Our 2-Year-Old

Two years ago we gave birth. 

No we don't have children, but we did give birth. Let me explain. 

Kate and I were thinking through the logistics of our upcoming CD release and I was discouraged and overwhelmed. As a musician, there's such a pressure to always be the "biggest" thing happening - even at a  local level. After all, the people with the most eyes on them must be the best around... right?

We decided we didn't want to chase that. At some point along the way we realized that so many of the things we were chasing were actually barriers that we were placing between ourselves and our audience. I'm not saying we didn't want eyes on us – of course we did – but we wanted more than that.

What we really wanted was that 1 in a million experience. 

You know the one. It's the moment in the middle of a quiet song where your favorite artist draws out the silence and the entire crowd is expectantly holding their breath. It's the recognition in the laughs when a musician shares the story behind a song to a room full of engaged listeners who resonate with every word. That's what we really wanted to experience in our live shows. Not just ticket sales – but meaningful connection. That's when this crazy idea began to grow inside of us.

What if those experiences didn't have to be 1 in a million? What if they could happen once a month?

I still remember how shocked I was when I realized that tacosandtunes.com was available for purchase. Surely someone else had thought of this... right? Surely this idea is too good to not have already be claimed... right?! Maybe it was just a bit too "on the nose" to have been snatched up yet. Regardless, two years ago this August we had our CD release show – Presented by Tacos and Tunes.

Two years later, 70+ artists have played for over 1,200 taco-loving, local-music-supporting people. You all have embraced this bizarre idea - this baby of ours - with an enthusiasm and loyalty that is humbling and quite frankly a bit shocking. People from all over have shown up to houses, art galleries, recording studios, co-working spaces and warehouses to eat tacos and listen to music with strangers who would become friends by the end of the night. These days, it's a magic trick just to get folks to leave their houses. But not only have you all shown up, you've given us those "1 in a million" experiences every time – through your attention, your laughter and your sincerity.

Let me say it again – we don't have children, but we do understand that in any birthing process there's pain involved. We've cried our share of tears and gone through seasons where it seemed like this wasn't worth the pain and sacrifice. Like we weren't ready for this. No one is ever ready though and we'll tell you what any parent would say. It's been worth every second to stand back and look at what this has grown into. 

I'm writing about this on our Dave and Kate blog now because this is only the beginning. Every step along this journey has only shed more light on the path ahead and we're more full of vision and optimism than ever. There are greater things in store for the city and its creative community. Things that are much larger than T+T. We're going to need that same sincerity and attention you've been so generous with up to this point to pull any of it off – but I really believe that we will. If there's anything that we've learned over the past to years it's that some crazy ideas should deserve to be chased.

In the meantime, we'd love to pause and just take a minute to say thank you and to celebrate a really special community that has formed over the past two years. Our 2-year anniversary show is happening on August 31st and you're invited. We have some really special things in place for it, and we can promise you that it will sell out. So get your tickets now (below) before they're gone and we'll see you there.