October 10, 2010 (10/10/10)…..A date I will remember forever. Sure it was my birthday, but not just any birthday. It was my 13th! That makes me an official teenager. And what better way to celebrate than by dying my hair black with purple highlights, tuning up my guitars, putting on my best rock star clothes and hitting the stage to perform in front of a full house of appreciative rock n’ roll enthusiasts. Thanks to everyone who came out to see the show.

This past weekend, at The Mint in Los Angeles, me and my friends from the School of Rock put on a tribute to one of the greatest rock concerts of all time, Live Aid. The original concert took place on July 13, 1985 at both Wembley Stadium in London England and JFK Stadium in Philadelphia and was broadcast live around the world. This whole day musical event featured live performances by some of the worlds’ greatest musical acts ever, including U2, The Who, Elton John and Queen, just to name a few.

Our show was not on as grand a scale but was still pretty epic in it’s own right. We did 25 songs by 25 different artists, all classics, hand picked by our incredible music director Ryan Schiff. And I’d like to take this opportunity to personally thank him for being so great and patient with all of us and for helping me to perform on an entirely new level. Thanks Ryan, You Rock!

I, myself, was on 11 of those songs in some capacity. From lead vocals on a few songs to lead guitar on a couple more. From rhythm guitar to background vocals. I even got to play the bass for the first time on “The Reflex” by Duran Duran. It’s actually easier than I thought it would be.

I have to admit, I was a bit nervous before I went on stage, but once I got up there, things fell into place. My first song was Bad. No seriously. It was BAD……..by U2.
Follow the link to watch it & decide for yourself.

Then of course, there was “Paranoid” by Black Sabbath. I tried to channel my inner Prince of Darkness. I don’t know if Ozzy would be proud. I might’ve made a mistake or two but I sure had fun. Now my friend Wylie on guitar, I think he was possessed by the spirit of Randy Rhodes. He was definitely shredding that guitar of his. Check it out!

All the songs turned out really good but the ones that stood out in my mind were “Rock & Roll” by Led Zepplin, “She’s Waiting” by Eric Clapton and “Don’t You Forget About Me” by Simple Minds.

We closed the show with our version of “We Are The World”. The entire cast took the stage and sang together as one. It was a bit crazy at times trying to get the right person in front of the mic but I think we pulled it off. Once, during the harmonies, I actually got goose bumps.

I have to say, that everyone,( Adam, Wylie, Will, Morgan, Max, Samson, Emma, Aaron, Matthew, Genessa, Elijah, Molly, Elodie, Mikey, Peter, Josh, Hayden, Alexandra, Sean Carlo, and last but not least, Sam), did an incredible job. I want to personally thank each and every one of them for being such awesome friends and allowing me to play along side them.

Keep Rockin’