GMA in NashVegas

Well, my last big trip before i have this baby will begin on Saturday. I will be heading to good ol' Nashville for one final pre-baby trip. And it will be a crazy one. The Gospel Music Association (GMA) host 3 days of non-stop Christian music craziness that ends with the Dove Awards, the Christian music GRAMMY night. It is nuts. Every single christian music artist that is anybody, and tons of people who are trying desperately to be somebody come to downtown Nashville to be interviewed by media people from around the country (and some people from around the world). Most people stay in the Renaissance Hotel which is attached the the Convention Center. Radio, print and television people run interviews non-stop for 2 1/2 days straight, and the nights are filled with showcases that labels put on to introduce their artists. It reminds me of a very large youth convention, where you see people you know or recognized from other churches or camp in the halls and stairways. Instead of it being other churches and friends, it is christian music artists.
Here is an example from last year. We walked in from the parking ramp and ran into a publicist friend. She was with her band After Edmund, who we just had in our studios. We talk with them. We walk 100 yards and run into 2 more publicists that we know. We get on the escalator to get our room keys and coming up the escalator is Pillar, followed by Leeland, followed by a few more bands most of you won't know. We check in and go outside. BarlowGirl pours out of a mini-van and greets Phil Joel who is waiting for his wife. I walk past this guy who looks really familiar, before i realize it is Dan Hasseltine, the lead singer of Jars of Clay. Sweet. Group 1 Crew is just sitting on the curb, waiting for their manager and we talk with them for a bit. Now, throw in a hundreds other people that include managers, media, artists and fans into the mix and you get a glimpse of the craziness of GMA.
We will have a suite on the 24th floor that is converted into a mini studio complete with full lights and backdrop. Most of Sunday will be putting that together. Monday and Tuesday will be full interview days and Wed will be a half day of interview and tear down. Here is what a full day looks like...
Get up around 6ish.
Get ready (and by ready, that means you better look like an artist in the trendiest clothes. This will be fun to pull off this year 7 months preggo)
Grab some breakfast
Get the greenroom set up, get your interview questions put in order and make sure your phone is on, ready to get the first artist.
8:30 am the first interview begins. We will than have an interview every half hour on the hour till 6pm. Morgan and i rotate interviews in hour blocks. I take two interview, she does two interviews.
The evening will have showcases that i am not sure my pregnant body will allow me to attend.
That is a glimpse into GMA week. It is crazy, it is exhausting and it is fun and thank the Lord it is only once a year!