Love Me Again, Blue For You)

I met Jonathan while me and Christian were playing a small gig together in Wilmington NC. He came up to us after the show, told us he played bass, and the rest is history. For most of this record I played bass, truly only because of time constraints and the ease of producing this album in my room. But I knew I had to have Jonathan on this project because of his unique take on recording bass. Say That You Love Me Again and Blue For You carry the most vintage vibes and both have a lot of chord changes. He nailed it. He has a knack for finding the backbeat quickly, but also putting his unique twist on things in a way that only Jonathan can produce. If you listen to the record closely, you can tell there are two different bass players, and I think that’s what makes it truly special. Jonathan surely left his fingerprints all over this E.P.

I knew when producing this record that I needed a cast of unique voices to help me out on some of my songs that need a much needed lift. Historically, I’ve done all my own BGV work, in the same way Bon Iver or Jacob Collier would stack their voices dozens of times to achieve a certain texture. Though I did that on this album, I wanted to feature more textures, and give the listeners a nice palate cleanser by not just hearing my voice.

-BGVS (Blame, Simply in Love)

Kalee was up first, and that was an easy choice. Kalee has unique a unique tone and vibrato that only she possesses. No one sounds like Kalee. So I decided to feature her on a live version of Blame and Simply in Love for my Youtube channel. When we recorded that, I loved her BGV tracks so much, I copied and pasted them into the studio versions and they fit like a glove.

-BGVS (Blame)

Then entered Katie Beth. We crossed paths on a certain show on NBC where we were both contestants and come to find out, Katie Beth has a one of a kind lightness and clarity to her tone that needed to be on this record. It was her husband’s (Demetri’s) idea to have her stack a bunch of vocal tracks on Blame to give it more of a Justin Timberlake vibe, and she killed it. I didn’t give her any direction or notes. She executed it flawlessly.

-BGVs (Say That You Love Me Again)

I also met Chloe on a certain singing show and she has the coolest vibe. A rare combination of soul and pocket. I asked her to be a part of Say That You Love Me Again because I really wanted to capture the vintage RnB vibe that I wanted the song to achieve. Chloe told me she would love to be a part but didn’t have any recording equipment and she lived in LA. So we made a plan for her to record her voice on her voice memo app on her phone and send me the parts individually. Not only did she kill it, but she made it her own, improvised and delivered a soulful performance that makes that song stand out on its own on this record.

I think a lot of the time people behind the scenes are left unseen, and sometimes not given enough credit. That won’t happen today. The following people were God sends when it comes to the visual medium necessary for this project. All of which are incredibly talented and generous. They didn’t ask one cent from me. My gratitude for these acts of kindness goes unmeasured, and cannot be defined by words alone.

-Videography, Editing, Graphic Design

I met Dan while living in Seattle and we instantly became best friends. I asked him to come to Wilmington to help shoot some videos for social media to help promote songs that would be featured on this record, and to also help with graphic design for some merch. What I got was far above my expectations. Dan shot, produced and edit 6 full length music videos for me, 3 of which were Simply in Love, Money and Blue For You. He hand drew 5 unique designs for my merchandise. And most importantly, he was there when I was feeling insecure and unqualified to achieve this dream of mine. Not only does his work inspire me, but also his heart.

-Photography, Videography

If you ever met Adam then you would know he is the smartest guy in the room. The spectrum of his genius doesn’t just his business acumen or his networking prowess, but also the creative/technical arts. Did you know he was almost in the Blue Man Group one time? Anyway, Adam volunteered to snap some pictures of me to use for whatever I needed. Those photoshoots ended up being the covers for two singles I released on this project (Simply in Love and Money), and also turned into a slew of social media assets. He also directed and shot the music video for Counter and un-released music video that you guys will be able to enjoy very soon, and I believe it’s the best one yet

-Photography

You won’t find anyone more generous or intentional that also has an extreme talent for photography. He doesn’t just snap pictures. He directs. He knows style. He has taste. And most of all, he is a true friend with honesty and integrity. The pictures he took ended up being a part of my website, concert posters and pictures I had to send to promoters or interviewers. The album cover for my single Say That You Love Me Again was also taken by Zack, and it’s obvious that whoever took that picture has style.

-Merchandise Production

Merch is expensive to make, and prices keep going up. When I was designing t-shirts for my song Simply in Love, I called or emailed about a dozen print shops, all of which were way out of my budget. When explaining my frustrations to my friends Evan and Madison Swann, Madison spoke up and said something along the lines of “I can do it”. I had no idea she even had the capabilities to make t-shirts. But she came over with her equipment, printed the designs, cut them and hand pressed over 50 t shirts for me, and the designs looked amazing. She didn’t charge me a penny and continues to offer her equipment and services to my out of the kindness of her heart. That’s true friendship.