Creative Showcase: Rhonda Merrick

Meet Rhonda Merrick, our acoustic performance for our Creative in Colchester event this Thursday. She popped in to participate in our ongoing photography project “I make…” capturing our members and local creatives in the town.

We will be streaming Rhondas performance live Thursday evening so even if you can’t make the event, make sure you visit our site to digitally partake in a night of acoustic charm.

Tell us a bit about your journey and where you are today.
In 2011, I wrote songs everyday. The project was called My365. The viable songs will need to be finished/recorded/remixed/sorted into albums and genres/distributed/played live in front of people and used in a variety of other ways over the next several years.

While I taught myself to play the guitar fluently… I dabbled with other instruments, recording hardware and software and started to build a following.

I made my own website and eventually figured out how to connect it to all my other stuff online.

This year I’ve ‘slowed down’ to one song a week that’s shared publicly. I called it Tuesday Tunes and I’m far more organised from day one than I was last year.  I still write several songs a week…but I don’t HAVE to and I can post whatever I happen to like that week… it will give my songs an element of surprise…the one’s I don’t share as they’re created.

What do you think of our membership hub and Colchester’s growing Cultural Quarter?
I’m from New Orleans originally…home of the French Quarter…so I’m all for a bustling arts centre in town.  I like the flexibility in the support that’s available for creative people.  I’ve also found audiences in Colchester have been wonderfully receptive to my music.

Give us a sneaky peak of what you are working on right now.
It’s an open secret that I received an offer from a major record label. I accepted the offer through my lawyer, but with some conditions. It’s now down to them to accept my terms or walk-away.

So, while I’m in this sort of waiting period… I decided to keep going on my own.

I’m working on making my music and gigs fan-driven.  If someone hears my music and would like to have me bring the guitar and come sing in their town, then can book me themselves, right on my website. When 20 or more people in the area want me to come out…then I will.

I’m also thinking of putting some of my favourite original versions of my songs up for sale. A web design and marketing company offered to handle upload and download sales for no monthly fee at all and the lowest fee I’ve ever heard of when someone buys a song.

I used to think I needed to have production and professional instrumentalists before I could do that…but I can’t afford to hire those people, so it’s a catch 22. Sort of like buying your first house… difficult, but not impossible.

I don’t want to impose or expect anyone to do work for free… so if I’m going to move up to the position where I can hire people to do what I need, then I need to tour and sell the product I’ve made myself. I get messages from people all over the world who absolutely love my songs… I think an album or an EP of just me and my guitar will move things along.

Eventually, I plan to work with a handful of producers and sound engineers I’ve met online and musicians I’ve met online and at the Bull.

Thank you Rhonda! We can’t wait for your performance on Thursday.