A New Chapter: Recording My First Song

In Spring, I became curious about recording a cover of a song I loved singing and playing on guitar. I reached out to producer and friend Tad Wheeler of Tenderdyn, who said it was doable. Since I was going to be in Colorado (Tad’s location) the week of July 27 for the Sarah McLachlan concert at Red Rocks Amphitheater, we set a studio date for that Wednesday.

The recording day arrived and we (Syd, Huck and I) were at the studio at 10 AM sharp. Tad set up the mic, plugged in my guitar, and we were ready to roll! At first, I thought we might have to record separate tracks for vocals and guitar, but Tad decided both at the same time would be better for this, as it would carry more emotion. I did the first take and the group recommended I relax (was I tense?! 🤪). After the second take, Tad said, "We’ve got it.” We listened to it and he thought adding strings in the beginning for an intro and throughout might be a good idea.

I love strings, so we agreed. The next day, we met in the morning, and he had already added the strings. It sounded so amazing! I got a bit choked up at the end. We made one edit and then it was done. He gave me the files on a flash drive. I had just recorded my first single!

My version of “Let Me Believe” by Shoshana Bean will be out into the world on August 28!

For those interested, I used DistroKid to

secure the mechanical license needed to release a cover song and distribute it to multiple streaming services. I listed myself as artist “Carrie VS” (just to make things shorter).

I want to thank Tad, Syd and Huck for being there for my special moment, but also to my family and friends who have had to listen to me sing and play this song so many times over the past few months. All of the encouragement they have given to me and continue to give me is unparalleled.

I don’t know what it will be like to have music out in the world, but the reason I put art into the world is so people feel seen and not alone. This song is no exception.

Also, special thanks to Shoshana Bean, a true inspiring artist who has given us so many gifts in the form of her performances on Broadway and through her album. I am forever grateful.

I don’t know what will happen on August 28, but the important thing for me is that I set out to do something and I did it. I wanted to put art in the form of music into the ether and it’s on it’s way! I didn’t know what would happen when I released my books, but it’s been pure magic.

I’m polishing up a set list currently that involves my poetry, original songs and covers. I need to memorize the songs and refine my guitar playing and performance. Eventually, I hope to record more songs because it was a lot of fun. But, first things first!

Check out this link to pre-order the single on a couple of platforms. It’ll be on many platforms, wherever you get your music, on Friday, August 28 at 12:01 AM!

Let’s chat soon.

With affection,

Carrie VS