A short documentary by DailyBOOM Media on Covid-19's crushing impact on the music industry as seen through the eyes of artists, musicians, promoters, venues, merchandisers, etc.
A follow-up to the Award-winning Let The Music Play Documentary, the story picks up as they deal with the aftermath of being shut down and out of work for over a year.
Featuring:
Jeff Pilson- Foreigner/Ex-Dokken
Joel Hoekstra- Whitesnake/Cher
John Waite- The Babys
Michael Sweet- Stryper
Haley Johnsen- American Idol/Indie artist
Todd Kerns- Slash & The Conspirators
Sabrina Nieves- The Cover Girls
Chip Z'Nuff- Enuff Z'Nuff
Ron Keel- Ron Keel Band
Tony Hall- The Neville Brothers
Jeffrey "Soave" Martinez- Freestyle artist
Stacey David Blades- Crashing Wayward
and more.
Trailer music:
Original Score by Jack Miele Productions
I think that most people believe that once you "make it" in the music industry you're sort of set for life if you handle your money properly. The actual truth is that the music business is at best, a harsh place to try and exist. You could be at the top of the charts and playing sold-out shows now and in six months you're back to waiting tables or washing dishes. The only solid guarantee is that every star eventually falls from the sky and then it takes talent, timing and unshakable determination to get back up again. That's why I love to see an old school band with a plan get another real shot to reclaim their spot amongst those stars.
Enuff Z'Nuff is the latest group to do just that. The band first formed back in 1984 with Chip Z'Nuff leading the way on lead vocals and guitar. They had a few solid hits like "Fly High Michelle" and "New Thing" that were in heavy rotation on MTV. Back in the day, being on MTV every four hours meant that you were part of the crop of headbanger heaven bands that sold out huge venues and raked in tons of cash from (actual physical) record sales. Enuff Z'Nuff may have fit into that mold but their sound has never actually just been straight metal. There also include pop, rock, blues and a touch of soul stylings in their songs and they have a catalog which runs 20 albums deep. Not bad for a band from Blue Island, Illinois.
While band members have come and gone, Chip Z'Nuff's positive determination to continue writing and performing has not only remained, but it continues to flourish. Enuff Z'Nuff is not only back with a new album, Diamond Boy (due out on August 10), but its' first single from it, "Metalheart" is already catching fire. Last week it was announced that the band (Z'Nuff, Tony Fennell on guitar, Troy Stoffregen on guitar and Dan Hill on drums) will hit the road this fall as part of SiriusXM's Hair Nation 2018 Tour.
Clearly, it's a rebirth for the band and Chip couldn't be happier. I had a chance to speak with him this week and his excitement is infectious. A few minutes into the conversation I found myself really rooting for his band to take these new opportunities and turn them into something even better.
(Photo: Dave Steckert)
Cate Meighan: Enuff Z'Nuff seems to be experiencing a bit of a rebirth and the fans are thrilled to see you guys back in a big way. How does it all feel for you now?
Chip Z'Nuff: The fan loyalty level is just amazing, I mean let's face it, things change and as an artist, I'm still out here trying to figure out what will trip their trigger. So for our band to still have that kind of base after so many years, it feels really great. There's a lot of groups like us still out there pulling in great attendance at their shows and it's because the music is strong and has lasted the test of time. That really says a lot There aren't a lot of radio stations really supporting rock-n-roll, however, any of the big bands that are out there, they're selling out arenas and stadiums. I think guys like Guns N' Roses have really given rock the shot in the arm that it needed. If you put all of those bands from the 80's and 90's together, they sold hundreds of millions of records. I'm really rooting for the newer bands out there like The Struts and Greta Van Fleet. I'd like to see some of them get a big break because it's such a fleeting and difficult business right now.
CM: Record sales used to be the biggest part of the business!
CZ: Yeah and you're never going to see that now with groups because people don't always buy the music, they get it for free. It's something the fans need to realize, that it takes hundreds of hours to create the music and then it costs a Brinks truck full of money to actually pay for the record. It's a different business right now and while bands love to go out and play live shows and do meet and greets, they also HAVE to do these things in order to stay alive financially. You play a two-hour show and then you rush back to the merch booth to say hi to the fans. It's something you really have to do now and it's important to the fans because back in the old days they couldn't get near their favorite musicians. Thankfully I love meeting the fans and I appreciate them. Steven Tyler says it best, "If you want to be successful in this business you've got to want it 24 hours a day." and I think that's true so meeting those who support the music is really important. I also think that Enuff Z'Nuff fans know that they are a huge part of our existence and that's why they're still supporting our music.
CM: I know that you're excited because your twentieth album, Diamond Boy, drops on August 10th. Has your writing process changed over the years and what inspired you this time around?
CZ: It has changed a little bit. There are so many great songs already out there, how many times can you say the same things? That's the biggest fear for any musician, just running out of material. When you look at bands like Aerosmith or Cheap Trick it's amazing how they keep coming up with songs and material. But there really is inspiration everywhere if you pay attention. Whether it's lipstick on a glass or something that someone else says that catches your attention as it slips off their tongue. The world is full of inspiration and you just hope that the songs come to you. For me as an artist, I might go a month without anything and then bingo, I'll write 3 songs in one day. I can't always explain what triggers it but I'm grateful that the songs still come to me.
This record was no exception. When Frontiers Music said that they were going to up our deal to include three records, that made me so excited and I just started to write about everything going on in my life. It's like an autobiography of things that I've been through and things that I've seen. The way the world has changed gave me tons of ideas for songs and we hashed out this record in about 17 days. It was incredible and we recorded it fairly quickly on two-inch tape like the old guys did. In the early days Alice Cooper, Ozzy Osbourne, Queen and all of those great bands recorded on two-inch tape and so we decided to do the same. We played it live, had no room for error, no pro-tools stuff, and very minimal overdubs. We didn't want to overproduce this record and go crazy on it because we wanted to be able to go right out and perform it live. We wanted to sound just like the album live and so that was a big challenge, to not go overboard with production and I think we nailed it.
CM: That worked out pretty perfectly since you'll be performing on the SiriusXM Hair Nation Tour from September through November.
CZ: This is the first time in twenty years where we have just made a record and the label has us already set up to tour. Usually, you make the record and watch for the first 4-8 weeks to see if there's any traction. If the spark doesn't cause a fire then maybe you'll do a few shows but you're going to be making another record sooner rather than later, and that's if the label even still has confidence in you. The last record, Clown's Lounge, did well enough for them to tell us to make another one. We gave them the new album Diamond Boy and right away they got us on the Hair Nation Tour, which made us realize we actually have a chance again.
In the old days you had to sell 50,000 albums to make Billboard's top 200 album list, now with our album coming out in August and this tour starting in September, there's actually a chance for Enuff Z'Nuff to see a little bit of action. We hope that people will buy the record and it'll make them want to come and see us play live. Maybe we'll make some noise, move some units and get to do another tour after the Hair Nation Tour wraps up.
(Photo: Dave Steckert)
CM: I love your excitement right now, it really feels like a fresh start, doesn't it?
CZ: This is a real test for Enuff Z'Nuff right now because it really is a new chapter in our band life. Everything is new and some great things are happening for us. If you told me ten years ago that this would happen for us again I would never have believed you, so I'm determined to work my ass off now to make sure that we make the most of this opportunity. This is our 20th album and there's never a guarantee that you'll get to do another, so it's truly amazing to get to keep doing this. I give so much credit to the band for wanting to continue to make new music with me. A lot of the guys our age are living in the past and playing their songs from a long time ago. It's an honor to be able to play stuff that's decades old, especially when you know that people still love it, but it's risky and a real challenge to put out something new. I give my band credit for being bold and brave enough to do it.
CM: As a band, do you plan ahead or do you just go with the flow and let things unfold for you?
CZ: Obviously, I'll have ideas or a template for what I hope to do but some things just come to you. There's no way to plan things out to perfection so as I sit here, the glass is half full. It's a positive vibe every single day and I wait for the team (laughing). The inmates are no longer running this asylum. I listen to my management team, the booking agent and anyone else that is truly looking out for our best interests right now. I look at what they suggest and generally go with it and it seems to work out well that way.
Obviously, some things come in at the last minute because this business is predicated on friendships and years of business relationships, so we'll show up and support each other. You can never plan completely what you're going to do because we're living in a time of too much product and not enough demand. So when someone asks, you get on that plane and go. If you want it then you better get out there and hustle for it because no one is just going to hand it to you.
We're going to make the most of things right now. The band is sounding stronger than ever live and we have a ton of shows happening, aside from the Hair Nation tour. We're going to take this new record and bring it to South America, Mexico, Europe and wherever else. We know that there are fans all over the place and I want us to really reach them.
(Photo: Dave Steckert)
CM: The first single from Diamond Boy, "Metalheart" has been well-received by both the fans and the critics. That has to make you feel pretty good.
CZ: "Metalheart" is doing really well and I never would have guessed that it would (laughing). I write the songs but I don't pick what comes out as a single, the record company basically comes in and tells us what will be the first song. We can give a suggestion but that's it, they do have the final say and they were really smart to put that one out first. "Metalheart" is getting some real traction because the pop fans like it as well as the rock fans. We're not really a metal band, or just a rock band, or a pop band. We end up with all three of those elements in our music, which is great for us, but I think it's hard to actually categorize Enuff Z.Nuff's sound. They say you are what you eat and we definitely have moments of resembling the sound of those groups that we grew up on. You might hear something Beatles-esque in our music, or a riff might remind you a little bit of a Zeppelin song. That's what we were raised on and those stylings have stayed with us. It's not just metal or just rock for us. We love it all and to not fall into just one category for our music is really a compliment that we love hearing. Sounding unique is what keeps people interested.
CM: So, the album is out on August 10th and the tour starts in September. Are there any other surprises coming for us?
CZ: Actually, we just finished shooting videos for two singles with Paul McCartney's videographer here in New York, which was amazing. The guy is terrific and he has a wonderful sense of things and so I'm really excited to have these videos come out in conjunction with the record. I think the fans will love them!
(Photo: Dave Steckert)
CM: What would you like to tell those fans that are so excited to see Enuff Z'Nuff thriving again?
CZ: I hope all of our fans live to be 100 years old (laughing), I really do. I also hope that their worst day of this year is like the very best day that they had last year. Nothing but great, positive things for our fans. To say thank you is not nearly enough. I'm going to keep writing the best songs that I can and putting out the best music possible. I want our fans to know that it's a new chapter for Enuff Z'Nuff, we're back and we can't wait to see you all at the shows.
Head over to Enuff Z'Nuff's official site to keep up to date on everything that the band has going on. Check out upcoming tour dates here and support the band by buying a copy of Diamond Boy here!
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ICYMI
I have to admit absolutely nothing could have truly prepared me for my lengthy recent conversation with Jack Russell. I mean, technically I came prepared because Great White's "Once Bitten" cassette lived in my Walkman for a nice chunk of my junior year of high school, plus my connection to the music came with a head full of details. As a fan, I am aware of Jack's troubled past which includes things like drugs, comas, death and of course, that horrific fire. If you're a fan then you're likely aware of these things as well. I decided that I needed to learn more about Jack Russell the man, not the headline and so we talked.
What unfolded was well over an hour of kindness, insightfulness and a deep understanding on Jack's part about how hard life can be and then how beautifully it can unfold for you if you hang on long enough. He carries with him a depth that only comes from a life that has been saved at the last minute. He is still here, making music, loving his wife Heather and giving back everything that he can muster to those who have supported him through everything.
Jack's transparency and intelligence are quite beautiful and I can only hope that his words resonate here the way that they did in person.
Cate Meighan: You have one of the most supportive fan bases that I think I've ever seen!
Jack Russell: They're really great people and they've stuck by me through thick and thin. Through all of the trials and tribulation, drunk or sober, falling down and then getting back up, they've all really been there. I've been sober for over three years and my voice is doing great so now I get to give back to the fans every night. I've watched the audience grow and it's cool to see the younger fans now with our t-shirts on, down to their knees (laughing). They'll know every word to songs that I wrote before they were even born and that's really amazing to me, to see that generational transition. I remember it used to be all high school kids when I was on stage and just five or ten years older than them. Now you see them plus their kids- and then their kids, so to have three generations come to a show just makes you feel great, a little old (laughing) but great.
Thank god that the fans come out to the shows because our business really has completely flip-flopped. As an artist, you used to tour just to support your album and you didn't care if you broke even. We spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on tours back in the day and if we broke even then that was cool because it promoted your record. Now it's exactly the opposite and you make your money off of touring, so thankfully the audience is there and they're still following us. When people ask me now what advice I'd give to a young musician I tell them to get a real job (laughing) and I say that half jokingly because I do believe that if you really want to do it, then you can accomplish anything. Go for it but understand that it really is a lot more difficult now.
CM: I think that a lot of people have misconceptions about the streaming services and how much artists are actually paid by them. 100k streams are worth little more than a large cup of coffee now, right?
JR: Oh we get paid nothing on those things really at all. You can go on YouTube and see that we have a million views but it's not even worth a cup of coffee in terms of getting paid. People wonder why their favorite bands break up and maybe it's because everyone steals their music and doesn't go to the live shows, so they couldn't afford to feed their families. Artists need people to buy the albums and buy the cd's and then even when they want to there are very few outlets left actually selling them in person. So many people want the instant gratification and they don't want to wait for their music to come in the mail. They don't care about the cover art, the liner notes or the lyrics and it's so sad.
When I was a teenager growing up I was listening to bands like Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin, and Deep Purple and we would literally go down to the record store with blankets and stuff and wait for it to open. We wanted to be the first ones to race back to the display and get that brand new, just released album. I'd race home on my bike and take a razor blade and gently remove the shrink wrap from the record and pull the vinyl out with reverence. I'd pull out the sleeve and read every single liner note and credit. Even though I didn't know who any of these people that wrote it or produced it were I still wanted to know who did it. The album covers were beautiful works of art and I used to have this little shelf on my wall that held an album cover and it said 'now playing' on it. I used to put the album cover up of whatever I was listening to at the time. There was a ritual to music that has been lost in the age of streaming and you had something tangible. You could hold it in your hands and it made the music physically real too.
The technology is great but it's also a curse depending on the moment or the situation. I believe it'll eventually be our undoing because we've become so reliant on it and eventually it's going to fail. Then what, we're not going to know what to do. People are streaming their whole lives and what's going to happen when they can't? How will they deal with it? It's a whole different world now, some of it's cool and some of it is ridiculous. Music though, that'll always be there. The kind of music that we grew up on and the kind of music that I still make will always have a place in the world, even long after I'm gone. I want to leave that as my legacy and to have people be able to say, "Yeah that Jack Russell was a great singer while he was alive". What more can I ask for?
CM: Your latest album 'He Saw It Comin' feels like Great White evolving into something modern while carrying with it undertones of influences by some of the rocks' most noteworthy heroes. Was that the goal?
JR: Yeah there's a little Beatles, Queen, and the Stones vibe is thrown into it. We wanted to make something reto modern. We didn't set out to sound like anyone in particular but when Robby (Lochner) and I sat down together to write it was amazing. When we came up with "Godspeed" it was initially a ballad but Robby wanted to take it and make it acapella, like a 50's doo-wop. I wasn't too sure about that (laughing) but he put it together and played it for me and it was just brilliant. Everything on that song is just our voices, I mean everything and I was just blown away when I heard it.
To me, it's the best record that the band has put out as an album, as a whole. Yes, the "Once Bitten" album is just a beautiful record with great songs on it but "He Saw It Comin" has real substance and the songs on it have lyrics that mean something. I'm more mature in my writing and the lyrics are a little deeper now because I'm trying to get more transparent. I want people to know who I actually am now as a human being and as a soul. CM: Do honesty and transparency come easier as you get older?
JR: They do and I let my guard down more and more with every record because the older I get the less I care what people think of me. I've got a book coming out at the end of the year and it's basically naked and unafraid because I put it all out there. This is who I am, this is what I've been through and I've had a very full life. I give all of the credit to god because I see his signature all through my life. My voice is a gift, every song that I write is a gift and I have to give credit where credit is due, at least that's what I believe.
One of my main reasons for doing the book is because I want people to know that no matter how far down the ladder you fall you can always climb back up. You don't have to stay down. Whether you have a drug an alcohol problem or anything else for that matter, you can pull yourself out of it. You can accomplish so much in life if you just believe in it and visualize it.
Nothing happens by chance and I believe that everyone that you meet has some sort of message for you, if you listen closely enough. It might be a stranger that says something random to you that you shrug off, but if you sit and think about it, maybe they said something that you were supposed to hear. You just never know when you are being used as that voice of encouragement for someone else. I don't believe that anything happens by coincidence, it's all for a reason both good and bad. Life isn't random, it's very well choreographed and we're here to learn.
CM: Did you always know that music was going to be your life?
JR: When I was five years old I wanted to be an archaeologist, it was my dream. I wanted to go to Africa and dig up bones or discover a new species. For my sixth birthday, my parents bought me The Beatles "Help" album and I remember this day like it was yesterday, I can tell you I had my pajamas on and I had this little record player that was black with a motif of silver knights jousting and the inside of it was gray. I put this record on and I literally had a spiritual experience that I couldn't explain then because I was six years old. I just felt this power and I was given this information that my life was going to be in rock n' roll and I didn't even know what a rock star was. I knew who The Beach Boys were and I loved them and The Beatles blew me away, but I didn't understand how grand of an idea it was to be a rock star (laughing). That was it though, from that point on I abandoned archaeology in favor of music.
CM: Ah, and then it all began for you.
JR: Yeah, I started my first band when I was eleven years old and then I met Mark Kendall when I was seventeen and I joined his band, but I ended up going to jail. I got eight years for shooting somebody in a drug robbery, I was on PCP and blacked out. Through a series of events, I ended up doing only eleven months and a year later I signed my first record contract. My life has truly been a series of moments where God has literally pulled me out of the pit.
I remember being at my first concert at The Forum in Los Angeles watching Blue Oyster Cult play. I was sitting with my friends and I said, 'One of these days I'm going to be on that stage and you guys are going to be asking me for tickets' and they looked at me like I had lobsters crawling out of my head (laughing). But on April 6, 1988, I walked into my hotel room, I opened up the curtains and there was The Forum all lit up right across the parking lot. We were playing and the place was sold out. I sat there for maybe an hour in my chair just thinking, you pulled it off dude, you pulled it off.
My dad used to tell me that I needed to have something to fall back on in case I didn't make it in music and I refused. Nature dictates that when things get hard if I have something to fall back on, then I'm going to fall back on it. For me, it has to be, do this and be successful or starve. I left myself no choice. The universe has a way of turning things to accommodate you and your goals if you believe in it. People don't realize how powerful they are and how powerful our mind is. You can manifest anything, good or bad if you really want to. You have to trust your inner voice because it usually knows what you're capable of doing. If you're happy serving french fries, then you're successful. If you're miserable making millions of dollars a year then you need to change something.
(Jack Russell's Great White Promo Shot)
CM: You're onstage almost every weekend now, how are the shows going?
JR: The shows have been great. The band is getting more and more popular and people realize now that there are two Great White's on the road. Jack Russell's Great White is the actual, real voice of the original band that you know from the albums. I was a really big part of the sound and totality of early Great White, regardless of what has been said. I know the truth and I know what was what.
I actually heard (for the first time) one of their more recent songs about a month ago and I have to admit that Terry Ilous' voice sounded really good on it. I was really surprised that they (Great White) let him go recently and so I got in touch with him because I've heard he's a really nice guy. I have a feeling we're going to end up being friends. We're both singers and we've both got lead singer disorder (laughing) and I don't blame him for anything. He just took an opportunity that was offered to him and it was a good career move so why not? He wasn't being deceptive at all, it was my dear friends that were.
They turned around and did this lousy thing to him and he was totally blind sighted and I feel really bad for him. I saw the video of them with their new singer and Terry onstage together, showing that it was in the works for months and to me that just made it such a despicable act. They couldn't tell him in person or even make a phone call and that was exactly how it happened to me. That was what upset me. It wasn't the fact that they didn't want to play with me because I get it. I was a mess, I was a total wreck, but rather than have that conversation, they kept dodging me. I know what that's like to be treated that way and I felt bad for him. Terry is a good guy and I wish him the best. I have no ill will towards anyone at this point and I wish them all the best, but Terry maybe just a little more success than the others now.
CM: You have so many great things going on, what are you most looking forward to?
JR: I love that the music of Jack Russell's Great White is getting great reviews. Honestly, I'm looking forward to the day when I can just be billed as Jack Russell. That's the goal. I actually accepted an offer next year to do one of the rock cruises, something that I never wanted to do, but they persuaded me. It's a legends cruise in February with people like Roger Daltrey and the caveat was that I get to steer the ship because I'm a certified captain, and I'm billed as just Jack Russell and not Jack Russell's Great White. Sure, I'll steer the cruise ship (laughing) and sing a little, it's going to be a lot of fun.
The Hair Nation Tour this fall is another thing. Especially since Enuff Z'Nuff is going to be playing with us. Chip Z'Nuff and I are really good friends and I love that band. They have such amazing music and it saddens me that they've never had the opportunity to be as big as they should be. They're like a modern day Beatles and the album that they released in 1999 has some of the most amazing songs that I've ever heard, from start to finish. It was a brilliant record and Chip is just the sweetest guy and I love how he keeps that band going.
My first solo album, "Shelter Me" was just released last month and it's doing great. It was released in 1996 in Japan, but it was never released in the rest of the world until now. It features some really great musicians and has gotten rave reviews. It's probably one of the best sounding records I've ever done and it was cool because I got to sit and control the production side of it too so it came out sounding the way that I wanted it to. The drums are really upfront and in your ear which is cool.
CM: Looking a little further down the road, what is next for you?
JR: I'm gonna go pick up my laundry and (laughing)... We've got this tour coming up and a lot of shows this year. We're doing a tribute to Zeppelin starting in December based on the record that we did back in 1996. I've always wanted to bring that collection into different cities and so this year I said, just book dates for it, book away! I just want to be out playing because god knows how long I'm going to be able to use this voice. It's on loan ya know, God can take it back whenever he wants to so I want to use it while I still have it. I'm pretty beat up, I've put my body through a lot of stuff over the years so it's amazing that I still have it at all. The drugs and alcohol, falling down here, breaking this and that, I've really learned the hard way how important it is to treat your body well. Somehow I'm still here and so while I am I'm going to keep making music and hopefully helping people to forget their problems and have a good time for a little while.
CM: What would you like to tell those fans that love you so much?
JR: I want them to know how much I love and appreciate them. They've been so kind and supportive over the years and I owe them a debt of gratitude. If it wasn't for the fans I would never have been able to accomplish my dream and that is so precious to me. It's everything. When people come up and say that my music is part of the soundtrack of their lives you know, something was a wedding song or another song helped them to get off drugs, it's just everything. It means my life has meant something and I've somehow helped somebody and that's a gift that also gives me purpose. I'm here for a reason.
Please be good to each other because we're all we've got. We don't need to be haters or bullies or to treat each other badly, we need to help each other out. Life IS hard and everyone needs a helping hand at some point so you need to be there for your brothers and sisters.
(Jack Russell's Great White Promo Shot)
Check out tour dates for Jack Russell's Great White here, pick up some official merch here, and head over to Jack's official site to check out videos and more!
Enuff Z'Nuff's new album Diamond Boy drops on Aug. 10th. They'll also be a part of the SiriusXM Hair Nation tour this fall. I recently chatted with Chip Z'Nuff about all of the cool things that he has going on and you can read that interview right here.
