Mercy ministries...

Ya'll Thursday I had the opportunity to meet some of the staff at Mercy Ministries.  What amazing people!!  I came to know this organization last year when a friend of mine asked me to go to their 25 anniversary night of celebration.  I did.  I have not been able to get Mercy out of my mind since that night.   This is an organization that was started by Nancy Alcorn 26 years ago.  For her story and information about Mercy you can go to http://www.mercyministries.org/. 

They house woman from age 13 to 29 that have depression, have been abused, have drug or alcohol issues, eating disorders, cutters, etc.  They take these woman and show them God's unconditional love.  To take from their information packet, "the structured program that Mercy Ministries provides is designed to develop and foster each girl in the areas of spirituality, emotional and physical well-being, and life-skills." 

A typical day consists of Praise and Worship, class, fitness, counseling, education and study hall.  These girls live in the house for around 6 months until they are ready to graduate.  There are over 600 woman on a waiting list to get into one of their facilities.  If you have time to give or are able to give a financial gift of any kind, again please contact them at www.mercyministries.org/.   Lives are being saved!  The success rate is very high.   Lives are being transformed.  Hope restored.

Peace,
Nicole

Correspondent for "The New York Times" Phil Sweetland...

I met Phil Sweetland last Thursday night at the Listening Room.  He is a correspondent for "The New York Times" and writes for many other music magazines as well.  He caught my show and wanted to help in some way.  Below is a press piece that he just finished: 

Nicole Witt:
Musical Marvel with a Country Soul


By Phil Sweetland
Music and Radio contributor


NASHVILLE – Even the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. couldn't keep Nicole Witt from Country.

The Missouri native was such an accomplished fiddler in high school that when the Kennedy Center invited just one musician from each state to play in the National High School Orchestra, Witt was the one they chose from the entire state of Missouri.

“I was 18 and I was a kid, and just the chill bumps from playing there were incredible,” she says with a smile during a conversation at a restaurant near Music Row.

So she headed to Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music on a violin scholarship – even though fiddle was in fact her second instrument. She’d picked it up at age 8 after already studying piano for two years.


But Nicole missed home, the southwestern Missouri where she grew up as the daughter of a square dancer on the Ozark Mountain Jubilee TV Show, the granddaughter of a fiddler and a pianist, and the niece of a banjoist.

She transferred to the University of Missouri, graduating with a degree in piano. That move also enabled Nicole to move from classical music into Country, Jazz, and Pop. It also allowed her to move into the singer/songwriter realm, just like one of her lifelong heroes – the fellow Mizzou grad Sheryl Crow, now also a Nashvillian.

After Mizzou, she and husband Joel relocated to South Florida where he could pursue his actuarial work. She joined the local NSAI chapter there, and began making occasional trips to Music City.

By now, she was playing both fiddle and piano onstage, writing and singing hooky, edgy Country and Pop songs, and dazzling audiences with her charisma and movie-star looks. A permanent move to Nashville came in April, 1998, the same week a tornado roared through downtown.

EMI Music Publishing quickly recognized her talent, and signed Witt to a songwriting deal. She began meeting and
writing songs with many of the new generation of hot Row writers, including Jamey Johnson, Lee Brice, Steve Leslie, and Anthony Smith.

Doug Johnson, the co-writer of “Three Wooden Crosses” and former president of Giant Records Nashville, soon began producing Nicole.   

 “One day I ran into Mike Curb in the studio. He said, `I love what you do, I love your voice, we need to do this,’ ”
Nicole says. “And the next day, a contract showed up on Doug Johnson’s desk.”

That was May 2007, and suddenly Nicole was a Curb artist, on the same label where Tim McGraw, LeAnn Rimes, and Jo Dee Messina have made Country history. She and Johnson have already recorded her original “Bourbon,” a Radio-friendly power ballad.

Meanwhile, Nicole’s profile as a top Row writer continues to bloom. George Strait’s platinum Troubadour album, the CMA Album of the Year, features “Brothers of the Highway,” a song Nicole wrote about truckers with Kim Williams and Doug Johnson. Witt’s father worked for Roadway Express for more than 30 years.

When Nicole’s Dad, a huge Country fan himself, heard Strait’s recording of Nicole’s song, both father and daughter wept with joy.

Rodney Atkins, Clay Walker, Terri Clark, and Diamond Rio are just a few of the other Row stars who have recorded Witt’s songs.

Nicole, the proud mother of two adorable little girls, is also featured in the new Stone Cold Reality, a program in development about Nashville artists. 

Another highlight is a likely upcoming appearance for U.S. military personnel at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. “That’s like the biggest honor that I can ever imagine,” she says. “For the rest of my life, if anyone asks me to do anything for the military, I will get there as fast as I can get there.”

So this small-town girl with the world-class talent will keep on creating some of Nashville’s most exciting, Radio-friendly music, and keep dazzling audiences all over the world as she does.

Leanne Morgan

Y'all I stopped into Zannies the other night to catch my friend Leanne Morgan.  She is so fabulously funny.  We met in Rosemary Beach at a show this Jan.  She has asked me to open a show for her in Morristown Tn. in August.  What a cool concept mixing music and comedy.  Anyway if you get the chance check her out at myspace.com/leannelaughs or catch her when she come to your town!!

Writing songs, shows and the memphis police...

A. Today was cool! I wrote a song with my friend Jared Blake. This song might see some life very soon. Stay tuned for a possible video and Jared break dancing across America. Coming to a club near you...

B. I am having a blast playing with this band and all of my friends. The band rocks!!!!!!!! This past 6 weeks I have been to Jackson Tn, Atlanta Ga, Tampa, Fl, and Greenwood, MS. I will be in Charlotte NC July 9th, Nashville July 16th, back to Charlotte Aug 14th and to Morristown Tn Aug 21st. I love to write songs BUT there is nothing and I repeat nothing as awesome as singing and feeling the energy and people in a crowd from stage. I love to meet new people, always come up and say hi if you come out to a show!!

C. And finally...my penchant for driving fast. Frankly it's been a bit of a problem my whole life. YES. I admit I have a speeding problem. BUT I was clear and clean now for gosh about 4 years until... Sunday morning. I was driving back from MS rocking along. I was of course talking to my good friend not paying attention to my speed when. SIRENS. Memphis police. I was caught going 83 in a 70. I hung up the phone, my friend Celia told me she would pray that the cop did not give me a ticket. He walked up, asked for my license, and said "I am not gonna give you a ticket only a warning. Slow down." Wow I breathed a sigh of serious relief. Thank God!! I am wondering if my friend Celia has a direct line to the big Man...

Peace,
N

Troubadour Goes Platinum!

Hey everybody, just want to announce that George Strait's album Troubadour, featuring a song I wrote for him called Brothers of the Highway, went platinum this week.

Peace,
N

On the Road Again

This past weekend I played 2 shows in Atlanta at the Swallow at the Hollow.  It's a 4 hour trip from Nashville, not bad at all unless your accelerator in your 99 Pathfinder decides to go out in the left hand lane of highway 75.  We somehow got the car pulled all the way over to the shoulder.  I called triple A and about 45 minutes later Caleb came with his tow truck.  We put four people in the tow truck and started driving literally into the side of a mountain in the East Ridge, Tn.  He said he was gonna take a "Short Cut" to the shop.  When we got there (it seemed like a 47 minute 6 mile drive) Vernon the mechanic fixed our car.  Anyway $820 later we had a brand new distributor.  They were very sweet people at the shop.  They stayed an hour later on a Friday night to accommodate us.  Thank you!!

Randomly while we were waiting we could have done some shopping... there were people selling white tube socks and Elvis paintings on the corner of the street.

There is nothin' you can do in this situation except laugh.  I missed the sound check all together BUT got to Atlanta with enough time to check into the hotel and get to the venue.

On Wednesday we are headed to Tampa!  I can't wait.  This particular trip I am flying the friendly skies.  Probably a good thing...

Peace,
N

Y'all I just started playing guitar about 8 months ago. I am a keyboard and fiddle player and FRANKLY I just got tired of carrying the mother ship (Yamaha Motif keyboard) on all of my gigs. I have a friend of mine that has been teaching me some of my own songs. Now I can not get enough of the guitar. I think I could leave this life as I know it and play a red hot electric guitar in a rock band. Okay...not really 1. I like my life 2. I really don't play guitar well enough yet to leave my bedroom. I'm just a guitar legend in my own mind...

Peace,
N

Today was a very typical day here in Nashvegas. I wrote with my buddy Steve Dean (Watching You for Rodney Atkins). We started a very cool song BUT we also got to hang with miss Tiffany Goss, Shannon Lawson and Eddie Raven. That is what is so great about this town. We just bumped into these people. I had never met Mr. Raven but boy let me tell you the man NEEDS to write a book. Holy cow the stories that were dropping in this short amount of time. He's lived 9 lives!!

I have a Stone Cold Meeting tonight! I am getting so excited about the upcoming tour. It is building steam and we are coming to a city near you soon!!

Peace,
N

I just got back from Key West. I played a really fun show Thursday night with Chris Barron (the lead singer of the Spindoctors) and Bonnie Bishop. I have posted a song or too on Youtube and my myspace page. Check it out!! It was so fun. I got to meet and see a lot of great artists and songwriters. It was 80 degrees plus everyday AND I became "moped girl". I want to buy one now!!

I got in about midnight Saturday night and played a benefit last night for the YMCA. Christa Wells and Billy Montana were on the show with me. They were awesome!! Christa wrote "Held" for Natalie Grant and won songwriter of the year 2006. She is getting ready to embark on an artist career as well. check here out on myspace.

Just flew into Key West last night for he annual BMI function down here. I got to my hotel around 10 put my stuff in the room and ran down to catch the first show which was my good friend Lee Brice with two great singer songwriters Sunny Sweeney and Lucy Silva. It was a fantastic show.

I also met Chris Barron (the lead singer of the Spin Doctors) last night. What an awesome guy!! We are playing a show together tonight at 8pm@The Rum Barrel. Should be awesome. Bonnie Bishop will also be joining us. I can't wait!! It is beautiful here!!

2009 is kicking off to be a great year!! Nicole has a bunch of shows coming up so be sure to check out her tour dates page!

Nicole has two shows this week in Franklin, TN! On Wednesday night the 16th, she will be at Kimbro's and on Thursday night the 17th, you can find her at The Listening Room. She will be in good company at both of these shows performing with Tiffany Goss and Tayla Lynn on Wednesday and Pete Sallis and AJ Masters on Thursday... don't miss these back-to-back nights of great music!

Nicole will be performing at the Bret Michaels After Party Show at Limelight in Nashville on Tuesday night, July 8th!!! Come check it out!!

Nicole just got back from Destin Fl, where she played 2 nights in the BMI, CMA sponsored Hog's Breath shows. It was such a great night! She also just got a chance to hear her cut on Lee Brice's upcoming album. The song is called "Airport Song" Look for it's release late summer early fall.

Nicole's show at BB Kings during CMA Music Fest went great! Later that evening, she also watched her good friend Lee Brice play with Miranda Lambert, Clay Walker and Jack Ingram in an impromptu guitar pull, which was a lot of fun. Nicole is next heading south to Destin on June the 19th to play two shows at the Hog's Breath Friday the 20th and Saturday night the 21st. It's sponsored by BMI and she will be playing with Kylie Sackley, Kyle Jacobs, Joe Leathers, Todd Taylor, Tiffany Goss, Chas Sanford and Seth Jones. Should be a great show!

George Strait's brand new album "Troubadour" featuring Nicole Witt's song "Brothers Of The Highway" debuted at #1 today on the Billboard 200 and the Top Country Albums chart with 166,305 units sold.

ITunes Review: Picking things up, the country rocking "Brothers of the Highway" shifts gears to reveal a newborn trucker's anthem. With it's boot stomping roadhouse rhythms, easy-on-the-ears vocals, driving guitar lines and a chorus that triumphantly says, "Sailing for the setting sun/Freedom's your best friend/Brothers of the Highway/Children of the Wind," its surprising that "I Saw God Today" was chosen to be the first single off Troubadour instead.

Nicole's dad worked for Roadway Express for 32 years...you can bet he's a little excited!

George Strait will release "Troubadour" on April 1, 2008. It features Nicole's song "Brothers of the Highway!"

My song "Bourbon" is featured on the website Single of the Day! Check it out and leave your comments...

And thanks for visiting the site!

And if you're a George Strait fan, make sure to check out his new album; George recorded my song "Brothers of the Highway" and it's due out soon.

I've also picked up a killer Yamaha endorsement this year, and I'll be appearing in their "All Access" magazine in winter 2008. So, it looks like this year is off to a great start and thanks again for visiting.