K.J. Howe
K.J. Howe
Born in Toronto, Canada, KJ enjoyed a nomadic lifestyle during her early years, living in Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the Caribbean, which gave her an insider’s view into many different cultures. While abroad, she read every book she could find, which triggered in her a desire to create her own stories.
She attended Salzburg International Preparatory School, Neuchâtel Junior College, and Albert College before earning a Specialists Degree in Business from the University of Toronto. KJ found success in the corporate world, but her passion for travel, adventure, and stories drew her back to school where she earned a Masters in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University. She is a Thriller and Barry Award nominee, and she has won several writing awards, including three Daphne du Maurier Awards for Excellent in Mystery and Suspense.
While honing her fiction skills, KJ worked as a medical, health, and fitness writer. She then became involved with the International Thriller Writers as the Executive Director of ThrillerFest, the organization’s annual conference held every July in New York City.
The Back Page – Interesting Links
The Bookstore in Lenox, Ma.
How To Find New Rock Artists You Might Love
Everybody gets in a musical rut once in a while. Are you on the hunt for something new to capture that feeling you had way back when? Just clicking through Spotify or Pandora may not be enough due to how our brains work. While allowing a streaming service to choose songs for us can sometimes work, it’s not the best way to find new jams. Read on to learn more about some tips to find new music so that you can lift your mood with some new rock artists and shake off that routine! Roaming The Arts is a music curation platform whose goal is to promote other musicians/authors/artists. Visit Roaming The Arts to discover some new rock, classical, and indie musicians today!
Try Roaming the Arts Radio – check out the 2020 Time Capsule
Finding New Rock Artists
The first thing we should get out of the way is that old music isn’t always better, you were just younger and more impressionable when it came out. Many people have the mindset that modern music is “not good,” which is not the case. The real story is that newer music just isn’t hitting you emotionally the same way that stuff you liked in your youth did. Older brains are quite resistant to forming new connections to music, and tend to prefer music from our formative years to the exclusion of pretty much everything else. When you look for new music, it’s important to clear your head and eliminate as many distractions as possible. There’s no wrong answer on how to find new music; your goal should be just to consume as much new media as you can, while enjoying the tunes. Kick back with your favorite drink in a comfortable pad, and let the tunes take you back to your happy place. Some useful implements include music streaming service and some way to enjoy the streaming service such as good speakers or headphones. Of course, while you’re going through this music discovery process, make sure to be mindful of your surroundings and those who live in you.
Our world of 2020 is offering very limited live performances, so check out BandsInTown for a daily guide to nationally known artists who are streaming a performance.
Tips To Find New Music
When finding new music, make sure to check out our reviews of each streaming service in order to figure out how to find new music with each. For many streaming apps there’s a “radio” setting, and sometimes you may want to continually make new radio stations when you find another song you enjoy in that same auto-generated playlist. Keep repeating this process until the radio station you make begins to match your mood. Some other tips to enjoy are:
- Change how you listen, such as using Amazon Music or Tidal rather than Spotify
- Watch your favorite movies and add their soundtracks to your library
- Check out the background tracks to your favorite YouTube videos
- Find artists that work with your favorite bands
Of course, these suggestions can only point you to where to look for- putting yourself in a situation that lets you form a fond memory or connection to the cues that would bring back a positive emotional response.
Contact Us Today
Are you looking for ways to fall in love with some new rock and indie artists? Roaming The Arts is a place for you to find new music anywhere in the US. Email Roaming The Arts to find out more today!
How To Safely Attend Summer Concerts After Being Vaccinated
Now that you have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19, you may be asking yourself when it will be safe to attend a concert again? We here at Roaming The Arts would like to help you answer that question. More specifically, summer concerts are right around the corner, and we would like to give you the information you need to attend safely. Whether you will see a group of indie music artists or watch a solo performance, safety precautions should still be taken. Although the number of Americans in the US vaccinated against COVID-19 is increasing daily, the risk of contracting the virus is still high in large indoor gatherings and crowds. Here is what you need to know to attend safely.
How To Prepare For Summer Concerts
You should take a few steps before purchasing your tickets to ensure that the venue is following along with CDC guidelines for safe gatherings. Contact the venue via phone or online to check for the following things:
- Is the event located indoors or outdoors? (Indie music artists are known for large outdoor festivals)
- If the event is indoors, is their ventilation system up to code?
- Are they following social distancing guidelines?
- Are face masks required at all times?
- Is there access to sanitation stations and washing stations?
Getting answers to these questions will help ease your mind and ensure that the event is up to safety standards. If you have any issues getting straight answers from the venue, it may be safe to assume that the proper precautions have not been taken, and maybe you should skip that event.
Taking A Road Trip To That Concert?
If your concert plans include a road trip, there are a few things you should keep in mind. Although you have been vaccinated, you will inevitably be surrounded by many who are not, both on your way to the event and while at the event. A mask should be worn during any pit stops along the way, such as bathroom breaks, stopping for food, and fueling up. Also, remember to social distance by at least 6 feet and thoroughly wash your hands or sanitize them immediately after any stops.
What To Know When You Get There
Planning for your first concert outing since COVID-19 hit the US may seem daunting, but your hard work and preparation will pay off. Give yourself a little wiggle room regarding arrival time because the check-in process may require a temperature check upon entry. It is better to be at the front of a long line as opposed to the back of one! Also, make sure you have your face mask and a couple of extras just in case. Festivals featuring many indie music artists may look different this year, and you may need to plan to bring a supply of food and water for the event due to ongoing restrictions. Finally, do your best to maintain 6 feet of social distancing, although the CDC highly recommends 10 feet.
Contact Us
All of us here at Roaming The Arts dedicate ourselves to helping you stay connected and plan your next outing to summer concerts here in the US. Contact us today for more information.
Willie Porter
Willy Porter is a contemporary American rock musician and singer-songwriter from Mequon, Wisconsin. He is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. In April
Willy Porter Biography
by Richard Skelly – from Allmusic.com
Like Greg Brown, John Hammond, Leo Kottke, Stephen Fearing, Richard Shindell, Kelly Joe Phelps, and so many others, Willy Porter is often at his strongest as a solo act. He does work with a band periodically, but given the economics of touring in recent years, he seems to perform more frequently accompanying himself with guitar and mandolin. Porter honed his chops the natural way, busking across Europe and playing every little coffee house and dive bar on both sides of the Mississippi. He’s a veteran performer who takes his audiences with him on the journey. He elicits a rare kind of communication between artist and audience, mostly because he’s able to read his audiences so well.
Porter was raised near Milwaukee, and his first big breaks were playing theater-sized shows there and in Madison. As could be expected from someone from this part of the country, there’s an element of blues in Porter’s singing and songwriting and in most of his live shows, although he’s best thought of as a contemporary singer/songwriter, straight out of the world of folk music. He began playing viola, a notoriously difficult instrument to master, in his youth, but found he lacked the discipline for classical music as a career path. He had a revelation in his teens when he found Leo Kottke’s album, “6 & 12 String Guitar.” Kottke‘s playing opened up new vistas for Porter, who began playing guitar after dropping his viola studies.
As the occasion or tour dictates, you can catch Porter solo or with a backing band of veterans from Wisconsin.
