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Kelly Clarkson Shares Her Heartbeat
One day you’re hot and the next your not. That’s the story so often with musicians in today’s industry, who constantly have to fight to find relevance on radio’s fickle playlists. Though nothing has been farther from reality for Kelly Clarkson, who began delivering her anthemic pop hits over a decade ago after winning the first season of American Idol. Following her wildly successful Stronger record in 2011, the singer took some well-deserved time off to marry Brandon Blackstock, son of her manager Narvel and manager to Blake Shelton, and give birth to her daughter River Rose. During the time off though, Kelly released a Greatest Hits compilation which included new singles…
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Foreign Jizz
The last days of 2014. I worked most of it on my Best & Worst list before heading to Historic Franklin in Tennessee to have lunch with Joe at Merridee’s Breadbasket to sample their fresh-baked menu. After work, I met Amanda for dinner and a drink (or four) at our favorite dive in East Nashville, 3 Crow. We love that place! I haven’t seen her since before the holidays and, of course, forgot the plate of cookies I made for her. So, I suppose I’ll be forced to continue to nosh on them into the new year. It’s always great to see Amanda and catch up on work, personal and…
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Are You Listening?
Well hello there. For those who don’t know me, I’m Chris Vetrano (or V for Vetrano to some of my friends and followers). You might be here because you have been a longtime reader of my music blog Tragic Kingdom, or perhaps you stumbled upon Listen! It’s Vetrano for the first time. Either way, thank you for coming. Can I get you a drink? You know I’m sipping one, so you might as well. I’m excited to launch what I’ve been building for the past year, since the launch of my YouTube series of the same name. After more than 10 years of sharing my thoughts and sometimes annoyingly honest opinions on music, I am expanding…
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Best & Worst of 2014
Another great year has come and gone. I don’t know about you, but 2014 was a great year for V for Vetrano. I spent most of it working in the music industry, managing artist’s unrealistic expectations, enjoying Nashville’s growing city and fighting to find the balance between professional and personal. Both done quite successfully, in my opinion. I learned a lot about myself this year, which led to the rebranding of my music blog Tragic Kingdom to Listen! It’s Vetrano, officially launching in the new year. But before I take you too far forward, I have to look back at the year of 2014. I’ve compiled my picks for the best & worst…
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Holiday Drink: White Harvest Punch
It was the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring… except a couple drunk kids hopped up on the holiday punch. I hosted a small dinner with my friends last weekend before we all parted for our respective holiday plans. Joe Feys made his infamous short ribs with a cauliflower mash that will appear on Listen! It’s Vetrano soon, but when Cassadee Pope brought her favorite holiday drink I knew I had to share it with my ‘Listen!’ readers. So, after I consumed the rest of the bowl of delicious goodness and then cured my epic hangover, I bring you the White Harvest Punch recipe that…
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Nashville Gift Guide
If you’re anything like me, you’re probably rushing around for those last minute gift ideas for your significant other, co-workers, friends and/or family. I spend eleven and a half months scratching my head thinking of what to get the people closest to me for the holly, jolly time of year and then, in the final hours before Santa’s impending arrival, get stuck creatively and land on those little pieces of plastic: the dreaded gift card. So, in an effort to be more creative and support local businesses, I’ve compiled some great Nashville-based brands that make perfect holiday gifts and tell your loved one that you’ve done more than pursued the…
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Feys Lift: No Tree? No Problem!
Ok so you’re probably going, “is this a Noxema commercial or what?”… but it’s actually my new column for Listen! It’s Vetrano, which you will have the pleasure of reading (or skipping) for the months… years… millennia to come. So since we’re gonna be here together for a while, let’s get introductions out of the way. My name is Joe and I love design. I hope you do too, or at least will let me help – or force- you to every couple of weeks. I love a challenge. Speaking of challenges, that brings me to my first topic: the Holidays (insert “ahhhhhs” or “ ughhhhhs” here). About a week…
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Rise & Grindr: Once I Went Black
Nickname: Bojangles Date: First How We Met: Grindr Rating: 6/10 After my dating disaster with Shark Week and still no word from “Joe,” I took the week to regroup and focus on work. I had a lot going on and with so many new dating apps to choose from, I realized how easy it can be to get trapped into hours of browsing, flirting and ultimately sexting with local men. I welcomed the break, but by the week’s end I was getting antsy (code: horny) and I started striking up conversation with the men who’d been awaiting responses. Bojangles was a slender black man who had been messaging me consistently for the past couple…
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Rise & Grindr: My Date With Shark Week
Nickname: Shark Week Date: First How We Met: Scruff Rating: 3/10 After a great first, first date with “Joe” [see ‘Meet Joe Black’], we spent the rest of the week talking about and plotting our Saturday night follow up. Unfortunately though, “Joe” got called into work last minute and had to cancel our second rendezvous. This wasn’t exactly the kind of ‘blow off’ I had in mind for the evening. “Joe’s” texts were short and he didn’t reschedule, which left me feeling a little turned off. But, whether my first-date was just annoyed at the thought of work on a Saturday or I was being thrown back in the ocean, I started looking to the…
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Rise & Grindr: Meet Joe Black
Nickname: “Joe” Date: First How We Met: Grindr Rating: 9/10 I did it. I went on my first gay, Grindr-initiated, homosexually-charged date. If you missed how this first man-on-man meeting came to be, check out the first part of my story here [see ‘Waking Up’]. After a few days of talking to “Joe” online, we coordinated our full schedules to meet on Wednesday for dinner. I originally had a work meeting planned, but moved it to an early happy hour in order to fit in the only normal guy to engage me with real conversation on Grindr. Since downloading the app last weekend, I’ve occasionally used it to see who else is…
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Rise & Grindr: Waking Up
Over the weekend I celebrated my 29th birthday. And like most birthdays before, I spent it with my friends, catering to their needs, dancing in a smoky bar and double fisting my gifted cocktails just as quickly as they were being poured. The next morning, I woke up hungover… a year older… and alone. Something I vowed I would change when I moved from my cozy Midwestern upbringings to the Bible thumping South nearly four years ago. It’s probably clear where this story is heading from the graphic above (and if that isn’t the case, you’re too young to read the content of what’s to come), so I’ll cut right…
