Underdogs

Well, fall is just around the corner. College football, pro football, and the World Series are going to be here before you know it. I’ve always loved pulling for the underdog. I know it might sound funny given I’m an Alabama fan..lol…BUT, while we do have a winning tradition, I remember the tough times too. As a matter of fact, the first time I moved to Nashville was January 1995 and we were heading into sanctions by the NCAA, scholarships reduced, and the times ahead were dark. I remember getting my first singer/songwriter publishing gig, playing around town, washing dishes so I could sing at the Nashville Palace, and also working at a cabinet shop in Nashville with some great guys who are proud Tennessee fans. They enjoyed the next few years. They even burned one of those Alabama “fan flags” by the dumpster at the shop to celebrate :) It was a different time on music row too…..as the old timers say today, “ Back when IT was STILL music row….lol

Today I’m thinking back a few years, when I was younger; greener too. I auditioned for TNN’s “Charlie Daniel’s Talent Round Up”. I remember going to Opryland Hotel, driving around back where one of the security guards guided me to a small construction trailer. I walked inside and there where two small rooms. One room had a lady sitting at a desk with a form to sign. The other room had a camera. You sang two songs for the camera and left. That was it. It definitely wasn’t what I expected.

It was a few weeks later when I received a letter in the mail telling me I had been chosen for the next season. I was thrilled. Then, about a month after that, I received a letter telling me that the show had been cancelled. I guess you could say, it was just not meant to be. It wasn’t long after that, I moved to Nashville and went to work. I was just like everybody else who pursued the entertainment business. I had a lot to learn. I just knew I belonged somewhere in it.

Have you ever thought of yourself as an underdog? I think in most cases, most of us are. We don’t just “arrive” and have things “work out”. I never thought of life in those terms anyway. Everything I ever attempted growing up took a lot of work, even if I was naturally gifted at it. Maybe for a few folks, the road has a smoother path, but for most of us, the road has some holes in it.

Fast forward to today. I look out my window in deep thought. I think about the things that I was fortunate and blessed to do and be a part of. The things that are happening now. And, yeah, there have been some holes in the road too. I don’t know what it is that makes us feel like the constant “Underdog”. I guess it’s that sense of “I’m not finished yet” or for some, it might be “the world is against me” and I’ve “got to overcome it”. If we’re honest, we’ve all got a chip on our shoulder. I say don’t let it stay there too long. Let the chips fall and keep moving forward. You can’t enjoy being the ‘underdog’ if you wear it on your sleeve everyday. That sleeve’s gonna get heavy. So shake it off, and soak it up! And let’s go do something good!

Because….. Life wouldn’t be amazing without us! #underdogs

Love you, Love you Big!!