RENA WREN recently opened for PAULA DEEN at a live cooking show at VERIZON ARENA in LITTLE ROCK, AR. Paula was an absolute peach and a pleasure to be around!
CDs only $10 at ALL Live shows ALL Summer long!!!
Rena was interviewd on 90.1 KBPK in Fullerton, CA by Janeane Bernstein for the "Momz Rock the House" Showcase. So much fun and interesting facts you might not know about Rena Wren. Check it out here at: http://momzrockthehouse.mypodcast.com/201008_archive.html. Scroll down to the interview with Rena and click play.
Mikey Jayy of Great Unknowns Presents recently caught up with Rena at a show at The Talking Stick in Venice, CA and said: "What I love about you is you sound exactly the same as on your CD. There's a lot of fakers out there, but you are not one of them. You are the real deal."
Michele McManmon of L.A. Indie Music Examiner loves "BREAK DOWN," and gave it a rave review: "What a refreshing talent Rena is! The vocals in this track are dead on and caress the lyrics like a warm summer breeze. This is a quintessential summertime, feel good song, despite the title & lyrics "Break Down" rolls out. The pop sound is similar to Sheryl Crow, but with a slap and tickle that Ms. Crow doesn't deliver in her songs. This song rolls off your tongue and sticks in your head as one of the catchiest hits to tickle your ears. This singer/songwriter has got the stuff."
"SWEET MYSTERY" keeps on keeping on in the world of music! Bill Wence of Bill Wence Promotions recently took the CD on a road trip as a ride-a-long companion and had this to say: "I've got to tell you...your songs are great! Very commercial and infectuous.
I've been listening for a couple of weeks on and off and you're a fine artist.
Your music fits several radio formats and I also think you could fit in today's Country as well as some Americana stations. Excellent production and vocals too."
"BREAK DOWN" was recently reviewed by Debora Nortman, Vice President of API Music International, Inc. and Director of Intn'l Relations A-B-A-C-A Entertainment Group, who felt that Rena's voice and music were pleasant and enjoyable and found her lyrics interesting and thought-provoking. In Debora's words: "Wonderful, interesting, up-and-coming singer/songwriter!"
"RED DRESS" recently received an excellent review from Michael Jay, writer for Great Unknowns Presents, who said: "...with some minor fine tuning this track could easily fit perfectly on the country pop charts along side Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood."
RENA IS THE WINNER OF THE JAY THOMAS SHOW "HOMEGROWN SONG CONTEST" WITH HER SONG "RED DRESS"!!! Visit www.jaythomas.com for all the info! Rena would like to thank Jay Thomas and Shawn Kelly and the rest of the gang for this honor and for having her on the air!
ORDER "Sweet Mystery" TODAY on the MERCH page, or using any link below! If you would like to pay by check or cash, please email renawren@yahoo.com with your request and we'll make special arrangements just for you!!!
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CDs and Digital Downloads also available at CDBaby! Click the link below!
Just thought I would check in with you guys! We had so much fun on the set of Arkansas Artist Showcase Monday night! They are working on the video from the broadcast and I think it will be available soon at www.arkansasartist.tv. I met some amazing and talented folks who are now friends! Dana Bradley (www.danabradleyonline), the host, was so warm and everyone on the set was helpful and upbeat! A great experience all around! Check out Phanie Wicks of Beauty by Far and her makeup artistry at www.beautybyfar.com. Her model was so sweet and beautiful, Jazmiin Brown. Also, visual artist Jay Roby had his fantastic paintings there. My fave is the one of Obama. You can view these and learn about him at www.robyartworld.wetpaint.com. Thanks also to the delightful crew for making this experience so awesome! Can't wait to do it again!
We are taking a little break from performing for a few weeks. We go in the studio on Sunday, August 22nd to begin pre-production on the new CD, "Incognito Baby." We are excited to record all these new songs and experiment with new sounds, etc. There will be more piano/keyboard on this record and a style that I think is a mix of Indie Pop, Adult Contemporary, Acoustic and Folk Rock. We have LOTS of songs to choose from, but the ones in the forefront are "Summer Solstice;" "Elevator;" "Da-da-da;" "Under My Bed;" "Wait," co-written by friend Richard Pearson; "Ride;" "The Reply;" and "The Farewell Song (Song 4 Venus)." Keep an eye out for a video blog from the studio!
On September 17th we head to a super cool coffee shop in N. Richland Hills, TX (DFW Area) to play at Roots Coffeehouse (www.rootscoffeehouse.com) from 8-10. Hopefully, we will have a guest lead player, Steve Weisberg, who was the lead guitar player for John Denver. Details to come on that soon. If you are in DFW area or know people who are, please get the word out! After that, we will be back at one of our favorite spots for food, drink and music at Capi's in Little Rock on Oct. 1st from 8:30-10:30 pm. Capi's info at www.capisrestaurant.com. Next, on to Town Pump on Oct. 16th at 9 pm with Jay Jackson opening. The Fall mini-fest is off at this point, but we are working on an outdoor house concert with some friends and will send more details about that soon.
In other exciting news, I made the switch from vegetarian (since age 19!) to completely vegan on August 1, 2010 and I have to say I have never felt better, inside and out! Eliminating animal product and byproduct completely from my nutrition regimen has given me a sense of inner peace I can't really even describe. Some of you have asked me about veganism and what it all means and to make it short, I will say this: I have made a commitment to no longer contribute to the commercial industry and purchse of and support of products that use animals and/or animal byproduct in the ingredients and/or manufacturing process. You can't imagine the environmental devastation the commercial meat industry is wreaking on our Mother Earth. I invite you to learn more at www.americanvegan.org. Other great links I use are Alicia Silverstone's "The Kind Life," at www.thekindlife.com; Meredith Simond's "The Vegan Pledge," at www.theveganpledge.com, www.veganfreak.com, and www.vegsource.com. Now, I realize this idea is likely puzzling and maybe even comical to some of you, but why not try going meat-free one day a week. Many people do this to give their bodies a break from the harsh digestive workover eating meat does to your body. Try "Meatless Mondays" for one month just for fun! Check out www.meatlessmonday.com. I also have many, many other links for all kinds of things like vegan fashion, household products, toothpaste, makeup, clothes, shoes, recipes, vitamins, protein bars, shakes, vegan wines (did you know that animal bone char is often used in the fining process?? ich!) etc. If you are interested, just email me and I'll be happy to send you a lot-o-links!
I wish you all love and light and dreams-come-true! xo, Namaste and great day!
We had sooo much fun in Cali! Thanks to Meredith, my dear friend from college for assisting us with social media issues and promotion! See Meredith's work at www.flutteringivy.com. Also thanks to Toni Koch of Pitch-A-Song for her assistance with booking and promoting The Talking Stick featured artist spot. Info on Toni at www.pitchasong.com. Thanks to Matthew Moran for video from that see, which you can view on my website on the "Video" tab. Thanks also to Laura Lynn and Justin Patterson who came all the way from Arkansas to support our Cali shows! Michele McManmon of L.A. Indie Music Examiner did an excellent interview with me and you can read it online here: http://www.examiner.com/x-27467-LA-Indie-Music-Examiner~y2010m7d22-Rena-Wren-hits-LA-this-weekend. Thanks, Michele!
We had a super time at Boo Boo Records in San Luis Obispo. The drive up there was gorgeous, winding through the National Forest. Check my Facebook Page for more photos! We also enjoyed a lovely audience at Fin's in Grover Beach, thanks to Steve Key and Songwriters At Play. Visit www.songwritersatplay for info on Steve's feature events. We rode bikes in Venice one day, saw some awesome skateboarders on the skate ramps, and also had a great time in Santa Monica complete with some of the best music we heard all week from the street performers at Third Street Promenade. I will post some video of those acts on YouTube soon.
On the trip home, we happenstanced into an overnight stay in Dallas due to missing our connecting flight to Little Rock. We had free dinner at the restaurant (Thanks, American Airlines!) at the Hilton there and were pleasantly surprised to run into some amazing karaoke singers! They were soooo good we thought maybe we were being "Punk'd!" One of the singers, Cory York, is a talented pianist and composer and he and I are considering collaborating on some projects soon. You can sample his music at www.reverbnation.com/coryyork. I will also post some video of this karaoke extravaganza soon! All in all, we had a super fun and successful Cali debut and are looking at heading back out there in the fall.
Tonight I am thrilled to be opening for Kevin So (www.kevinso.com) at The Poet's Loft right here in Hot Springs, AR. Show starts at 8 p.m. See www.renawren.com/dragonfly for show flyer. Go to www.thepoetsloft.com for venue info. Suggested donation $10.00.
We go back in the studio to start pre-production on the new CD on August 22nd, so keep an eye out for some up close and personal video footage of the recording process.
We played our first show at Cafe Muse on Saturday night! We had a full house thanks to friends Laura and Justin from Arkansas and Laura's bro Mike, along with Meredith (birthday girl - Birthday Party Part One) and Marta, Kendra, and their entourage! I debuted the song I cowrote with good friend, Richard Pearson, called "Wait" and they loved it! I had just written a piano arrangement for it before we left Arkansas and was excited to have the opportunity to play a lovely piano at the venue. That is a rarity for me!
Last night we camped at Thornhill Broome Beach Campground at Point Mugu State Park in Malibu for Part Deux of Meredith's fabulous birthday celebration. What an amazing evening of friends and family (FRAM!) on the Pacific Ocean. We awoke to seagulls, sea lions and dolphins (oh my!) right in front of our eyes. I'll post pics of all of this to Facebook soon, so keep watching! Below is a video we shot just feet from our tent on the beach, literally 30 feet from the water.
Tonight we have our feature showcase at The Talking Stick in Venice Beach, compliments of Toni Koch of TK Promotions and Kathryn Grimm with Grimm Music Mondays. Venue info at www.thetalkingstick.net. It is going to be a fun-filled night of song! Live audio, video and photos to come!
We landed safely yesterday and spent the day exploring Venice Beach, CA. The weather is amazing - 70 degrees and sunny! The beach is flawless and sprawling, the people are fun and artsy and the town is quirky and cool. We went to Abbot Kinney last night looking for live music, but only found some really cool shops, restaurants and bars. The best music we heard yesterday was a bluegrass band busking on the boardwalk! The food at Candle Cafe & Grill was superb! Michele McManmon wrote a sweet blog about me for the L.A. Indie Music Examiner at this link: http://www.examiner.com/x-27467-LA-Indie-Music-Examiner~y2010m7d22-Rena-Wren-hits-LA-this-weekend. Also, scroll down for a video blog from Candle Cafe. You can turn off the site music player at the bottom left of the screen.
Hi, everyone! Welcome to my new blog. I'll be blogging frequently with audio, video, and more for you guys as we tour here, there & everywhere! Stay tuned and thanks for your fanship!
