Lena and I awoke only a few hours after we had gone to bed. We should have been far more tired than we were. It gave me hope than when it’s go time, I can pull out the stops against all odds. I think that only applies to passion, because if it was daycare (no offense my beloved children), 2 hours of sleep would have warranted a call in sick. To my great surprise and eventual relief, Ciro, the narcoleptic, (and also incredibly sleep deprived) decided to come along for the trip. His managerial spirit wouldn’t let us go on TV without his support. We were supposed to meet my parents at 7:15am at the train station, but we soon accepted that with our lack of knowledge and experience in this city with this transit system, we weren’t going to make it. $160 later, the taxi driver thanked us for serenading him with strange vocal warm ups and 2 rounds of Cannonball and we exited the vehicle.

 

CHCH is the local tv news station for Hamilton, Ontario. Thanks to our publicist from HYPE MUSIC, Paula, we landed a quick interview here equipped with a live performance. Because we hadn’t eaten or slept much, I felt absent of life sitting in the green room while we waited for our Hamilton debut. It wasn’t long before we were led into the studio. The staff were all extremely friendly and made it easy to slip back into livelier state. I mixed up the first few lines of the Cannonball but if you didn’t know the song I don’t think you could tell, minus an exchange of smiles between Lena and I that inferred something fishy may have just gone on. All in all, I believe it was a success. They liked us very much, and we even saw a rise in social media following within an hour. Ciro put a free download of Cannonball on NoiseTrade and you can track the people who download by country and email. Good work, Ciro! The surge of adrenaline from having to be “on” got me through the trek back to the bus station.

 

Upon arrival back at the apartment, Ciro and I had a 3 hour nap. OH YEAH! Finally, some recovery. It was nice to have an afternoon to relax and get organized before any official Indie Week business had begun. The boys had a good sleep in. Lena was the only one whose excitement overruled her fatigue. I don’t know what she did for those 3 hours but I was enjoying a peaceful slumber. Dinner time was approaching so we all got dressed up and hit the town. We found a DELICOIUS Italian place called Lo Zingaro Ristorante Pizzeria. I thought the waitress was making eyes at Ciro. I didn’t like that. I felt protective over dinner but other than that I really enjoyed my pasta. Can I really blame her, though? Look at him. Mamma mia, what a beautiful face, you know?

 

We all pulled out our little packets of money that I divvied up from the fund raising pot (THANK YOU FOR DINNER!) and paid our bills. Just across the street was the location for what was about to be one hell of a night. The Indie Week Launch Party was held at a venue called The Hideout. There, we registered our band, received our lanyards, admission bracelets and goodie bags. In the bags were flyers and a Jack Daniels hat. Some bands paid money to have a flier of theirs put in the bags. Some bands paid to have advertisements in the program guide for the week. Smart idea. I considered it, but didn’t follow through. I like how it makes a band stand out in the sea, though. I’ll definitely do it next time.

Networking time! There was a line up of bands at the Hideout that night, and my personal favourite was a hard rock band from Calgary called Frankie McQueen. Normally I don’t gravitate towards heavy music like that but the lead singer kind of reminded me of Brett Dennen. We made friends after the show. Networking success #1. All it takes are a little bit of guts and an ounce of charm to make a new friend. I have heard many times, this is a handshake business. It’s about making connections, and face to face is always better than meeting online. Although social media can help bridge gaps where face to face isn’t a possibility, and for that I am grateful.

 

The Headless Bettys boozed and schmoozed. They rocked the Hideout that night with their winning personalities. I have to say, Lena, Caleb, and Brent are some of the loveliest people I know. They are all super nice, have beautiful open, kind hearts, and killed it at networking. When one person got tired, there was always someone else out there representing the band with smiles and authentic charm.

 

There is another key piece to this puzzle that held this animal together. Ciro. Merchandise and acting band manager. Ciro has a passion and talent for business and art. He also has a long history of professional education in these areas. He has been able to combine these things and apply them to helping out this band, which I can only humbly thank the universe for with complete awe and gratitude. Ciro has spent countless hours and sleepless nights making T-shirts, mugs, handbags, flyers, web accounts, etc to create a successful merchandise business for myself and the band. He has also devoted his time to being the point of communication with our publicist, and researched marketing strategies that he educates and motivates us with. When we go to events such as the Indie Week Launch Party, you will find him sitting in a booth, guarding all our bags and gear, while working tirelessly on his computer doing publicity and marketing work for us. That night, for example, he was working on the NoiseTrade project.

After a few hours, a headache came on and I knew it was time for me to go. Ciro and I packed up and cabbed back to the apartment. The Bettys stayed and had an adventurous evening to say the least. Caleb made sure no one had a shortage of drinks, while Brent orchestrated an epic bass conversation with Frankie McQueen’s stoic bass player. Ciro instructed all of us at the beginning of the night to infest the Hideout with questions for his marketing research. How do you get people out to your shows? What’s a smart way to sell tickets? What does touring look like for you? Lena met a VIP in the bathroom during one of her many trips there.  They all schmoozed hard and danced hard – without earplugs. As a result they all complained of sore necks and deaf ears the next morning. A lesson for all you children out there. Invest in earplugs! A couple bucks goes a long way…as do a few drinks. Brent made an impression on the streets of Toronto. I heard he was out of control on the walk home, kicking paper bags and running up to signs, threatening to put his hands on them. Don’t worry, he was punished. He also woke up with a sore neck and aching ears.

Goodnight, Toronto. Great to meet you.