Michael-Sticks- Ray

Story

I was a professional drummer for over 20 years playing various college club circuits as well as numerous gigs on the Florida and Alabama gulf coast. Among those was a two year stint with "The Great Pretenders" show-band in Destin. Fl. I also performed in other gulf coast bands such as "Toast and Jam", "Ten Penny", and the" Buffalos". Some of the venues I have played on the coast includes 'Yesterday's Rock n Roll Cafe', 'Fudpuckers' of Destin, 'Sam's Oyster House', 'Gilligan's Seafood Restaurant', 'Buster's Bar and Grill' and 'Don Carlos Mexican Cantina', 'The Boathouse Oyster Bar', 'The Buck Wild Saloon' 'Pandora's Steak House', Category 5 Bar and Grill, and 'The Nikko Inn'. I have also played at Fat Daddy’s (Auburn, AL), The Front Porch, Double Branch Saloon (Troy, AL). These days my musical endeavors include playing solo acoustic guitar gigs and songwriting. I have written over 40 original songs. I am the songwriter of, Nashville artist , Martin McDaniel 's song "Everything". I was the drummer for the L.B.W. college jazz show ensemble for two years studying percussion, music theory, applied piano and applied voice.

Profile

Instruments

Genres

Influences

Equipment

Languages

What is music to you? What does it give you?

direction, inspiration, and purpose

What is your music dream?

Keep playing and writing songs

If you could change the world - what would you start with?

no more war

Which is the most memorable song from your childhood?

Home Sweet Home

Who are your favorite musical artists or bands?

Theory of a Deadman, Better than Ezra, Breaking Benjamin

What inspires you to make music?

good times, bad times, life in general

What is the message you want to send with your music?

Live, love, and learn

How do you feel when you perform in front of an audience?

feel like the coolest nerd on the planet

How do you see the musicians’ reality nowadays? What could be improved?

Too much focus on appearance and drama. We need the real musicians to step up

What do you think of Drooble?

ok

What frustrates you most as a musician?

egos, lack of support from community, and critics

Do you support your local scene as a fan? How?

Yes. Attending shows, writing for other artist

What qualities should a musician nowadays have in order to get their music heard by a larger audience?

Sincerity, persistence, versatile on all styles of music, education

Share some awesome artists that we’ve never heard of.

JC Cheshire, Martin McDaniel band, Kenny Heard