Good morning, you.

I’m in my kitchen, sipping away at coffee #2, making a to-do list and looking at a calendar.  The reason for the latter, is that I need to get organized.  There are events coming back – some public, socially distanced, safe events, as we were doing last summer, and some private ones as well.

Of course to me, this is like Christmas, Easter and all 41 of my birthdays rolled into one.  I’m thrilled to be headed back to work.  I have a bucket of new songs that are dying to be debuted in a live setting, and I’m optimistic about the future again.

Tomorrow night (Friday, June 11th) I’ll perform what I imagine will be my final 3-HR marathon concert from 6-9 on Facebook.  Tune in & check it out; I’ll be in a good mood I promise.  It’s a celebratory time, and I can’t tell you how grateful I am for my small legion of fans & friends that have tuned in time & time again, purchased virtual tickets and kept both my financial & spiritual hopes alive.  I love you guys.  Just the hits tomorrow night, I promise;)

While I’ve come to love performing at home (or anywhere) it’s time to leave the nest again starting in July.  Head over to my TOUR page to see where you can catch me this summer.  All events are in BC, as I’m choosing to stay fairly close to home, and fan out slowly, as the world returns to action.

One 2-night stand that I’m looking forward to in particular, is July 8+9 at my beloved Mary Winspear Centre in Sidney.  Just outside of Victoria, this venue has welcomed me with open arms for a few years now, and has truly become my home away from home.  I’ve opened for legends here: Burton Cummings, Barney Bentall, Aaron Pritchett & Buffy Ste. Marie to name a few.  Over time, I’ve built a small following in that community, and the venue has awarded me a couple of headlining spots on July 8+9 with special guest Oyster Jim (a great blues guitarist).  Get in touch w/ the Winspear Centre for tickets to one of these beauties… You’ll never have seen me more grateful to be on stage.

I’ve been rehearsing & writing like crazy the past month or so.

It occurs to me that time is seemingly speeding up on me.  The 4 year old step daughter I brought into my life is now 18 and leaving the nest in a few weeks.  She’s been awarded a softball scholarship in Utah, and we couldn’t be more proud.  But how is this possible? I still feel 25…
Maybe I don’t.

I feel like my time & experience during/with the Covid-19 pandemic has aged me some…  I’ve learned a lot.  I’ve lost a lot, but also gained some.  Vague?  All this is to say I’m learning…  What’s important and what is easy to leave behind.  I won’t be touring the same way anymore – jumping into the van and rolling blindly through weeks & weeks on end isn’t in the cards for me.  Much like my friend & contemporary Leeroy Stagger said recently, I too have enjoyed sitting down for family meals and watching my kids grow up the past 16 months.  It’s been trying at times, because being away & exploring the globe is part of me too, but overall my family is gold to me.   They matter most.

~Zari, the graduate.

Now, regarding that new music I was talking about.  It’s coming.  I have a few people I want to work with – some old, some new.  Not even a worldwide pandemic can stop me from putting pen to paper, and singing my lungs out.  Lots of good stuff coming soon.

~R

Ryan McMahon