Tell us about yourself and your music

Besides playing clarinet in my gradeschool band, I really didn’t do anything with my music. I always loved to sing my heart out though, and always dreamed of being a singer.
I answered an ad in the Scene Magazine for a Funk/Metal , and although I was extremely nervous, I showed them what I had to offer, and I became the lead singer of Funk/Metal band Gridlock.

Gridlock played all over Ohio, of course, mostly in our hometown, Cleveland. I was in heaven.
At 32 years old, I decided I wanted to learn to play guitar. My guitar instructor came to see Gridlock and loved my voice. I sung on his next record, and we recorded a couple of my
original songs.

I was with Gridlock for two years. At the end, I was going through a divorce and had to leave. I went through a couple jealous boyfriends after that, so I was an idiot and didn’t do much with my music for awhile.

I finally ended up in a couple cover bands. That got boring, so I started recording my own music at home with Apogee products and MacBook Pro.

Talk to us more about your latest release

My latest release, Peote Day, is very simple and different than my other songs. It is only my vocals, my own harmonies, and my Martin Acoustic. I performed all of the music myself, and believe me this is an incredible feeling.

I had the ability with my Apogee MiC and JAM, and my MacBook Pro. After my debut with Meeting of the Minds, then Like it or Not, and My Ride. You can check their stuff out here: https://www.apogeedigital.com/. These products are so simple to use and deliver amazing quality audio. This allowed me complete freedom and control to do everything myself, start to finish.

What inspired you to write this release?

My pathetic love life inspired me to write this song. It is about the change that was beginning to occur as I decided to be free of men for awhile. I just plain old took a break! This was extremely hard for me, as I wanted a lover and good relationship. Peote Day is about the day I decided to leave the relationship I was in and be free!

Any plans to release a video?

I have created a few videos on YouTube. However, I haven’t found the right people or money to get a live recording of myself performing my songs. I would LOVE to do this, however, it just hasn’t come together yet. I believe in waiting for the right time, people, and circumstance to create something amazing rather than just spitting a song out .

Any plans to hit the road?

As an indie artist, how do you brand yourself and your music to stand out from the rest of the artists out there?

I’ve done a lot of research on how to brand myself. A lot of this stuff I was completely in the dark about, and learned through word of mouth.

Someone told me to check out Reverbnation, where you can create a free profile and upload your music. There are a lot of upgrades you can pay for, and I did do some of that in the beginning to promote my first couple of songs. This can get a bit expensive, however, it definitely helped in getting my music out there.

Another tool is CD Baby, which is a fantastic platform where you can sell your music. Then, you can have Reverbnation put buttons on your page where people will be directed to CD Baby. I love their artist page. Also, CD Baby offers a lot of other tools to get your music out there such as Radio Airplay, Landr mastering service, and more. There websites are really creative and appealing. You can see for yourself if you check out my Artist Page.

Who have you been listening to lately?

I always love Greenday, they are just a fun band to listen to. I’ve also been listening to T.I. My favorite song by him is “You Can Have Whatever You Like”. It’s a fun dance beat as well! I’m all over the place! You can tell by my music how different each song sounds. I also LOVE Blink 182’s song “I Miss You”. I could listen to that song all day!

Tell us about your passions

I am very involved with my family, so that takes up a lot of my time. I also just started a small business, Online Business Education LLC. I run it from home on my laptop, or anywhere else there is WiFi.

This has been an amazing journey for me. As life goes on, I find different talents emerging, and that is a beautiful thing!!

What else is happening next in your world?

I plan on releasing some new songs in 2017. I want to expand my business so that I have funds to do more with my music. I love being Independent, and I am working towards that in my music and my new online business.

Thanks for an awesome interview, Michelle!

Connect with Michelle Nader/Dream Music

Website: https://michellenader.com/?page_id=265
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michellemarienader/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/michellenader
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgQRK8GWvBHapYrVsdS1xCA

Reverbnation: https://www.reverbnation.com/michellenader