ere’s a cover of a song called “black and gold” by one of my favorite new artists -- Sam Sparro.

Hope everyone’s loving the summer!

’m flying back to LA in a few hours, but thought I would take this opportunity to use the free computers/internet at the hotel for some wrap-up commentary as well as some reflection.

First off, I love you Ft. Lauderdale, but I don’t know how people can tolerate this kind of humidity.  I’m used to it to an extent…goodness knows New England gets its share of humidity in the summer, but this takes humidity to an all new level.  The upside is that my voice feels great (I often use a humidifier at night in LA because of the dry air).  The performance was  great and the audience was really enthusiastic and supportive — and they reeeaaallly got into it when I started singing “Pride”.  Extra special thanks to Corrie, Misty, and Diamond (who drove me to and from my hotel multiple times so I wouldn’t have to hang out too long in the heat – THANK YOU DIAMOND!!!).  I also must express my love for Miss Jujubee from RuPaul’s Drag Race, who was also a performer at the festival.  I saw Juju perform WAAAAY back in the day when I was still living in Boston (we actually discovered we have some mutual acquaintances).  She’s the best!

Every time I perform, especially if it’s in a new place with new people, I always learn something… often, it’s what NOT to do.  There were multiple performers all day of varying levels of notoriety… and temperaments.  Something I will never understand is how easily some people find it to be complete divas (not so much in voice, but in demands) and feel that they’re entitled to do so regardless of any of the circumstances.  I realize that a lot of people have baggage and sometimes it causes them to act certain ways… but such a blatant disregard for other people on such a colossal scale blows my mind.  I try to make sure that everywhere I go I’m as nice as possible, because having the opportunities to perform is not a right, it is absolutely a privilege, and a privilege that a lot of people work very hard for for a VERY LONG TIME to have.  And the other thing I learned a while ago is… this industry is really small, so it really behoves performers to act respectful to everyone they meet.

So back to LA I go!  It looks like I’ll be back in the studio recording my next single in the next few weeks… should be an exciting project and I plan on documenting the steps fully so keep an eye out.

And once again — thank you Ft. Lauderdale for inviting me out and for the love!

heck it out!

June 2010 – QVegas Magazine – Battle on the Dancefloor

few months back, I sang at the LA Religious Education Conference in Anaheim (or as I casually referred to it, the “Catholic Conference”).  Not all of you are probably aware of the fact that I sing weekly at my church here in Santa Monica.  I’ve been singing with them for about a year, and they’ve completely dispelled the notion that I had of what music (and to an extent, the people) at Catholic churches is like.  Singing in the choir has been one of the best things I’ve done for myself in years not just for the incredible music, but because of the people I’ve met in the process.  Living in LA, it can be incredibly difficult to meet normal, sane people who care about something beyond the car they drive, the clothes they wear, and the pursuit of becoming rich and famous.  I’ve never been one to make a big show of my faith or get into lengthy conversations as to my stance on religion, but I’ve always felt connected to something greater than myself, and I’ve always felt it is our obligation to do the best we can for ourselves and those around us.  For me, one of the obvious outlets is singing.  Singing at church is my way of doing something good for myself and the people around me — it makes me feel instantly connected to others and to the universe.

So back to the “Catholic Conference”… our choir was asked to sing with one of the performers at the concert, John Angotti.  Mr. Angotti had visited our parish a few months prior and I sang a portion of one of his songs.  At some point, he asked our music director Dan Houze to have me sing a little something at the congress.  Said song is included in this post.  My friends from home or anyone from Windham who used to come to our Chamber Singers concerts will fully appreciate this one — it’s very Gospel-y and is the type of song I suppose I became identified with.  Admittedly, I’ve listened to this song on repeat since I got it.  Some may call it ego (…ok, many my call it ego!!!), but for me, it’s exactly what I described above — being totally in tune to the universe and my spirit, and letting it take over, and I can’t get enough of hearing what that sounds like — and here’s what it sounds like!  :-)

Thanks and Praise (with Leah)

http://www.leahdriscoll.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/Thanks-and-Praise-with-Leah.mp3

an’t believe it — “If This Is Love” is still moving up the chart.  Yay!  Thanks for everyone who’s still pushing it up.

On Memorial Day, I was down on 3rd Street Promenade in Santa Monica and picked up a copy of Billboard from a magazine stand.  It was so fun to stand there and excitedly flip through the pages looking for my name!  (Granted, the mag was a week behind — now two weeks behind — so the song was only #39… but it was still cool!).  I keep meaning to post a picture of the mag with my name in it… I’ll get to it eventually.  :-)

I’m so glad summer is upon us.  Like last summer, I’ll be spending some time recording new material here and there.  I’m starting to feel some creative inspiration again… despite how I try, creativity is certainly not something that can be forced, much like many things in life…

Have a good weekend everyone!

lick the link to read the full story!

Florida Agenda – Song of the summer

ast night was my performance at Here Lounge in West Hollywood and it was great! I had an awesome time. Great big thanks to Tom Whitman and his staff for having me out.

I was thinking as I was driving there how many times I would hang out in West Hollywood with my friends when I first moved here… just hanging out, not actually “working.” My friend Adam F., my first friend in LA from 7 years ago when we were both lowly interns for Sharon Osbourne Management, was there last night, and we were both talking about how cool the moment was — to actually have a modicum of success. Extra special thanks to all my friends who came out, and also my producer Gary Miller.

Below is in article in Odyssey Magazine. Last night before I went on, Sean (my manager) saw the magazine sitting on a desk in Here’s offices and snapped a picture of the story. So cool!

’ll be performing THIS Sunday night at Here Lounge in West Hollywood. I’m going to be singing “If This Is Love” (the one that’s currently charting on Billboard) as well as few others. This is my first invitation to do a club performance in West Hollywood so I would love to have as many of you there as possible screaming and acting crazy — or just being there would be nice too!

Oh yeah – and no cover!

Here’s the facebook invite

his was my view on my walk today.

Last night I had dinner at Souplantation… this is the second time I’ve gone there and gotten a stomach ache that lasted until the next day.  Apparently, I’m a slow learner.  I shoulda gone with my instincts and had Hurry Curry instead… although curry seems to insight its own set of intestinal problems…

But before this post goes completely down the toilet (heh), let me get back to the point of the beautiful photo.  I skipped the gym this morning and slept in, but late morning I thought a walk might make me feel better.  So I took a pleasant, peaceful 4 mile walk down to the beach and back.  When I got closer to the water, I just had this moment of  thinking “wow… I LIVE here…this is my life… not too bad!”  Then I snapped a photo with my trusty iPhone to capture the view.

This past week has been a little… weird for me.  Not bad weird, just odd weird.  It is weird because I have a song that is charting on Billboard.  I don’t want to downplay all of the work I’ve done up until this point, or all the work the people around me have done either, but it just hasn’t seemed like that much of a big deal.  But when I walked down to the water today, and looked out, I thought about how a younger Leah would have felt about where I am… and she would have thought it was really freakin’ cool.  Growing up in Maine, I spent so much time up in my room daydreaming about living a “Hollywood dream” and what it would be like to be a recognized singer.  With the exception of the rare few who are overnight sensations, there are always times when you think “it’s just not gonna happen for me” because the road can be so long.  Maybe that’s why finally getting some recognition via Billboard didn’t hit me as such a huge event because it’s really just a stop along this very slow, uphill climb… and any taste of success, big or small, can be very fleeting, especially in today’s music industry.  But to make clear any ambiguity — I am truly happy and humbled, but mostly just really grateful.  I’m grateful that more people can hear my voice and my artistry, I’m grateful for all of the singers and musicians I teach and coach every day, I’m grateful for finally having some security in my life, and I’m grateful for the personal and professional relationships I have.

Now I’m going to get away from the computer and enjoy the next day and a half where I have NOTHING to do (except prep for my next gig – May 17th at Saint Rocke in Hermosa Beach – please come on out and join me!).  Have a good weekend everyone.