I had an absolute blast performing at the 2017 NAMM show as part of the BOSS/Roland team.  I'll be posting videos as I find them of my demos, so be sure to leave a comment. Thanks!

Laura's News

I baked a pie 

For those who know me, they know that baking is not what I typically do when I want to relax. The flour everywhere, the sticky hands/counter/children, the steps. It just hasn't always been for me.
Then I made a pie. A real, homemade apple pie. And it was delicious. So now I am going to keep baking, and making a mess, and cleaning it up because the end result was soooo worth it in the end.
Next up: making an album. Song 1 is already in the works, so stay tuned!
What are you cooking up this weekend???

Spring break 

It's Good Friday. As we head into school break - which feels utterly bizarre in the current state - the girls are planning how to make the most of it by choosing a different place to 'camp out' each night in the house. It lifts my spirits to see them bonding like this.
I am heading into the weekend and week ahead with hope. Hope for the curve to continue to flatten in New York. Hope for sunshine to nurture my flowers and soul. Hope for a successful Easter egg hunt on Sunday in our backyard.
What are you hopeful for today?

Smooth as Tennessee Whiskey 

I'm trying my best to be as smooth as Tennessee Whiskey but
I'm feeling a bit more like the worm in a bottle of tequila. Can I get an amen?
I think one of the biggest challenges through all of this is remembering to not only take care of myself mentally but also to be sure to take care of the other souls sharing this place with me.
Is everyone getting what they need? Are they freaking out? Clueless? Angry? Sad? Bored? It seems to change by the minute around here, so we're all just taking it one day - and one meltdown - at a time.
Today I was able to have a win at work, and that felt great. As we head into the weekend - oh yeah, it's Friday! - what are you able to celebrate as a win?
Did you make it through the day without crying? Win!
Did you find a roll of toilet paper stashed waaaay in the back of the closet that you forgot about? Win!
Did you wake up today breathing clean air and with food to eat? Crushing it.
Tell me your stories. Good, bad and otherwise, because we need to remember that we are all in this together.
xo,
Laura

Brave Breaths 

Week one of distance learning is coming to a close here at the Davidsons. We made it through with a few meltdowns but mostly smiles as we navigated this new world together.
I watched as Ellie learned how to join her virtual team meeting effortlessly every morning. I learned that Blake would much rather play than focus on an assignment - which makes sense - so we worked our way around that.
One of my favorite things I learned this week was the concept of starting each day with a brave breath. Ellie and Blake do these at school and they are a great way of calming everyone down. You do it by putting one hand on your belly and one hand on your heart, take a slow breath in and then let it out. Give it a try. I just took one and I feel much better.
I have been doing a ton of recording and livestreaming this week. What have you been doing to keep your mind occupied and feed your creativity? Let me know in the comments below.

Right Now is the Best Time 

I can't tell you how many times I've found myself thinking about starting a project but then talked myself out of it because of not having time. Well now that we're all marooned on our own islands of home thanks to COVID-19, I can't really use that reason. Granted, I'm not swimming in free time - I've always worked from home so that remains status quo - and with the girls home my days are pretty jammed. BUT THIS CANNOT BE AN EXCUSE ANYMORE.
I am literally bursting with inspiration these days. Something that - if you've read any of my previous posts - you will know I've been chasing and lacking for several years. The challenge is that when I do have time to create it's at night when the girls are asleep. My studio is just down the hall from them, so I can't exactly be 'writing it out' loud while they're snoozing away.
I could move my setup to our unfinished basement, but the thought of creating in a dungeon is less than appealing. It may be my only option though until we finish the attic. How do others work through this? Comment with your ideas!
It's been a minute since I've written one of these. Whether or not anyone is listening, I'm going to release a new post each Friday like I did before. I hope you will read it and consider sharing it with fellow creatives, because creativity is going to get a lot of us through this.
xx,
Laura

What Should I Call You? 

"What should I call you?" I get this question a lot. Mainly it's because my name is Laura Clapp Davidson. No hyphen. Just my maiden name and married name joined together. This confuses people since they really want me to be a hyphenate or just go by one of the two names. So why did I go this route? Two reasons.
One, I am the last Clapp in our lineage. There were no boys to carry on the name, so I decided that when I got married I would drop my middle name (which now belongs to our eldest daughter) and shift my maiden name into its place. It was my attempt to keep things going for my family, however impractical that may be since it won't go any further than me.
The second reason I kept my maiden name is for professional reasons. I had made a little (ok tiny) name for myself as Laura Clapp and I didn't want her to disappear simply because I had married the love of my life and wanted to take his name.
The tricky part is when people try to figure out how to list me on the bill for a show. Is it Laura Clapp? Laura Davidson? Laura Clapp Davidson? For me, it's always Laura Clapp because that is who I've been as a musician for all of my life. Laura Davidson is great with marketing, strategy and product demos, but she and Laura Clapp don't always mesh well. Strange, isn't it?
The even stranger thing is that I don't really know the answer when someone asks me what to call me. I've been Laura Davidson for 12 years now, and keeping track of which name I use in which situation can be a bit of a burden sometimes. It's also tricky when the person booking me knows me from my work in audio (Laura Davidson) and not necessarily as a performer (Laura Clapp). So then what?
In some ways, it would be so much easier to pick one name and stick with it, but I guess I'm too nostalgic or too stubborn to let it go. Anyone else facing this same dilemma? Let me know by leaving a comment!

Work it Out 

I have started exercising! I've never liked to exercise. When I was kid, my friends would want to run around outside. I, however, much preferred the confines of my house to the great outdoors.
Don't get me wrong, I love being out in nature. I love to camp, hike, boat and ski. I just don't typically like going outside for the sole purpose of exercising. If I'm outside and I happen to get exercise - bonus!
Why the sudden love for exercise? We recently got a Peloton. After thinking about it for a looong time, Eric took the plunge and ordered our new friend whom we named Drogon. I am loving this thing. I never thought I would. Especially since I had never taken a spin class before in my life.
So now I'm addicted, which is great! I'm 6 weeks in and can't wait to "ride my dragon" each day. I think it plays into my aforementioned desire to be safe indoors as opposed to going out in it for my exercise. Perhaps it's the craziness of the roads - I love to ride my road bike, but will only do it early in the morning when traffic isn't moving yet. Whatever it is, I'm happy to clip in and sweat out my frustrations, and I'm so dang grateful for this piece of machinery.
What do you do to keep the blood pumping? Leave a comment and let me know, and thanks for reading my post!

Keep in Touch 

My inner artist and I have an interesting relationship. Sometimes we're besties, other times mortal enemies. The relationship is never boring but it can get a bit stagnant at times.
Now is one of those times.
I don't think I've written a song in months. Maybe even a year. And this KILLS me. I feel like a piece of my body is missing when I'm not writing. Like I'm Nearly Headless Nick, wandering through the halls of Hogwarts a bit dazed and confused.
I've tried The Artists Way to no avail. Too touchy feely. I've tried journaling to kickstart the machine. No dice. I think what I'm missing is taking the time to connect to myself. Each day though, I feel like I'm putting the pieces of the puzzle together. I'm finding new ways to make time for myself - hello, Peloton! So I'm hopeful that my creativity will follow soon.
For now, I will continue to listen for my muse and will hope for the best.
What are you working on that's inspiring you? Do you have a method or process for keeping in touch with your creative self? Let me know, and thanks for reading.

Is This Thing On? 

In this day and age of so many options to communicate, it's easy to feel like no one is listening. Take this blog, for example. I keep writing these posts and I have no idea who - aside from my awesome mom - is reading it.
How do we combat this feeling of detachment in our hyper-connected world? Especially when we don't have any time to plan meaningful interactions. Do those even exist any more?
I don't have the answer, so I will continue to write this and hope someone's listening. Then maybe we can work towards hearing each other more.

Shake Things Up 

I'm prepping for a gig for the first time in a long time. It feels good, but it also feels burdensome. Why? Because I feel like I've been playing the same songs for way too long but I don't have the time to re-work my set.
But that is total bullshit.
The fact is, I DO have time. I just choose to use said time to sit on the couch and watch TV. This has been a recurring problem for me. That said, this week was particularly busy and I needed to just chill out last night.
Instead of doing my usual thing of beating myself up and ultimately not getting anything done, I've committed to learning 3 new songs for the show. Three is totally manageable.
So I'm shaking it up, but a little at a time. What are you doing to shake things up in your life? Comment below.