Kickstarter

At the suggestion of a wise friend, I have decided to enlist your help in completing a new cd entitled "Beloved". It's difficult to ask for your help to do this, but I've reasoned it thusly:

I have no children, but upon visiting a friend who just had a baby - a gorgeous little boy - and seeing the joy in her eyes and the thrill at the realization, "Wow... she MADE this!", I began to ponder: What have I made? Nothing to compare, certainly, but I began to see these songs I've written in the past and currently as my "children" - my babies. And I realized that the joy of childbirth prompts us to have baby showers, where we can shower the mother-to-be with gifts to nurture, protect, and develop the little person she's been blessed with. And I thought that maybe, just maybe it's not all that different for me to ask for your help in nurturing these songs and making them all I believe they can be. Just as no one can make a baby by themselves, songs can't become all they ought to be by themselves. It takes producers, musicians, hours and hours of time and patience, and - of course - MONEY.

So... I'm inviting you to participate in my baby shower. No, we won't have any games, and I'm afraid I'm not computer savvy enough to offer you some virtual equivalent of a mimosa or a cheese tray, but I hope you get my point. And I hope you'll please help me to develop these songs that are quite close to my heart, so that hopefully they can be meaninful to others, as well.

If you look to the side, you'll see all the cool incentives I have for you if you feel led to contribute. If you search "Vanessa Jourdan" on www.youtube.com, you can hear some of the songs as they are in utero (otherwise known as, just me and the guitar). And here's what your contribution will help to pay for:

1. Recording (engineer and producer Paul Antony) and mastering (through DiscMakers) - $3,000.00 + (the more money I can pay him, the more songs we can finish!)
2. CD Printing (1,000 copies through DiscMakers) - $2,000.00

Ultimately, I would love to be able to pay Paul more, since he's always worked with me for a pittance, but if I can actually make $5,000 to fund this project, I will be just about the happiest girl in the world. I've set my funding goal at $2,500 so that I can guarantee paying Paul, and then we can always go straight to iTunes if there's no money for the printing.

The support I have already received from so many of you is nothing short of overwhelming. Every musician says this, but that must be because there's some truth to it: I could not do this without you. There's not as much pleasure in making a joyful noise if no one hears it, so I thank you, sincerely, from the bottoms of my feet to the top of my head, for listening and for encouraging me.

Love you, and thanks for reading.