Chasing the Dream

I’ll start by saying that my name is Russ Burchell, and I’ve been playing guitar since I was 12 years old. I’ve played in a few bands, and I’ve been blessed mostly with emotional success through the years, and rarely, if ever, made any money. I’m 44 years old now, and perform three hour gigs with my 18-year-old daughter at a rate of almost two shows on average weekly. I love music, and everything that goes with it. The late nights... the travel... the hope that one well-written song can make it to the right person, and the radio, and then may even get licensed to a major movie blockbuster... But, if you’re reading stories in this section, you know the drill. It’s a dream, and a cross to bear, but you keep at it, because it’s part of your very soul. You also know the heartbreaking disappointment when things aren’t going as you dreamed they would. This happens often.

This is where I’m supposed to tell you that, in order to shield my daughter from that heartbreak, and disappointment that I’ve personally experienced so many times, I chase her away from music to pursue more realistic and down-to-earth academic goals. Well... I’d be lying to you if I told you that I haven’t thought about it. The trouble is that I’m not sure what drives this now... It has almost taken on its own life, and I can no longer tell if this is my ambition or hers. I often feel guilty for motivating and encouraging her, because the lines are so blurred by the amount of time and sacrifice that my wife and I put in to help her musical pursuits.

So much goes into all that we do in order support this addiction. Website maintenance, social media engagement, studio sessions, promotion, price negotiations with club owners, charity shows, etc., etc. Thank God that my wife, Heather, has an understanding of social media, or we’d be in dire straits. With Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, and who knows what the next big social feed is going to be, we’re constantly on our toes, and reading articles to get advice on the latest social media promotional trends to get our daughter to the next level.

We recently embarked on starting a full band. I forgot how stressful this process could be. Herding cats to try and schedule shows. What’s more is that the guys we work with are all fantastic musicians, but they’re also musical mercenaries, and have other projects and gig schedules that we have to try and schedule our shows around. The music is good, and that old excitement that I remember, and that Aubrey is experiencing for the first time, is ever present.

I also have two younger daughters whose ages are 16 and 13. Brenna, our 16 year old, also loves music, but won’t pursue it. She’s an amazing art athlete in World Guard. They compete nationally, and got seventh place in 2019, which is a huge accomplishment. Aubrey was the featured vocalist this year for their show. It’s very rare that a live vocalist is used. Cayla, our 13 year old, is a level eight gymnast, who competes at the state level. We were blessed with talented and driven kids. The kicker is that I spend most of my time performing with, or promoting, Aubrey, since I play guitar and interface with the band. She’s doing more as she matures, but as a parent, you always want to help.

Aubrey and I originally performed as an acoustic duo, which is super-easy by comparison to the pressures of dealing with a full band. The beast has now grown its dream by a factor of six... drums, bass, keys, two guitars, with my daughter, Aubrey, at lead vocals. This takes us to a new and heightened level of complication. Things we need to be concerned with now are splitting royalties on original songs that everyone contributes to, pricing our shows to make sure everyone gets paid a fair rate, and just making sure that everyone is overall happy. Bottom line is that we’re honestly having fun, and I could not imagine being anywhere else than on stage performing... and who better with than one of my kids. It’s amazing!

Aubrey was a contestant on the 2018 season of American Idol on ABC. Her room was voted off on the final day of Hollywood week.

Local news interview after Aubrey’s room was eliminated from the show at the final day of Hollywood week.

Working on the group song at the Roosevelt with fellow contestants during Hollywood week.

Aubrey’s first original single, “Memory”

This song is available on most digital streaming platforms.