It’s amazing how trapped we feel growing up in a small town, even if you are "the new kid” and not exactly popular. You feel like you can’t move without someone watching and you just want to turn 18, spread your wings and fly away. But we always come back home, even if it's just a phone call to a long lost friend or the re-emergence of a great memory. My next single “Paradise” is a rock/country tune about just that.  My little hometown is growing up and losing some of its charm, so I hope I can capture a bit of it's legacy before it’s gone. The song's video will hopefully centre around my old High School (scheduled for replacement at the end of June) and tour you around to some iconic treasures in my town: my “Paradise”. 

I need help!
This is an expensive video: $5000 minimum budget! I hope to raise $2,000 to offset the video costs and I will be paying the recording, marketing and distribution fees out of my own pocket. 

Why is it so expensive?
 Here's some rough estimates of what is needed:

• Recording studio (rented room/equipment): $500-1000
• Musicians: $50-150/per person/hour x3
• Producer/Studio Engineer: $500-1000
• Videographer/Video Editor: $1500
• School Rental: $1500
• Marketing and Distribution: A lot, but we'll cross that bridge later!

 Here's the Crew from Chase the Sun!

I want to make sure my community has a video reminder of our town the way it was when we were growing up, a reminder of who we are as a community and how special home is. Please help me make this happen for everyone by pledging and sharing this project page. At the end of the day the music video is my gift to you and my community. I have designed this song to inspire nostalgic feelings in communities across the globe. It references specific treasures and personal memories in the Cowichan Valley, but also has a broader message of belonging to any community or small town, world wide. 

Pledge gifts:

If you give:

•  more than $50: I’ll send you a download of “Paradise” before it’s release.
• $100+ receives: Downloads of "Paradise" and “Chase the Sun”, as well as advanced viewing of the new music video (Paradise).
• If you are feeling super generous and send even more money, I'll have to come up with other gifts to show my immense gratitude. Let's see what you can do rockstars! 

At the end of the day, I appreciate anything and everything you can send my way, if it’s just $2, Thank you! 
If it’s a big old share on your social media, Thank you! Shares and spreading the word often help bring in the funds for me to continue working on projects like these, they are worth their weight in gold. So many of you have been with me along the way, as I developed my skills. I appreciate all the love and support that has gotten me this far, without you I would not be the person I am today.

I hope this project becomes just that for all of you: a golden memory, a video to watch when you are feeling nostalgic, that warm fuzzy feeling we all get when our community surrounds us with love, because that is what the Cowichan Valley eventually showed me, a lot of love and acceptance. I was at the socially delicate age of 7 when I made my move to the Island from a much rougher northern community with a very different culture. It took over a decade to fit in here, but once I did, I realized there was nowhere else like it, it was home. So thank you for all being there and showing me what it felt like to eventually just fit in. 

<3 Melaura