Uncommon Ground - Chicago, IL

Ok, so the first very momentous musical thing has happened on my tour. I went to Chicago, somewhat unexpectedly, as I explained in my last blog... I performed my 2 songs at the Uncommon Ground Shure-sponsored open mic, which unbeknownst to me was a competition. And... I won!

What does this mean, you say? Well, since you asked...☺

First of all, it means that I am very happy. The night was a complete blast - with some very talented musicians in the room. So, I was super excited to be chosen! In fact, you have to hear these guys... I missed their first song, but this is Raul and Derek playing Autumn Leaves. They were super loved by the audience!



Winning on Monday also means that I have the opportunity to compete in the final round in January. Uncommon Ground has two locations that both have open mic nights, and so the finals are a three day ordeal. They start on Monday at the location I competed at, then Tuesday at the other location. And, on Wednesday, the 7 artists chosen from each venue will compete against each other. The winner gets $1000!

This is too cool... who would'a thunk that playing an off night at an open mic in a city I didn't intend to go to would be so successful?!

Here's me singing Emily's Song...



And, not to sound silly, but I even had a lot of fun on my bus ride from Chicago to Minneapolis! The bus was packed, so we all had to share seats. I sat next to another musician, who was on his way home from recording in Mississippi. We had a really great chat - and even started conversing with the woman in front of us and the two men behind us.

Now, I'm sitting in my friend Beth's house in Minneapolis, waiting for her to come home from work. I'm fighting off a cold, and if I'm feeling up to it, I'll be playing at the open mic at the Riverview in Minneapolis, tonight. Then, I go onto Seattle, Portland, and down the Left Coast.

Hope this finds you well!
Jess