The story
of The Jimmy Lloyd Songwriter Showcase is the ultimate example of necessity being the mother of invention. This is as grassroots as it gets. This is the ever-evolving, real-life story of a songwriter and a small group of his friends, all media outsiders... who created an opportunity to address one of the simplest, yet most challenging problems facing songwriters and musicians today... How do you make the world know who you are so that your music can be heard?
It was paramount for us to go beyond basic name recognition though.We wanted to present songwriters in the most credible and contextually relevant manner while trying to remain original, innovative and true to ourselves.
What began as a lark just 3 short years ago has led to a nationally syndicated TV program on one of the most well known television networks in the world, NBC. An innate belief that just getting on the right path with only the faintest notion of what the finish line should look like has propelled us on a journey that has become as fun and exciting as anyone could ever imagine.
Here's how it happened: A novelty music video we produced in the late fall of 2008 went viral within 2 months of being released. It came to the attention of some folks in programming at NBC in New York City and established for us a relationship. This relationship led to the viable possibility in 2009 of pitching, producing and receiving approval from the powers-that-be for a TV show that was to become The Jimmy Lloyd Songwriter Showcase
.
Ignoring the best
advice and insight from many people who supposedly knew a whole lot about this stuff, we developed a program that by many accounts is not quite like anything else that has been done before. This is a show ABOUT songwriters BY a songwriter. Choosing to capitalize on this potentially once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, we opted to D.F.O.
... that is, Do For Others... and create a platform that truly represents the passions and motivations of songwriters who may otherwise be overlooked in this era of uncertainly and tumult... as the music industry contracts and convulses in an attempt to re-invent itself.
Our show first premiered on NBC in New York on October 30, 2009 and has steadily been introduced into more and more U.S. markets based on the positive feedback that NBC has received about it. Along the way we have been lucky to cross paths with some of the most talented, well-connected and knowledgeable folks in the music, technology and television industries who have willingly offered their skills, networks and experience to help us grow our program and expand the distribution of the content we produce.
We came from out of nowhere with just an idea and a belief that anything is possible. We still believe it. Now more than ever... and so should you!
Think Jools Holland meets Inside the Actor's Studio
and it will all make sense.
Do not let anyone tell you it can't be done because it can. Believe in yourself, play to your strengths, do not be defined by others, see things for what they are, purge the negative influences from your life, don't sweat the small stuff and most importantly... listen to the color of your dreams! Join us on this journey. It is as much about you as it is us.
- Jimmy Lloyd, November 2011
It could be made into a monster if we all pull together as a team
- Pink Floyd