New Years' Toast

Last year everyone made a big deal about the whole 'new decade' thing, myself included. Everyone had their own psuedo-intellectual theories about what was in store for the 2010's - "last decade was about yin, bro; this decade is about yang," etc, etc. Regardless of the theories, we all agreed that we had a big feeling about what was ahead.

The only thing we forgot was that the new decade didn't actually start last year.

If you're counting on a 1 through 10 basis (which I believe we all are), 2010 was actually the last year of the first decade, and 2011 is the first year of the new one. I feel the need to point this out because A) Personally, I've had a pretty challenging year and I could use the fresh start, and B) I really do have an incredible feeling about what the next decade holds, and I want to make sure we acknowledge that this is a beginning, because sometimes that acknowledgement alone can be really empowering.

I've often wished I could stop time, just for a few breaths. The celebration of a new year is the one thing for me that comes close to that. We need a new years' celebration for the same reason a book has that blank space between the end of one chapter and the beginning of another. That blank white space is the mirror of the heart and mind. In it lies the totality of where we've come from and the anticipation of where we're headed. It is our space for hope, fear, reflection, resolution. And it's brief, but just long enough if we use it.

I've said before that there is no reset button to life, nor would we want there to be. Everything is a continuation. But there is a reason we honor time - sixty seconds, twelve months, ten years; In a life that moves so quickly and with such constancy, there's something about a new decade that goes beyond a label. Ten years is enough time to live out an entire season of one's life. Enough for a person, a family, or a society to grow and change, irreversibly and meaningfully. There's something both terrifying and beautiful about that.

May the start of this new decade provides us all with a chance to stare into that ever-changing mirror, embrace what we see, and march forward - with heads up and hearts open - toward whatever comes next.

Happy New Year.


-Jakob Martin, December 31, 2010
Los Angeles, CA
Planet Earth

Heart and Mind

My heart and mind are like an old married couple. Lovers one minute; at war the next. My mind tells my heart, "Don't get wrapped up in that." My heart replies, "Where's your sense of adventure?" And it's cute. Because they end up getting into all kinds of trouble, but at the end of the day, they're stuck less than two feet apart, and I get to watch them try to work it all out.

In truth, my heart just wants my mind to be happy, and my mind just wants my heart to be safe. But a lot of the greatest moments of life happen somewhere outside both of those boundaries. So each of them push, stretch, manipulate, and guilt each other until things happen. Both are constantly saying to the other, "I told you so." And they're usually both right.

Ultimately, they have to go home together. They've got to sit with each other in this very small space and communicate. Because each needs the other one to live. My heart knows that without my mind, it has no direction. And my mind knows that without my heart, it has no meaning. That's the essence of the relationship. That's why it all works out.

The Anti-Heist

A friend recently bought me two baby turtles from a vendor in Chinatown. It didn't take long to realize that a touring musician who plans to be on the road 200 days next year should probably not be raising turtles. Basic care for these little guys includes daily sun exposure, changing their water, feeding them fresh produce, and avoiding salmonella, which this particular variety of turtle has been known to carry, leading them to be banned from several US States and the entire continent of Australia. Also, they can grow to be nine inches in diameter and live to be 40 years old. That's a bigger time commitment than raising a child (which, these days, appears to take about 32 years)

As cute as they were, I knew I had to, as Tony Soprano might have said, lose the turtles. No, I don't mean having them whacked. Tony Soprano never would have whacked turtles. He'd probably ask his friends and put an ad on Craigslist, which is exactly what I did. Turns out there's little-to-no market for salmonella-carrying turtles who live to be 40. A week went by, and Diego and Angelo (I had caved and named them) were starting to grow rapidly.

Finally the zero hour came. I had to leave town for a few concerts out of state. I had no choice. I grabbed their small plastic terrarium and placed it on my passenger seat, and headed toward Chinatown, salmonella infested water sploshing around the tank with every turn. They stared up at me, quizzically. This was it.

I took the turtles into the store where my friend had bought them. I went in and explained everything to the vendor, who at first pretended not to speak English. I told her that she could take them back without refunding me any money and resell them, thus making twice the profit on the same turtles while sending them to a good home. She finally looked up at me, annoyed, and said, in perfect English, "I'm not taking these turtles. Forget it."

I had to think quickly. I thanked the woman and turned toward the display shelf where all the other little turtles sat rapt by our conversation. I said a quick, heartfelt goodbye to Diego and Angelo, then casually set their little plastic case down next to the others, and sprinted out of the store. It was like a heist scene from a movie, but the complete opposite. It was the anti-heist. As I jogged cinematically down Spring Street in the morning rain, the lady popped her head out and shouted a half-enthusiastic "Hey!" before shrugging and going back inside.

Wherever Diego and Angelo are, I hope they're in a good home, with some wonderful child who will care for them and play with them for the next forty years. Hopefully a child with a very strong hand-washing regimen.

Jakob

Everything Takes Time

Last time I was in New York, my Grandma gave me my Grandpa's old wristwatch. The battery had died after my Grandpa passed away, but I'd started wearing the watch anyway - at first with the intention of getting a new battery, and then, after I got used to it, as a reminder that nothing is permanent, further labeling myself one of those 'brooding, artistic types'. (My grandpa, by the way, never would have let me live this down - "If I knew you wanted a broken watch, we could have saved the money and fished one out of the garbage can," I can hear him saying, flashing that trademark grin.) Let's face it though, none of us really need a wristwatch to tell us what time it is nowadays, and this took on much more meaning: it was the watch that made time stand still. It also gave me the opportunity for a great pun; whenever someone asked if I could tell them the time, I'd say, "Not on my watch!"

The last few months have seen me through a big transition. There was my move to LA this summer, followed by what I'll call an "on-again, off-again breakup" with someone I had been serious with, which was long and difficult and eventually left me feeling uprooted in every sense of the word. I was experiencing the highs of our campaign, the new record, and being on the road, and yet, in the midst of all the attention and excitement, I found myself in that very private, painstaking process of re-learning to be alone. Maybe, underneath all my grand ideas of mortality and impermanence, this watch represented something much simpler that I would never have admitted: I felt broken.

Fast forward to a few days ago. I was passing a watch repair shop, and for some reason I decided it was time to go inside and buy a new battery. The woman at the counter reset the watch to the correct day and time, and smiled at me. "Let's check its heartbeat," she said, and placed it against an electronic monitor to make sure the battery was working. For a moment, I felt like we were doctors bringing a patient back to life. My own heart jumped when I heard the electronic click, click, click. Never underestimate the power of a pulse. It suddenly felt silly to have carried this broken watch around for so long. That constant ticking is the acknowledgement that we're here, rooted in the moment. It was like returning from a long sleep. I walked out of the shop feeling renewed, strutting at the heels of the new year - ready to begin again. It was the moment I had been waiting for.

Ultimately, we all decide when to stop and start that clock again. But it is incredible what time will do for us, even when we're not keeping track of it.

Hollywood's Latest Trend: The CDP

Los Angeles, CA - News of Leslie Neilson's death has already spread like wildfire, and we'll all spend the next few days honoring his memory by quoting movie lines, posting clips on our profile pages, and for some of us, dusting off our old "Naked Gun" VHS tapes and watching them again. Leslie Neilson may not have made any blockbuster movies over the last couple of years, but he made us laugh, and over the next couple of days, he will- deservedly- be the talk of the town.

We live in a celebrity culture. And let's face it, nothing does more for a celebrity's career than the act of dying. This is why celebs have started turning to CDP's (celebrity death publicists), who help them time their deaths for maximum exposure and success.

"We're dealing with people who have had very successful careers during their lives, and don't want that to change just because of death," says Kika Buckett, president of Grinning Reaper Publicity, "Essentially, we're redefining the meaning of a crossover artist."

"Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, and Ed MacMahon died in the same three day period, and it was a PR nightmare for MacMahon," explains Buckett. "The networks were obviously focused on Michael and Farrah, and because of that, poor Ed MacMahon was largely passed over, excuse the pun. Just imagine, an entire career buried because of bad timing."

On the same day Jackson passed, old time jazz singer Merv Goldblum had been on his deathbed, but fortunately, Goldblum had been working with Buckett, who rushed to his side and warned him that this would be awful timing for those highly coveted post-mortem record sales.

"I decided to wait it out," Goldblum said. "I mean, you only die once!" Goldblum is planning a widely anticipated demise early next spring.

While some celebrities try to plan for their own unique days of departure, other lesser known celebs (soap opera stars, celebrity chefs, state senators) vie for a chance to piggyback their deaths with a better known celebrity, in hopes that this will help elevate their careers. 1970's adult film star Jennie Hooter, for example, arranged to kick off on on the same day as Elvis Presley, "...and she got a restaurant named after her!" says Buckett proudly. Hooter was one of Buckett's first clients.

It is well known that famous artists, singers, and authors experience skyrocketing sales immediately following their deaths. Many sell more after death than they did during life. Some artists, such as Tupac Shakur, even continue to release successful new albums for years after they pass on. ("If that's not the benchmark of a great career, I don't know what is!" Buckett exclaims.)

The death of a celebrity is a time of much publicity, and obituaries are often used as the final barometers of a celebrity's accomplishments. "A bad obituary is the death knell of any career," explains Buckett.

At the same time, a good obituary can resurrect even the most forgotten celebrity. After-death comebacks are nothing new, according to Buckett ("Jesus made the greatest career comeback of all time!") and are quickly becoming accepted as the hottest Hollywood trend.

"Just like a movie release or a political campaign, we just want our client to get the most out of his or her release from this earth," says Buckett. "With the right help, any celeb can be tremendously successful in his or her post-sunset years."

The one drawback for Buckett? "No matter how good a job you do for a client, they'll never hire you again."


- Joe King for the Unassociated Press

Love at First Date

I once told a girl I loved her on our first date. In my defense, I was fourteen, had never been kissed, and it was my first date ever (I’ll spare the suspense and tell you that by the end of this date, I still had never been kissed).

This girl had been my crush for months, and I learned through mutual friends that she liked me too, which, at that age, felt like the equivalent of winning two state lotteries in the same day while breaking a world juggling record. My best friend told me that for our first date, I should take her to a movie, and that he'd come along for moral support. True to teen-dating protocol, she also brought her best friend along. And I think they each brought friends. So we had about five spectators.

I went the entire first hour of the movie without even looking at her, trying to imagine how one transitions from not holding a girl's hand to suddenly holding it without a confrontation. I decided I needed a smooth line to say. I grasped for memories of what I'd seen other people do in this situation. Somehow, at fourteen, the only example I could think of was my parents, and, in a momentary lapse of judgement, I lost track of any difference between the etiquitte of a first-date versus that of an eighteen-year marriage. I leaned over confidently as I'd seen my dad do with my mom, placed my hand on my brand new girlfriend's hand, and said softly, in the most seductive voice I could muster, “I love you.”

Remember in the movie Borat, the way the old woman looks when Borat walks into her dining room holding a bag of his own feces? That about sums up this girl's response. She turned to her best friend and whispered something, her friend turned to her friend, and before you knew it, everyone around me was giggling with such rapture that popcorn was literally spilling off their laps. For the rest of the year, wherever I went, I'd be greeted by all of her friends with "I love you", and a huge grin.

The day after my first date, I was dumped. It was October 21st, 1998, the day the Yankees beat the Padres in the World Series, and the reason she gave for dumping me was that, as a Padres fan, she was in mourning, and was too distraught to date for awhile. We all knew the truth, though. It was the age-old, "It's not you, it's not me...it's the Padres". It's the most common breakup line in San Diego.

I ended up having my first kiss a couple of years later, and it wasn't until long after that I told a girl I loved her and meant it. Everything in its time. But no matter how far we get from puberty, that process of taking a risk, making a mistake, and eventually moving forward- is hopefully something we never grow out of. In fact, I think it's the only way we grow..

I love you,

Jakob

Do Something by Candlelight

I've started showering by candlelight. It's my own little romantic gesture to myself, and it's also a way of returning to a simpler time. I know, the first thing you're asking yourself. How far back in time can you really go while still enjoying the modern luxury of a hot shower? In fact, the Greeks invented the shower, complete with plumbing, in 4 B.C. Now you know.

Aside from time travel, I suppose my candlelight showers are also my own little rebellion against the new 'efficient light bulb' revolution. Don't get me wrong, I love the fact that we're creating more energy efficient light bulbs - I just wish they didn't bathe my living room in the same fluorescent radiance as the clearance section of Marshall's.

So, for five-to-seven minutes every day, I close the door (my bathroom is windowless), and use one of my 40,000 matches to light tea-light candles in my bathroom, and bathe in a light that feels half-renaissance, half Cinemax late-night special. I joke, but really, try picking one thing every day to do by candlelight, even for five minutes, and see how quickly it changes the quality of your life. Change the light, and your perspective changes. Change your perspective, and...

Rainy state of mind

It's raining in the desert this weekend. My host says they get about 2 inches a year in this area, and it looks like we're going to get at least one here before the day is over.

I spent a lot of the drive listening to music, listening to books-on-CD, really anything that would keep me from thinking about how this is my first trip to her home-state since we parted ways, and reconciling all the memories we made here with the new ones I'll have to make - trying to disconnect her from the one place I knew her by. Heartache is like a disease that can go into remission for days, weeks, months - You're going about your daily life and Shazam! One tree can trigger a memory, which triggers another, and suddenly you're swimming in an inch of rain.

For me, music is the medicine. The stage is the one place where I can sing about pain, feel pain, and still be happy. It is the one place where emotion and reason coexist without a power struggle. Within the course of a three minute song, I find myself all powerful and yet completely powerless. I am all at once in love, furious, homesick, and somehow comforted in knowing that (whether hundreds of miles away or just a few) life moves forward, and the sky remains open with possibility.

I didn't bring an umbrella this time around. But I say let it rain.

40,000 Matches

I recently came across an arsonal (excuse the pun) of custom matchbooks - 2,000 to be exact, containing a grand total of 40,000 matches, which we had originally ordered as freebees to help promote the release of my first solo album, "Matches", in 2007.

I've always had a thing for matchbooks. I used to scribble notes to my college girlfriend in the flaps of matchbooks from restaurants we'd eaten at, (mostly puns like "hey, hot stuff!" and "Light me up- before you go-go"). I collected matchbooks from everywhere, so you can imagine how finally having matches with my own name and website on them felt like a rite of passage for me.

Soon after the release, however, my web domain -which was printed on the all matchbooks- expired, and before I could renew it (literally within a day), some guy in India stole it from under me, leaving me with 2,000 matchbooks that now advertised his new blog about online gambling.

I quickly burned through ideas of what to do with the matches; I had no girlfriend to write love notes to, no interest in arson, and no desire to cultivate a smoking addiction. I could have kept them in the bathroom, but even using three per day, that's still 38 years worth of air-clearing. So I stowed them away in my Dad's garage under boxes of old books and papers (in retrospect, I'm lucky we didn't have a dry summer).

How funny to come across these 40,000 little treasures again, just days before releasing "Leave The Light On". I recorded "Matches" at a time when I was looking for a way to express the spark I felt artistically - a starting point. Now there's a new title track, "Leave the Light On", which I wrote about holding onto that spark in the face of chaos, loss, heartbreak - all things that can complicate us, cripple us, and yet somehow simultaneously save our lives. Great loss has helped me to find myself. Heartbreak has given me a stronger understanding of love. And darkness has always pointed out where the light is. I hope that comes across on this record, in its own way.

Every project is a new beginning. Even the old songs on this new album, like "Ten Thousand People in White" -which I wrote at 17 - have been recorded in a new way, reflecting where I am right now. We are constantly in cycles of invention and reinvention - striking, glowing, burning out, and learning how to ignite ourselves again. In that sense, I suppose keeping extra matches around isn't a bad idea.

Special Limited Pre-Order

If you didn't get to donate to the campaign, but still want to pre-order the album, you can do so by following the link below:

Pre-Order a Signed Copy of the New Album!

We're pre-selling 100 autographed albums pre-order, and after that, we'll release the rest on November 16th.

In case you haven't heard yet, you can hear the new single at Soundcloud

NEW SINGLE!

Here it is - the new single, and title track of the new EP:

CLICK HERE TO PREVIEW THE NEW SINGLE, "LEAVE THE LIGHT ON"

The album doesn't release until November 16th, but we just launched our press campaign, and I wanted you to be the first to hear the new music. We could not have done this without you, and I can't thank you enough for all your support. Next step - if you like what you hear, help us get the word out about this thing by passing the link along to your friends!

http://soundcloud.com/jakob-martin/leave-the-light-on

Stark

The cover photo for the album was taken by the illustrious Collin Stark (I can't think of a better last name for a photog), whose work I love, and who believes in adventure as a way of life, and does not compromise this belief during his photo shoots. I've shot with Collin a few times now, and during past shoots (under his direction, of course) I have smashed two televisions, jumped across a sixth story ledge with my guitar in hand, stood in a swamp next to a snake, and run from an angry homeless man. Collin tells me he once dropped a camera off a 9th story roof onto the street below,("Good thing it was insured!"), and he builds gigantic sets by hand in his loft/studio in Downtown LA - check out his website (you might recognize a few of his other subjects) -

http://www.collinstark.com

Master of My Domain

(from left, Dan, Reuben, and Yours Truly)

I have in my posession a disc with the masters to the new EP. Masters, in music terms (as opposed to Masters in other industries - i.e. Golf, Higher Education, Baiting) are the final, polished recordings as they'll eventually be delivered to iTunes, burned onto the CD's, and of course, blasted (at a reasonable volume) into your ears.

We had the album mastered by Rueben Cohen at Lurssen mastering, and of course, Dan and I went to sit in on the session, hang out with the guys, eat frozen pizza, and admire the Grammy awards they have sitting out not-so-subtly under a spotlight (hey, if you've got em, flaunt em!). Rueben worked his magic, running the audio signal through an analog system, where he added some compression (not too much!), adjusted the EQ, made a couple of other small adjustments, and then converted it back to digital. To those of you who glazed over during the last sentence, the record sounds amazing, and I'm really excited for you to hear it. We've set the official release date for November 16th, but those of you who contributed to the campaign are, of course, going to get it before that.

So Long, Ol' Yellow

Today I have to retire a piece of carry-on that has stayed close to my heart (and my back) for more than five years.

Those of you who have have put me up at your house at any point dating back to the Storrow Band days have probably seen my trusty yellow backpack. I bought it for $5 at a drugstore in 2005 because I spilled something in my old one (I can't even remember what - lemonade?)- so I bought this cheap backpack, expecting it to fall apart the next day, but to my surprise and pleasure it stood the test of time, transporting my closest personal belongings- toiletries, laptop, guitar strings, and cell phone charger - across the country and even the world. It wandered through Times Square with me, went to the top of the space needle in Seattle, sat by the banks of the sea of Galilee in Israel, and hung out backstage with the groupies at the Fillmore in San Francisco. This backpack had a good life. I came to love and rely on it so much that even when I was off the road, I'd keep it in my car, just in case I should need a granola bar, nasal spray, or an emergency guitar string while hanging out with friends.

Yesterday, in Toronto, I took the backpack out of the car and found that the bottom has torn to the point where my laptop was barely hanging on for dear life. So, I guess it's time to lay this little guy to rest. I'm honestly getting a little choked up right now. If any of you have any memories of this backpack that you'd like to share, please feel free to do so below. Thanks, ol' yellow, for always having my back.

If you contributed....

...check your email. I have an exclusive update for you about the album. If the email address linked to your paypal isn't the one you want me to use, drop a line and let me know - me@jakobmartin.com - From here forward, I'll be sending you occasional personal updates and sneak previews - one more way of saying thank you for helping me bring my dream to life.

If you didn't get to contribute but wanted to, you can still do so by clicking the 'donate' link to the right. We'll be adding your donations to the final tally over the next few days, and every dollar still makes a giant difference.

To all of you who contributed and are waiting for download links or other 'thank you' gifts, we're setting up a system for getting those to you soon and I'll have that for you as soon as it's ready.

Thanks again everyone. I am still completely blown away, aghast, taken aback, blasted, and awed by your generosity, and I'm so excited to make this record a reality.

JM

Thursday, August 19, 2:21am

No matter how you slice it, this is a gigantic victory. I'll have a full update tomorrow (and I promise I'll get around to emailing each of you who contributed, but there were a flood of contributions today). For now, I'm going to bed feeling like the luckiest man in the world. Thank you for giving me the ability to do what I love and for helping me to reach this point. We WILL be able to release this record, and it's going to be incredible.

If you had been meaning to contribute at the last minute, you still can (and it'll make the final tally tomorrow) by clicking the donate link on the right, and you can still help us get a little closer to that ultimate goal.

Thank you SO MUCH. Much love. I am SO incredibly grateful.

JM

We've come a long way!

(yours truly, age three, licking a tambourine)

2 days left!

First, to those of you who are concerned, I want you to know that regardless of the total we raise, we WILL find a way to make this work and release this record. Even if we don't hit the full $18k (there's still time!) we'll still have come a LONG way and I'm so proud.

We've been doing some last minute accounting, and looking into a number of ways we can reach our goal. Some of the people I'm working with have already offered to work for way less than they're worth because they believe so deeply in this project. We know that if we can get to $7,000 before this campaign ends tomorrow, we'll still be able to implement a lot of the most important parts of our plan to get this record out, and we'll move forward from there.

All of you have been so incredibly generous over the last few weeks, and it's hard to believe that we started with nothing and now have almost $5,000. That is a huge victory, (especially in these times) and this isn't over yet. Don't stop getting the word out; these last couple of days are crucial!

I want you to know that your support means more to me than you can imagine, and you've left me completely excited and invigorated about this project and the future. I promise you that I will continue striving to live up to the honor you've given me by supporting my dream.

Let's go get em!

J

Hey Now!

3 Days Left.

I've got a lot of great news coming your way this week, including the name of the new album, which is almost-almost official. We are three days away from the end of the campaign, and although we have a long way to go, I have never been more moved or grateful by how many of you have contributed so generously and shown me your support in such a variety of ways. To those of you who haven't contributed yet: We can't get there without you, so please consider getting involved - it's not too late!

Every night, I spend some time emailing with those of you who gave to the campaign, and it has been incredible catching up with so many of you and hearing what my music has meant to you. I promise that as things move forward, I will never forget how generous you have been, and I won't stop working to live up to the honor you've given me by believing in me so deeply.

Guest Blog # 2

4 Days left. Thanks SO MUCH for your support thus far. I'm honored to post this second guest blog, written by my good friend Dain Bornstein (pictured above right), who has been a very important part of my life and musical career:

I met and became friends with Jakob in 1998. Over the past 12 years Jakob has written hundreds of songs, recorded hundreds of songs, sold thousands of albums, been through several band members, and, many incarnations of his name. I have personally witnessed Jakob bring audiences to both tears and laughter. I am constantly in awe of the lives he has touched with his spirit and music.

Jakob's commitment to his craft has never wavered over the time that I have known him. Since we were kids I have been inspired by his drive & dedication to his music. I have never met anyone who is so committed to seeing his dreams and goals come to fruition. What makes Jakob even more special is that while he is completely committed to his own success, he also encourages his friends and peers to do the same. Jakob believes that we are each uniquely capable of defining our own futures, that we have the power to create the world we want to live in.

Another thing that has always amazed me about Jakob is that he always takes the time to talk with his fans and give back to the community. He loves to make connections with the people whose lives he has touched. I'll never forget a year or two ago when he had the opportunity to play some music and hang out with some high school kids that were in town from the same youth group we had been in when we were in high school. It was about 1 in the morning by the time we were able to get there because he had a show earlier in the night, but the kids were only in town for that one night, so we headed over to where they were staying and hung out for several hours. Jakob played some songs for them, took requests, and answered their questions. One girl in particular had been really moved by his music and is herself a musician. She asked Jakob for some insight into the music industry, and then also played him a song that she had written. It was a great moment and it's moments like those that have shown me what an impact Jakob has already made, and will continue to make on his fans and friends.

While many people mark the years of their lives by dates - perhaps holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, I can mark my years by songs - by concerts - by tours. Jakob's songs can bring many of us back to a particular point in our lives - whether hearing "Providence" helped you through the grieving process of losing a loved one, or if "Whole Again" comforted you in the wake of a break-up. Jakob's first EP with his high school band (End of August) was my personal soundtrack of the summer between high school and college - the summer I moved across the country and fell in love for the first time.

Join me in helping to support Jakob's music - so that others can be touched by his words & message. He believes that anything is possible, and I believe that we have the ability to make THIS possible. This is our chance to be part of something spectacular, something that is so much bigger than an individual person. I know it's been said many times before over the past 3 weeks, but every donation, even $5 or $10 is a huge step towards reaching the ultimate goal of $18,000. Let's do this!

The Final Five...

Only 5 days remain until the end of our Listener Supported campaign. We still have about $13,000 to raise in order to reach our goal, which might appear challenging at first glance. Actually, I won't sugar-coat this: It is challenging. But the last few days of a campaign like this are the most critical and usually the most successful, and I KNOW we can do this. If we can pull this off, we'll be able to take huge steps forward and hopefully be able to get this new music into the hands of tens of thousands of people or more. Either way, we have made huge strides thanks to your generosity.

If you look on my facebook profile, you won't find "Fundraising" listed as one of my favorite activities. But I have had such an incredible experience with this, and have continually been moved and amazed at how many of you connect with my music and have extended such incredible generosity my way so we can take things forward.

If you believe in this project and you've got as little as $5 or $10 you can contribute, you'll be AMAZED at how quickly it all adds up. Now is the time - This is a one time campaign and we need your help now more than ever. You'll get the new music for free, and you'll have my gratitude, as well as eternal bragging rights as one of the few people who were here at the beginning and made it possible for us to do incredible things.

Thanks so much for your support, and let's do this. Ready, break!!

Guest Blog # 1

Today, I wanted to do something a little different. This guest entry was written by the wonderful Alee Schwarz:

At the beginning of 2008, I was halfway through my senior year of high school and an editor (and writer and photographer—we were a little understaffed) of the school newspaper. One day as the eight of us on staff sat discussing story ideas for our March issue, someone mentioned Rock the Difference: a small concert and documentary screening to be held on campus, the proceeds of which were to go to the Invisible Children fund.

I called dibs on that story right away—it would be a great chance to inform the student body about a great cause. It would also be a great excuse to skip out on an evening study-group for Academic Decathlon scheduled for the same night, but that wasn’t my main motive. Really. I promise.

The night of the concert, I paid for my ticket and stepped into the school gym, camera in hand and notebook and pens ready to go. I didn’t know exactly what to expect, but I was going to get an awesome article and photos out of it.

The first act—a garage band made up of students from our school and the next one over—took the stage, and I started snapping pictures, moving from one place to the next in search of a better shot. I did the same during the second act, falling into that bad photographer zone where capturing the moment correctly overrides experiencing it.

Then came act number three.

I heard a name announced, and through the camera lens I saw a guy bringing a guitar onstage. I got a couple pictures of him as he sat down at the keyboard that had been set up. Then he started playing and opened his mouth to sing, and that was it. I put my camera down, and I watched him, and I listened.

This was Jakob Martin, and he did something completely different than the other two performances, which had both boiled down to “get onstage, play a few songs, get offstage”. He took the time to make a connection: talked with the audience, told stories between songs—I remember him offering a preemptive apology before going into “Ten Thousand People in White”, laughing that a guy from southern California had no business singing about snow. I had no idea who he was, and I couldn’t help but laugh with him.

Oh, and I should probably mention that he could sing. (Go listen to some of the music on his site if you don’t believe me.)

Jakob ended the concert on—and I apologize for the pun—a high note; the Invisible Children documentary played, and when that was over I got started on the other half of my assignment. I approached the members of the garage band, asking if they had a few minutes for an interview with the school paper. It was getting late, they said, and they had to get home, but I could talk to the guitarist at school next week; I barely got their names written down before they and their equipment were out the doors. My luck with the second performer wasn’t any better: when I asked him for an interview, all the response I got was a scowl before he turned on his heel and walked away. When I approached Jakob, I had given up and resigned myself to doing a photo essay. Asking him for a few minutes of his time was just a formality.

I was more than a little surprised when he smiled, sat down on the bleachers, and asked me what I’d like to know.

I ended up with an entire page of notes, and at some point the interview turned into a friendly chat, mostly about music. He was just that easy to talk to—I’d known him all of fifteen minutes, but I honestly felt like I was talking to a good friend. When I had to leave, he got up and handed me a copy of Matches, his CD, because I had mentioned I liked his music but didn’t have the money on me to buy it. He signed it and everything, with a short message encouraging me to follow my dreams.

There has been a lot of talk about money on this blog—no surprise, with just over a week to go and thousands of dollars left to be raised. But the heart of this campaign is Jakob, a good guy following a dream and inspiring others to follow theirs. And that’s as great a cause as any.

Contact Alee
cas0319@yahoo.com

10 Days Left!

We're finally at the point where we can start mixing the new record, and as we speak I'm awaiting the first mix of a new song called "Leave the Light On".

With just 10 days to go and a little under $14 thousand to raise, it's going to be a race to the finish. I'm doing everything short of knocking on doors (if that's what it takes, I'll do that, too) because I believe completely in this project and my team and I are determined to make it happen. I've always been very proud to be independent, but it takes an entire community to bring a dream to life, and I won't be able to do this without you.

If my music has touched you or become part of your life in some way, I'd love for you to consider joining the 103 people who have already made contributions. Every dollar helps, and all of you who give $10 or more will get the new music for free, my endless gratitude, and the satisfaction of knowing that you are making it possible for us to do the following:

1. Have the record professionally mixed, and mastered by a Grammy-winning team.
2. Hire a publicist to get the word about this record out to over 250 newspapers and magazines across the country.
3. Produce a music video
4. Produce a fall tour of the West Coast.
5. Reach out to radio, tv, and other media to get this music out to a wider audience.

Again, this campaign is something I'm only doing once, not every time I make a record. A lot has been building to this unique moment, and with your help, we'll be able to take this music that I believe so deeply in and bring that to tens of thousands more people across the country.

Thank you for believing in what I'm doing, and thanks so much for your support. I can't wait for you to hear the new album!

It's you I like.

I had a dream last night that I was on the phone with the late Mr. Rogers. I had gone back in time to warn him that he was about to die, but also to let him know that his message would live on long after he had gone. The whole thing was very Inception meets Back to the Future meets, well, Mr Rogers.

Mr. Rogers used look at us through the television set and tell us that we were each unique and special- that there was no one in the world like each of us. You can imagine how important (and easy) it was for me to hear this message at a time when my main daily priorities were:

A. Deciding which household item to turn into a musical instrument.
B. Making sure I made it to the bathroom in time.
C. Creating interesting plots to assign to the lives of my imaginary friends.

It still seems so sudden to have gone from that point to now - waking up in my own bed, in my own home, and realizing that I am completely responsible for the direction and substance of my life. That a bill comes in the mail for everything I used to take for granted - the garbage, the faucets, the light switch. I have commitments, dramas, important decisions.

But I don't feel that I've lost anything. We don't lose imagination, curiosity, or energy simply by growing up. Studies actually show the opposite: that both our minds and bodies actually get stronger as we get up into our adult years - more resilient -more capable.

So why do grown-ups often act as though we've lost everything that was magical in our lives, when in fact, the only thing that's changed is that we now know more about how the magic works? As adults, we've gone from being the kids in the audience at the magic show, to being the one thing that we always wanted to be: the magicians. We each get to choose our own medium for creating the magic, and we each get to create it on our own terms. It's good to be a grown up.

The challenge now is to remember. Through all the setbacks, and the roadblocks, and the temptations to conform and give up our magic. Our ideas, our struggles, and the process of overcoming them; these the very things that prove how unique and incredible we actually are. And what a blessing to realize that.

Mr. Rogers himself was unique because he allowed all of us - old and young - to see the world as a place of wonder. He was an adult, with burdens, responsibilities, and challenges of his own. But for an hour a day, he was able to distill a lot of the things that make life wonderful - love, imagination, our own individuality -and remind us of them. I'd like to believe that, in our own way, that's what each of us is striving to do. It's now up to us to remind each other.

Video # 7

What an incredible week. We raised over $1,700 since Monday, thanks to a very generous donor who matched several of your contributions, and thanks of course to YOU - Over 100 of you who have believed in my music and in this project enough to give your own money to this campaign. We have 12 days left, and amazing things can happen in short amounts of time. So hang onto your hats. Seriously, there's been a wave of hat crime this summer. Hold onto 'em.


As you'll see in the video, we finished tracking for the album this week, which is a very big deal. Now it's on to mixing, and then mastering, etc etc...It's a long process, but it always happens more quickly than we expect. We're starting to set release dates, tour dates, etc, and also getting closer to an album title. More news about that coming soon. As usual, I'm up way past my bedtime. I'll write again soon, but until then, THANK YOU. I couldn't be where I am without you.

This Campaign Isn't About Money

Everything human-made started in someone's imagination. Your car, the street and the lamps that light it, the song on the radio - all started as thought, dream, idea. It seems like magic that the world runs so smoothly, given how intricate each of these things are. But behind every creation is an imagination. And behind every imagination is a person - or community of people - willing to believe in it.

Lately it seems that all I've talked about is money; how much we've raised, how much we need. The money is crucially important because it will open doors that will make incredible things possible. And I'm so grateful that 86 of you so far have given your own personal money to help see this through.

But this campaign is not about money. I met with Dan in February with a few songs and the vision of making a record that we could be proud of. As things progressed, we realized that we were onto something really special; that this was ready for a bigger audience. We set the goal of bringing the most brilliant team together to help us promote the album. Because I don't yet have a record label, a sugar mama, or a treasure map, I turned to you, my fans and supporters, to help me get there. And we've already raised almost $3,000 in just 3 weeks.

We're about 1/5 of the way to our goal, and some have suggested that it's too lofty, that this is a tough time to be asking for money because of the economy, etc. And I'll agree with them on one thing: If this campaign were just about raising money, it would be the wrong time. But no matter what is going on in the world, our imaginations and our dreams are the most powerful gifts we have. And I know that if we can make music that will raise peoples' spirits, this money will raise itself.

That said, I hope you'll watch the video above - this was the encore from my "Masking the Mirror" album release concert in 2008, and I was on stage with several good friends. The room was small, hot, and packed, and you can tell that we were living in the moment just as much as the audience that night. This video does more than any amount of words to explain why I love what I do.

The future is open and brimming with possibility, for all of us. Thank you for believing in mine.

J. Martin

Summary

First, I am excited to announce that we have a generous donor who will be matching your contributions this week, up to $500. So if you haven't given yet and were waiting for the perfect time, the time has come. And THANK YOU to those of you who have helped us reach this point.

We're just over the halfway point in the campaign, and I think now would be a great opportunity to reiterate what this is all about.

Here's the short version:

-Many of you have told me that my music has affected you or become a part of your lives in some way, and I'm so grateful for that. This is our chance to bring that connection to thousands more people without a record label.

-We're raising $18,000 so we can produce a new album, hire a publicist to get it to publications across the US, hire a Grammy-winning mastering team, and produce a music video and a fall tour.

-This is a one-time campaign, designed to be a spark. I'm not going to do this every time I release a new album. This is a chance to take part in one unique moment in my career and creative life.

-Everyone who contributes will get the new music for free, and those who give more will get other great thank-you gifts. (See the right side of this page)

-Although we need to raise it, this campaign is not about the money. It's about the freedom to do something creative on our own terms. Money opens the door, but this campaign is about the music and the connection it creates, and our ability to take that a step further.

-If every one of you who hasn't contributed yet gave just $7, we'd reach our goal instantly.

Here's a video using some footage from the my time in LA



Thank you for believing in me, and believing in the power of my music. I feel so blessed and fortunate to have such amazing friends and fans in my life.

JM

Monday.

Monday. Our last week in the studio. Then comes mixing, mastering, cover art, and after that, the album goes off to be made into thousands of little copies - at that point it's no longer mine - it becomes yours.

I can't help but be touched by the fact that there are 65 of you so far who not only believe in my music, but have given your own money in very generous amounts to help make this dream come true. And I know many more of you are planning on helping before this is over. We've raised almost $2,500 because of you. We have three weeks to raise the rest, and I can tell you right now that it's probably going to be a race to the finish. But I'm completely confident that we can do it.

I've been talking a lot about money, and it's frustrating sometimes that money has to be a focus of this campaign. This album and this blog and this campaign really aren't about money. They're about having the means and the freedom to do something creative, and hopefully beautiful - something that will have meaning for people - and will also have the legs to be able to reach them. Money opens the doors, but the music- and the connection it offers - these are the destinations. It can be easy to forget that, but that's the most important part to remember.

I believe that my life and my work have a purpose. My view of what that purpose might be is always changing, but I know that no matter what happens, if I follow my heart and stay determined, the world will provide ways of moving forward. The last few weeks have been proof positive of that. And I know I'll look back on this as one of the most important periods of my life, and on you as the force helping to make it possible. Thank you.

I think I have a name for the record. Give me a few more days to be sure before I spill the beans.






PS. this has my name written all over it.

Today was our sixth straight day in the studio and we're getting close to wrapping up the vocals for the record. You know that feeling when you say a word over and over and over again and all of the sudden it sounds all slow-motioney and twisted? That's kind of how a song sounds after you've been working on it for six days in a row, no matter how much you love it. So we'll be taking tomorrow off.

We've still got 18 days left of our campaign, and I am so grateful for those of you who have helped us get to where we are now, but the numbers don't lie and it's obvious that we've got a ways to go before this is over. It would mean the world to me to have your help getting the word out to people who you know appreciate my music or like to support the arts. Just remember, if every facebook fan gave only $10, we'd be there instantly.

This is a chance for you to be a part of the crucial moment when we brought this dream from imagination to reality, and I will persist until we reach our goal, no matter what it takes. I know by now that you expect nothing less from me.

Hope you're having a great weekend.

JM

My Day in L.A.

Here's a little composite "day in the life" based on some footage we shot over the last couple of days. We used footage from a recording session of "Providence", which is a song that's been on past records, but we're doing a new version. Dan and I want to keep the NEW-new songs under wraps until they're ready :)

Some cameos in here by my brother Daniel, Cassanova Joe, and Dan's wife Britta. The footage at the very end is from a late night walk in Hollywood last night.

Video # 6

Here's the latest little video update. I know it's considered a faux pas to wear your own artist tee-shirt, but trust me, I'd hit the bottom of the laundry barrel; it was this or my "Night at the Roxbury"-style fishnet Tee. Consider yourself spared. We just finished a long recording session and got a LOT done today. Things are really coming along.

Some days it can seem a challenge to be mixing art and business so closely like this (in the studio and simultaneously running a fund-raising campaign), but I really believe in what we're doing and I'm willing to do whatever we need to to make it the best it can possibly be. I'll be glad when we reach our goal and can really focus on getting this record finished and getting the release coordinated. Until then, it's been so incredible every day to see how many of you believe in me and in what we're doing, and every time I get a little email notification that someone new has made a contribution, it brings me a wave of gratitude. I'm so grateful to have such amazing friends, fans, and supporters.

Thanks so much again everyone. Gad I feel lucky.

Campaign Update: One Crucial Moment

Days remaining: 24
Raised so far: $1,573.68

Any great victory can be traced back to one crucial moment. Some might call it a tipping point. Some might call it luck.

Many of you have told me that my music has touched you or become a part of your life in some way, and I’m so grateful for that. Now imagine being able to bring that connection to many thousands or even millions of people. This has been my dream ever since I was little, and when we raise this money, we’ll be one step closer to making that dream come true.

For the first time, we’ll be able to hire a publicist to deliver the album to 250 newspapers and magazines across the country. We’ll be able to produce a music video and a fall tour. We’ll have the privilege of working with a Grammy-winning mastering company and an incredible team. Most importantly, I’ll be able to stay true to my own artistic vision along the way.

Some of you may have read about this campaign and wondered if I’m planning on doing this every time I make a new album. The answer is no. This campaign has been designed for a very specific purpose: to create a spark. We’ve already come a long way, and we have 24 days left to reach our goal. If every one of you gave as little as $10, we’d reach it instantly. I’d love for you to visit our campaign site at http://jakobmartin.blogspot.com, where you can learn more and keep up with our progress. We have a few gifts to thank you for contributing, and everyone who gives at least $10 will get the new record for free.

We can wait for a lucky break, or we can create that luck together. I hope you’ll become a part of this one crucial moment that has the potential to change everything.

With love and gratitude,

Jakob

What a week! We hit the $1,000 mark this week, definitely a huge milestone. If you haven't yet gotten to check out the videos below, have a look.

We're putting together a series of videos for next week that will give you a closer look at the process of making the record and introduce you to some of the brilliant people I'm working with. In the meantime, THANK YOU for your contributions, for helping to get the word out, and for believing in this project which I am SO passionate about and excited to bring to life. It's going to take an entire community to make this happen but I know we can do it, and I'm so grateful every day for the chance to take risks and do what I was born to do.

Video Update # 5

Took some time to blow off a little steam and went down to Venice Beach for the day. You ever see those shows on the travel channel...

As a P.S. to what I'm talking about in the video, we did hit the $1,000 mark yesterday. Thank you for all your contributions; we still have a long way to go but I know we can get there with your support!

First Thousand Raised!

Thanks to you, we hit the $1,000 mark today! As they say, the first thousand is the hardest. The other 17 should be cake :) In all seriousness, I couldn't be doing this without you and I'm so grateful to every one of you who has contributed so far. Today, Dan and I went down to Venice Beach and I caught some travel-show-worthy footage that I'm putting together to post first thing tomorrow.

Video # 4

The one thing I did neglect to mention in the video is that while we do have 31 days left, we still need to raise just over $17 thousand dollars in that time, and I'm going to need your help to get there! Again, if every one of you reading this just gave $10, we'd reach our goal instantly. So please consider making a small pledge if you haven't already. You'll get the new music for free! And if you have any other ideas for how we can reach our goal more quickly/effectively, let me know!

Much love.

JM

Here We Go

Dan and I have this running joke that it would be great for some fictional character to have the catch phrase "Heere weee go!", which he would shout out dramatically right before anything (good or bad) was about to happen in his life. I picture a George Costanza-type guy for this. The thing we always laugh about is the idea that this guy would be in a dark alley late at night, and see a mugger coming toward him, and instead of running he would just stand there and shout "Heeree weeee go!"

There have been multiple times this past week where I've resisted the urge to adopt the catch phrase. It's so tempting.

So begins the second full week of our campaign to raise $18 thousand dollars. We've already raised $800 and we've got just over thirty days left (31 to be exact), so I'm feeling really good about it. I've had the opportunity to reconnect with so many of you already and I have already been seriously moved by your generosity. I'm really excited to bring this project to fruition with your help.

I'll have more updates and a video for you later this afternoon. We're going into the studio this week to finish vocals - (one of the most important parts of the recording process) - so focus is everything. On that note, gotta get back to it.

Heerree weee....ah. Caught it just in time.

JM

Video # 3

I can't even begin to tell you how grateful I was all week. We're obviously trying to raise a significant amount of money ($18k is nothing to sneeze at), and it's going to take time, but after this week I'm confident we can do it. Again, keep in mind that if every one of you gave only $10, we'd reach our goal instantly. This whole 'fan supported' way of making art is a new concept that a number artists are trying lately, and the whole thing is still an unpaved path in a lot of ways, but I'm glad we're doing it this way, I'm incredibly thankful to have you in my corner, and I believe it'll be more than worth the risk.

The album is coming along really well - laid down some more vocal tracks this week, and came up with a really cool piano part for a new version of providence.

Next week, I'll put together a few more videos that give you a little deeper look into the process, my life in LA, and a better preview of the new music. Thanks again for all your support and have an amazing weekend.

Video # 2

It was a scorcher today in LA, and it got pret-tay hot in the studio. I think the heat went to our heads. I promise I usually know what day it is. This week we've been working on vocals, and the biggest challenge for me is limiting my talking when I'm not in the studio and preserving my voice so I can sing well. As you probably know, the whole concept of 'limiting my talking' is a tough one for me.

Video # 1

In the studio with JM and producer Dan Diaz, July 14, 2010.

WELCOME!

Welcome to the new home of our listener-supported fundraising campaign. For the last few months, I've been living in Los Angeles and working with producer Dan Diaz on a brand new record, and we're getting close to finishing it, but we need your help to get it out to the world. The goal of our campaign is to raise $18,000 by August 18th so we can master, press, and promote the album, as well as many of the other things a record company would do to reach a wider audience. To thank you for your contribution, we've put together a few gifts that you can read about on the right. As an independent artist, it means the world to me to have your support as I take this big step forward, and I'll keep you posted every day with new updates about the album and our progress. Thanks!

Also, here's a sneak preview of a rough track from the new album:

Jakob Martin Booking FAQ

Here are the top 11 most frequently asked questions we get. You can always send an email to Jakob at jakob@jakobmartin.com

1.

Q: I'm interested in booking Jakob Martin to play at my Venue/Event/School/Venue/Party. Does he perform at these?

A: Probably! Jakob performs at a variety of different venues and events.

2.

Q: How much does it cost to book Jakob Martin?

A: It varies. For private events, be prepared to spend at least $1300 plus travel expenses for a solo performance.

3.

Q: That's a little beyond what I have in my budget...

A: If it's an event Jakob is interested in performing at, we can work with you to figure out something that works with your budget.

4.

Q: Does Jakob always perform solo or does he ever play with a band?

A: Jakob typically tours as a solo act, but he does have a backing band available.

5.

Q: Does Jakob always perform his own original music, or does he ever play covers?

A: Typically, Jakob performs only his own original material. For special events (and sometimes by special request), he'll include songs by other artists in his set.

6.

Q: I'm from a club/music venue and we'd like to talk about making Jakob an offer...

A: Send an email to booking@jakobmartin.com and we'll get back to you as soon as possible.

7.

Q: What information do you need from me in order to talk about booking Jakob Martin for an event?

A: You should be prepared to tell us the location, date, time, type of venue, and how long you'd want him to perform for. If this is a private event, be prepared to tell us your budget constraints. If this is a club, be prepared to tell us the deal/split/guarantee you'd be offering.

8.

Q: I'm from a charity and we're putting on a benefit concert. Will Jakob play for free?

A: Jakob donates his time to support varies charities and philanthropies he believes in throughout the year. Let's talk about it! (If the performance requires travel expenses, we may ask you to cover those so Jakob doesn't have to come out of his own pocket.)

9.

Q: Who do I contact about booking?

A: You can send an email to booking@jakobmartin.com.

10.

Q: I'm a reporter looking to interview Jakob. Who should I contact about this?

A: You can reach out to Laura Goldfarb at Red Boot Publicity. Her email address is laura@redbootpublicity.com and you can reach her by phone at 617.407.7284

11.

Q: I'm a fan trying to reach Jakob Martin. How do I do that?

A: You can email jakob@jakobmartin.com - Jakob reads all those personally :)