Strap on your gig boots and tune your inner music enthusiast for an episode that jams with Steven Cali and Chad Mac, two artists who are shaking the rafters and turning label heads. Steven sets the stage with tales from an electrifying night at the Wildcat, while Chad flips expectations upside down—much like he does with his guitar—sharing the quirks of his craft. Their banter is as rhythmic as their tunes, spilling secrets on what it takes to make every gig more than just a few chords and a dream.
Steven serenades us with "Girls and Whiskey," and Chad, our guitar collector, muses over the mysterious multiplication of his stringed treasures. We wrap up with anticipation for an upcoming EP release, riffing on the tech transformation of tune-making. So, listeners, get ready for a chord-strumming, laughter-filled leap into the lives of those who soundtrack our world.
Thanks for listening! Follow us at youtube.com/c/skiphappens
Strap on your gig boots and tune your inner music enthusiast for an episode that jams with Steven Cali and Chad Mac, two artists who are shaking the rafters and turning label heads. Steven sets the stage with tales from an electrifying night at the Wildcat, while Chad flips expectations upside down—much like he does with his guitar—sharing the quirks of his craft. Their banter is as rhythmic as their tunes, spilling secrets on what it takes to make every gig more than just a few chords and a dream.
Steven serenades us with "Girls and Whiskey," and Chad, our guitar collector, muses over the mysterious multiplication of his stringed treasures. We wrap up with anticipation for an upcoming EP release, riffing on the tech transformation of tune-making. So, listeners, get ready for a chord-strumming, laughter-filled leap into the lives of those who soundtrack our world.
Thanks for listening! Follow us at youtube.com/c/skiphappens
Now more Skip Happens. Please return Bubbles your flight attendant to her fully upright and locked position. Oh, wait a minute. Uh, ladies and gentlemen, please take your seat and buckle up Seatbags and tray tables in their full upright position. It's another episode of Skip Happens.
Speaker 3:Your weekly view from 30,000 feet From the first music lesson, to the first paid gig, to signing the deal.
Speaker 1:It's the journey that is the life of an artist. Now here's your captain and co-captain, aka your host, Skip Clark, ex-mate Deb Lamphere. I'm here.
Speaker 3:Hello everybody and welcome to Skip Happens. Of course I'm Skip Clark and Skip Happens. Tonight I'm doing it in cooperation with or in conjunction with 92.1. The Wolf is, you all know, working there and all that good stuff. But doing what I do, I get to say hello to a lot of artists. For example, they're like, hey, we're on camera, stephen Kelly's in the house and Chad Max here, and, of course, how are you guys doing? Let's see, let me, let me. There you go. That's me there you go, there's.
Speaker 4:Stephen, everybody, that's that camera. Oh hey, there you go. Thanks for having us Get appreciate it, man.
Speaker 3:Absolutely. It's good to see you, brother. It's good seeing you. Yeah, I think when was the last time we saw each other? What did you just we should perform? Oh, wait a minute, it was our jingle jam. Yeah, yeah, that's crazy. How long ago is that? How did I forget? Wasn't that like a week ago?
Speaker 4:A month now, but no, it feels like you're right.
Speaker 3:It was Janney on December 6th. So wow that's a great job, by the way of that show. And of course you know Chad Mack hanging out with you right over there there is a OP sign. But you know I got to say one thing Chad is one of the best guitar players that I know One of the best, there's no doubt. And every time I get on stage and I go to introduce the act and you know what do I usually do Go you play the guitar backwards. Is that true or not?
Speaker 5:It's yeah, it's all messed up. Every night we're playing. I just see people out there like what's going on over there?
Speaker 3:Now they're like why is this guitar backwards, backwards and upside down? I know, yeah, wait, that's right. Right, because it being, I don't know, don't even think about it. Is it harder to play a guitar or do you just get used to it Like somebody in the right's left handed? Probably the same thing you play the guitar left hander right, it's like a life hack. It's actually easier. Really no, it's not easier. No. Why would it be easier?
Speaker 5:Well, there's a couple of things. I pull down on the strings when I'm bending them instead of cranking up.
Speaker 3:So it's easier, because I could never do that. I have a tough time handling a microphone, let alone a guitar.
Speaker 4:I was just going to say I wear boots because I don't like to tie my shoes.
Speaker 3:So I know they look pretty good.
Speaker 3:I like that. That's a good look on you, man, steven Kelly. Look at that. You are right on the edge Of like being in Nashville, you let me? Let me just say this that we did a show I forgot who the artist was at this point, but it was at the Wildcat and when you played you blew everybody away and I had the label artist or the label rep, not the artist, the label rep come on. Well, the artist did too afterwards saying who was that, but the label rep come over and said I need his info, I need to know more about this guy. And wow, I mean, that is just phenomenal.
Speaker 4:It was awesome. Playing that show was great. I appreciate the opportunity from you. Skip gives a lot of opportunities. We always appreciate him. But yeah, she ended up. You know we talked a little bit and you know we're friends on Instagram, I think now. So but yeah, we're just trying, we're working real hard and if something happens, it happens.
Speaker 3:What do you mean? If something happens, it happens, you got to go after it.
Speaker 4:Oh, we're after it hard. We really are.
Speaker 3:We work on it, you know how often do you pick up the guitar and play? Is it an everyday thing for you?
Speaker 4:Yeah, it's just part of my you know, I mean, it's part of my, it's part of my life and I'm not as quite as dedicated as guys like Chad. You know he's on that guitar four hours a day, but.
Speaker 3:But well, Chad also plays out in the body, kind of lends his services to other bands as well.
Speaker 5:So it might be a sort of subject.
Speaker 3:OK, never mind, I know, I'm just kidding.
Speaker 5:That's an inside joke we have every time. I play with somebody else. He's like, yeah, go ahead, just play with whatever you want. As I have.
Speaker 4:I have a girlfriend that shops around.
Speaker 3:You know like really I'm sorry I brought that up, but no, it's got to be a nice break. I mean, you're doing all the country stuff and you're working and doing your thing with Stephen, but it's good probably to get out, maybe do a little bit of rock and a little bit just that break, just to you know, keep my chops up in different areas of the you know exactly.
Speaker 3:Do you? Let's talk about you playing guitar for a minute, then we'll go back to Steve. But do you teach yourself? Do you like the songs that are out? If you hear something new, do you pretty much listen to it and then try to match up to it. How does that work? Yeah, somebody who plays guitar.
Speaker 5:Well, yeah, at this point I kind of just listen to it eight thousand times until it's burned in.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's, that Is it really.
Speaker 5:Yeah, I mean, for a long time it was, like you said, YouTube and just reading different stuff, but now it's just burn it in. Listen to it eight hundred times just over and over and over the muscle memory. That's what we call it.
Speaker 3:What's it like to be playing with that guy.
Speaker 5:That's pretty good. You know there's no egos. You know every night we go out and have a good time. I love it. There's no, never argue about anything and and just awesome every time.
Speaker 4:Me and Chad have been playing together for like. I was going to ask, I don't know four years now or so.
Speaker 3:That long.
Speaker 4:Yeah, and it feels like two weeks. But you know Chad, when we, when we started playing together, chad really was like, hey, I want to be a part of this and you know, chad does as much for this project as I do. He really does, I mean, because we pretty much do. It's pretty much me and Chad all the time and with the band and everything, that are kind of I don't want to say you know in charge, but we're the guys that are pushing the project and I get it.
Speaker 4:And. But Chad really does as much as me. I mean the guy, just he works all the time. I feel I don't like saying all this in front of him, but no, no, he does, and I saw it tonight.
Speaker 3:when you came in, you put your guitar case down. Who opens it? Chad who?
Speaker 4:pulls the guitar out, Chad, who plugs it in the tune of Chad? That's not a normal thing. And he says here, you go, Steven. Yeah, but that's good to have a.
Speaker 3:You know you get not only a band member or code work, or however you want to put it, he's a friend.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And that's what really matters.
Speaker 3:Yeah, more than anything in the world is that he's a friend, so that's kind of cool. So where are we going with Steven Kelly? Let me ask you this Let me play podcast host for a minute. Explain to everybody who is Steven Kelly. Um geez, who's?
Speaker 5:this is a test, because you know you know what?
Speaker 3:Because this is what's going to happen when you start really, you start moving and moving, your you know? Let's say, you got a song on the radio and people are going to ask you for interviews and they're going to ask who?
Speaker 4:is Steven.
Speaker 3:Kelly, what are you going to tell him?
Speaker 4:Who am I? Um, I feel like my whole life, even in school, things like that. I've always, even if I wasn't right, I've always felt like I had something to say, a little bit, you know, and music was a way for me to express it, to say things that I wanted to in a way that I wanted to, and I found country music was the best way for me to express that. So, I guess, who am I? I hunt and I fish and, you know, I really do try to live as much I try to write songs that are, you know, I don't want to say based on my life, but things that I do and things that I've done, and so I guess, if you listen to my music, you'll get an idea of who I am. I like hunting and fishing and I grew up in a small town. I believe in living that way. So you're in Cato, I'm in Cato, yeah, right over there, right over there.
Speaker 3:It's about 37 minutes from here. Yeah, maybe. I don't know. I'm taking a guess. It's a water tower in town right. Yeah.
Speaker 4:Yeah, okay, and it says Cato on the top. It does.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I know, I drive by it every once in a while.
Speaker 4:I wore a shirt. Actually, when we did the show with Warren Ziders, I wore a shirt. I had one made, that with the old Cato water tower on it.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and the back was the flag too.
Speaker 4:Yeah, and the back was the flag and it was kind of a teaser of a song that I'm gonna have coming out in the next probably the next year or two called my Hometown Does. That I wrote with a couple of good buddies, so that was on the back.
Speaker 3:We played that on the radio over the holidays because we did a Jingle Jam replay. Yeah, played it there.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Did you hear it? Probably not. You were probably opening up presents or you were at church.
Speaker 4:I was with the kids. You were with the kids, that's right.
Speaker 3:But no, I love that song. So Well, thank you. Yeah, I appreciate that. I think that's got a lot of opportunity behind it. Well, thanks. I appreciate that Great way to start. Chad's looking at me like you know. Like what are you talking about? Dude? I helped him with that. Give me some credit. No, I'm just kidding.
Speaker 4:No no, I appreciate it and yeah, that song in particular. I don't even think it's really a radio friendly song or something that's like a mainstream hit. I just, when we wrote it, I wrote that with me and my buddy Styles Horry and when it, when it poured out, I just I believed in everything that was in it.
Speaker 3:I just you know, tell us about Styles. He's got a little bit of history, right. Yeah, my buddy. Yeah, he's written for.
Speaker 4:Yeah, my buddy my buddy Styles wrote Luke Bryan's last number one country on and he's written you know a ton of songs for different guys. He had a who's that. Oh, my goodness, I'm going to draw a blink on his name.
Speaker 3:He's saying that's what I love about Sunday.
Speaker 4:Oh yeah, craig Morgan, Craig Morgan he had a Craig Morgan song that came out and a couple of Craig Campbell cuts and stuff. So he he's doing it. He's with Warner Chapel and as a writer and is really really laying it down.
Speaker 3:Have you thought about the writing side of things? I know you do a lot of writing, but there's also a lot of opportunity there. A lot of artists kind of you know they're doing the writing thing for a good period of time. Then they say you know what I'm going to do, my own song, I want this on the radio. But instead of just writing and you know, giving it to other artists, I mean, have you thought about, like getting into a group or something along those lines.
Speaker 4:So, my, the guys that I write with, I'm fortunate, I'm really, I'm just, I really am just fortunate enough to be a part of a circle that's in Nashville and is a are writing songs for big artists. Like I said, and you know, every time I write a song with styles or with other writers that I write with, there is a potential that they could be picked up, because that's just the nature of it and I'm completely open to that. I would love that, if you know, if somebody that is somebody that I look up to were to cut a song that I was a writer on that you know special to me so, and you'd look forward to going to the mailbox.
Speaker 4:Oh yeah, you know what I mean. Well, that's the best part. Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 3:Exactly, and the songwriters, from what I see, are pretty much the unspoken heroes. A lot of people you know, you have no idea.
Speaker 3:You hear a song, for example on the wolf. You hear a song, it's a great song, but you know what that artist didn't write, that it was written by somebody else. And those people you know, you never know who they are, unless you know. Obviously I'm into it a little bit and you are as well, and we go to these seminars, then you see and meet the writers, but a lot of people take it, you know they, they have no clue.
Speaker 4:They have no idea. And these guys are, you know, when I'm not playing music. I'm a Mason, so I'm, I was gonna ask.
Speaker 4:It's hard work, right, but when I watched the way that styles, or some of my other friends that are writers, are working, it's mentally taxing. They're trying to write things that are that are not only, you know, commercially viable but also are true and true to country music and to their lives. And these guys are just at it all the time. I mean they're just at it all. They're always thinking that's what they do. Yeah, it is I. The way that he works and the way that I see those guys work, I mean it's real work and and those guys are the voice of country music.
Speaker 3:I mean that they're the ones doing it.
Speaker 4:They're the ones doing it.
Speaker 3:Absolutely Well. Hard work, being a Mason as well. Have you ever dropped up like a block in your finger? Oh God yeah.
Speaker 4:Yeah, my hands are beat up.
Speaker 3:Then how can you play the guitar?
Speaker 4:Well, I mean being a Mason.
Speaker 3:You know, you get that, the Mason, you get the sand. You get all that on your hands. Well, I imagine you wear gloves, but still, if it was me, I'd be dropping an eight, you know, an eight inch block in my hand or something. Yeah, yeah, one of the eight inch blocks.
Speaker 4:What do they call them. There's what.
Speaker 3:There's a bunch of different sides, I lay a lot of brick, but oh, okay. A lot of brick.
Speaker 4:But yeah, it gets taxing on you. But Well, bricks are little, yeah, yeah, they're not as bad. They could still hurt you. Yeah, oh, wow.
Speaker 3:How long have you been?
Speaker 4:doing that Masonry? I do it, like I said on the side, kind of probably six years now.
Speaker 3:So that would be your job.
Speaker 4:Yeah.
Speaker 3:As well as putting out music and playing out and about yeah, and making the trip to Nashville. What about the fam? How are they when it comes to supporting you and what you do? I imagine they're right there behind you, but there's going to come a time where you know let's and I kind of hope that you get that break that they're going to have to understand this. This is you know do they get it?
Speaker 4:I guess, is what I'm saying, I, I'm sure she loves you, you love her.
Speaker 3:You got the kids.
Speaker 4:You got to do what you got to do, being a great dad that you are you know my I've been so fortunate In the fact that every single person that's in my life my brother is, my mother, my father, everybody that I could that I care about their opinions. My girlfriend, my kids, everybody has been so supportive of what I do and they and they think that you know, they, they almost are Are more optimistic about the future than I am sometimes, and that's something that you can't really put a value on. That means like priceless to be surrounded by people like that that want to see you win and want to see you do well and and having people like that's important and for anybody's life.
Speaker 3:I think so they get. Hey, steve, you want to come over and play for the dinner we're having, having a backyard barbecue. You want to bring your guitar?
Speaker 4:No, they've always been right behind me and and that's cool, all the traveling and being gone and stuff, everybody really seems to swing with it and I make sure that I schedule to to my end of it, I make sure that I I schedule my life, my life, you're a great dad, my life's busy and I make sure that I schedule Time with with everybody in my life. Mullies going and I try not to complain about it because you got to do it.
Speaker 3:You know, if you could, if you could exactly. And you're a great dad. I cannot say that enough. I really appreciate that I've seen the fam at some of the shows we've done at kegs. I know the kids have been there, your wife's been there.
Speaker 3:It's just you know you got such a supportive group behind you, thank you and it just, it just makes me feel good, especially nowadays, to know you doing what you're doing, because there's so many people that are doing what you're doing and that's all I think about. But you're thinking about everything, you know the fam, the kids, the whole package. Yeah, have you taken them? The Nashville at all?
Speaker 4:Oh yeah, the kids have been there more than a lot of they've been, they've been there. They've been there a lot and I've really tried. There was a time where I was actually torn pretty heavy and and they were able to Go on the road me a lot of the time and stuff like that, and we've had a lot of. We've had a lot of fun over the years. We really have yeah so. Hopefully you know, it keeps getting bigger and continues to grow and they'll be able to have a lot more memories.
Speaker 3:So that kind of leads me into my next question. If you could look five years down the road, where would you like to see yourself?
Speaker 4:I think Chattel agree with me.
Speaker 3:We're being he's just taking it all in the hole. I go in the whole group.
Speaker 4:You know the, the band that we have Jay or Jeff Bianchi and Jake Logan Chad here and myself all have the same vision, which is when I first started I was on the road with styles and we were yeah, it felt like I was throwing kind of a dart at a at the country and it didn't seem to make a lot of sense. So I came home and I really buckled down. I said I'm gonna the plan is, I'm gonna really try to Do the best I can here in Syracuse continue to spread the brand, become a regional act and and then then start to branch out and tour pretty heavy from there. So that's the idea five years from now, I mean, who knows, but hopefully, hopefully, regional success.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and not only that. Regional is a stepping stone. You know, it's like this part of the country, that right here in New York State. But I, you know, let's go back to the jingle jam and being on stage and I said now, ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to introduce you to our locals, but wait a minute, I don't. Locals doesn't sound, because you guys are good. Caroline was great, you know, brian Michael did his thing, you did your thing, all three just a fabulous job. So it's like you're more than locals, you are, and I think I said regionals, I think that's the word I used.
Speaker 4:So I think it's, I think it's, I think it's an appropriate statement, especially for those people that we had on stage next to me, caroline, and yeah, you know. They're. They really are there, they're working hard at it, and there are people in this area that have bigger dreams than being the next local act and, and I think that it's important yeah, and everybody's got a dream, and and that's fine.
Speaker 3:If you have a passion, you have a dream. If you don't go for it, you're gonna regret it. You're gonna say what the hell I wasn't, why didn't I do this? Yeah and if you go for it and you fail, you don't really fail. You learn from it everything, everything. Always think of the positive side, that you will learn from it and Say, okay, it's made me a better person.
Speaker 4:Yeah, oh, absolutely every bomb, every. You know, every time you get on stage and just let's the craziest thing, what's the craziest thing that's ever happened.
Speaker 3:Oh my god. But you know it's all pretty much routine. We get out there, we do our thing, you weather do your thing, you rock the house, but what is really like? Maybe something that most people don't know what? What's the craziest thing that has ever happened on stage?
Speaker 4:There's. You know what gets is. You know what gets artists a lot and I think nobody talks about it. Is is like technical difficulties right. There's already a ton of pressure on the situation and I'm not, maybe, not, maybe it's your own sound, or or you have an issue with the Sound of some sort. There's already a ton of pressure you put.
Speaker 4:You know hundreds of hours of rehearsal into the show and then something happens Like a technical issue, and it just blows the thing up and you're like because there's no, I don't know how to fix it. Yeah.
Speaker 3:I'm gonna make the most of it right. Yeah so now correct me if I'm wrong, because I'm just a radio guy. I'm just over here. Nobody sees me on the screen unless I maybe do this, but I'm not gonna do that, so we go back to that. Or we could just go to you, stephen, but no, we'll go back to that. Um, or Chad, he's taller, he is.
Speaker 4:Oh yeah, there is yeah.
Speaker 3:Well, no, that's me, nope, that's you. Amen, I gotta label these buttons. Yeah, I know he trimmed his beard, by the way.
Speaker 4:He did, I know it looks good.
Speaker 5:It's a little homeless yeah. Yeah, we're a little worried he's getting my man.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I know exactly Looks good. So, um, he'd be in the radio guy on my side of things. You know, something happens. All right, we have to deal with it with the sound. But I want to take you back to a show that we did. Now this still bothers me because maybe, maybe there was nothing wrong. I'm just really. It was Warren Zayters. Okay, okay, great show sold out, sold out of Keck's huge crowd. But when I went out there to do my thing, it sounded really tinny, really high, and somebody said it was Warren's guy that was running the board. So, and even when he performed, it seemed that it was really tinny, really high and very little bottom end. I don't know, do you?
Speaker 4:guys hear that. So the sound guy that we use that night is keg sound guy and he dialed us. I mean he has sounded great.
Speaker 3:He had a stellar in he knows the room.
Speaker 4:When you're traveling with a sound guy, I mean because there's so much more like and I've said this, even we won sammies and things like that I'm a very little part like even Chad. He's great where we do our thing, but we're a very little part of what's going on in a show. And when you're traveling with a sound guy like that, that guy walked into that place, never seen it before, never had any experience there and had to run sound. So things like that do happen. And not to mention there's the difference in the monitors and yeah, right, right, right.
Speaker 3:Got your front end, you're back in. You got your line. Yeah, let's stuff go now.
Speaker 4:So yeah, there's. There's a lot of times where you go up there in the monitors, just so I was prank each other on stage.
Speaker 3:I mean, you know, we mess around. That's this is something we should look for when next time we watch.
Speaker 4:Oh yeah, look at, look for Chad shaking his head at me because I missed the yeah but you know what?
Speaker 3:you're both pros, regionals, and I quote-unquote. But I've seen that the shake of the head before and you know, being up there, it's kind of like, okay, somebody just messed up, but you know, nobody else knows that the other 3,000 people that are watching you, they have no clue and it sounds Awesome.
Speaker 4:Yeah, there's a. There's a point where it's like you're comfortable enough on stage to laugh at it. You know you screw up.
Speaker 2:You laugh a little and and it is what it is what it is.
Speaker 4:What are you gonna do you? Can't go back. It's live music. We're here.
Speaker 3:Delete a track and start over. That's right, you're there. I mean, it's already out. It's already out, exactly I just. Well, kerry is on there. Jennifer says oh, chad.
Speaker 4:Everybody loves Chad.
Speaker 3:Katie, katie, hey, hey, happy Thursday, Chrissy. Y'all know, chrissy, big fan of yours. This is hi, steve and Chad, hi.
Speaker 4:Chrissy hey.
Speaker 3:Chrissy, and is it her son Tyler? Is it Tyler?
Speaker 4:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3:Yeah, he's a huge Stephen Callan fan.
Speaker 4:He's a great kid. I love that kid. Yeah, good stuff, good stuff.
Speaker 3:So anyway, so you brought some tools, yeah, masonary tools. We brought your musical tools A couple guitars. We're going to do a live show here, maybe something we'll do it live right here on the podcast.
Speaker 4:That's just kind of cool.
Speaker 3:So yeah, go ahead, I can chit chat while you get that out. So in the house here on the podcast and of course, skip happens, and also in conjunction with the Interharbour Cast 92.1, the Wolf in the studio it's Chad Mack and of course, stephen Kelly, and I gave Chad top billing there, by the way, just saying he's just smiling so quiet. What the it's like well, so anyways, what are we going to do? What?
Speaker 4:are you thinking?
Speaker 3:Let's hope it comes out okay. So I do that one. Oh, Katie says she gave you your Sammy and we're going to talk about that here in a little bit.
Speaker 5:Oh, katie, the radio station, yeah Girls.
Speaker 3:Girls and whiskey, Cool man All right, let's see, here we got Stephen.
Speaker 4:Kelly. This is my biggest single. I wrote this one with my buddy Styles Hari, and another buddy, james Kelly.
Speaker 1:Yeah, just play it for you.
Speaker 3:Okay, let's do it Ready.
Speaker 1:Two, three, four, okay, how many fry do you have out there? I can quit and never just want Any tippy on the heart Smooth going down. Both pick me up and lay me back down. Yeah, like a bone chain Seems to fit me. Nothing gets me like girls in whiskey I won't take long.
Speaker 1:I hit the wall. I've been so far that I can't go home. Yeah, we both know the price ain't cheap when you play with fire and the scars could be Any tippy on the heart Smooth going down. Both pick me up and lay me back down Like a bone chain. Seems to fit me. Nothing gets me like girls in whiskey. Yeah, we both know it can't be on. I never can quit and never just want Any tippy on the heart.
Speaker 1:Smooth going down. Both pick me up and lay me back down Like a bone chain. Seems to fit me. Nothing gets me like girls in whiskey and free. I guess I'll never be at all. Nothing gets me like girls in whiskey. Like a bone chain.
Speaker 4:Like we've done that before Chad.
Speaker 3:Have you, by the way, chad? Your guitar reminds me of the Willie Nelson guitar, which is, if you've ever seen, Willie Nelson, his guitar looks like yeah, trigger, there you go. It's been that. Yeah, I know, dude, but how long have you had that? Because every show I see you've got that guitar, and how many do you have?
Speaker 4:Oh, it's a sour question.
Speaker 3:I don't know, is it?
Speaker 5:Well, this one I've had well, maybe about 10 years. Is that your?
Speaker 3:baby. Is that the one you? Is that your baby? Yeah, I don't leave home without that one.
Speaker 5:There's always one right, that one I can drop, spell Kind of looks like. But that's what makes it.
Speaker 3:That's what makes it good.
Speaker 5:Yeah, but I think. I'm up to about 14 now, but 14 guitars?
Speaker 3:Yeah, where do you put them all? They're like everywhere I have one room.
Speaker 5:Yeah, it's guarded by my dog, so yeah it's like my room here.
Speaker 3:I have all this radio stuff. It's like, yeah, nobody comes down here but me, you know it's weird.
Speaker 5:They just keep showing up every few months too. I don't know.
Speaker 3:Yeah, they just. It's crazy how that happened. Santa just happened to drop off right? Yeah, I don't know that happened, so tell us about that song a little bit. What you just sang, you wrote that Girls and whiskey.
Speaker 4:Yeah, you know, I was going through some stuff at the time and we sat down. I didn't you know what the thing about that song was. I didn't even particularly like it until I listened to the work tape. And I listened back to the work tape after we wrote it and I was like I texted the boys, I wrote it with James Kelly and styles are like I said and I was like, hey, this is, this is like a pretty good song. I like this song a lot. And they're like, yeah, you know, and so we went and caught it and no, it just is a song I wrote when I was going through some you know some pretty stuff, tough stuff.
Speaker 3:So that's what music is, that's what you do, and you know. One thing we say on this side of the business is the music that we're playing could be the soundtrack to your life, and that's why people listen, because if you can grab them by the heart or you can relate to various emotions. We're all human, we all go through a lot of things. You do music like that it's somebody's. I've done it. I've been driving down the road and go that song's about me. Right, holy cow, I just went through that, you know, or whatever. You can grab them. Then you know you're on.
Speaker 4:I don't know if I've ever written a song. You know I'm going to say something and, like I don't know if I'm as good as what I'm saying, I'm not as good as what I'm saying, but I think that a musician's job or an artist's job is to say things for people that don't know how to say it for themselves. So the guy that's going through the breakup, right.
Speaker 3:Yeah, exactly.
Speaker 4:How do I say, how do I say what he's thinking? Or maybe he can't articulate it. You know what I mean and I don't think that I can do that, but there's guys out there that can really put that.
Speaker 3:I think you can. You just did it. Well, don't underestimate yourself, because you just did it. And how the right people need to hear it.
Speaker 5:And I just heard that song and he was like I think I'm going to change this, this line, and then I'm like, no, don't touch it.
Speaker 3:See you're overthinking it. Now Don't touch it Right.
Speaker 4:I just trying to, you know, I just want it to be the best it can be. But, like I said, I don't think that about myself, but I think that that's the job of a songwriter and there's guys that really just do that so well, and I think that's what makes music so special.
Speaker 3:That's cool. I'm so proud of you. I'm proud to know you and everything that you guys are doing. So we have this. You got your CD release party or your album release party coming up right. Tell us a little bit about what's going on with that, because we want everybody to come out.
Speaker 4:So the new AP comes out tonight. You can stream it. Yeah, it's coming out tonight. It's got four singles on it that you've heard and then one that you haven't, so check it out. But January 26th yes, january 26th we were playing that commercial last night.
Speaker 3:January 26th, stephen Kelly. We're playing Caroline Burden.
Speaker 4:We're playing at the song and dance. It's our first, you know, ticketed headlining slaw. We're super excited about it. You can get the tickets at AfterDarkPresentscom. We're doing it with Caroline Burden, like you said. So that's the EP release party for this EP and this is my biggest project that I've put out. It's got the most streams and people seem to be enjoying it.
Speaker 3:Hopefully, everybody watching this now will make it a point to get their tickets and go to the show. If you're watching it between now and then, you still have time to get it. Afterdarkpresentscom Click on the events tab. You got that a lot last night cutting the commercial. But yes that's how I know it, but that's kind of cool, that's cool.
Speaker 4:We're excited for it and, like I said, I'm just excited for the whole project to be out. And then we just went down and recorded some new music that's coming out next, so we're excited about that.
Speaker 3:What do you say? You went down, so you went to Nashville.
Speaker 4:Yep, okay, yep, I go down, I go down to Nashville quite a bit.
Speaker 3:Drive down or you take the Allegiant nonstop.
Speaker 4:I'm going to tell you what I hate flying. I'm seared flying and I have to fly. I fly a lot and I hate flying, so I drive when I go as much as I can. This year I had an excuse because I went hunting when I was down there, so I was like I have to drive.
Speaker 3:You went hunting. I mean, how is the hunting there compared to here?
Speaker 4:Oh really, there's a lot of big bucks down there.
Speaker 3:There's bear and everything else.
Speaker 4:There's a lot of big bucks and, yeah, it was a lot of fun. Well, you got a big ass buck.
Speaker 3:We're talking about the night of the show Jingle Jam. Yeah, you put the picture up on. I saw it on Facebook and I'm going holy how many point. You said it was nine.
Speaker 4:It was a nine point. It went 132 inches for all the hunters out there. 132 and 5, 8s is what it went. Was that dressed? Yeah, that's the. So it had 132 inches of antler on it.
Speaker 3:It had a four wheeler to carry that baby out of the woods.
Speaker 4:No, we drug it out of there. Dude yeah it was brutal. You need to keep writing some music here and keep putting it out, you're going to be able to get a couple of four wheelers.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 5:I hope so.
Speaker 3:I know that had to be well, you dress it right there and you take care of what you're going to take care of, and then you bring it out, but still that's a lot of work.
Speaker 4:It is a lot of work, yeah, and that's what you know. I have my kids out in the woods all the time. That's all we do is we're out in the woods. We just me and my girlfriend were fortunate enough. We just bought some land. We bought 40 acres and we're working over there a lot, and that's what I try to do is be able to woods as much as possible.
Speaker 3:Very cool. I don't know why I thought I thought you were married, so I called her your wife before.
Speaker 4:That's she might as well be. Yeah, we're. Yes, it's like did.
Speaker 3:I just stick my foot in my mouth. No, no, no, that's fine, I don't know yeah.
Speaker 4:That's what I consider, but we'll be getting married soon, at some point.
Speaker 3:So I mean you're working every day, you're doing your brick laying and you're doing guitar or you're singing your songs, you're writing your songs. You go to Nashville once every couple of weeks, every month or you just mentioned.
Speaker 4:The good thing about technology is I used to go down all the time but we can write through zoom now. So we write on zoom and I'll go down and record my projects and stuff, or I'll just go down and see everybody and you know touch base. But it really depends year to year. We've been super busy this year so I went down once and recorded my music Like I was telling you before you're talking about the zoom thing.
Speaker 3:You know I've been doing the podcast for a little bit now and then all of a sudden, covid hit, world stopped, everybody stopped, everybody had to stay home. You can do this. Yeah, but everything more or less stopped and it's like when I had artists coming through on a radio tour, I always made it a point All right, we did the interview at the radio station, and then I'd be like you know what? Here's my address. I have a full studio. Why don't you come over? We're going to do a podcast.
Speaker 3:And I'm like oh, that's so cool, so we would do that. But then, of course, pandemic set in that no longer happens while we're doing it tonight. I love this, I love to do more of this, but you know every door is a great space.
Speaker 4:This is awesome for anybody who can't see it. This is awesome about it as well. Thank you.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's my man cave. But you know how that goes. But no, so we started doing everything you know, virtual. So which actually that's been for me. That's been a plus, because I've been able to get artists like Martina McBride, lainey Wilson, all the big artists, because it's just like we set up the time. There they are, they're on the screen. Let's do it Right, let's do a podcast. It's easy. It's not like they're going to come to my house. Lainey was to walk in here and it'd be interesting.
Speaker 4:All right, they it opened the door. It opened the door in that way. But you could you could write you could you know, people are still putting out content. You can still get yourself out to as many people as possible with technology.
Speaker 3:Well, there's one thing though what I've heard from other artists we do the interviews and the podcast is there's still nothing better than being there in person to feel the energy, to see the body language, to kind of exchange those ideas around a table or maybe play a court or something. Just so what do you think of this? You know instead, because sometimes it's just not the same.
Speaker 4:I like it. It's not the same.
Speaker 3:And it was a good thing that what happened, but still nothing can compare to being there in person.
Speaker 4:Yeah, and that's true.
Speaker 3:Yeah, and I think that's true, I think that's true. Yeah, Are you one of those that record into your phone when you get an idea driving down the road in your truck and you go?
Speaker 4:oh, oh goodness, yeah, yeah, you know I get my notes and write down titles as they come to me and that's pretty normal. A lot of these big, huge number ones you see started in somebody's iPhone as a work tape Exactly, exactly, right, yeah, and everybody will tell you that.
Speaker 3:Yeah, everybody's like. Yeah, I get this idea. And the grocery store the other day all of a sudden got this thought.
Speaker 4:Yeah. It's wild how some of these songs come to be. It's pretty wild.
Speaker 3:Is Chad Mack ever going to be an artist, like when I say that, are you like a Stephen Kelly or are you happy doing what you're doing?
Speaker 5:Nope, I'm happy talking with my guitar.
Speaker 3:I love it.
Speaker 5:I love it, man, it's cool, it's cool, but I like, just like you said it'll be driving down the road and I call him all the time like what about this for a song? Like it happens a few times a week yeah, oh yeah, random stuff.
Speaker 3:We throw titles back and both of you gone to Nashville together no, no, yeah, I know we were talking about the last time I don't do. Grab your guitars, haul your ass to Nashville. Take a walk down Broadway, go see Jason Tesca.
Speaker 3:You know Jason Tesca, his guitar player with the back alley boys back in the day he plays at Tootsies when he's not out filling in for somebody on the road, he'll see you go up on stage and do your thing. You never know. You never know who's gonna be sitting at that bar. You never know who's gonna be in the Wild Horse. You never know who's gonna be at the Jack's Barbecue or the stage. You know all those places along Broadway. You never know. And now look at all the new places.
Speaker 4:Every artist, every major artist, has a it's a restaurant you need to see Kelly's I mean that city just keeps going up, you know the joke is there's a crane on every corner because there is yeah it's no joke, you're right.
Speaker 3:Yeah, but used to take. You know I fly, but what? Used to take you 20 minutes. You go from the airport to downtown now takes you an hour oh goodness, it's crazy, that city is wild. So do we get one more tuner now? Yeah absolutely let's yeah. I know Chad's giving us like girl.
Speaker 4:You're not doing that too. Sorry about that.
Speaker 3:Well, now you'll look at that, scratch and go. Yeah, that was from Skip's house. Yeah, well, there's enough do you? Ever watch like Darrell's house on on cable. It's a Darrell Hall or whatever music from Darrell's house. Well, this is music from Skip's house.
Speaker 4:I love it. I know what a great idea.
Speaker 3:We I mean you guys could host it up, just do whatever, but what are we gonna do? What do you want to do, chad?
Speaker 4:I'll put it on Chad, per usual he's gonna give you the nod.
Speaker 3:Oh, chad is thinking this is like really worrying.
Speaker 4:He's not saying all right there's one song that we we played at the jingle jam, and I haven't I haven't really even played it out that much, so I'm kind of throwing it on Chad right now to be honest with everybody, but go ahead yeah what is it this one's called don't, let me let you in. I wrote this with the same guys and and this song probably be in my next project, so let's try it, you see you walking.
Speaker 1:You take me by hand, you pull me in like I got change. We'll pretend we can sleep alone. Please don't knock. We both know I'm home. Don't let me let you. Let me let you in. Cuz if I do. We both know how this ends. Oh, no, around again. Let me let you. Let me let you in. Close my mind to all where you've been. Let you orders over my head change the lock, choose to hold key, turn me on, do what you do to me. Don't let me let you. Let me let you in. See if I do. We both know how this ends. Oh, no, around again. Let me let you. Let me let you in oh don't let me let you.
Speaker 1:Let me let you in. If I do, we both know how this ends. Oh, no, around again. Let me let you. Let me let you in do wow, wow, wait a minute.
Speaker 3:I think up that. There's the applause and that's everybody that's commenting tonight. This is you know, you're so great, the sound is perfect. Somebody's watching it there. They've sent it to their TV. You can cast it to your television. They're watching it that way. So it's a very, very cool so thank you guys appreciate that yeah, look it. I mean that's awesome. So if somebody wanted to follow you, they can do that online socials yeah, so give you digits.
Speaker 4:Stephen Kelly music on everything Facebook, instagram, stephen Kelly music, calm. And all my music is on every streaming platform. Get an apple music, spotify, pandora, all that good stuff who does all that?
Speaker 3:you?
Speaker 4:know, so I'm with video, okay distribution, so that's cool, so it's nice to have somebody do that yeah, absolutely so, chad does not do that that's the one thing. Yeah, yeah, so, and we get that, let's.
Speaker 3:Let's recap the show. I know Caroline chimed in here as well. I saw the name. Caroline, yes, I should have sent her to link and she could have popped in. But let's talk about that show again.
Speaker 4:It's on the 26th January, 26th song and dance and Sarah now that's a brand new club.
Speaker 3:Right, it is brand new yep on East Jefferson yeah, 2015 yeah, so that's cool. What's it really close? So we know, give us some sort of a landmark. Is it? Is it by the armor or what the Museum of Science and Technology? Look at, this shows how old I am. I called it an armory.
Speaker 5:I think they used to be the armory. It's a cross from the landmark and I stout people that really know the city. It's bank. A lee runs behind it, which is a well known spot do not park your car there?
Speaker 4:the venues truck there. The venue is great, though I know I've heard a lot about that and I've heard all good things, so we're excited.
Speaker 3:Yeah, had a chance to check out the venue. Have you looked at it? I haven't chanted that. Chad went down there. Okay, yeah, your thoughts?
Speaker 5:it's like a. It reminds me of like a little rock club. It's really cool. It's dark and you know, good vibe down there.
Speaker 3:Thanks for the description very wordy.
Speaker 5:Yeah it's dark he really does good, he lets. Yeah, but that's cool, yeah, and after dark presents dot com.
Speaker 3:And. And. Once you get there, click on the events tab, look up Steven Kelly. You're gonna be able to see him and Shannon the rest of the band down there rocking out. This is gonna be so much fun. I think. Tickets are only like 15 bucks.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I'm not mistaken, so that's pretty cheap. Yeah, I mean, you know, look what we paid a do other things. I mean, for example, bought my wife tickets to go see pink. I have to work another couple years. You know it was my, it was my big Christmas gift for her, so and you know I'm not going.
Speaker 3:I said you can take somebody with you here you go, enjoy. Yeah, hey guys, I want to say just a big thank you for stopping by the pod zone, like say, this is gonna be on all of our socials, I'm gonna share it with the wolf and, of course, the wolf, a big supporter in general of the new artist like yourself, the up-and-coming Artist, up-and-coming Nashville artists, steven, I mean you, you are, you and Chad and the guys are like right there, right there. Just, you know, there's so many people trying to do what you do. There's only a few that really stick out and I would say you are one of those that.
Speaker 4:Well, we appreciate that and we're working hard. Hopefully things Continue to grow with you know, as they have, and just remember my name Skip skip. Who wait?
Speaker 3:I wasn't either guy in the queues. We went in his basement. It doesn't sound it. We went in his basement and yeah, we did that radio podcast thing. I don't know what was that. Chad, I can hear it.
Speaker 3:Oh no, that's okay, I'm only teasing you guys, but thanks for coming in, thanks for playing a couple of tunes. I think you've got a lot of new fans, a lot of people charming in. I know all those people that are commenting. I'm sure they're gonna go buy those tickets, correct? Wait a minute, let's do this. Gonna buy those tickets right, right, yep, after dark presents Dot com. Click on the events tab. Get those tickets right. Okay, good, look at those two over there, see On the big screen. All right, hey guys, thanks for coming in, thanks for the podcast. Always a lot of fun. Now we can have a cold one and that. Just talk about life a little bit. It's Stephen Callie, chad Mack, everybody.
Speaker 4:There's having us. We'll see you guys on the 26th.
Speaker 3:Yep, better be there, because I think I'm gonna be there.
Speaker 4:Well, we'll see you there.
Speaker 3:Okay, my wife doesn't know you. All right, have a good night everybody. Thanks for watching peace out and thanks for having the podcast out. And don't forget You're on you.