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Mar 31, 2021

It was a pleasure to sit down with Marty Ray from The Marty Ray Project. He shared a wealth of knowledge on how he used social media to go viral with his videos and how he continues to put in the time and effort to share his talents.

You will also learn how authentic, transparent and caring he is and the love he has for his family, friends and fans.

This was a blast for me and I hope you enjoy it as well. As always, that you for listening:

Enjoy!

Joe


Marty Ray - 

The Marty Ray Project

The Marty Ray Project: Chats

Connect with Marty on all social media platforms: @martyrayproject


Podcast Music By: Andy Galore, Album: "Out and About", Song: "Chicken & Scotch" 2014

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Transcript

 

Joe: All right, I want to welcome my friend Marty Ray of the Marty Ray project, and he is a Nashville country artist. And I get to pick his brain not only on his entertainment and musical artistry, but I get to pick his brain about his own podcast and I get to pick his brain, even more importantly, to some of the audience members about his marketing skills because he has amassed a huge following. So, Marty, welcome. Man, I'm so glad you could do this.

 

Marty Ray: And I'm honored that you would have me on your show, brother.

 

Joe: Now, this is exciting, man, so

 

Marty Ray: Don't take my brain. Don't pick my brain to order. You might get down.

 

Joe: So I want to do a little I want to start with sort of the back story, if you can give us just, you know, how you got started. Was it the music part first? You know, whatever. You can just give us the whole thing. And then from there, I'm going to I'm going to dig in on some of these subjects so that we can really bring some some real knowledge to the audience when when they get to listen to this.

 

Marty Ray: Well, I always tell people I came out of the womb singing and that's the truth, I just know just always could do it if if I can do it now, I could always do it. I never learned how I mean,

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: So I don't even know if I do it right. But it seems like a lot of people seem to like it. So that's good. It's good for me and they say it's good for them. So it makes me happy. As far as what came first podcast or music, you could say music came first. I started writing songs when I was 12, but as far as professionally. I did. I had a podcast back in like two thousand seven hundred three either.

 

Joe: Yeah, no worries,

 

Marty Ray: But that cut off didn't

 

Joe: Just

 

Marty Ray: Just

 

Joe: Just

 

Marty Ray: Cut

 

Joe: For a second,

 

Marty Ray: You off.

 

Joe: Yeah, just for a second, it's all good.

 

Marty Ray: The alarms man. Those alarms, I wish you could put the phone in airplane mode while you're doing things like this, but I don't think that works like it shuts the Internet off. But anyway, so I actually was doing a podcast in 2007 when nobody knew what podcasts were. They got no respect. It was so hard to get actual guests to come on the show back then because. If it wasn't radio, they didn't want no part of it. So I actually named my podcast back then, Memcache Radio, so it would fool them into thinking it was your radio station.

 

Joe: Wow.

 

Marty Ray: And I was I was actually successful at getting some pretty high. How to, you know, high falutin client client clients and our clients have fluting guest on. I got a very Rucker. He was one of the moment

 

Joe: Wow.

 

Marty Ray: And I was at that time, I had no fans, don't know nobody. He just he was on there, gave us some of the greatest, greatest advice I've ever gotten at the end of that podcast. And I said, what advice would you give? An artist trying to be where you're at and apply this to everything in my life and I think everybody else should do, you should just play. Don't just look at every opportunity as if it's. So it could be something big. It could be something that could change your life, you could change your career. And so that's what I do. I look at every situation and I go, even though they might be this person, that person, they might not be big yet or but who knows what tomorrow holds, you know? And I think that's how we're supposed to live, especially like me, because I'm a Christian. So I live, breathe, breathing for others. That's that's my goal in life. I try my best to not be selfish and I try to breathe for people that that are all around me, you know, like like you, Joe, I'm trying to breathe for you. So instead of because that's what Jesus told us to do. So that's kind of where my life started with a podcast and. I ended up doing a video to learn how to make music videos, so I did a music video, went and rented a camera, and the camera was a black magic cinema camera. They just they just released these cameras. And I wanted to learn how to do a professional style music video. So I wrote disparity to all about that bass, and it was all about that beard. Believe it or not, I don't know. I don't know where that came from. That's weird.

 

Joe: You're right.

 

Marty Ray: Yeah. I'm still trying to remember how I came up with the beard thing, but we'll figure it out someday.

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: I don't

 

Joe: Exactly.

 

Marty Ray: Know why the beard came and now the. So then I did this video had no clue really what I was doing too much. And you could tell in the video. But I posted that video and it got two million views overnight and.

 

Joe: Wow.

 

Marty Ray: I was like, man, I got to really be consistent now because I told, you know, for years I kept saying I thought I could sing, but I was mimicking other artists. And I would I would try my best to sound just like them boys demand. Because you said a country singer. I'm really not a country singer. I know I look country, but I don't really do a whole lot of country anymore. I used to for my first album, I only did country because people told me that's what I better do because I look like a country

 

Joe: Mm

 

Marty Ray: Artist.

 

Joe: Hmm.

 

Marty Ray: So I said I will call it country. But when the blues radio stations said my album was to country and the country radio station said it was too bluesy, then I wrote a song for my next album called Too Bluesy for Country to Country for Blues. And then I just said, forget it. I'm going to do what I want to do and I'm going to release everything on the album at one time. And that's what I've been doing ever since. So I got on my last album, Mixed Emotions. I got EDM songs on there like like club club music.

 

Joe: Oh, wow. So it

 

Marty Ray: I

 

Joe: Must be

 

Marty Ray: Can see,

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: You know.

 

Joe: Yeah, it must be just the first couple of videos that I clicked on, I just happened to click in the wrong spot or just, you know, I just.

 

Marty Ray: Well, you probably think, you know, I understand how mad nobody you probably clicked on a couple of songs and thought, here you see the acoustic guitar, you see a big bearded cornbread fed fellow from the south, and you go, this must be country because you might not listen to country. Right. So a lot of these people, they don't listen to country music, but they see somebody like me and they go, I guess this is country. I kind of like this man. I know. I like country. I get that a lot. I get that comment a lot, though. So I didn't know. I like country and I'm like, you still don't know if you like country, to be honest, because this ain't really country. I got nothing against country. Right. When I was growing up, I hated country when I was a boy because my parents love country. So I listen to RB and I grew up listening to the gospel like Shirley Caesar, Mahalia Jackson, Rance Allen, people like that. And then that turned into listening to RB. Still isn't the gospel today though, RB? Then it got into soul music and I got into blues music, and then at 12 years old, my mama took me to a Garth Brooks concert and I saw him live at the Pyramid Memphis, Tennessee. And I said, maybe I should give this a look. And I did. And I gave it a look. And I liked what I see, what I found. And he was because that was the that was the first time that I heard music. That was it was really telling stories like actually telling. If you listen to thunder rolls. Have you ever heard Garth Brooks?

 

Joe: Yeah, but I don't know well enough if you mentioned a song, I'd be like, I don't.

 

Marty Ray: Have you what would you listen to, what's your genre?

 

Joe: I listen to everything I you know, because I own a booking agency in Phoenix here, so I have to book everything across the board, so I listen to everything.

 

Marty Ray: Listen to everything but Garth Brooks, I got it.

 

Joe: No, no, no, I just want no one saw you named. I think he's amazing. I think if that's your first exposure to country music, that was a hell of a way to see it, because he's I mean, everyone

 

Marty Ray: It wasn't

 

Joe: Loves

 

Marty Ray: My first

 

Joe: Him.

 

Marty Ray: Exposure. It was the first time because, like I said, my parents, all my mom and my dad, but my mom, my dad was born to like Chicago and stuff, which I actually

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: Love that

 

Joe: I

 

Marty Ray: Back

 

Joe: Love

 

Marty Ray: In

 

Joe: That.

 

Marty Ray: The day. I still love Chicago. My daughter, who was 15, is a massive Chicago fan of your favorite band. Believe

 

Joe: That's

 

Marty Ray: It or not.

 

Joe: Crazy. That's amazing.

 

Marty Ray: And I actually did a show with Bill Champlin, who

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: Was a member of Chicago, and he's the one that wrote Hofmeyr saying, I'm sorry, I just want to stay. I'm a right directly to you. That's weird. And

 

Joe: No,

 

Marty Ray: That feel weird,

 

Joe: No, not at all.

 

Marty Ray: Even though even though when you look, I hope this power doesn't go out from his eyes. You see that. You see his lights blinking.

 

Joe: Oh.

 

Marty Ray: Anyway, I'll try to sum the story up. This has been going on for too. I'm a long winded. I'm like I'm like, oh, Pentecostal preacher. You get your rain, you got to start

 

Joe: Yes,

 

Marty Ray: Yawning or something. You

 

Joe: It's

 

Marty Ray: Got start

 

Joe: All

 

Marty Ray: Yawning

 

Joe: Good.

 

Marty Ray: And let me know. It's like I if I don't hear any Armand's,

 

Joe: No,

 

Marty Ray: I might

 

Joe: This

 

Marty Ray: Go

 

Joe: Is

 

Marty Ray: On forever.

 

Joe: This is perfect. That's what I like, real people, real conversation.

 

Marty Ray: That's all I know how to do, I call myself a conversations, I

 

Joe: I

 

Marty Ray: Don't

 

Joe: Love

 

Marty Ray: Know if

 

Joe: It,

 

Marty Ray: That's a real word, but

 

Joe: That's

 

Marty Ray: I called I

 

Joe: Perfect.

 

Marty Ray: Call myself the anyway, the question was how to get started in music. That's how it all started making videos. I made that video and. After that, I said, OK, I'm going to. I'm going to keep on, I must stay consistent because I told God, look, this is what you want me to do. I'm going to I'm going to start singing, look, putting videos out and you honor and because he honors the effort, if you if he gave you a gift, you don't bury. So I'm just going to keep on doing the same thing I've been doing, putting out videos. And he seems to keep on honoring it. So that's kind of how it's going.

 

Joe: That's cool, and how do you so if you're performing down in a is nationally, so I'm not even going to say I've already stepped on my toes a couple of times in this conversation of saying things that aren't necessarily true. So what's the environment in Nashville musically? Is it still very heavy country or is is there a lot of different varieties?

 

Marty Ray: You know what's weird is I don't play in Nashville, I'm trying to I play the people don't realize it. I'm not really a I'm not saying you, but people don't realize that I'm not a bar band. I'm not against bar band, but I could never do what they do. My hat's off to my golf buddies. That's exactly what they they've done for years. And they play those people play for four hours and go to another gig playing for hours. I can't do that. My voice wouldn't hold up to that. I sang. I only know one way to sing. Like I said, I probably don't do it right. I'm just saying from the heart. And I push notes out really hard so I can give you two hours, maybe three, if you. That's what we mainly do. Private show. So the main thing we do is private gigs and I love doing props. Doesn't have to worry about getting people to buy tickets. So

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: It's really nice.

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: But I do. I have done festivals and the festivals are really cool because it's a bunch of people gathering tickets. So it's just a very scary thing to. To not know what your fan base is in a collective area,

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: If I always tell people, I say if all my fans, I got like one point three million fans across the board, if every one of my fans were local and national, I would probably never leave Nashville because I would not would actually book a show throughout the year. Once a month, it would sell out. And I would then by the end of the year, I could start over again and service the same people that were serving at the beginning of the year,

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: You said.

 

Joe: Yep.

 

Marty Ray: But unfortunately, fortunately, I always say unfortunately, fortunately, these fans are all across the world like I got people to say, and when you come to Scotland, when you come to Ireland, when you come to Europe, when you come to Australia, you've got a big fan base here. And I don't know. I don't I think it's scary to try to book something in another country and then think so. The only way we can do it is if people pay us up front, we say it's up to you. I don't know what my fan base is, but it's up to you like I am now, though, kind of branching out. It's the first time I've ever done this in a while. Where I got to show in Tampa in March, March 11th, and it's the first time that I've ever first time I've ever seen the first time in a long time that I've actually sold tickets to a show. So I'm terrified that this time will show up and there's going to be five people there. You don't know me. And

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: This place

 

Joe: No,

 

Marty Ray: Only

 

Joe: I know.

 

Marty Ray: Holds it only holds 250 people. So, you know, you just never

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: Know. You

 

Joe: All right.

 

Marty Ray: Don't you don't you don't know what's going to happen. But which we're going at it, like I said. Got it. Got honors effort. And I'm to put forth the effort even if it's failing. You know, Timberline is.

 

Joe: Demeanor, boots.

 

Marty Ray: No, Timberland, the the producer.

 

Joe: I don't think so.

 

Marty Ray: Joe, I don't think you listen to everything, I think I think I think you think. You think historically I think I say what you. Let me pick out what you actually do on a daily basis right now. But look at you. Let me say I'm getting I'm definitely getting. I know you like Chicago. I know.

 

Joe: Yes.

 

Marty Ray: I know. That's probably on a regular. So I'm thinking like soft rock. Salved, rah, rah, rah, rah.

 

Joe: I do, I listen to everything, I mean, when I put on Aleksa, I say, but I mean, I don't all day I'm working, so I'm not listening to stuff and I'm not staying up with everything. I force Alexa to say, hey, play me. What's the latest play the latest pop station and she'll just play all these things are or whatever. But I mean, I'm I've played everything as a drummer. I've played everything I've played for Jewish weddings and bat mitzvahs and bar mitzvahs to playing a rock show at the Whiskey A go go in L.A. to playing jazz and then all the rest of the stuff. So.

 

Marty Ray: What do they miss? They play at a juice bar mitzvah.

 

Joe: Oh, man, it's just that same that same beats just like that, it's just like they're dancing. I mean, I played that beat for forty five minutes straight with a tux on and I had to peel the coat off me. It was just crazy.

 

Marty Ray: Wow. So

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: It's like so they don't. They don't have, like, different varieties of music at this stage. It's just that it's almost like I don't know what it is, but it reminds me, when you were doing that, it reminded me of a like a

 

Joe: It's like a poker groove, kind

 

Marty Ray: Yeah,

 

Joe: Of.

 

Marty Ray: Like a polka sound

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: Like a trumpet

 

Joe: Yep, yep, yep.

 

Marty Ray: And people dancing and holding and holding their arms and dancing.

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: Is that kind of what it's like?

 

Joe: That's so during so the one I haven't done a bunch of them, but the one that I did was forty five minutes of that and it was all of the different relatives dancing. And then they lift them up on the chair and they do so literally for forty five minutes to turned around to me and said, just play this groove and do not stop till I tell you.

 

Marty Ray: Kylie, I hope you got paid well.

 

Joe: It was a struggle, just speak, but it was

 

Marty Ray: Man.

 

Joe: Called was fine, so.

 

Marty Ray: The funny part about bringing a Polke is my that when I. Interviewed Darius Rucker, we just talked about that one of the things we ended with, I said, so we need to write what song? Because I was right when he had ship, when he had went from Hootie

 

Joe: So country,

 

Marty Ray: And the Blowfish

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: To going into country

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: Music. And I said, what other one of the genres are trying to write? He said, Man, I'll do anything, man. I said, I mean, you polka we're doing a polka song together. And he laughed and said, Let's do it, man. Never did it. Matter of fact. I had Dariusz number on my phone for four years and. I tried to call it the other day out of the blue to try to get him on this new podcast

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: In the number of change. So I was like, oh, crap.

 

Joe: Well,

 

Marty Ray: So,

 

Joe: That's good.

 

Marty Ray: Yeah.

 

Joe: So let's go. So twenty seven year podcast pioneer, right, you come out with one. And what was the the theme behind it? Was it it was just all musical artist.

 

Marty Ray: No, it was actually the same exact setup as I have now, because I love I love having interesting people on, but the interesting people usually are in time, not always, but they're usually entertainment, meaning. Any realm of entertainment that

 

Joe: Mm

 

Marty Ray: Could

 

Joe: Hmm.

 

Marty Ray: Be boxing, that could be in a that could be sports, could be wrestling, it could be comedy, it could be music, it could be active. We've got all of it on this show now that we've that we that we started work. We just had Bert Krischer on last episode. And before that it was before that it was a food review episode. We did we just me, Chris Wallace and Jared Callinan, my buddies, we love food and if you can tell or not, but I kind of like food a little bit. I know. I know I don't look like it, but I do like food. And before that it was. I don't remember who paid for that, but it's like Darryl early, so country artists that you probably know the country.

 

Joe: Right, so

 

Marty Ray: No,

 

Joe: So.

 

Marty Ray: We actually actually also have Vanilla Ice on.

 

Joe: Oh, I saw that now I saw that picture of you and him. Yeah, so that was cool. How was

 

Marty Ray: It

 

Joe: That

 

Marty Ray: Was

 

Joe: Interview?

 

Marty Ray: Very. I was great, we were already buddies, though,

 

Joe: Ok.

 

Marty Ray: Before then, so that's usually how I try to make it, even if I don't know the parts. Like if you go listen to me and Burt talk, you will think that we have known each other for a lifetime, but we really haven't. And I didn't know him other than just being a fan. And I just sent him a message. He hears where he made his mistake and I told him this a comment. I was always commenting funny things on his own, his Instagram post, and he one of them he liked and laughter and he followed me and said, That's where you made your mistake, because you followed me

 

Joe: Right.

 

Marty Ray: As when you followed me. I was already following you. So as soon as you followed me, I said, well, now he's going to see these messages. I'm partisan.

 

Joe: Ok.

 

Marty Ray: So I sent a message. I said, hey, big fan, yada, yada, yada. And it's true. And I said, I'd love to have you on my podcast because, you know, he's a he's actual podcast. That dude that do makes more money podcasting than he does doing a TV show.

 

Joe: Crazy.

 

Marty Ray: So you're talking about a pioneer and he's an actual pioneer in podcast. But anyway, so I'm sending his message. He sent the message. He goes, yeah, I'd love to. And I said, All right, well, how about this such day goes on. We're going make it happen. That's right. So we get closer to that day. And I say, how bout it? No, no response. No response, not cinema next. And then the next week I said I said, how about it? We're coming up on it. And then this just went on and it would be times when it would be a long gap of me. Every month I would

 

Joe: Hmm.

 

Marty Ray: Send him a message. I would say, hey, you should be all I love you. Let's do it. Let's make it happen. So and I and then I started getting I started going like, this is a game at this point now. And I told him, I said, this is because this went on for a year. Now, keep in mind, this went on for a whole year,

 

Joe: Wow.

 

Marty Ray: Maybe sending a message, these dams. And I started saying, this is not going to stop. Until you either say yes or no or block me or you're on my show one or the other, and I said, that's it, I'm going. I still love you regardless. But they're saying I'll stop within the next month. I was like, here's your monthly Maadi message. And every now and then he would put LML every now and then. And so eventually we finally got to he finally sent me his phone number. But what I had to do though, at the very last, I actually sent him a list of people we had had on

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: To kind of show him NYSUT. I've had famous people on my show, like, in case you're wondering, I've had famous people, we we didn't just start we've been doing this for a while. We know what we're doing. You know, I don't think you're going to waste your time, if nothing else, to have a good time. And so that's what he sent me, his phone number. And I said I said, what's different now? Because I got a phone number. And and so it happened and it was great. But if you listen to it, anybody else, it's on the Marty Ray project charts. I should say that probably that's the name of the podcast, the motorway project. Yes.

 

Joe: Ok.

 

Marty Ray: If you listen to that, you're going to think and it's funny because he read I told him, I said read some of those messages that I sent you and he read some on the show and he read most of it. We're just busting out laughing because it was so funny thing ever, because he said most people will say, be on my show. And I say, yeah, I'd love to. And he and he I think he really would love to be able to do everybody show, but. He knows realistically that he can't there's no way he could do everything and he said that and he said, but most people, by the time he don't answer back after the first time or the second time, they start getting very, very hateful and mean.

 

Joe: Oh, wow.

 

Marty Ray: And he said he said you never did. He said after a year, he said you never got eight boys. That was always respectful and nice. And it was like still love. He said it was almost like falling in love with your neighbor. So I guess he said, I feel like I know you

 

Joe: That's

 

Marty Ray: Said to

 

Joe: Awesome.

 

Marty Ray: Me, too. It's really cool. Anyway.

 

Joe: Yeah, all

 

Marty Ray: I don't

 

Joe: Right.

 

Marty Ray: Know if I answered your question

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: Or not.

 

Joe: And also so what happened with the first podcast, when did that actually end to go away? At some point?

 

Marty Ray: Yeah, because. The podcast, I don't want to do a podcast by myself, meaning what we're doing here,

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: It's OK, it's OK for me to be a guest, but me personally, for instance, if there comes a time. I just enjoyed bantering with a friend

 

Joe: Sure.

 

Marty Ray: And not having the full load on me of the podcast of getting the guest book in

 

Joe: The.

 

Marty Ray: The guest and doing this and that. So back then, that was kind of the same way I had I went through I went through three co-host on that show, and I was the one putting up all the money. I'm the one putting up all the I'm the one actually getting the guest and they're not really helping. But I'm thinking if we can get a little bit of momentum going, they'll they'll start to see this is a very viable thing to do and they'll start picking up some of the load. Never happened. They they all kept quitting or not showing up. And I was actually for four for coast. And after the fourth one by the fourth one, I already did that all about the beard video.

 

Joe: Mm

 

Marty Ray: And

 

Joe: Hmm.

 

Marty Ray: I started progressing. And music stars like forget them, like I was trying to help them out, not just myself, but trying to help them out, to bring them up with me. We could have made something great, I believe, if we would if I would have kept doing that podcast, I'd be one of the biggest podcast in the world today. I do believe that.

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: No question about

 

Joe: I mean,

 

Marty Ray: It.

 

Joe: Based on when you started, if you mean it's all about consistency, right? If you

 

Marty Ray: A.

 

Joe: Had kept that going, you totally would have been.

 

Marty Ray: I have no doubt in my mind, but, you know, God had other plans because had I had that podcast blew up. That's all I would have done, I would not have probably never would have pushed music too hard, to be honest,

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: Because my dream, even from childhood, my dream has always been. To have my own talk show. You know, maybe like a radio, like Howard Stern type

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: Talk show,

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: And so I said, if I know for a fact, I said because God knows better than we do. He knew that if if I if that would have blew up, I would have just said, forget music. That's too hard. That's just too hard.

 

Joe: That's interesting,

 

Marty Ray: That's a.

 

Joe: I hear you.

 

Marty Ray: Yeah.

 

Joe: Yeah, well, so OK, so when did that podcast end about

 

Marty Ray: I said, I'm horrible at times

 

Joe: Was

 

Marty Ray: And

 

Joe: It right when

 

Marty Ray: Tamla.

 

Joe: That video hit?

 

Marty Ray: No, I think we still went. Maybe a couple of months after that, but at that point, I was I was literally trying to carry the load of the podcast and be consistent in making music videos. So I just said. Nobody, because nobody cared like me, nobody had the same drive or passion about the podcast that I did, so I was like, man, this is just crazy. I'm trying I can't do all this by myself. And so I believe it's about a couple of months after my like. I don't know the exact dates. Might not have to be honest, we I'm so bad with dates.

 

Joe: Ok.

 

Marty Ray: I know that. It might not even have been I might not even had the two million video yet, but I might have had because it all started on Facebook, not YouTube, like you can't even go back in the timeline of Facebook, YouTube and go,

 

Joe: A.

 

Marty Ray: Ok, look at this date and figure it out. Because if you look at the date when Ice Ice Baby was posted on YouTube, it was actually posted to my actual Facebook profile, my personal profile, because that's all I had at the time

 

Joe: All right.

 

Marty Ray: When I was making these videos because they were getting so they were having success on my personal not not a page, not anything else. And so that's where it actually first went viral, that both both videos went viral. Their first. Did I lose you?

 

Joe: Yes, for a second target.

 

Marty Ray: Did you still have audio?

 

Joe: Yep.

 

Marty Ray: Ok. Anyway, so, yeah, but a. So I was actually pushing everything from my personal Facebook profile, so I don't know the exact date, but I think the show actually ran for about a year and a half, I believe. And then and then I called it quits, so.

 

Joe: Ok, so then so you have this video and this video you say got over two million views.

 

Marty Ray: In a day, yeah, we

 

Joe: In

 

Marty Ray: Posted

 

Joe: A day.

 

Marty Ray: It, I posted it. That morning, just just a random post like any other thank you, don't you don't think about what's the best time to post,

 

Joe: Mm

 

Marty Ray: What's

 

Joe: Hmm.

 

Marty Ray: The best strategy here? You don't think about any of that back when you first start and you just like, hey, I got this simple post you don't understand. Algorithm's probably never heard the word of the enemy. So you just post a video like I did and I posted it and it's like a set it and forget it like an infomercial right now, just opposing it. And my buddy went to Nashville because at the time I didn't live in Nashville. I lived in Memphis and we drove to Nashville. He was doing an acting audition and. We got all the way down to Nashville. He did his audition. We're headed back. He starts getting all these text and people are saying, and I've seen you in that video, it's crazy, that video. He goes, oh, OK, cool. You know, thinking

 

Joe: Right.

 

Marty Ray: That

 

Joe: Sure.

 

Marty Ray: Thinking that is because those are those are people that know him. And he was like, when I talk to them a long time ago, that type of thing. And that's where he should. And so eventually after a few texts, he he went Facebook, a lot of the videos, brochures, videos that this video is over a million views there. And I said to what?

 

Joe: It's

 

Marty Ray: A

 

Joe: Crazy.

 

Marty Ray: Million views and then I pulled it up. I pulled it up and I said, oh, wow, this is crazy. So then I text my buddy Jared who? Who does filming with me? He didn't do that video. I don't want to put that evil on him because he was definitely. Way more prolific at it than me at that time, way before me, and while now I can do a pretty good video by myself, like I just released a music video for my new single that I released in the last year for the new album called Picture. And I did that whole thing, directed it, wrote it and did the whole thing myself. It might not be the best in the world, but it's better than the most, you know.

 

Joe: Yeah, no cold.

 

Marty Ray: So anyway, I called Jared, I said, hey, man, you look at the video. I said, you need to check it out, I said it's over a million views. He goes, he goes really? And he went and looked and he couldn't find it. And I sent him a link. He goes, Wow. That's incredible. That is nuts, and I said I said, well, we made it. We made it, and at that point, you don't you have no clue what's coming from a viral video, you

 

Joe: Mm

 

Marty Ray: Don't know.

 

Joe: Hmm. Right.

 

Marty Ray: And I didn't really make it from that video, but that was a star.

 

Joe: Sure.

 

Marty Ray: You can have a viral video right now and not. Never, never yield any kind of profit from it or anything like that, you know, but it's what you do after that viral video that makes you profit Bishop Marketing. Well, that's that's a marketing tip for anybody listening. Don't don't focus on your own. Your first viral video focus on the plan after that first viral video, because that viral video, if you stay consistent and you're getting better and better, it will come no matter what it will come. I've had it happen many, many times and it's just from me being consistent. It's not because anything that any song that I put out or any video that I put out is any better. It's just because it hit at the right time, in the right way. And it was what did I do that every time a video goes viral, you have to have a plan to capitalize on that wave because that wave is going to be like here and it's going to come down.

 

Joe: Mm

 

Marty Ray: It

 

Joe: Hmm.

 

Marty Ray: Happens

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: All the time. So anyway, so that was kind of where it all began. Right, there was that video and then I was trying to be consistent, so I'm sure you want to talk about the anelli sort of kind of some of what how that happened. So then I was posting videos, try to be consistent. And then I missed two weeks of posting on. This was still on my list, was still on my original Facebook profile.

 

Joe: Not even

 

Marty Ray: Now,

 

Joe: On YouTube

 

Marty Ray: This time

 

Joe: Yet.

 

Marty Ray: I. Not even. I mean, I

 

Joe: That's

 

Marty Ray: Don't even remember

 

Joe: Crazy,

 

Marty Ray: If I had the YouTube set up yet,

 

Joe: That's

 

Marty Ray: I

 

Joe: Even.

 

Marty Ray: Don't know if I had it set up yet,

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: But.

 

Joe: That's.

 

Marty Ray: I think I might have set the channel up after the all about that beard. I really do. I think I might have done it, but I didn't post anything there besides some old concert videos originally. I believe that's what happened. And that was that was a little while after because I didn't even think about it. I don't know why, but I thought, well. And I'm I'm I'm trying to do this on Facebook, this is where it's at right now. That's

 

Joe: Hmm.

 

Marty Ray: Where I was like I was under the nails. I was like Facebook personal profile. These are all hit. They all had every video I posted seemed to have had tens of thousands of views, which was crazy to me at the time. And I was like, this is great. I got I got a two man view video, two million plus video, and I got some one hundred thousand somewhere. Two hundred. Some ten, some twenty. It was it was a good it was a good time. And then I didn't even realize

 

Joe: You.

 

Marty Ray: I had set up a Facebook page Martinrea project and I didn't have to check it, though. I never checked it, didn't realize that because like I said, everything was happening on the personal.

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: And when I posted that it was three o'clock in the morning and I hadn't been consistent and I made a post with the Vanilla Ice Accoustic. And I said in that post, I said. Listen, I'm sorry I missed a couple of weeks. I don't know if anybody Zoom care about this or not, but here's the way I've been doing. Ice, ice, baby. I'll be all like it if you do. Great, if you know there'll be another one soon. There's kind of like that. And it was kind of a throwaway video. And that's another that's another testament to just put every idea out there, because you never know which one is going to be the one that put you on stage with Vanilla Ice. Right.

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: That's what's great. You

 

Joe: Right.

 

Marty Ray: Never know. And Vanilla Ice can be anything for anybody. I don't have to be literally Vanilla Ice, but opposed to that. And that video went bananas when it went next level. So then after that video posted, were people going and subscribing to my YouTube channel, like in my Facebook page by the masses because they took that. And so then after a while after Bam Margera, he posted it, world star, hip hop posted it. It got posted all over, all over the Internet, all over social media and moderate project for a while was everywhere. I was trending on on iTunes, like number two on iTunes, trending right below some. This has happened twice, actually trending right below as independent artists. Nobody, nobody behind you, nobody helping you besides God and your fans trending number two on our terms. And I screenshot of that because while for them it might be that it happens every now and then when they when that label gives a good push, got nobody pushing me but myself and

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: Like I said, and got in my face. So that's it. So it was like, any time that happens for me, it's a real treasure. So it's a real treasure. It's almost like winning a Grammy for me

 

Joe: Yes,

 

Marty Ray: Because

 

Joe: Sure.

 

Marty Ray: I look at that. But anyway, so that got that video has hundred. Well over one hundred plus million views on Facebook. Yeah, if you

 

Joe: Is.

 

Marty Ray: Add every every video together, everyone, if you can find them, all people are still still in that video opposing it and going viral and building their own channels when their own page is off of that video

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: And some of them don't even tag me.

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: So

 

Joe: That's

 

Marty Ray: And I hate that crap.

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: Yeah, someone don't tag me.

 

Joe: Yeah, that's not right,

 

Marty Ray: I dropped

 

Joe: So

 

Marty Ray: My ears out.

 

Joe: It's all right, so I have a question to sort out, just the sort of create the foundation of who is Martinrea today. What does Martinrea doing day in and day out? What is you what is your main focus? You know, because then I still want to talk about the marketing stuff. And then I want to also let you talk a little bit more about the podcast if you want. But I also, you know, so it's it's it's still those three things. But I want to know, like, who are you today? What is your main focus? And then we can branch off to talk about what you're doing on that podcast and then what you're still doing marketing wise with, you know, whatever you're posting and then what you're musically trying to do. What are your goals for that?

 

Marty Ray: Well, today, I do the same thing that I've always done at any any opportunity that comes along. Entertaining and I'm will tell you a lot of times this actually happened recently. A lot of times they pay off and it's there's a scripture that lives that used to live on my phone, my, my, my, my wallpaper or whatever, lock screen wallpaper, whatever it's called. And it was it says a man's gift making room for him and bring it to him before. Great man. That's literally my life. I promise you that there's no secret that I have other than putting forth the effort and continually making sure that even if I get behind a little that I'm going to steal, I'm not going to give up. I'm never going to quit. Because I think the only difference I think if you anybody can see this, if you read the biographies and you watch biopics, you're going to see that every success story, the only difference that separates the successful people from the unsuccessful people are the successful people never stopped. They never gave up. So when they were digging in that for that diamond, they didn't stop digging until they found the diamond.

 

Marty Ray: So that's kind of where I'm at now, where I want to be. My goal is has been for a while, has been to get to get to where I'll have a million fans on one platform or another. And I don't really care too much which one that is. But I think that's a big milestone to say there's a million people in one place. Are saying, I like what he does so much that I want to I want to see everything he does. So that's that's kind of and it's not just numbers for me. It's not just the people aren't just numbers to me. Everybody that like or commented or has ever watched any of my videos, every view that's a human that's a soul to me. And I love those people when they know that if anybody is a fan of mine, they've for any time, any, any, any, any span of time at all, they've probably had a reaction or a comment that they've left because I answer in the beginning, I was answering every single comment. I was just days and days I would spend

 

Joe: I

 

Marty Ray: Going

 

Joe: Know it's.

 

Marty Ray: Through answering comments. And now I can't do that. Now I can't answer every single one. But I still get a lot of when as long as it notifies me, I still get all those comments. And and even though now a lot of people that's like a strategy that people use in social media. And I hate that it's a strategy. I hate that it even is part of because I didn't I never knew that until recently that it was years before I knew that actually by me commenting on people, by commenting everybody as everybody. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. I love you. I thank you so much for listening. I didn't know that that was helping me on the algorithm. I didn't know that. I was just genuinely so thankful that these people were listening to my music because I had people when I was growing up tell me this would never happen, that I would never that I would never have an effect. Some people told me I couldn't sing at all. And I believe that for a long time. And some people said, you can sing, but it's a pipe dream to think that you can do music professionally. That's never going to happen. That's crazy. That's a very visceral world out there. And only few make it so. To see all these people when they start commenting, it just warms my heart even to this day. If I could answer everyone, even today, I would. But I got a family, so I got to I got to spend some time with my family, too, you know.

 

Marty Ray: But as far as where I want to be, I want this podcast. Ideally, my ideal situation would be for this podcast to be earning enough money to where I can not only make a living myself doing that alone, but my co-host, Chris Wallum and the producer and anybody else that we bring in with the team for everybody to be making a great living doing that, because it's a blast. It's a blast doing that and it's fun. And then also with my music, my goal is to now that I started to see that there's people that are independent and they. Have won Grammys independently, that would just be crazy, man, for me, for my fans. To catapult me up to a place that's what's a project, you know, it's not it's not moderate's margrave project because we're all part of the project. So as a project, we all are lifting this project up to where an independent guy with nobody behind him truly, truly independent in the truest sense of the word. Wins a Grammy like that would be nuts, right, and I know that could happen, but. And I know that I see that happening at some point if the world goes on and they don't get crazy or even crazier. I could see that happening for sure at some some some time down the future. The last thing I would say in my head is not that I'm not thankful for all the success that. These covers have done for me, like there's several videos on YouTube that are that are way shoot at the sound and get out,

 

Joe: No.

 

Marty Ray: My battery is low and it keeps it keeps popping up that low battery.

 

Joe: Oh,

 

Marty Ray: Anyway,

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: There's several people I mean, there's several covers that are on YouTube and performed have outperformed Ice Ice Baby at this point. And my my real dream and goal is to have one of my originals be what I'm known for

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: More than any cover,

 

Joe: Sure.

 

Marty Ray: You see. And the real fans, the real true Martinrea projectors, the projectors, as I call them, and myself, even we're all projectors is they they actually prefer the originals, you know, and that's that's how you know, that they're that they're because most people don't listen to the originals. They don't even. And that's OK. That's fine. I need those people too,

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: Because and I'm thankful. And I've had people say that certain songs have saved their lives that aren't my original. So I have no animosity towards the covers. I'm just saying my goal was to be known by my own music at some

 

Joe: Right,

 

Marty Ray: Point. And

 

Joe: Right.

 

Marty Ray: If that never happens, it never happens. It was still a good life and it was a good career.

 

Joe: That's cool,

 

Marty Ray: So

 

Joe: So

 

Marty Ray: That's about it.

 

Joe: So that's cool. So your your your main focuses are on the podcast, the new podcast, which what is the name of the podcast?

 

Marty Ray: The Marty Ray Project Chat's

 

Joe: Perfect. OK,

 

Marty Ray: At.

 

Joe: And then writing music and performing is the other piece of what you're doing.

 

Marty Ray: Right,

 

Joe: Ok, and

 

Marty Ray: Yeah.

 

Joe: When you perform, it's mostly for private events or corporate events, you're not doing this out in Nashville at the bar scene or things like that.

 

Marty Ray: No, and but I do respect those guys, I don't know. But listen and thank Marty's bad talking people that go to the bars because I stopped playing the bars. That's not me. I'm not some of my closest friends do that. Matter of fact, the guy that plays with most of the time, C.J. Wylder, that's that's what his whole career is, man.

 

Joe: Mm

 

Marty Ray: And.

 

Joe: Hmm.

 

Marty Ray: But I'm not a guess that I just can't do it. My

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: Hat's off to them, though. I

 

Joe: You

 

Marty Ray: Just

 

Joe: Know,

 

Marty Ray: Cannot do that.

 

Joe: I've I've seen it where I was in Austin visiting and I spent a week there with just being able to go see music all the time, and I would literally see the same guy three times in one day. I'd see him like at 11 o'clock, set somewhere, and then later on at a dinner time and then later on that night at like one of the other clubs. It was insane.

 

Marty Ray: Really, especially if you're a singer, like if you're if you're playing, it's not as bad, but if you're singing and you're singing eight hours

 

Joe: Yep.

 

Marty Ray: And you're really giving it all you got. But most of them, I'll be honest, most of them aren't giving it all they got every time.

 

Joe: Right.

 

Marty Ray: Because when you look into a bar, nothing I hate about bars and I'm not saying I haven't played a bar have and I will play a bar if they pay me to play that bar,

 

Joe: Right.

 

Marty Ray: I got to play anywhere I play anywhere in the world. If somebody somebody will pay me to play, I'll play. I don't care where it is. That's what it is.

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: But they got they got they're going to pay for me to come out there and play. I'm not going to come out there and hope that I get money. I'm not going to come out there and play for two hundred fifty bucks or 300 bucks. Not going to happen because the difference is I'm not knocking people to do that either. I'm just saying the difference is I'll be better off posting a YouTube video because I might. That video might go viral. I'll make way more than that. I'm just doing a YouTube video,

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: So or pushing a podcast or or doing a private show or you know, it's just there's a myriad of things that I could do rather than play a show for three dollars. And and I think I think everybody only has so much life in their vocals if their singer. I don't think that lasts forever. If you if you really sing with heart and soul, I don't believe it goes forever. I believe that because, I mean, you get old, people get old. So I don't want to waste I don't want to waste my time. I hate to say it this way, but I don't want to waste my money, the life of my vocals on shows. That are. People in a bar that are not even listening to me and I'm saying

 

Joe: I

 

Marty Ray: Like these,

 

Joe: Totally get it.

 

Marty Ray: Like they're not even listening most of the time they're in there, they're drinking and they're partying and they're looking at each other. They didn't come there for me. They're just at the bar.

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: It's different, though, when they come for you. I did a show in Nashville at Kimbro and we actually sold tickets to the show. You know, that was a bar. But all these people came to see me. So we were all in this room, just packed in his room. And but there wasn't anybody blabbering back and forth and and they were drinking, but they weren't talking because they were there to see me because they were fans. But if you go into a random place and you start singing, they don't care where you are, you know, and that's the kind of bothers me. And I don't know how I don't know how people do it. I really don't I don't know how my buddy like Chris Schrader, he does it all the time and you just get. No. You just get no feedback.

 

Joe: Yes.

 

Marty Ray: Yeah, it's almost like you're playing for nothing. It's like you're they might as well be playing music on the jukebox.

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: And I don't like that

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: I'm sorry, I just don't like.

 

Joe: I get it. So let's talk real quick, I don't want to hold you, you know,

 

Marty Ray: Oh,

 

Joe: We're

 

Marty Ray: You're good.

 

Joe: We're close, but I don't want to hold out. I want your phone to run out. I want your electric to go so

 

Marty Ray: Yeah,

 

Joe: Soon.

 

Marty Ray: I know.

 

Joe: So here's the question. So we got the podcast where you originated from with that and then the new one. And then we have the music stuff that you're writing and performing covers and doing your original stuff. Talk to me about the marketing. What all of that is that you doing whatever marketing that takes place currently.

 

Marty Ray: That's all me, unfortunately,

 

Joe: Ok,

 

Marty Ray: That's

 

Joe: So it's

 

Marty Ray: All

 

Joe: All

 

Marty Ray: Me.

 

Joe: Social media, all the stuff that you're doing on YouTube, Facebook, are you doing Instagram and Twitter and are you doing any funny Tic-Tac videos or any sort of stuff on Tic-Tac?

 

Marty Ray: I'm everywhere. Anywhere there's a there's an eyeball

 

Joe: Ok.

 

Marty Ray: Or an ear, Marty, right projects there and it's always the same at moderate project everywhere.

 

Joe: Awesome.

 

Marty Ray: But yeah, I'm I'm always at this point in my career, I know the game. So I have to as far as what I say, I know the game. I know that I have to be consistent on every platform. Now, I also know. That you never want to post the same content the same day to every platform across the board, and I also know you don't want to use a posting service to post across the board either because their algorithms don't like that. So I kind of know a few things at this point about the algorithms. I do know now that by answering your comments, it helps your algorithm. It calls you a conversation starter and now keep keeping people on the platform. I don't encourage people to answer comments because of that reason. I encourage people to answer comments because they should be answering these people that care about them.

 

Joe: I love

 

Marty Ray: They

 

Joe: That

 

Marty Ray: Have,

 

Joe: Man,

 

Marty Ray: Yeah.

 

Joe: I love that that's the authenticity that is winning you over, because you can just tell that's what it's about for you. If you love the people following you, you're authentic about it. And even like when you talk about that night that where you just threw up that video, it's like I'm not sure if you guys are going to like this, but I had fun do it. And here it is that's

 

Marty Ray: You

 

Joe: Being

 

Marty Ray: Have a.

 

Joe: Authentic.

 

Marty Ray: It's all it's really the only way I know to be, and I think I think people know that I got nothing to hide, that I'm. I'm pretty transparent, you know, a lot of people, when they get into music, they won't talk about Jesus. For instance, you never go catch me, not that about Jesus, because that's who I serve. Right.

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: So a lot of people won't mention his name and all these things ain't going to happen. Not with me. And I got people I got fans that are atheists. I got fans that are agnostic. I got fans all across the board. I don't judge them, but they know what I am. There's just like I know what they are.

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: There's nothing wrong with me knowing. But the minute that somebody goes, I'm going to I'm going to bend my morals or bend to let people know who I really am because I'm scared they might not like me. That's definitely not authentic. If you're if you're somebody in your house and into your fans or somebody else because you're online, that's not authentic. That's that's a lie, man. I'm not living that lie, so I won't do it. And again, if anybody, because this is taught in every in every workshop, it's social media workshop now. Now, back in the day, there wasn't I don't know if there was a workshop when I was when I first started, I was after this comment. Now, that will tell you, be sure your action, your comics take time out of the day. Answer your comments. That's going to boost your boost for an hour. And I'm sitting here thinking, how dare any of these people? How dare any of these people answer a comment because it's boosting their algorithm. Right, because. I wish that anybody that was doing that had that mindset, I wish. OK, you're not getting no more comments until you learn to appreciate that. Are people are taking the time to actually comment on your video because they like it? And I actually comment to the people that don't like it. I say, hey, God bless you. I still love you. Thanks for listening. Maybe we can get you on the next one and that's the truth.

 

Joe: That's awesome.

 

Marty Ray: And then most of the time they go, oh, man, I never thought you'd see that. I'm sorry, man. I really do like it. I'm like, you know, and you're like, why are you why are you bashing it then hours. Then

 

Joe: Right.

 

Marty Ray: It's OK if you don't like it. I'm not trying to make you like it if you don't. But if you really do like it. But you said you didn't. What the heck are you doing. What's the point?

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: Because there's times when. There's many, many times where, especially on YouTube. YouTube is a violent place and the comments sometimes now, not necessarily in my comments, like I've been blessed with mainly 90 percent positive comments. But there's a few times when people say things like how many just horrible things. And I will come back and I say, hey, man, I appreciate you stopping by. I love you. And I don't know what you're dealing with right now. You're probably dealing with something, but you're not going to hurt my feelings. God bless you. And I pray that your life gets better. But I will say at the end of that, I say, listen, I want to I want to just post something to you. Somebody like me. I got the thickest skin you could ever have. I said, but there's a lot of young people on this and on this on this website on YouTube that are really putting themselves out there. And if you go to their page or their channel and you leave a comment like that, you very well could be the final straw that pushes them to a place they shouldn't go. I said be mindful that life and death is in your tone. Not just not just words that people aren't reading, life and death is in it. So I have told people that many times

 

Joe: And

 

Marty Ray: And.

 

Joe: That's powerful, that's that's really cool.

 

Marty Ray: That scripture, that's where they make the credit, as the Bible says, life and death is in the song and you see it, we live that man. We see that people say sticks and stones, never sticks and stones may break my bones, but words never hurt me. That's not true.

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: You'd rather be hit by a stick than these words, man, because this

 

Joe: Oh,

 

Marty Ray: Up here,

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: This right here is forever, though sticks that you might break a bone and it heals. This right here can never heal it if somebody don't let it, you know what I mean? So anyway, I ain't trying to preach. Don't give me. I told you I'm like a preacher. You got you've got yourself

 

Joe: So

 

Marty Ray: Something.

 

Joe: It's all good, but I'm loving this, so this is something that I don't want to I don't want to. It's important for me to get this aspect of what you think about this. But I started a new since I'm a booking agent and I'm a musician myself, I used to play seven days a week in doubles on the weekends. I've seen it. All right. So

 

Marty Ray: Hmm,

 

Joe: But now I'm in a

 

Marty Ray: That's

 

Joe: Position

 

Marty Ray: All.

 

Joe: Where I can employ a bunch of musicians to play at various venues and resorts here in Phoenix and Scottsdale. And with what happened with this pandemic, I've seen just like lives being crushed. Right, because they there's nothing happening. So I just started this new venture called Making Money, Making Music. And the whole goal behind it is just to educate anybody. And it's not just musicians. It could be a sound engineer, a producer, songwriter, a lyricist. I don't care anybody that's in this entertainment realm that we're in to learn to diversify what they offer, that they have more than one talent and that talent could be used to generate revenue. And whether they're on YouTube teaching someone else how they book their band or how they write a song or how they figure out what a lyric would go well with. I don't care what it is or how you mix this particular album. Show me what you know, how you got those sounds, what Mike do you use on the kick drum or whatever? But my goal behind it was to try to educate as many people that are willing to watch and listen to either the webinars or the master classes or the video or whatever. It doesn't matter. What have you been doing to to sustain yourself during this time with the pandemic being around?

 

Marty Ray: Well, fortunately for me, and I know there's a lot of people it's sad to see. These musicians that a lot of them have just given up. Fortunately for me, my whole career is only a career because of online. So since I was blessed on line first and not offline first. I was already geared toward that and I was already making money in that realm, so where it did, it did. I'm not saying I didn't suffer, but it was very, very minuscule, what I saw, the financial things that I suffered, because, as I said, I only I've only ever really done private shows. And and the majority the bulk of my money came from and still does come from music sales streams and YouTube and now Facebook. So I'm going to change this, Mike, because my phone's about to die. Going to say might not sound as good, but I don't want it in the interview, just abruptly saying,

 

Joe: Yeah, no worries,

 

Marty Ray: Can you still hear me?

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: Ok, let me turn this let me turn this up. I'm so sorry about all these technical difficulties.

 

Joe: It's all good, man.

 

Marty Ray: They do their.

 

Joe: I'm here.

 

Marty Ray: You're very low, but I'm going to go that you can not not can you hear me? Good.

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: It's just amazing. Anyway, I can I can I can make I can finish the interview, though. So the only thing that I did differently was. US instead of doing it, because I'm never have done like a live concert full on concert online, so the real thing where this is a word, if you're are you in a clubhouse?

 

Joe: I am.

 

Marty Ray: Yeah, we need to follow General Caldwell. But this is a word they throw around so often. But it's a good word, but it's so overused on there. I would never say it on clubhouse, but I must say it here. I pivoted. Right.

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: Heard you heard

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: That clubhouse, right, Kivett?

 

Joe: I'm guilty of saying it, I sometimes it's the only word I can think of,

 

Marty Ray: It's

 

Joe: So I

 

Marty Ray: Every

 

Joe: Took.

 

Marty Ray: Time I hear it, I go. Oh, Coble's, but outside of clubhouse, it sounds better, but it's like everybody a clubhouse is trying to they're saying that because everybody's saying so it's weird. I never say Tacloban's, but it's a real word. And it's a really it's a really good thing that people need to learn to do is they need to learn how to adjust. So I just did. Slightly my strategy to wear when I wasn't able to do private shows and things like that, I started doing a full on of concerts and getting donations. So then could my Venmo and my PayPal and cash. You have stuff like that and. To be honest. Some of those shows, some of those shows just killed it, man, I mean, really killed as far as financially. And so. I still want to do that very same thing that we were doing one a month every month, but I haven't done one in three months now, I'm really due for one, but. Probably won't have one. I'm going to I'm trying to get the show at Tampa, trying to figure out how to make that one as well so I can kind of double dip

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: And. Do a show for my online fans and for people in person, I think that'd be really cool if I could figure that out, but if not, it is what it is. But that's that's kind of the only that was the biggest drastic change that I made was actually doing full on live shows, even some with live bands online. And I would I would encourage everybody that's in music, in any part of music to embrace social media with everything. We don't matter which one. Start with just one. But be everywhere, be available everywhere, but start with just one where you're putting time and effort into it weekly. And I would say everybody should start with tick tock if you want to. My suggestion, because tick tock is anybody and everybody can go viral on tick tock. You don't have to have followers you have that can go viral from a video and have no followers. So I would suggest everybody utilize that while you can. So and clubhouse, if you're able to get on clubhouse. I've made some phenomenal connections on clubhouse.

 

Joe: Me, too. It's

 

Marty Ray: You

 

Joe: Amazing.

 

Marty Ray: Wouldn't believe. I mean, just I just did a room. We did a room welcoming of I brought up Vanilla Ice onto the app and I did a welcome Vanilla Ice to Clubhouse Room. And it got like almost three thousand people in that room

 

Joe: Wow.

 

Marty Ray: Because of him, not because of me. But it was just crazy how many people were sitting there listening to us, our conversation just like this one. So that's really the only thing I can think of. That really changed for me.

 

Joe: Ok, cool, so so you did have the advantage because you were hip to the whole online thing and that's how you had started, that's where you found a lot of success. And when this happened, you didn't have to change much about what you were doing. But that's what I'm trying. You know, like if you have the advice you just gave is exactly what I was hoping you would do, is say this is what you need to do if because I see a lot of musicians that all they did was depend on gigging. And now, you know, I hear the horror stories from them and I can't there's nothing I can do until them till the work comes back, you know. So luckily, I'm lucky five of my resorts have come back. So I'm now giving a lot of workout. But I, I have more musicians that I have work for. So, like, everyone gets

 

Marty Ray: Nicole.

 

Joe: Like one or two dates a month where before I had all the corporate stuff and I had so much work, I was looking for people. So I'm glad I'm glad you brought that up about, you know, getting active on Social and I club clubhouse. I've heard it more times than I can even count that every expert on there kept saying tick tock is the place to start.

 

Marty Ray: It is I'm up to almost 300000 followers there. And I haven't I don't know how long I've been on there, but I have been on there too terribly long, maybe it has been a while. Like I said, I'm over timelines, but just being can see if you just if you just post consistently on their hash tags, no hash tags, trans, no trans, you just never know. You never know what could anything could really go viral. And it's it's a it's kind of like the Wild West out there. Just start

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: Shooting,

 

Joe: Get.

 

Marty Ray: Start shooting and see what happens.

 

Joe: Yep, all right,

 

Marty Ray: Now

 

Joe: We'll

 

Marty Ray: You

 

Joe: Call.

 

Marty Ray: Say you're there. How did you how did you how did you pivot?

 

Joe: Well, I just I was lucky that I had such a great year in twenty nineteen that I had a bunch of money put away that I could just sustain myself off of what I saved. And then for me is where does this might sound when the pandemic hit? I needed the break. I had been going so hard. So I always wanted to start a podcast and literally I started it like the moment the the world went silent. I was like, OK, now I have a chance. So I'm going to start my podcast. And then my partner, Joel and I, we've been together for twenty years. We started a YouTube channel and we just did whatever we felt like doing. And all our recent episodes was a 28 day trip that we took from here, going to Hilton Head and then running a car in Hilton Head and going down to the Florida Keys. And so I literally every day filmed all of that. And and it's you know, we post that up on the channel, but we talk about whatever and it's fun. And I'm I enjoy it. And so that all held me over until things started coming back. And now business is back again for me except for the corporate and private events. So I'm in good shape. But I like, you know, my goal with making money, making music is to really help, you know, the community, because I just see the devastation has happened. So I'm I'm trying to figure out how to do these these webinars and master classes and things and just get the word out saying it's all about diversifying your offerings. And you have to know that you have more than just one talent of just going out

 

Marty Ray: Just

 

Joe: And performing.

 

Marty Ray: Going over.

 

Joe: You could write songs. You could write lyrics, you could write charts for people that don't know how to write charts. There's just I'm trying to say, here's all the ideas. Go and pick one or two and run with them. So.

 

Marty Ray: Yeah, and then what's funny is. For years, I was. For years, I was telling my buddy C.J. and Chris Schrader and all these guys that I knew, man, you should be on YouTube, you should be on YouTube, you should be on Facebook posting every week. They know a plethora of songs way more than I do. And that way, more talented than I am playing the music. I have to really sit down and learn music before I can impose the video on my own. So and then I might have to do several videos because I miss a course and they don't have to go through that. They know all these songs because they've been playing for years. But I just tell them all to you, just wasting opportunities where you can just play in. Every song you play just posted, this new video posted on YouTube every week makes several sometimes I'll make five videos in a day and then I but I don't release them all the same time. I release them weekly. So they never did do it. And they now and I'm not saying that to rub it in their face, but I'm saying now they.

 

Joe: We're playing catch

 

Marty Ray: Have

 

Joe: Up

 

Marty Ray: Regret

 

Joe: Yet.

 

Marty Ray: That they didn't start doing it then?

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: No, because in that they're not playing catchup now, everybody's there now. Well, everybody was already there. Now everybody's there. You know, I mean,

 

Joe: Yep.

 

Marty Ray: Because everybody was already there, it was already a flooded market on social media,

 

Joe: Mm hmm.

 

Marty Ray: But now everybody's there, so. I think if somebody asked things out back up, I think hopefully it makes people. I hope it makes these musicians go look while everybody else is now forgetting about Roman again. I'm not going to

 

Joe: And

 

Marty Ray: I'm

 

Joe: Smart,

 

Marty Ray: Not going to forget about it. I'm

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: Going to stay doing this and the show that they have, because diversification is the key. Just like you said, that's the key for every successful person. The eggs in one basket.

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: They're all over the place,

 

Joe: Yeah,

 

Marty Ray: Multiple streams,

 

Joe: Yeah.

 

Marty Ray: So you're right. So if you're booking, you know, you're talking to somebody who needs a show wherever you're at. So let me know when you get it. Show that you need somebody to come in and play.

 

Joe: You've got it. I'd love to have you I get asked

 

Marty Ray: Whenever

 

Joe: All the time.

 

Marty Ray: You're ready.

 

Joe: Yep, perfect. All right, my friend, was there anything else that I missed that you want to talk about before I let you go?

 

Marty Ray: The only thing I always say is anybody's listening. Of course, writer review this podcast rate review, mind the Monterey Project charts. I don't care if you listen, just write to me, download all the episodes or right now you got to listen. I don't care, you know, and the same with same with Joe's podcast is the same thing. Only he cares

 

Joe: That's right, I.

 

Marty Ray: If you don't listen to mine, you're really doing yourself disservice and if you'll listen to it of some servers. And then also I would tell anybody less than. So that you don't have to be drowned in an algorithm, joined the mailing list and Martinrea Project Dotcom. Follow me on every social media that you're on at Moderate Project Dotcom download every original album I have. Everywhere that albums are consumed, music is consumed. I'm there. That's it.

 

Joe: That's perfect. That's exactly what I was going to be. My next question, how do people get in touch with you? Now, I've been Martinrea project everywhere.

 

Marty Ray: Everywhere you can you can think of it's at moderate project.

 

Joe: Awesome. All right, man, well, this was great, I'm so glad it worked out. I'm glad we finally connected. I look forward to more of these conversations, especially I'll find you on clubhouse. I have a room I'm doing on Wednesday just about the whole making money, making music thing just to try to keep putting the word out there. So hopefully, if you see that, I'd love to have you in on it, because I think you have a lot to offer and that's it. Man, this was awesome. I really appreciate it.

 

Marty Ray: Man, I'm honored you have.

 

Joe: Thank you so

 

Marty Ray: We'll

 

Joe: Much,

 

Marty Ray: Do it

 

Joe: Man.

 

Marty Ray: Again.

 

Joe: Thank you