Smallsongs is a music video series brought to you by Americana Highways featuring live sessions on the streets of different cities around the world.
I always love to collaborate with people who also want to create with me! Hannah Connolly & I were searching for the right time & place to connect for a while. The stars finally aligned after the last show of her European tour with Young the Giant a couple months ago! I was so honored that she played “Shadowboxing” & “Worth The Wait,” 2 beautiful songs from her upcoming album!! You can find more about Hannah on her website here: https://www.hannahconnolly.com
We also had a nice recorded conversation over some coffee. That full chat is available on Patreon at:
It feels fitting to kick off the year with this session on a personal level because it’s increasingly interesting to reflect on my Americanness when I don’t live in the states anymore. In October 2022 I did a video with Eric Cannata in the states. A year later in October 2023 I saw Eric again for this session with Hannah Connolly in Italy. These moments in time represent spaces to reflect on which ways that I’ve changed and which ways that I’m still the same.
I lived in 7 different countries in 2023. From January to late March we were in Denver, Colorado (USA) with little trips to San Francisco & to Mexico in between. Then we were in Milan, Italy for a couple weeks. Then to Barcelona, Spain for about 2 months. Then to greater London for about a month. Then back to Denver for a month. Then back to Barcelona briefly. Then to Paris, France for a few weeks. Then to Istanbul, Turkey for a month. Then we closed out the year living in Liguria, Italy for the last few months, with another trip to Barcelona placed in there. We’ve got our core little unit. My wife Andy, our 3 year old kid Elliott & me & our gato Bilbo who has also made it to Italy with us. My mother in law Uli lives in Barcelona so we also spend time with her pretty often.
I don’t really know how to wrap my head around all these places that have changed me. Each space temporarily molds me into a new version of myself as I adapt to the environment and the cultural influences surrounding me. It’s been an intentional process of removing most familiarities & then replacing them with foreign elements & then seeing what sticks.
It made me realize how much of my identity was constructed by the labels I had placed on myself and also the labels placed on me by the environment that I knew so well. I think it can be hard to realize why you are the way you are if you only stick to what you know (or what you think you know). Like what are the things that are naturally coming from you?
These travels taught me a lot about what is valuable to me and how much value I have for my own existence. Like I realize now that I used to place too much value on my accomplishments or the things that I do. Now I feel that the quantity of numbers & even the subjective quality of the things that I create are basically meaningless if they aren’t coming from a place that is authentic to me. I think we tend to spend too much time defining ourselves in relation to the modern world instead of simply existing & finding beauty in the fact that we’re alive!
Mainly I’ve learned that one of the most important things that I can do as a human and through the things I create is to have the intention of being open and being present with others.
I’ve doubted myself a lot in all of the recent uncertainty and I’m still super confused. But I think that’s one of the best parts about being human, like embracing the unknown and leaning into the mystery. It’s been so refreshing to contradict myself or to change my mind or to re-think something or to learn from others who know better than me in different ways.
I still have specific goals & destinations that I’m striving for but I’m not so worried anymore about the perceptions of others or of my own perceptions about myself along the way. I’m learning how to be receptive as opposed to imposing my own will on the environments that I move through.
I’m super grateful for all of the beautiful people that I’ve been lucky enough to cross paths with so far and I’m really looking forward to whatever is next!
If you’re interested in taking a further peak behind the curtain in my little manufactured & diverse world called smallsongs, you can become a patreon member for just $1.00 a month and then you can watch a long list of uncut conversations that I have creative humans:
https://www.patreon.com/collection/264353
My wife Andy also just made a wonderful new smallsongs website!
