Mission Man News

I'm back to using the news feature again.  This time, you can give feedback on the news using my Facebook feedback on the right!  I've completely overhauled the website, and this is by far the most content rich it has ever been, and I've added quite a bit of video in addition to more interaction.  I'm currently running a song tournament.  Just click on the music button in the navigation to find it.  I am focusing my performing efforts on Dayton and Cincy for the next few months to try to build a strong following nearby.  I'm doing a lot of open mikes to do this, and currently if I'm off on a Monday, I go to Southgate House in Newport, KY, MOTR Pub Tuesdays in Cincy, South Park Tavern in Dayton on Wednesdays, and Blind Bob's Thursdays (unless they have full bands).  I post the open mikes on my calendar, so check back on Mondays to see where I'm playing.  

I'm currently redesigning MissionMan.net from scratch. I hope to make it as dynamic and interactive as possible, giving you fresh information as quickly as possible.

I want to give a special thank you to the Toledo City Paper for the article they ran on me this week. If you want to read it, go here. Thanks again TCP!

This video is from Friday's show at Mickey Finn's Pub in Toledo. It's my first time performing "Do What You Love" during a full show, and only the third time I've performed it ever.

I'm getting really excited about going on tour!  It will start in about 9 weeks, and I decided to pick up my car from Florida, so I'll be filling in as many shows between now and April as possible.  I will be doing a combination of open mics and full shows, with the goal to be performing every night.  I AM QUTTING MY JOB, SO I NEED TO SELL MUSIC in order to eat, get to my next shows, etc.  Honestly, I'll be cutting down on expenses so much by being homeless (not paying rent), that I only need to make about $200 per week, but that requires your help.  You can find my music on iTunes or CDBaby.com. If you download "The Best of Mission Man" from CDBaby, I keep 91 percent, so that is definitely the best way to support me financially.  I really appreciate all of you for helping my dreams come true. 
Do what you love!
- Mission Man

The Best of Mission Man is now available on iTunes! It includes 5 new songs, from the album I'm currently working on, "31 Hours Til What?" in addition to 16 songs from previous albums, including "Chillin' at the Papa," "Playin' a Little Basketball," "Prime Time Players," and more.

I am excited to say that I have relaunched Underground Music Monthly! It is now located at UndergroundMusicMonthly.com I gave it an asp face lift to improve the organization and consistency, and am working on adding new information all of the time now. If you are a musician, you should definitely check out the site.

I sold my first CD tonight towards Playing For a Cure 2008. God it feels so great! The first sale, the first score in a game, the first radio play, is usually very difficult. Tonight, I made that first sale. I performed at the open mic at the Tonic Room, and just before I left, a guy named Mike bought "Intro To My Mind" for $5. I was trying to sell my CDs for $7 each, or $10 for both, but I took $5 because I'd rather raise $5 for cancer research than nothing. Thank you Mike, if you ever read this, for buying that first CD. I really appreciate it.

It definitely started a little momentum, as on the train ride home, I sold another CD. I sat down, and had a box of CDs in my hands. The woman across from me asked "are you selling CDs?" I said yes, and we had a two minute conversation before she bought a CD from me. She also said "if you're not good, I'll see you again, and I'll tell you." Random. I love it. That's $10 I raised tonight towards cancer research. A great start. I'm so happy right now.
Love,
Gary

Normally, Playing For a Cure would be coming up right now. I have been putting on the benefit concert every September from 2004 until 2007. This year, with moving to Chicago, the logistics became unfavorable for a successful event, so I've been thinking of what to do this year instead. At first, I thought I'd build up my Chicago following and have the event in April instead. Friday, while watching the Stand Up to Cancer benefit, I decided to take an online approach. For the rest of the month of September, and all of October, all of my sales will be donated to cancer research. 1/2 will go to the American Cancer Society. The other half will go to Stand Up 2 Cancer. I won't reimburse myself for marketing expenses, and I'll even eat the cost on the CDs themselves. 100 percent of my gross sales will be evenly split between the ACS and SU2C. I hope you take advantage of this, as I would love to raise some money for both organizations and help eradicate cancer off the face of the planet. You can buy the CDs at CDBaby.com. Simply search for Mission Man, or you can download my mp3s there. Since I get 91 percent of the sale when you download my mp3s from CDBaby, this will allow me to generate the most money for cancer research. All of my iTunes sales will be donated as well, but I only get 63 cents on the dollar for those sales, so this is the least effective way to donate money to cancer research while getting my music at the same time.

I just moved here last night. I love my new city, my new apartment, and my life. I had a fantastic time at the Tonic Room open mic tonight and I will be back next Monday, and every Monday thereafter for a while. One of the biggest reasons I made the move to Chicago is the music scene here. I can constantly perform, and that will help in so many ways.

I posted this on my music page a while back, but I thought I would post it here as well. I am officially moving to Chicago on July 6th. I've been thinking about doing it for years. Every time I've gone there, the city has called to me. I love being there, and I'm really excited about moving there. I don't have a job yet, so obviously that's not the motivation for going. I simply found a great roommate/living situation, and I can't pass up the opportunity. I believe I'll grow as a person, as part of me is scared out of my mind to go. A bigger part of me is more scared to stay in Oxford, a wonderful, beautiful town that I finally recently became proud to call home, with no opportunities, for music or a job. It's an easy place to stay because it's safe, in so many aspects, but I need to take this step, and I'm glad that I am.

When I first made the decision, I was so anxious about moving that I was easily frustrated by every day annoyances, such as rude customers, bad traffic, bills, etc. I did lose sight temporarily of the fact that I still have a life here. A life that I love, and will miss in some ways. I am going from something great to something even better. I'm going there to experience new things, grow, and perform as much as possible. Of course, I'll have to get a job (because I'm not currently making any money from music), but that's a part of life I've had no problem with since I was 15. I am celebrating the move by giving you a big sale on my music. I believe this will be the biggest sale I'll ever have. From now until my first week in Chicago, you can download any of the following albums "Intro To My Mind" "Out Of The Shadows" "A Different Kid" or "Indiependent" for just $1, or get the Complete Mission Man Collection for just $5 from CDBaby.com.

I don't know when I decided to start pursuing being happy over being successful, but that is officially my philosophy. I've seen successful people be miserable, and people with less money and status than I have be immensely happy. Why worry about the intermediate step of success when it doesn't necessarily mean I'll be happy? I won't lose sight of that when I move. Until I move, I will be happy. After I move, I will remain the same, even if I can only find a job working retail, or *gasp* transferring to the Papa John's 6 miles from my apartment in Chicago. :)

I have signed up for VIRB. I love the way they are designed, and I love the fact that they don't have ads everywhere. Check out Virb.com/missionman and let me know if there's anything else up there you'd like to see. There are 15 songs on my music player there as well, and a very well organized discography, photos, and my latest video.

I had ChicagoMusicPromotions.com professionally video tape my show in Chicago on March 19th, and I'm happy to announce that the first video from that show is up. It's for Chillin' at the Papa. The video and sound quality are outstanding! More video to come soon!

I want to thank the Illinois Entertainer for giving Chicago a preview of my music before I head up to the Elbo Room on Wednesday. It's certainly not a glowing recommendation, but I truly appreciate the honest opinion offered by Trevor Fisher. I'm obviously not perfect, as a person, or a musician, and I can always improve. You can find the preview by clicking here. Thanks again Trevor, and the Illinois Entertainer. Hopefully I'll see a few of you in Chicago.

I'm really excited about playing the Elbo Room in Chicago on Wednesday, March 19th. Every time I go to Chicago, I think about moving there, and I'm strongly considering moving there in the fall as it is. It's a decision primarily based in the fact that I love the city, and that I think it's a great choice for furthering my musical career. I love my hometown of Oxford, OH but I think it's time to be moving on. If you're in the windy city, I hope you can make it out to the show. Details are on my calendar page. Oh, and you can still download "Indiependent" for $1 in promotion of this show, and you can download the "Complete Mission Man Collection" (121 mp3s) for just $5. Both at CDBaby.com!

In addition to performing for free at Balcony in Oxford on my birthday, from 9-9:45 pm, I have decided to give you the best deal I'll ever offer on my music. You can download any full length Mission Man album for just $1 from CDBaby.com. Go to CDBaby and search for "Mission Man." Every album I have there will be just $1 through my birthday, on January 19th. The Complete Collection (which is 7+ albums of music, 121 mp3s) will be just $5. Thank you to everyone for making my life so much fun, and for listening to my music.

I turn 29 on January 19th, 2008, and in celebration of the final year of my 20s (and the fact that I get an extra day, February 29th, because of the leap year), I will be having an amazing sale for one day only! You will be able to download any of my albums from CDBaby for just $1! Yes, an entire album for $1! It's my birthday present to you. The Complete Mission Man Collection will be the only exception. Since it's 7 albums in one (plus 3 songs from "Indiependent" and a few live recordings), it will be $5. Click here to download all of "Indiependent" (14 mp3s) for just $1 on January 19th!, Click here on 1-19-08 to download the entire album "Intro To My Mind" (13 mp3s) for just $1, or Click here to download The Complete Mission Man Collection (121 mp3s) for just $5!

I hope you are having a wonderful holiday season, and that you're looking forward to 2008 as much as I am!
With love,
Mission Man

I just confirmed my birthday party show tonight. It will be on my birthday, January 19th, 2008, at the Balcony in Oxford, from 9-10 pm. It will probably be a free show, as it's just for fun. Come join me on my birthday!

In an ongoing effort to make missionman.net better all of the time, I have now added a java based music player to my website. It took a bit of effort, and about 2 hours to figure it all out, but it's up now, and I love it. You can launch it in a separate window if you want to listen to the songs while you browse, or you can hang out on the main page, and still find a bunch of information very quickly. Thanks for listening! I've also added a youTube video jukebox, so you can easily watch all of my live video performances from the same player. It's like having a little TV, with your mouse being the remote control! Thanks for watching!

I have been doing a lot of work to my website and myspace pages the past couple of days. I've made it easier to find my music on myspace, both for free download, and to buy from iTunes and CDBaby.com. I've always changed the layout of my index page here on missionman.net so that you don't have to scroll down as far to find what you're looking for. I also have some new pictures up, courtesy of R.C. Reeves photography in Columbus, from the Skully's show.

Columbus, OH has been blessing me very much lately. First, I had the wonderful opportunity to be on Dave and Jimmy's morning show, (http://www.daveandjimmy.com), and last night, I had the opportunity to open for Gil Mantera's Party Dream (http://www.partydream.com/) at Skully's Pub (http://www.skullys.org). The crowd was huge, and I must have played for 70-100 people! I definitely had some great love from the crowd, too. Specifically, I want to thank Jeff, Sarah, Emily, Heather, and the guy (I didn't get his name) who saw me at Scarlet and Grey Cafe back in the day for the positive reinforcement. I definitely want to thank the couple who heard me on the morning zoo, and bought a CD! I sold 3 last night, which is wonderful! I need to thank Nate for making it out to the show. I remember having many conversations in the parking lot of my apartment building with that guy. He's moved to Columbus, and it was great to see a familiar face in the crowd. Finally, I need to thank Skully's, Gil Mantera, and Angelo for giving me this wonderful opportunity, and Sean for running sound so well.

Thank you to everyone who came out and had a great time with me! Thank you Brainbow http://www.myspace.com/brainbowband for keeping the crowd going. I'm glad the fans come out early and stayed throughout for this one. As a musician, I REALLY appreciate that.

With love and appreciation,
Me

Yes, it's only October, but I want to hit the road for at least 2 months, and I need to do some serious planning for the tour. My basic plan right now is to hit up a few local/regional shows, and some open mics in the area to build up my local following. I also need to save some money. I want to have $2,000 at least when I start my tour in July. That means I have to cut down on shows between now and then. In order to do a show between now and then, I need to make sure I can cover the costs of gas, food, missing work, etc. Generally, I need 2-3 months in advance to book a show, and we're heading into the winter season. Thankfully, I've started recording again, and that means I'll be focusing on the new album, "31" for the next several months.

In the spring, I do plan on taking a week to hit Chicago, Indianapolis, Dayton (OH), Toledo, and possibly Columbus, Athens (OH) and/or Cincy as a warm up. I want 4-5 full shows and 2-3 open mics in that 9 day period in March.

In July, I plan on starting the tour in my hometown of Oxford, OH, probably heading to Indy, St. Louis, and Chicago first, then making my way east through Toledo, Cleveland, upstate New York, Vermont, then back to NYC (probably 3-4 open mics to supplement a full show), onto Connecticut, Philly, Pittsburgh, Akron, Kent, Columbus, Dayton, Cincy, and going from there. I need as much help as I can get in order to book a successful show. If any bands are interested, email me, or contact me at myspace.com/missionman. I want to do this right, so I need some real coordination with the bands I'll be working with. My strongest followings will likely be in Oxford, Dayton, Columbus, Toledo, and Chicago come tour time. If I can cover my expenses, I can find ways to extend the tour 6 months, but it needs to start strong, and keep building momentum.

I feel like summer is the perfect time to do this since weekday shows are better attended, as people aren't in school, and tend to have a more relaxed work environment.

If you want me to come to your city, definitely tell me as well. I'd be glad to hook you up with some demos, flyers, etc to help spread the word about my shows. I'll need some big time help to make this tour a success.

I love you all, and I'm excited about 2008's potential!

There's much more on this on Playing For a Cure's page

I want to give a special thanks to the Oxford Press for running a wonderful article on Playing For a Cure. I really appreciate Lauren and the rest of the staff at the Press for covering the event. Thank you so much! Playing For a Cure is now just 12 days away, and I'm extremely excited! This show will be truly special. Thank you to every wonderful person who has helped me promote this show! Thank you to Justin Wagner, Ryan Troescher, Jason Gentile, the Balcony, the Miami Student, the Amusement, Jackie P, and so many more! I have so much energy ready for this show, and I can't wait to debut "Young Guy With Hopes" along with having a good crowd to see what kind of response "Ugly Child" gets. Of course I'll be performing Chillin at the Papa, Playin' a Little Basketball, and the other "hits" as well. See you a week from Saturday, I hope. If you're out of town, I'm hoping for a big tour in the summer, and I want to play Chicago, Dayton, Columbus, Athens, Toledo, and more between now and March. With much love!,
Gary

I'm really excited about booking Playing For a Cure again. It's taking place at the Balcony in Oxford, OH on Saturday, September 29th, from 6 pm - 10 pm. I'll be playing last probably around 8:45 pm, and there will be some acoustic local acts, and a local band. All proceeds will go to cancer research. It will likely be a split between the American Cancer Society and the Susan G Komen foundation this year. Both do a lot for the fight against cancer. If you can help get involved, email me. Anything any of you can do to help promote the event is greatly appreciated, and I thank you in advance for your help.

I've spent a lot of time recently analyzing my life. It's been quite chaotic. I started Miami University at 16, and finished at 23 with my first Bachelor's. I'm now 28 and working on a second. I've slept in a closet (for 4 months), in a van (8 days or so out of 17 on tour), on one of those little foam mattresses that look like egg cartons, on many many floors, in a Mustang (when the low was 75 degrees during my very brief homeless stint - ironically enough I had two jobs while I was homeless), and of course on an airport floor. I worked full time while going to school full time. I've performed in Vermont, New York City, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, 9 cities in Ohio, Jacksonville (FL), and many places in between. Most recently, I tried to open my own business. It was an LLC with a partner. When our primary location fell through (along with many other obstacles), my business sense said it was too risky and we should wait until next summer. When I told my partner I was pulling out, he threatened to sue me. I won't get into any more details than that, but I cannot go into business with someone who threatens to sue me even before we have funding. I seriously thought about moving to Chicago if the business were to not open. It's still there as a possibility, but right now I really just want to have a normal life for a while. I'm learning to cook, and I'm trying to keep enough free time to play video games, record music, perform, and date. I'm much more available than I was before, and with every major source of stress now gone, I am tranquil. The pond is no longer being bombarded by rocks of varying sizes. The ripples now are of my own design again. I have started recording again. I recorded the bass and piano for "Ugly Child" yesterday, and hopefully I will get my electric drumset back tonight so I can record the drums for it as well. I'm very happy with the song so far, and will post it for listening once it's ready. I won't be throwing myself completely at making music my career. For now, I'm going to perform locally, and gradually expand again. I'm hoping to perform in Oxford, Dayton, Cincinnati, Columbus, Indianapolis, Athens (OH), Toledo, and Chicago this fall.

It's very nice to be back. It's much sooner than I expected, but I've found what I've needed to find, and now that I feel peaceful I can get back to being myself completely. See you soon.
With love and tranquility,
Gary

Last night, June 9th, in Toledo, was my last show for a while. There's an outside chance I'll play NYC at the end of July, but other than that, I don't see any upcoming performances any time soon, except the occasional open mic in Oxford. I'm opening my own business, and I'll be heavily focused on that. Don't worry, I'm not done. I just need a different approach. I need something fresh because delivering pizzas while making music has not worked. I'm done trying to make music my career (at least for the next two years or so) but I am not done making it, and I believe I will tour again. Thank you all for the memories. January of 2005 at the Hole in The Wall will live in infamy in my mind. So will February 4, 2005 when I made my New York City debut, and my Jacksonville, FL debut. The 16 days in a minivan was one of the best experiences of my life, even if I barely made it home after being overdrawn by $350. There are countless people that I'm so happy I met, all over the country. I can't name names because I'd need to list hundreds of people that have been absolutely wonderful. Thank you all so much. In the meantime, enjoy my music.

I have made "Intro To My Mind," "Indiependent," "Out of the Shadows" and "A Different Kid" just $5 each when you buy any two of them from CDBaby.com. It's my "see ya later" gift to you.

I'm running a new contest, and I'm trying to sell 100 CDs in 30 days (by May 15th, 2007). I'll take a large portion of the sales and buy prizes to give away, including t-shirts, CD, stickers, hats, and anything else you come up with. Full details are at myspace.com/missionman.

I'm going through probably the most personally trying time of my life. It's made it basically impossible to book shows, but I'll get through it. I'll be stronger when I come out of the other side, and I will make music that's been buried so deep inside of me that I haven't been ready for it before. I don't know when this will all go down, but I can feel the dormant passion ready to explode and overwhelm me.

In the meantime, my last confirmed performance is at Casa Cantina's open mic on Wednesday, April 4th. After that, we'll see. I promise to give even more passion and energy on stage than before when my metamorphosis is complete.

I found out last night that Stadium's open mic will not exist on February 21st, 28th, or March 7th, so that they can have Battle of the Bands. I've tried to be a part of BOTB there in the past, but since I'm a solo artist, not a band, they wouldn't let me compete. So, that means next Wednesday, February 14th, will be my last Stadium open mic until March 21st. Hope to see you there.

I've added a frequently asked questions page. I'll try to keep it updated with new questions as much as possible, and will make it easier to get to from the navigation. I hope to see you at open mic, or hopefully a full show, soon.

So, 2007 is here, and I haven't had a full show yet this year, nor do I have one scheduled. I will, though, and soon. Also, there's only one grad school I'm very likely to be applying to, and that's Miami U. What can I say? I like Oxford. What that means is that I'll be pursuing music for at least another 16 months, because I will continue to pursue it during grad school if I'm in Oxford, and if I'm not in grad school I'll definitely be pursuing it. I plan on having a lot of fun, and I hope you have it with me. I'll be giving away tons of demos, and playing a bunch of open mics, and hopefully a decent amount of full shows.

Let me know if there's anything you'd like to see from me, such as t-shirts, where to play, video, etc. What do you want? Just email missionman @ missionman.net and let me know.

My show in Cincy went really well last night, so I will be coming back, and I'll be coming on strong. I'll be giving away at least 1,000 demos in the coming months, to bring people out to shows and get my career going. If you have a demo, burn it for your friends. Help spread the word anyway you can. Also, I'll be getting some new video up on YouTube soon, so keep an eye out for that.

Thank you Cincinnati!

My Toledo and Chicago shows were successful, and I'm going back to Toledo on Thursday, Dec. 28th. My (last?) Cincy show is confirmed for Tuesday, Dec. 26th. I need a strong turnout for this one, or my days playing in the Nati will be over. I'm applying to grad schools for the fall, and I need to find places to be successful musically so I can continue the dream, instead of going to school. Cincy hasn't brought me much turnout (a combined draw of 10 people over the last 5 shows there), so this is my last chance to shine there. I think 20 people is the magic number. If 20 of you make it to my Cincy show at the Mad Frog the day after Christmas, then I should be able to book the Mad Frog again, and put some serious effort and energy into building up Cincy to be a wonderful place to play.

To all of my fans, I love you. I hope you have a wonderful holiday season, whether it's Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa, or anything else I don't know about. The New Year will bring great things, I believe, for myself, and for all of you. Keep living your life, and being yourself.

The Cincinnati date has been changed, and is tentatively Dec. 27th, thought it may change to Dec 26th. The "tentative" will be removed when the date is confirmed.

I got back from tour about a week ago, and will be back in Cincy, Michigan, and Chicago next week. The whole trip was an unbelievable experience, and very soon I'll have details. I kept a notebook of my daily events, and I think it will be a very educational experience for all of you to share the journey.

I hate to do this, but I have to cancel my Cleveland show. I bought a 97 Olds Cutlass 12 days ago, and the transmission went out on it last night on the way home from Cincinnati. I am now carless, and the financial results of tonight's show at Balcony were not strong enough to make renting a car to go to Cleveland possible. I don't expect to cancel any other shows, but this one was falling apart already, as my opening band had their drummer quit a few weeks ago.

The tour is starting to come along a bit more. Cleveland, Dayton, and Columbus Ohio are booked. As are Chicago and Boston! I am performing with the very talented singer Cassandra Kubinski on November 9th at the Sky Bar in Boston.

All of the artwork for "Indiependent" has been submitted, and the proofs are approved. I will receive the audio master tomorrow and will likely approve it tomorrow as well. I am incredibly happy with the way it sounds, and am very excited about the release!

This is a real rarity because this site is all things Mission Man, but Kevin Smith movies have been a huge part of my life, and Clerks 2 is no exception. The movie is incredible! I had to work opening night, but I saw it the next day, and the day after that (yesterday). I'll likely see it again tonight, and I'll definitely buy the DVD the day it comes out. The biggest connection this movie makes with me is that you should do what makes you happy. That's how I live my life. That's why I make music; it's what I'm passionate about. It's what I love. I don't want to get some corporate job and make a bunch of money doing something I don't believe in. Happiness is worth much more than $50,000 a year. I put up a blog about this at myspace.com/missionman. Feel free to reply there. The movie is also in my top 16 friends, so you can easily find their myspace page.

Thank you Kevin Smith, for maintaining your creative freedom and making such an incredible film.

MissionMan.net has undergone a major renovation. If you haven't seen this site since July 5th or so, it should look amazingly different. The latest news entry will show up on the main page now, as will the basic show date details. I'm working on improving my myspace page to be quicker and easier to use with an automatically updated calendar as I book shows through onlinegigs.com. I'm working on booking my national tour, and so far I have Cleveland, Dayton, and Columbus, Ohio booked. I'm working on states ranging from Minnesota to Florida to Vermont. Let me know if you want me to come to your town, and where I should play.

"Indiependent" is now up to 32 minutes on 7 songs, and I am still very happy with every song. My latest song, "When I Find You" is my first love song in 7 or 8 years (since "Delve Deeper" I believe), and will probably be my last love song, so I really laid it all out there. I've listened to it probably 15 times in the last 12 hours (8 of those hours were spent sleeping). It's up at http://www.myspace.com/missionman
The CD is still slated for a 10-10 release date.

I'm very excited about my birthday this Thursday as well, with a 30-40 minute set at the Balcony in Oxford at 10 pm, and a preshow party at Dave & Buster's near the Tri-County mall from 4-8 pm.

The Complete Mission Man Collection will be given away on Bearcast Radio Monday, January 9th, 2006 from 10 pm - midnight. You can listen online at http://www.bearcast.uc.edu/

I just finished recording "Straight-Edged" yesterday for the upcoming album "Indiependent." You can currently hear Straight-Edged as well as My Heroes and Ready For Tomorrow at myspace.com/missionman.

I released the Complete Mission Man Collection on Monday, November 7th, 2005. 121 mp3s and more for just $16 at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/missionman4/

I quit my job and now make music full-time!

Playing For a Cure raised $250 for the American Cancer Society!

I'm quitting my job to make music. Deep breath. It's scary because it might not work, but I need to take that big risk now. October 19th will be my last day at Papa John's, and I want to keep it that way. Thank you everyone for giving me the confidence to make this leap. I have to disbelieve in gravity or I'll certainly fall trying. There are a ton of reasons why the timing is right. The biggest is that I should be able to make it a month without working if I am careful with my money, even if I don't make anything from music.

The next biggest is that I have a show in Dayton on October 20th. I'm really going to try to fill that weekend with a Friday show in Cincinnati/Athens and a Saturday show in Oxford/Athens. Wish me luck and pray that gravity is suspended that day.

Playing For a Cure is September 17th at Balcony in Oxford from 4 pm - 10 pm. Yes, I'm saying it over and over again. It's the most important event of the year for me because of the tremendous personal meaning involved. Last year's event was held on the 10 year anniversary of when my mom passed away. This year is the 2nd annual event. Details can be found at missionman.net/PlayingForACure/2005.htm

I'm still planning on touring a lot more in the fall, and hopefully going on a national tour in December or January.

I've won on UC Bearcast Radio's Local Combat Zone 4 weeks in a row, and tonight, August 2nd, 2005, I'll be there live to answer questions and unveil the new song, "Ready For Tomorrow."

Thank you all so much for everything. If you're reading this, then you're a big fan, and I really appreciate your support.

Oh, one last thing, this month, CDBaby is having a contest to get onto a sampler CD. The top 100 artists get put onto 5,000 CDs. Numbers 1-10 as a track playable in any CD player. 11-100 as mp3s for people to listen to on their computers, IPods, etc. If you've ever thought about buying a Mission Man CD for $5, this would be the month to do it.

There is now a calendar summary embedded in the homepage, so you can quickly see if/when I'm coming to your city. You can get full details on the calendar page, but I wanted to make things quick and convenient for you.

I've given up on the guestbook. It became a haven for anonymous haters. Hopefully they'll find something more productive to do with their time. I may bring it back someday, but not for a while. For now, you can interact with me at myspace.com/missionman. I have some blogs there, and if you are a "friend" you can post comments.

I have posted the story and lyrics to "There Was A Man" on April 8th. Also, I put a new song up called "I Need The Mic" and have a couple of songs currently available exclusively to mailing list members, "My Heroes" and "Glimpse of a Dream." I'll be performing all of them during my nearly three hour show at Hole in the Wall tomorrow.

Thank you for making my life wonderful lately. I love having a good time with you guys at my shows. Download my music and give it away. Seriously, I want it out there. :)

I've cleaned up and cleaned out the guestbook. It has a few filters on it now which will cut down on the disgusting and profane comments. So, start using it and turn it into a fan forum.

Also, I've added a music link to the top of the main page to make it quicker and easier to get to the free downloads you want.

I've finished putting up the lyrics for all of "Intro To My Mind." There are three songs which I won't post the lyrics; "Stay Real," "Mother" and "Is There A God?" The reasons for all three songs are different, and are explained on the "Intro To My Mind" page.

I want to play some more cities in April, so if you're in a city I'm not currently performing in, let me know where you are and if you know of a club I can play at and I'll do my best to get there. The closer to Ohio, the sooner I'll be able to get there, but I want to do a full USA tour within the next 6 months to a year, and hopefully make it to Europe in that timeframe as well.

I have started a stories section now. There is a link to it from the top of the page. As of right now, the only story is about "Wonder What I'd Be" but it is very in depth, and should make you understand the song and my life better.

Other news, I'm down to having only 3 black t-shirts, all large, and no white t-shirts. Hopefully I'll get some more ordered in March, and I'll let you know when I do.

Just some back news, the mini tour was a lot of fun. You can read about it by clicking on the road trips link from the main page.

T-shirts are in! They look fantastic! I've seen the logo hundreds of times now, but it has a new life on the t-shirts. I was going to sell them for $15 at my shows, but they ended up being $1.50 less each to make than I expected, so they'll be $12 (yes a $1.50 drop in cost caused a $3 drop in selling price, which means a lower profit per shirt for me, but it's worth it so you can get them cheaper). Stickers are also in; they came in about a week ago. I'll be giving those away free while supplies last... then I'll order some more so I can give those away too. :)

Another word about t-shirts. I will be randomly giving some away from time to time at shows, and to mailing list members. So if you want a chance at a free one, join the mailing list, or come out and see me perform. I currently have white t-shirts and black t-shirts. The white are available s-XXL, and the black in L and XL (until tomorrow, then I'll have s-XXL in black as well). I may extend to XXXL in the next order if people let me know they need them.

Well, I decided to sign up for a myspace.com account. Go to myspace.com/missionman. I have posted a couple of blogs on there already, so feel free to respond. I should have much more control there, and I think it is the best solution for the guestbook problem. I hope you guys enjoy it.

Also, I haven't recorded anything since I finished recording "Antis Trype." However, I'm beginning to write, and I'll probably be doing some collaborations soon. When I record my next song, I'm going to make it available exclusively to mailing list members for free download. So, if you haven't joined the mailing list yet, please do so to be one of the first to get free new music.

There will be other benefits to being a mailing list member as soon as I come up with ideas. I'm thinking I'll probably do a t-shirt drawing when I get Mission Man shirts made (hopefully in February, probably in March). For now, I still just have the Playing For A Cure t-shirts, which I'll probably giveaway randomly during shows (that is, starting this Friday at Hole In The Wall, if there's a crowd there paying attention, I'll throw some shirts into the crowd while performing).

Well, just a few days after confirming my birthday bash, I've confirmed my first full show in Oxford. I'll be at Hole In The Wall (yes it's reopened, and is next to the alley by the big clock if you are unfamiliar with it) on Friday January 28th. It will be $2 if you are over 21, and $3 if you are under. Since I'm doing some full shows now, this Wednesday (my birthday bash) will likely be my last open mic night. I'm elated that I get to finally give you guys a full show instead of just 2 or 3 songs at a time. Thank you all so much for making Wednesdays wonderful (and every other day too), and I hope to see you on my birthday and at Hole In The Wall on the 28th.

I just confirmed my birthday bash at Stadium. I'll be performing from 9 pm to 10 pm, and then partying with everyone after that. That's Wednesday, January 19th. Also, the artwork isn't done yet for "Antis Trype," so there will be a delay in releasing it.

The big news is that I finished recording "Antis Trype" yesterday. The songs and lyrics are available, but the CD is not ready for release yet, as I'm waiting on the artwork, but I still expect a January 18th release date. I recorded studio versions of Chillin' at the Papa and You Gotta Want It, so you may want to check those out. If you want something deeply personal, try "Wonder What I'd Be."

I can't do open mic this Wednesday. With it being finals week, I have to work. I'll see you there on either Jan. 12th or 19th. The 19th will be a one hour open mic night performance from 9 pm to 10 pm at Stadium. They've said it would be ok with them, but I have to remind them after break.

Last night was the fourth week in a row that I've made the finals at open mic night. Thank you all for getting me there again. If I win next week, I've already decided that I'm going to give the $50 to the American Cancer Society. With Christmas coming up, I'd love to honor my mom's memory with that kind of gift. The setlist is going to be a little different than usual. I'm 90 percent sure it's going to be Never Had a Chance and New Future first, and if I make the finals I'll do "You Gotta Want It" and "Chillin' at the Papa." If you haven't watched it already, there is a video for "You Gotta Want It" on the home page.

I haven't heard yet from Battle of the Bands, so it looks like I'll be doing an hour long open mic night set from 9 pm - 10 pm on my birthday, January 19th. See you next Wednesday.

I finished recording "Enjoy Every Day" yesterday. I've put it up on missionman.net for free download. I'm going to perform it on Wednesday at open mic night. Yes, that means I will officially be performing there this Wednesday at Stadium. Thank you guys for getting me to finals the last 3 weeks in a row. This Wednesday will be the first time I've performed a bass solo live in over 3 years. I'm looking forward to it. Unless I get some serious requests otherwise, my first set will be "Playing a Little Basketball," "Chillin' at the Papa" and "Enjoy Every Day." My finals set will be "Weightlifting Jam" (can't ignore the screams I got for it last week) and "Chillin' at the Papa." If I win I think I get to do a couple more songs. I haven't decided what those will be yet. Maybe "Hopeful Messages" and "Wanna Get Down."

"Enjoy..." puts Antis Trype up to 10 songs and 41 minutes. I expect to record 1-4 more songs before the CD is finished.

I'm going to start using this news page a lot more. Check here for open mic dates, and other special events that I might not put in my concert calendar. It will also be the place to find out when the "Playing For A Cure" compilation CD is available, and for updates on the progress of "Antis Trype," my next CD. What the heck, if you're reading this, I may as well tell you the meaning behind the name. When I was 18, I wrote 50 handwritten pages in a book called "Shadowblade." I let a friend borrow those pages and never saw them again. I may take up writing the book again, when I have the free time (I still have the basic storyline, and some unique concepts in my head). For now, the book has been the inspiration behind the name for "Out of the Shadows" as well as "Antis Trype." Antis Trype is Shadowblade's birth name. After he becomes legendary for his speed with a sword, everyone knows him as Shadowblade. Antis Trype is also short for anti-stereotype, as my music is anti-stereotypical.

Well, I meant this to be a short news post. Check back Monday to see if I'm playing at open mic next week. I expect to be.

The Underground Music Monthly Concert Series has ended. I want to thank all of the bands from both shows, Playing For A Cure, and Women Rock For Breast Cancer.

I put Chillin' at the Papa up on MissionMan.net today. Other than that, there's not much to say at the moment, except that I'm still in the process of booking a tour, though it looks more like it will be just a handful of shows at this point.

I'm putting together an ACS benefit concert for September 27th. It will be the 10 year anniversary of when my mom died from cancer, and I think it's a wonderful way to honor her memory. So far I have Ray's Music Exchange (www.raysmusicexchange.com), Let Me Introduce You To The End (from Chicago, www.letmeend.com), and myself confirmed. I have several other bands who are interested, and if they're in the area will want to be a part of it. Please come to the show at the Madison Theater (www.madisontheateronline.com) at 730 Madison Avenue in Covington, KY. You can buy tickets at their website once they become available. I will post on the website when tickets go on sale.

After a long time of stagnance, I've put in over 100 hours in the last 3 or 4 weeks updating Underground Music Monthly, which is now located at www.missionman.net/UndergroundMusicMonthly/ The newest sections are the venue listings (I now have about 200 listed), college newspapers and music media, the for women section which lists sites that are dedicated solely to female musicians, musical equipment retailers, and conferences and festivals. I hope all of you musicians who are visiting my site check it out.

The CD release party for "A Different Kid" is April 7th. The first 50 people through the door get "Put Down The Pen" for free, and everyone gets free stickers. Also, exclusively at the show, buy "A Different Kid" for $10, and get "Intro To My Mind" and "Out Of The Shadows" for free! Also performing will be Cincinnati rappers Kryptik Killahz, as well as Non Compos Mentis (pop band from Cincinnati) and Ashworth (acoustic rock trio from Indianapolis). All of this takes place at Sudsy Malone's at 2626 Vine St in Clifton, across from Bogart's.