2019 was the birth of MusicBySV. Why did I not just use my full name? Well, some of you know my day job in cybersecurity (yes, this is real) has a bunch of followers in that space, so I created this name as an alternative not to mix the two. Looking back on 2019, this was a year that I started with the first release of my first song under the band name, Special Victim. The song Pain Of Reality released in early January (on every store and streaming service), and is the only completed release of the year. This song, I wrote/recorded and played all parts, and learned how tough it is bering the only creative mind in a song with many parts. (I had intended to get at least an EP out this year, but still have a ways to go). I learned a lot with releasing that song, how to use music distributions (and how to dit it poorly), how to promote a song (and learn many ways to do it better next time). Other songs in progress are on my SoundCloud page.

Just after Pain Of Reality was released, I started a Twitch streaming channel. I thank my new drum friend, DanDrumStone for showing me the way to Twitch. I started it as a drum live cover channel, and then got into singing and going from covers to originals, to just experimenting. This grew a small audience quickly, and for a while, I hosted Friday AM streams, but the work/life schedule couldn't keep this schedule up. Twitch and the basement studio I set up to create my streams took a pretty considerable investment in time and money. It involves an array of microphones (15 in total), and stage lighting, a relatively inexpensive camera, and audio interface, two computers, and a bunch of new software to learn. It's a big undertaking, and a true labor of love. Streaming became more difficult as the year went on, since my home studio is now adjacent to a home office for my partner, who works at the hours I would stream. 

I also got my YouTube channel up and running this year, and released over 100 videos. Many are full song play-alongs (vocals and drums) from my live streams, where others are lightly edited. 

It was a mostly quiet year for outside live music. Of the three bands I play in, Power Surge played two shows (in 24 hours), and the others were on hiatus. I love to play live, whether it's singing/fronting a band, or backing it on drums. With Power Surge, we have a bunch of original songs, though generally play mostly cover songs live, and pepper in a few originals. It's a very casual group of friends, who generally get together to support our local community. 

In 2019, I bounced back and forth from song writer, to singer, to drummer, and a few other things mixed in. With my drumming, I decided to play Massachusetts made equipment where I could (to support my local drum businesses). I started playing SJC Custom Drums (and got a custom drum kit, and three snare drums). I explored my cymbal sound, and landed on loving Zildjian K Sweet cymbals. I went back and forth with Vic Firth 5A and 55A sticks and Vater 2451 Mike Johnston sticks. I also started playing around with Big Fat Snare Drum drum rings, to explore different sounds. All these companies are based in Mass. 

I started to build a social persona for MusicBySV on all the places, including Instagram, Facebook and Twitter; sharing and getting to know you better. Some amazing podcast, and online personalities help guide me this year. To name a few; Mike Johnston & Mike Dawson (on the Modern Drummer Podcast and MikesLessons.com ), Rick Barker (on the Music Industry Blueprint podcast) and Tiffany VanBoxtel from starsinger.co. Late in the year, I set up www.MusicBySV.com using BandZoogle and started to offer my recording services (vocals and drums) and share my music, photos, and stories. 

All this, while keeping a very busy day job and mix of family. Overall, I look at 2019 as a success, and I see things I'd like to improve on in 2020. 

I hope to hear how your 2019 was, and what you are looking for change (or keep doing) in 2020. Thanks for reading and Happy New Year!