just because

I'm grateful. I'm grateful because life rocks. I'm grateful because love rocks. And I'm grateful because I am simply blessed beyond measure. That's it for today. I hope you're having a terrific day. :-)

With love always,
~Jen

amazed...

This is just a quick note to say how grateful I am for the incredible people I'm getting to work with on this album. Today, I had the privilege of working with the amazing Rob Peck, formerly of the band Sister Hazel. Rob's an incredible musician and an all-around great guy. I'm so glad he agreed to be a part of this album and I'm truly blessed to have his signature style and 'heart' on this project. Thanks Rob - you're amazing!!

I'd also like to thank Jimi Pappas for coming out to play today! :-) Jimi is a great friend and a fantastic musician/artist/songwriter. I met Jimi in 2004 and have been blessed enough to call him a friend ever since. He's the one who actually introduced me to my outstanding producer, Frank Starchak. :-) When you listen to many of the songs on this album, you'll hear Jimi's great playing and vocals. Jimi - you make me smile ALL the time - thanks for being you!!

Adrian Sutton - Adrian is another amazing friend as well as a producer/sound engineer at my recording studio, Urban Soundz. I had a blast singing with you today, Adrian!!! 'Ba-dee-ya!' You ROCK!!! THANK YOU!!!

Riley Connell - is yet another incredible friend and a fantastic sound engineer! He's a new addition to the Urban Soundz family and I'm so happy to have him!! Riley - you're such a welcome addition to the 'family' and I can't thank you enough for your input and presence. You've completely 'Roadhoused' my sessions and I LOVE it!! :-)

Frank Starchak - has been my producer since 2005. I've recorded 3 albums with him and we're still going strong. This album we're working on now is our most ambitious project so far and we're having a blast with it! Frank - you know how I feel about you, 'Dad'! I wouldn't be who I am (both personally and as an artist) without YOU!! Love ya!!

These are just a handful of the incredible people I'm blessed enough to be surrounded by when I go to 'work' at the studio. I say it every time I post and it's true EVERY time - I simply can't wait to share this album with all of you!!!

Love always,
~Jen

Every time..

You know, every time I think I'm ALMOST finish with this album, I find that there's more to do! AND - I'm loving EVERY minute of it! Every time I listen to one of the songs that's going to be on the new album, I find some more mixing to do, or parts to add, or vocal tracks to sing...I've never felt quite so creative in the studio and I'm SO grateful for it!! Also, Frank Starchak (my incredible producer, 'dad', and all around great guy) and I are like a well-oiled machine. We're finishing each others sentences these days and we're always on the same wavelength when it comes to the music. One of us gets an idea (usually a crazy one - lol!) and we just go with it. Minutes later, it turns into something completely cool and we're both in love with it. I'm SO blessed to be working with such an amazingly talent and the music that's coming out of that studio is really incredible. I know I've said it a million times before, but I'll say it again - I can't wait to share this new album with all of you!



Stay tuned...more updates soon!!



Love always,

~Jen

Wednesday

I was at the studio yesterday and, yet again, I came to realize that I really do have the best gig in the universe. My job is to be loving, creative, feisty, gutsy, honest, vulnerable, happy, fun and humble - and, in the process, I get to be inspired, hang out with the coolest people on the planet and make music that truly moves people. I really do have the best gig ever - and I'm SO grateful for it.

The new album is really coming along. We're SO close to finishing - I can almost taste it! I've got at least a full day of singing ahead of me, then another day of odds and ends, and then we start the final mixing and mastering process. It's so exciting and I really can't wait to share this CD with all of YOU. My intention is that you'll enjoy the final product every bit as much as I've enjoyed creating it. This album has been over 3 years in the making and, needless to say, I'm anxious to get it 'out there' and share it with the world. :-)

Hope you're all having a wonderful week! Happy Wednesday!!

Much love always,
~Jen

Urban Soundz

Happy Thursday everyone!! Hope this finds you doing incredibly well in your corner of the world. :-)

Things are great here! Just wanted to take a minute and let you know about the new website I'm going to be launching soon: http://www.urbansoundzmusic.com (This is a website for the recording studio I own in Deltona, FL.)

I'll be launching the website soon so stay tuned!!

Lots of love,
~Jen

More on change

Change - there's that 'nasty' word again. I know, I know - you probably don't want to talk about it and you probably don't want to hear about it either but, here's the deal....Change is, in fact, a good thing....even when it seems like it isn't.

What I've found to be true is that God/the Universe (or whatever you prefer to call It) is ALWAYS (and, yes I do mean ALWAYS) working for our good. I don't mean some of the time, or when we do something right by following some crazy set of rules, or when God feels like working on our behalf - I mean God is continually working FOR us every blessed second of every blessed day - NO MATTER WHAT - and now matter HOW it may seem on the surface.

Sometimes we're in a situation or something 'happens to us' and we think, 'How can this possibly be serving me right now?' Or, 'How is it possible that this will EVER serve me in any way?' We're in so much pain that we can't even imagine how this situation might turn out for the best. But, tell me, have you ever (honestly) been in the middle of something that felt like the end of the world
but later you found out that the whole thing really was for the best? You just couldn't believe at the time that this situation could possible serve you but, somehow, it did.

So, my question is, why do we spend so much time resisting that which is really good for us? There may be many answers to this question, but the one that comes to my mind first is fear. Plain old fear. And we let it stop us all the time. We let fear influence just about every single thing we do - we worry about what people will think, how they will react, we worry about how things are going to turn out, and we constantly worry that things won't' work out. Well, the whole point here is, things do work out - for the BEST - EVERY SINGLE TIME - even when it doesn't feel like they're going to.

It's pointless to get frustrated with the things that serve us. It may make us feel better for a brief moment, but ultimately, when we get frustrated and/or angry, upset, etc. it only takes longer to get through the situation. God is going to work beautifully in our lives - whether we want Him to or not. He's working behind the scenes constantly to make sure that we learn the lessons we need to learn to become the people we were born to be. We can resist it and cause ourselves even more pain - or not. The great thing is - the choice is up to us... :-)

Have a great day!!

With love,
~Jen

Update

Sorry it's been so long since I've been written. I can't exactly put into words how much has changed throughout the course of this past year. However, I can tell you this much - no matter how much my life has changed since this time last year, it's all been for the better! :-)

Change is an interesting thing - it's necessary and it happens ALL the time - whether we want it to or not. Despite how much we resist it sometimes, change is ALWAYS for the better. Now I know a lot of you might be arguing with me right now but, believe me, life always has a way of working out for the best - even if it doesn't feel like it at the time.

So anyway, this is just a quick update to let you all know that yes, I'm still alive - more alive than ever as a matter of fact! And, yes, I'm back in the studio working my little butt off. The new album should be finished sometime in February, which means that I'll be releasing it sometime in March. Stay tuned for details! :-)

In the meantime, I've posted a bunch of songs on my website: http://www.jenstackpolemusic.com   Some new, some old and all for sale for only $0.69 each!! Please enjoy and I'll be in touch again soon!


I hope all is well with you in your amazing corner of the world and, as always, thank you for all your love and support!!

Love always,
~Jen