Enjoy the Trip

I've changed my mind. I am taking a new approach to this project. Since I have been really busy with the musical, I haven't had a lot of time to make music videos. I was really discouraged when I was thinking about all the things I haven't done for my project. But, one of my goals was to increase my performing abilities and I definitely achieved that. I do plan on continuing this project over the summer because I will have more video and recording opportunities.

Just so you guys don't think that I have just been slacking on this whole project, here is some evidence to prove I have been doing the things I say I have been doing.

So one of the things I had to do for the musical was dance around in a leprechaun suit. This was just a little uncomfortable :) But, for my project I record things outside and publish them on public sites so I have to be kind of use to doing things that would normally make me uncomfortable. By doing something I wasn't totally comfortable with, I was able to develop more adaptable attributes that can help me when I continue my project.  

This is a picture with my good friends Devontae Stine and Malcolm Brooks. Through the musical, I met so many new people and developed some great relationships. They supported me a lot and I think that if I can find that kind of support from people for my project, I will be more motivated to continue. 

GUYS! THIS IS MY SQUAD! I love them so much. Even though this is a staged picture and a part of the musical, it is still super cute. I can't really make a deep connection to how this can relate to my project. So, just enjoy it ;)

In summation, I have learned a great deal from the musical and I have developed a lot of the characteristics characteristics that will help my project be better than it was before. I will try to post videos from my YouTube channel to keep all of you in the loop.

Also a huge thank you to everyone who has helped, mentored, and supported me during this process. I went through a hard time trying to manage all the crazy things happening in my life and without the support of my peers, family, teachers, musical cast, and even the faithful people that read my blog, I would not have the same outlook on this project than I did before. The song "Enjoy the Trip" was one of the songs in our musical and I think it definitely applies to the current situation with this project because I have, indeed, enjoyed the trip :)

Today I Don't Feel Like Doing Anything

To be honest, I have done nothing this past week. I know that sounds awful but let me shed some light on the subject. Being the lead is a lot of work as it is but rehearsals are scheduled from 3:30 (right after school) until 10:30. Realistically, I am not even getting home until about 11:00. I hate to admit it, but the only 20 I'm putting into my time, are rehearsal hours.

Ones of the goals I had for this project was to get my name out there and try to improve a talent I have been given. I have found that being a part of the musical has helped me expand in that capacity, despite it not being for my project. The show is May 14-16 so when it is all over I will have a LOT to catch up on. But I am planning on continuing this project through the summer and hopefully during my senior year also.

I Want You Baby

QUICK DISCLAIMER: If you don't appreciate some sarcasm, ranting, and random movie quotes or song lyrics, then this probably isn't the blog for you.

With that, WELCOME! If you are reading this due to my very interesting 20-Time project pitch, then I hope you got the impression that I am very passionate about what I do. 20-Time is a project for my IB World Literature class where we got 20% of our class time to work on something we have always wanted to do or improve a skill we possess. After taking vocal lessons for four years, I think I am sort- of-kind-of decent at singing (even though I know I have A LOT to improve).

Coming into this project I came up with some specific goals

1. Get my name out there and have at least 20 subscribers to my channel by the end of the school year.
2. Educate myself with different software in order to put together high quality videos.
3. HAVE FUN (I know this sounds really cheesy but I wanted this to be something fun and not stressful like the majority of my other projects and extra curricular activities)

I have had such a great time working on this project. I have tried several different kinds of software for both video and audio programs in order to put together music videos. I have expanded my advertising knowledge in order to get people to come and see my blog and support what I am trying to do. (Sorry if some of those advertising techniques freaked you out).

I hope you continue to read through my posts and watch my videos. I hope to continue doing this for the rest of my high school career and your support would make all my hard work seem worth it. For your amusement, here is a picture of me doing my first show at Dow High, FAME, where I realized my passion for performing and singing.

Yeah, even though I was only chorus, I got to stand center stage. I know. I am pretty cool. 

I hope to see all of you in the comments of my blog posts and YouTube videos :) 

On My Own

Wow. SO much has happened. I guess I haven't really told you guys much about my personal life. I belong to a wonderful family of eight which causes a lot of busy scheduling as it is. SO on top of that, I am involved in Key Club, National Honors Society, International Thespian Society, Assistant Copy editor for the school newspaper, I am a drum major for our band, and I have now been cast as the lead in our spring musical "Bring It On." On top of that I am in several IB/AP classes and I am trying to stay on top of my grades. SO there is a little about me. Sorry for ranting, but I just wanted to put some things into perspective.

This also leads to another conflict. We have the pitch for our projects at Northwood University on April 23rd! {You all are invited :)} On this day I also have:

•  Rehearsal from 6:30-9:30,
•  Production for the school newspaper from 3:30-5:30
•  The pitch from 6:00-8:00. Things are REALLY busy.

So I will probably talk to my director about missing some of rehearsal in hopes that I will be able to put together this pitch of my project.

Before the musical started I was keeping on track with my goal and posting a video weekly. Once my schedule got more and more busy and technology got more and more annoying, it was hard for me to stay on track. However, I am more determined than ever. I have found different ways to simplify my technology problems.

My dad has helped me get accustomed to an audio editing program, called Cubase, and I have also gained another mentor from this process. Her name is Erin Holden and she has been working with computer programs for several years. I am still using Movie Maker for my videos but I am trying to make them less choppy and kind of awkward. I am getting better. In my head. Okay, no I'm not. 

These are the genres I have performed so far: old hits, current hits, and country. Once I get my "Before He Cheats" video out, I am planning on doing a Broadway song called "On My Own" from Les Miserables. I am optimistic about where my project is going now that I am re-motivated and ready to strike. 

Before He Cheats

I put my first actual music video together! It is so incredibly cheesy, I can barely stand it. From the beginning I have been saying that I want to do a variety of genres on my YouTube channel. So, I put together a video for "Before He Cheats," by Carrie Underwood. I am using a simple program called Windows Movie Maker but everything is really choppy and I don't really appreciate that AT ALL. Because the video is cheesy enough and it would be better if there was some quality to it. So, I will be trying to find a better video editing program.

I HEARD BACK FROM A MENTOR! Mrs. Amy Bushey has agreed to help me with my 20-Time and I am so excited. I have been working with her since I was a freshman and I am excited to continue my work with her in this project. She is very talented with stage performing and I know that with her assistance I will be able to make my videos more interesting.

There have not been a ton of complications this week. I think one of the most difficult things has been trying to find a good program to voice record with so that I can overlap it onto my video. I have all of the equipment needed in order to make a high quality voice recording but, I just need a good editing program that will not corrupt my computer.

Another thing I want to work on, is making a theme for my videos. I think that is one of the best things you can do to keep subscribers. You want to be more than just a "HI HERE IS ME SINGING" kind of video. Doing something that the viewers haven't already seen is what will capture their attention. So, that is my goal for this upcoming week, as well as making a new video. So far I have done old hits, a ballad, and a country song.

There is a part on my family's favorite movie to watch called "We Bought A Zoo," that has really been on my mind during this project. There is a part when a boy sees a pretty girl and in his head he said, "I just need 20 seconds of insane courage." That is what I am trying to do now. I am using that 20 seconds to put myself out there and I don't regret one second of it.

Can YOU Be My Nightingale?

HI I'M BACK! So on Saturday we had our school talent show called RenFair. Some of my good friends and I formed a group called Conundrum and we performed at the talent show. I sang a song called "Nightingale," by Demi Lovato and I uploaded it onto my YouTube channel. My good friend Jeremy Moore was on piano, Sunny Kim on violin, and Jeremy Wisler on the drums.

This was taken by some of the kids on our yearbook staff :)

As far as progress for the 20-Time project is going, there have been some new developments. I have gained a couple subscribers and have about 160 views on my video. This is not ideal but I have been doing some advertising on social media which has helped a lot. I am still struggling a little bit with mentoring. I have had limited contact with Kurt Hugo Schneider or Megan Nicole which is not helping with the mentoring process. I think I should start opening new possibilities for a mentor. Since I am working on performance AND vocals I figure having a professional performer would be nice to have as a mentor.

This led me to consider my drama director, Mrs. Amy Bushey. I have yet to be in contact with her on the subject but she is one of the most talented and inspirational women I know. I hope that she will be able to help me with performance and entertainment strategies in my videos.

Speaking of videos! I have been working on an actual music video that I hope to post next week. Stay tuned because I am striking and I don't want you to miss it :)

For my RenFair performance, click here

I Have Nothing

Well, I did it! I posted my first video on YouTube! I feel crazy and nervous and confused and excited all at the same time. I do not edit my videos so you can hear all of my mistakes, flat or sharp notes, and voice cracks. But I needed to get myself out there.

I have emailed both Megan Nicole and another artist named Kurt Hugo Schneider. I have yet to hear back from them about some advice, which disappoints me I am not going to lie. I am hoping that I can get some advice from these people who have more experience than I do. So, as far as mentoring goes, I am slacking a little bit. I don't want that to be the case though, so I am striving to get in contact with a vocal instructor. My friend, Sarah Hirschi, recently performed at Carnegie Hall and got connected through her vocal teacher named Julie Meyer. I will probably try to be in contact with her soon. I have her email so hopefully she will respond!

The first song I performed was "I Have Nothing," by Whitney Houston. And in a way, you could say my current experience with this project applies to that title. I say this because the only view on my video is from myself and I am still struggling with mentors. So, in a way, I do have nothing :) However, I will not give up. This is what I want to do in the future and I think that this is an opportunity I have been waiting for, for a long time.

I chose this song because of the power behind it. Houston has made a name and career for herself through this very popular song of hers. I was hoping that could be the case for me as well! I hope to use a variety of different genres on my channel and get some more professional videos up as time goes on.

So, if you would help me out, that would be great! This is my YouTube link. Subscribe, like, comment, do whatever you want so I can get some feedback :)

click here

Who Am I?

You don't know my name, yet. So hello :) My name is Brinli Leonhardt and I want more people to recognize my name. Before I sound too cocky and attention hungry, let me explain. For my IB World Literature class, we have a project called "20-Time." This means that we get 20% of each school week, or one day a week, to do anything we want. We can do something we have always dreamed of or develop a new talent. For my project, I have decided to make a vocal YouTube channel.

My motivation to do this comes from several different sources. I have adored singing since a young age, even if my peers and family didn't enjoy it at the time :) The quote I used from Edith Piaf really demonstrates how singing makes me feel. It is a way for me to release my emotions in so many different forms. I have taken voice lessons for the past 4 years and am really looking forward to using the techniques I have learned and developed to express myself to other people.

My ultimate goal is to get in contact with some famous YouTube-ers. Some of those include Megan Nicole and Christina Grimmie. These two girls started off doing exactly what I am planning to do. Now, they are sponsored by people, compose their own songs, and have music videos to go along with their performances. I am hoping to get advice from them and hopefully use them to get subscribers to my channel. Another goal to track myself, is to upload one video each week.

There are SO many things that could go wrong. First of all, I might actually suck at singing. I know I have a lot to work on so I continually try to improve. But, it would be difficult to get people to subscribe to my channel and watch my videos if I am not very talented. Another difficulty could be getting in contact with the YouTube artists that I hope to.

So this is me! I am that annoying girl that always has her music turned up really loud. The one that jams out no matter the genre or what style is playing. The one that always has a song stuck in her head. And I have a dream to share that song with others when I strike a chord.