August 14, 2025 • 36 mins
Shelby County Teachers | The Arts Council Ladies | Conversations with Creatives Local teachers Erin & Michelle join the Arts Council Ladies to talk about art and music in their schools
Watch the video on our YouTube channel and please subscribe!
Conversations With Creatives on YouTube
www.shelbycountyartscouncil.com
Conversations With Creatives is produced for the Shelby County Arts Council by Video Visions Media Marketing and Your Podcast Now
www.shelbycountyartscouncil.com
Video Visions Media Marketing
Your Podcast Now
Watch the video on our YouTube channel and please subscribe!
Conversations With Creatives on YouTube
www.shelbycountyartscouncil.com
Conversations With Creatives is produced for the Shelby County Arts Council by Video Visions Media Marketing and Your Podcast Now
www.shelbycountyartscouncil.com
Video Visions Media Marketing
Your Podcast Now
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
On today's show, we have these two beautiful educators.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
Michelle Branson and Aaron Lyon. We can't wait to get
to know them.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
Stay tuned, Welcome to conversations with Creatives.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
With the Arts Council. Ladies. I'm Lindsay and I'm Leslie.
And today we have a really fun show. I've been
looking forward to this one. We have educators, which I'm
a big fan of. We're all a big fan of.
We love education.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Yes, so we have Michelle Branson Hello, and then Aaron
Lyon Hello.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
You will get to know them a little bit and
a bit. But first we have a very important question. Ladies.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
We always start with a very important question, So be
ready to break the ice a little bit to help
you kind of get loosened up a little bit.
Speaker 3 (01:02):
Okay, Michelle, I picked this question especially for you because
you and I have done this activity together.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Oh my god. Okay she told me Aaron, I knew
you would love it. Yeah. I was like, I'm a
little concerned. An I know what it is?
Speaker 3 (01:14):
Oh?
Speaker 2 (01:14):
Can I guess? Yeah? Is it? What's your karaoke song? Oh?
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Wow? What? I have a little caveato, Okay it is
see And also I have written down right here beside you,
so you might have.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Well, I didn't cheat. I'm not a cheater. I was like,
this is pretty planned, that's what I Yeah, No, I
didn't do that.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
If you had to karaoke one song for the rest
of your life.
Speaker 2 (01:33):
What would it be.
Speaker 3 (01:34):
You can also karaoke other songs, but you have to
sing this one song every time that karaoke.
Speaker 4 (01:41):
It would definitely be. There's a song in Rent that
I made my husband learn and it's got like really
the one with the really goofy lines in it, like
who do you think you are barging in on me
and my guitar and he's just like a.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Total goof oh yeah yeah.
Speaker 4 (01:58):
And my husband is not like a new theatery kind
of guy, but man, he learned it and he commits.
And I would definitely choose that.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
As the song because.
Speaker 4 (02:09):
It's still funny to me, and we've been married.
Speaker 2 (02:12):
For over a decade, so love that. It's so good.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
Dawson, like the Bonjovie guy and yes yes o kyeah
yeah yeah, like the No Day but Today yeah yeah song,
yeah yes yeah, yeah yeah.
Speaker 5 (02:25):
Yeah's say that soundtrack actually Yesterday and Getting Ready and
I haven't listened to it in a couple of years.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
This is great. We should be friends. Let's just all
do karaoke together. There you go.
Speaker 3 (02:35):
Michelle does have a sweet karaoke set up at her house,
which is where I did some like it was like
jazzer sized karaoke.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
I have a picture, I'll show it to you.
Speaker 4 (02:44):
Great.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
Yeah, I got it for my forty birthday.
Speaker 4 (02:51):
I was like, we're going to have a funeral for
our youth and we're gonna have karaoke and a bunch
of stupid stuff.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
And it was great, and I just kept it because
why not? Why not?
Speaker 3 (03:01):
Why not?
Speaker 4 (03:01):
Why not?
Speaker 2 (03:03):
So there's a party tonight at her house. Yes, let's go.
Speaker 3 (03:06):
Absolutely, So I get really into the songs. I'm not
a good singer, but I'm great performing.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
You're great at carryo.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
I am, well, not not the singing aspect of it,
but the I just agree.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
I shut it on the show. Lindsay will definitely sing
along to our lobby music. Sometimes. It's one of my
favorite parts of.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
The day because it's really bad. It's it's really really bad.
Speaker 4 (03:26):
It does I do, and so I try I try
to make it.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
Bad so it's entertaining. I mean, I get it.
Speaker 3 (03:33):
Yeah, and I throw some high kicks in there too.
I'm really good at kicking. I want to see this,
I know, I don't know, I might I might kick
like a light out or something in here today.
Speaker 5 (03:44):
So yeah, yeah, okay, well mine is going to be
probably pretty super cheesy. So I was in the Army
as a musician for nine and a half years and
I played the obviously, but I.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Also obviously well it's seriously right. Sorry, so, but.
Speaker 5 (04:02):
Didn't have an obo air about you, so yeahdness. But anyway,
so I was a vocalist for them too, and my
favorite thing to sing with them was God Bless the
USA by.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
Lee Green Would.
Speaker 5 (04:14):
I know that's really cheesy and all that, but I
love it though, And yeah, when that comes on karaoke,
I'm sure people are like, okay, let's get out, But
that's one of my favorite things.
Speaker 4 (04:23):
It's way now, what makes you feel feelings like it's good.
Speaker 5 (04:27):
Well, and just like I don't like personal experiences like
especially the older generation too, they love it.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
Oh yeah, and just.
Speaker 5 (04:33):
Remember so many Fourth of Julys and everything like that,
serving singing that even though.
Speaker 2 (04:37):
It's kind of cheesy to us in the same age,
but so meaningful, but ren is awesome too. Oh real,
I gotta do it.
Speaker 3 (04:44):
We're gonna have like a rent, patriotic karaoke night.
Speaker 2 (04:48):
The kid's good. Yeah, maybe it's wicked too. Oh yeah,
eleven out of ten.
Speaker 3 (04:53):
Oh yeah, actually Michelle, Michelle did Michelle and Carlos sang? Uh.
Speaker 2 (04:59):
What was the song for the one with the feelings? Feelings?
Speaker 1 (05:03):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (05:04):
Yeah, yeah yeah, it was bouncing that with you. It
was very good. Look and cameras, let's go. Would you
be wrap it up?
Speaker 4 (05:12):
Philip or Glinda the book Dealer's choice when you're gonna.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Look my secret?
Speaker 4 (05:21):
Like I wish that you know how you have art
classes for like people that you can just audit.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
You just go in, you do a craft class or whatever.
Speaker 4 (05:28):
Where is the like musical theater audit audit for like
people like me who never did theater but.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
Like we will like love it.
Speaker 4 (05:37):
I just want to be just only in the car,
only in the show, like we could just put on
a production. I mean, you guys are arts council ladies,
like maybe I happened do put on productions actually yeah,
but like with real actors, not like crazy ladies who
want to see if they can like wear a costume
and belt it on.
Speaker 2 (05:54):
I don't know if you've ever hit that note. I
don't know if you've ever met.
Speaker 1 (05:57):
An actor, but they are kind of would be. I
think it would be really fun. We just have a
musical theater night and you can get up and would just.
Speaker 4 (06:04):
In the only role is you can't be a professional,
right but.
Speaker 3 (06:08):
You but you have to have costumes and everything. It's
like a musical theater open mic night kind of thing.
Speaker 2 (06:13):
I know, what what have I done? Here's the foundation
it's happening. I just I just walked into something, didn't I. Yeah,
Oh boy, I'm sorry. You ready for it? Everybody get
your favorite theater song?
Speaker 3 (06:27):
So okay, well those are some pretty solid you're gonna
answer the question. So I had a I mean whatever,
I karaoke. I just like karaoked everything. So like Chapel Roane.
Always can get down with some Chapel Roone. But mister Brightside,
I feel like I really like put By Basic. I
put my best effort into mister kography.
Speaker 2 (06:49):
Yes of course, Yeah, yeah, I was.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
There was hand motions, lots of pointing, more kicks, more.
Speaker 1 (06:55):
Kicks lot that song been in something recent like well,
it's strength and fame.
Speaker 3 (07:00):
It's been in everybody's brainstem since well, it.
Speaker 2 (07:03):
Has to be in something like TikTok.
Speaker 3 (07:05):
So I don't know because my kids have just like
fallen in love with it, and well if they had
yours then yeah, well they don't do that unless it's
like some trend.
Speaker 1 (07:14):
Sorry, I love you, kids, but that's free. Well it's
really Hannah getting the trend. And then she commences Gabe
to join.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
She's just losing so much.
Speaker 3 (07:24):
Yeah, anyway, so kills all right, So let's are you
not going to ask me mine? I'm sorry, I feel
so left out. I'm sorry, Hey, Leslie, I've been thinking
about it and I still really don't what's your kids?
Speaker 1 (07:35):
I'm very I was very obviously into the nineties country
or nineties you know, so a lotus more set well
praise music, yes, but a lot is more set and
Shania Twain anything by them, Oh yeah, but I would
probably do. I don't know why, because I mean I'm
married for women, but I would probably do any man
(07:57):
of mine.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
Okay, I mean I don't know. It's sing it. It's
a banger, so it doesn't matter if you're married or not.
Speaker 3 (08:05):
That a single lady song.
Speaker 2 (08:06):
But Beyonce. Yes, since it doesn't matter married, that's right, sings.
There you go, awesome, Ma rive, Okay, good choice, this
a good choice. Your party tonight.
Speaker 4 (08:16):
Yay, look, don't play, I'll do it.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
She comes to win, I do.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
Yeah. All right, Well, let's kind of get to know
you a little both yours, right, we have what we
call our villain origins.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
Yes, so villain Aaron.
Speaker 3 (08:32):
You mentioned you were in the Army, so I'm kind
of curious how you went from like nine years of
army to middle school band.
Speaker 2 (08:38):
So I didn't. I think that's kind of a fun part.
So I guess.
Speaker 5 (08:43):
I was teaching for about seven years at this point,
and I was just in a spot in my life
where I didn't have any I didn't have any kids
at this point, and I was connected to nobody. And
at twenty nine years old, I got a call from
one of my dear friends in the one fifty first
Army Band. It was like, hey, we obo player, and
I was like, okay, cool, I'm twenty nine and they're like, yeah,
(09:05):
you'll be fine, You'll be great. I was like okay,
So I did, and I went. I went in the audition,
and I'm in a tangent for a second. One of
the I h spoke to my commander, Commander Mills, and
you know, he's like, you're a great player and everything,
and here are your strengths. And I was like, and
here are my weaknesses and he was like, no, those
are your lesser strengths. So it's something like really big
(09:27):
that I actually got from that audition, but passed the
audition and.
Speaker 2 (09:31):
Lo and behold.
Speaker 5 (09:31):
About a week later they said, okay, you're going to
Fort Jackson. So at twenty nine years old, I went
through basic training for ten weeks and did something called
split ups.
Speaker 2 (09:41):
So I make you take your obo with you, Like no,
so with basic training, I know, right, I actually like,
you're going into battle with yeah, so no.
Speaker 5 (09:49):
So my mos was actually it's it's called a soldiering musician,
so you're a soldier first. But the cool thing was
that like I could actually split it up, they called
it up. So I did basic training one summer, then
I taught the next year, and then I went to
the Army School of Music for ten weeks the next
year and then graduated from there.
Speaker 2 (10:09):
And I was a part of the army for nine
and a half years. But it was awesome. Army School
in music was amazing. I got to.
Speaker 5 (10:16):
Just learn so many different techniques and everything. But I
was training with the Marines and the Navy and the
Air Force too, so it's a really cool experience.
Speaker 2 (10:24):
That's insane, I know, I know, the idea of doing
basic training is like, yeah, I.
Speaker 5 (10:30):
Don't know what I was thinking, but you know what,
you just kind of have to get out there and
do it right now.
Speaker 2 (10:33):
No, that's awesome, but.
Speaker 5 (10:34):
It was awesome, and I actually ended up getting out.
I was spending a lot of time away from my kids,
and it was at a point of my Army career
that it was either you move up or it's not.
It doesn't look good. So for me to move up,
it would have been more time away. So I just
decided to go ahead and table that for a minute.
And who knows what's in store. I may end up
(10:55):
going back completing my eleven years, so we'll see.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
Wow, that's awesome.
Speaker 3 (10:59):
So then how did that lead into the working at
the school.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
So it didn't. I actually taught.
Speaker 5 (11:05):
I taught like seven or eight years, and well, I
guess maybe at this point six years and the school
distrut said I was working for they completely supported me
in doing the military stuff. And so anyway, when I
got out of the Army, I still taught at Claychopoel
Middle School for a few more years and ended up
teaching at Leeds and Hoover Met Chelsea. So going into
(11:28):
my nineteenth year of teaching. Wow, So yeah, I've just
been teaching all along the way.
Speaker 2 (11:32):
That's awesome. And so you teach a middle school band.
Speaker 5 (11:35):
I do teach middle school band at Chelsea Middle School
and absolutely love it. I can't believe I'm going into
your nineteen. It makes me feel really old. But yeah,
I just keep learning that to complete my DS at
Auburn and music education.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
I'm just plowing through.
Speaker 5 (11:51):
But I love what I do. I know you love
what you do too. Oh yeah, And I have so
much respect for that too.
Speaker 4 (11:56):
Girls saying which is harder basic training or dealing with
middle school?
Speaker 3 (12:01):
It might be equal, might be it's like going through
basic training every middle.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
By teachers are vikings like especially it's the beginning band though, right, that's.
Speaker 5 (12:13):
It takes a little bit, but it's so much it's
so much fun. And I guess the same. I do
a lot of army analogies in my room. You probably
heard you say some I talk a lot about you know, crawl, walk, run,
and I talk about that in band, but that's what
we talked about an army, and I talk about ready
in fire.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
It's not ready fire. You're not going to do it.
Speaker 5 (12:31):
So it's kind of cool to make those just like
those analogies with the military.
Speaker 2 (12:37):
That's all I know. And I almost just busted out
with I know one thing.
Speaker 1 (12:41):
You train your kids and you say I'm old, they're
supposed to say you're not old.
Speaker 5 (12:45):
Yeah, that's the most important about about the bed because
Gabes told me about that.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
They're scared. Yeah, I'm scared.
Speaker 1 (12:51):
So my Gabe is one of her students and he
adores her, adores.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Her so great. He's in going into eighth grade. Bell
I don't want to I know, so last year with
Miss Lyon and he is in the marching band.
Speaker 5 (13:06):
So he made it and he auditioned as a seventh
grader and made it as an eighth grader marching up.
He's a great kid, awesome and well we don't have
to go into that story, but I well, I am
going to go into that story. A sweet woman I knew,
I know that her son is very talented and he
was about to skip out on my mission.
Speaker 2 (13:26):
And I was like.
Speaker 5 (13:29):
Ring ring, and they were in the car and I
said that probably a word, hey, miss bell I, Gabe
is supposed to audition today, and Gabe's I can probably
see him in the backseat, Like anyway, she made him audition.
Speaker 2 (13:42):
Yep, and did you make it? He did? And did
he have an awesome experience? Head And that's what it's
all about, Shelby County on her baby.
Speaker 5 (13:49):
Yes, okay, yeah, but that was one of our first
like true meetings meetings.
Speaker 2 (13:53):
Yeah, you know right. I was like, no, your son's
trying out. He said he was, and we're not going
back on our work. But it worked out and it
propelled him forward.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
And my wonderful workplace was like, sure, just leave out
of flu and go pick up your kid and go
to I.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Don't remember where we went. It was Thompson, I think, yeah,
was it? That sounds good? Hoover.
Speaker 3 (14:12):
I don't know where it was somewhere Actually, that's right,
that's what it was. I also got to be a chaperone,
mind you.
Speaker 2 (14:25):
The what else? O bus captain? What was my day?
I needed you? Bus Captain? Bus, captain Bus, one best.
Speaker 5 (14:32):
Bus, one best bus. She got promoted too. I lost
my voice. I think it was day two.
Speaker 2 (14:41):
Yeah, yeah, and she had to translate for me.
Speaker 5 (14:43):
It didn't always come out accurate. But she did a
great fun and I'm very thankful.
Speaker 2 (14:48):
Yes, it was such a good.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
Trip and the way that Aaron is so cool and
calm and just yeah.
Speaker 2 (14:55):
But you just took everything with stride. I mean, we
had how many middle schoolers at Disney the world It's
a lot is two charter bus loads of humans.
Speaker 4 (15:04):
So yeah, we've all been there the Disney. The Disney
trip with the two charter buses, it's like it's chaos.
Speaker 5 (15:11):
But I will tell you with all the awesome chaperones
and my like favorite colleague in the world, one of
my best friends, Jill Harry. She's the choir director at
the middle school, screen tag team everything, and so without
her and the chaperones, I couldn't have done it.
Speaker 1 (15:23):
But she's great and theids were great, they really were.
So Chelsea Middle School does have good kids. I'm not saying,
you know, as favoritism here, but a little bias. Other
ones are good to.
Speaker 2 (15:35):
Anyway.
Speaker 3 (15:36):
Some well, Michelle, let's talk about your you're a background.
Speaker 2 (15:40):
It's so boring.
Speaker 4 (15:42):
I feel we should have done these like flip flots whatever.
I've never been in the army.
Speaker 2 (15:47):
Anything about you is boring.
Speaker 4 (15:49):
Run my couldn't run half a mile?
Speaker 3 (15:53):
How about you could run half a mile if somebody
were chasing you. Yes, so it would take like a
full zombie.
Speaker 4 (15:58):
I think it would take like a threat to my
life and livelihood. But yeah, I mean it's a pretty
boring story. Like I just went to college and you
went to Monavella.
Speaker 2 (16:11):
Went to Montavallo.
Speaker 4 (16:13):
Thought I was just going to do elementary education, got
into it, stuck out like a sore thumb, like I
was such a weirdo, and like all the people there
were all in a sorority and super normal and very
like a whole thing that I am not. And so
I was like, oh my gosh, do I really want
to teach?
Speaker 2 (16:31):
And I was like yes.
Speaker 4 (16:32):
And then, much to everyone's disappointment, I think, because I
always made like really good grades and all that kind
of stuff, I was like, you know what I'm gonna do.
I'm going to be an art teacher. I'm going to
go to school twice. I'm going to get a master's degree,
so I can have like the least job security and
education ever. And so my parents were like cool and
(16:53):
bartended through college which really trained me for kindergarteners.
Speaker 3 (16:57):
And there's not a big difference between kindergarteners and drunk people.
Speaker 2 (17:02):
No, there's really not.
Speaker 4 (17:03):
They randomly cry they had to go to the bathroom.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
All the time. You can't draw a straight line yelling
for no reason. Yes, okay, so you guys get it,
I baby said before, So yeah, I get it, that is.
Speaker 4 (17:18):
And then like I remember my the job that I
was taking before I started my internship. Right before that,
I took a pay cut to start teaching. And again
it's one of those things like you never know. You're
in your twenties. You don't know what you're supposed to
do with your life. So I was like, oh my gosh,
am I making the right choice. And like a year
(17:39):
in traveling because I was two different elementary schools, we
had like nine hundred students. There were a couple of
days I didn't have a planning period and it was
like you have to run everything like a cooking show,
you know, like have everything pre planned out to the
in degree, and like I just loved it. I had
no I was obsessed with it, and I'm still obsessed
(17:59):
with it. Like this is year thirteen, and I went
from teaching elementary to teaching high school. I never did
middle school. I did my internship in middle school.
Speaker 2 (18:08):
I'll do it. I what are you doing it now?
I cannot. It's because, okay, so I love high school. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (18:16):
Oh, so I love the littles because it's like enthusiasm,
be goofy, right, And then I love the high school
students because I'm obsessed with all of their ideas. Like
anytime somebody says like these kids nowadays, I'm like, they're
literally better than all of us. Stop talking, like kids
are all right?
Speaker 2 (18:33):
Yeah, So.
Speaker 4 (18:35):
I don't know, I just I love it so much.
But like in middle school, it was just like, you know,
how kids are like trying on their new identities, so
like you can have one kid who is three different
kids in one week.
Speaker 5 (18:45):
You know, And that's you know, one of the things
that I like about teaching band because like they come
to me like babies, and then seventh graders they're like
like little dinosaurs, yes, and then when they're eighth grade,
they're actually kind of adulty and then you ship them
off and it's sad to see them, but to where
they came from. So you get to see like the
finished product of you know, sixth, seventh and eighth grade
(19:06):
and then yeah, see their ideas that they got in
middle school and all that.
Speaker 2 (19:09):
I love it so much. I'm obsessed with my job. Yeah,
it's actually kind of.
Speaker 4 (19:13):
My only personality trade at this point.
Speaker 2 (19:15):
So oops, you know, and.
Speaker 5 (19:17):
I and not to be a conversation hijacker, but it's
really interesting that you said that you kind of accidentally
got into arts education. I wanted to go into performance.
I was like, I'm going to perform, that's all I'm
gonna do. I'm gonna get my education degree as a backup.
Speaker 2 (19:31):
And I did it like you.
Speaker 5 (19:32):
I was like, now I'll get my master's in education
as a backup. And nineteen years later and I wouldn't
have it any other way. But yeah, it's just neat how.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
You know, the universe just kind of aligns everything. Oh absolutely,
this is cool. Never know where you're going to end up,
so not at all.
Speaker 3 (19:46):
And I met Michelle because she would enter artwork into
our shows at the Arts Council and so met Yeah, okay,
I just forced my friendship upon her.
Speaker 4 (19:55):
Look, I was trying to figure it out because somebody
asked like, oh, how long have you known Lindsay, And
I was just like forever, I don't know, and in
a determinate amount of time.
Speaker 3 (20:03):
And it's just like there was never like a starting period.
We were just friends, like yeah, it just happened.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
And I mean she.
Speaker 4 (20:09):
Worked at She'll Be County High School, which was four
seconds away from the artic councils. I just see her
over there a lot too, And that's really She always
encouraged her kids to enter our high school juried art
show and so yes encouraged bullied. Yeah, potato tomato whatever.
Speaker 3 (20:25):
So she's at Helena High School now doing a great
job over there. Yeah. So so I'm curious to know
from both of you, like kind of just like day
and age, there's a lot of technology, a lot of
like AI kind of art or even music. You know,
like how has that kind of changed the landscape of
like how you teach or how you still get your
(20:47):
students to be like use their own creativity instead of
you know, trying to like use a computer or a
program or something like that.
Speaker 2 (20:55):
It's probably different for me because.
Speaker 5 (20:59):
Mine is literally I teach at least for my band
program anyway, I teach it very.
Speaker 2 (21:05):
It's very fundamental and.
Speaker 5 (21:07):
There's not a lot of opportunity for technology being involved
because it's very straightforward, like here's our piece of music.
Speaker 2 (21:13):
This is the reason we're learning it.
Speaker 5 (21:16):
But as far as it hasn't really done anything for
band really, but it is neat to see the kids
like we we played a piece that was about Pearl
Harbor bombing and you probably remember that right for the
Veterans program, but it was neat. I can see a
huge difference of kids now versus ten years ago actually
(21:36):
going on their own and researching and going what is
this piece actually about? And then they'll come back to
me and tell me where it's ten years ago. I
don't like, I just don't remember kids doing that. So
I know that's not AI. But that's one way I
see a huge difference in it, which is neat.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
That's really neat. You have that, okay, So that's that's right.
Speaker 4 (21:56):
Art's probably so AI makes me a little spice because
you know, in the art realm, a lot of those
models are trained off of like stealing people's stuff, right,
So and there is also a touch of like I'm
basically a lotite, Like I was the last person to
get an iPhone. I am the actual worst at technology,
(22:17):
So there might be a little bit of bias there,
but it's it's just like any tool, right, Like you
can use it appropriately or you can use it inappropriately.
And so we have a really great educator that I
so at Helena. There are three teachers. Summer Simpson is
our like technology guru. You know, She's figured out ways
to ethically include AI into the preparation process. So in
(22:44):
my classes it's all traditional media, but she does more digital.
So we really just try and be super mindful of
like make sure that you're using this tool to enhance
the ideas that you already had and to prepare for
the artwork that you were already trying to make. And
I think that that has to be the focus, right
(23:05):
because at the end of the day, yeah, it's a
valuable tool, but you have to think about like, Okay, well,
who's our work got fed into that tool, Like what
can we do on our own to make sure that
we have like integrity in our process.
Speaker 2 (23:19):
Right. So it's a little bit of a tightrope.
Speaker 4 (23:21):
And you know, if you teach ap I don't know
if you guys are familiar with like the ap Art program,
you know, they're very personikty about what is plagiarism. And
just because a lot of people think you find a
picture online and you paint it and that's your work
of art.
Speaker 2 (23:37):
But it's not.
Speaker 5 (23:38):
Well now, as we go along, it has to be
so much that has to be really kind of complicated
to know if it is or isn't, Like it does
take integrity, like you said it, and that's got to
be right, yeah.
Speaker 3 (23:51):
Because even in music you can plagiarize like Vanilla Ice.
Speaker 2 (23:55):
And Queen Hello, you know, yeah, yeah, And.
Speaker 3 (23:58):
It's trying to get like if you're using like samples
of yeah.
Speaker 5 (24:02):
And if I were like teaching like jazz, and I've
really wanted to incorporate that in the program, but there's
just a lot of children, so I have to stay
on the straight and narrow. But with jazz, you know,
you have improvisation where it's like you can make up
your own stuff, and that's where like I think we
would run into stuff because you know, they might go
look up different licks set this awesome jazz musician did.
But as for band it's just so different. I know,
(24:24):
you have to deal with it so much more.
Speaker 4 (24:26):
Yeah, we but then you know the difference between like
are you using your cell phone? Are you using what
image sources? Like can we compile? Like yeah, it's a
little bit of a minefield. But honestly, the kids want
to make their own stuff, like they want to be original,
So you just it's all about being a facilitator as
an art teacher, like making sure that they have everything
(24:48):
that they need and just like yes, anding them.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
Right, you know what I mean?
Speaker 3 (24:53):
Yeaheah, And I mean I think it's just a good
a good way to educate them, especially on plagiarism and
like this is what we don't do. You know, if
we're gonna use this piece of art, we have to
change it so much or something like that. So I've
encountered that with a couple of other art teachers, especially
for the high school juried Art show, because oh yeah,
plagerism a couple of times and we've.
Speaker 2 (25:13):
Had to address it.
Speaker 3 (25:14):
And one of the teachers she's like, I always use
this as a tool to like talk to my kids
about this and how this is not appropriate out in
the real world. You cannot professionally get out and do this,
and so I think that's a really important tool too.
So I appreciate teachers that address that and like, you know,
try to teach kids.
Speaker 2 (25:31):
You know, whenever you know better, you do better. Yeah,
of course that's right. The arts you're creative.
Speaker 1 (25:36):
I mean that's a huge part of just using your
own creativity.
Speaker 2 (25:40):
And that's the fun part.
Speaker 4 (25:42):
Like why are you going to skip the fun part
where you get to say the thing that you wanted
to say?
Speaker 3 (25:47):
Right?
Speaker 4 (25:47):
You know, No, it's like that's the that's the part
that I don't know, that's the part that is that
makes it all worth doing, right would you?
Speaker 1 (25:56):
I feel you like you would struggle with that more
with like beginners students? Do you teach like beginning art?
Speaker 4 (26:03):
We at Shelby County High School, which I spent a
big chunk. I think I was there four seven years
and so I taught everything because I was a single pringle,
So it was art one, two, three, four, AP two,
d AP, drawing. We had a service based art club,
so it was a.
Speaker 2 (26:21):
It was all of it.
Speaker 4 (26:23):
And you know, one of the things that I was
proud of was that I had kids who weren't like
good at you know those kids that struggle, they're just like,
can you just do me a step by step so
I can make something pretty and my mom will put
it on the refrigerator.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
And just like I believe in high school, yes, they know,
they're still kids.
Speaker 4 (26:42):
They want I say, there's still kids. I still would
be like, you.
Speaker 2 (26:45):
Put my drawing on the refrigerator. Oh my gosh, but.
Speaker 3 (26:52):
There's you.
Speaker 4 (26:54):
This is awkward to talk about, but it's like, you
don't have to be good at art to get all
of the things that you need to get out of art.
So like, once you take away that fear of like, oh, well,
I have to make something that looks good, it's like, no,
you don't. You just have to not know a skill
and then I'll tell you about the skill and then
maybe you'll be better at the skill and that's enough.
Like nobody thinks, oh well, I'm not a beautiful musician.
(27:18):
I'm not a great singer, so I can't sing in
the shower, I can't sing in my car.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
But for some reason we think that about the visual arts.
Speaker 4 (27:25):
Oh I'm not good at it, so I can't do
it incorrect, like it's for everybody.
Speaker 2 (27:31):
Yeah that's great. Yeah, I mean, I'm not hard to
put that way.
Speaker 3 (27:34):
Yeah, I mean sometimes it's just about like having fun
and you know, learning something new and.
Speaker 2 (27:38):
You might not be great at it.
Speaker 3 (27:39):
You know, I'm not always great at everything I do,
but you know you're great at everything, lindsay.
Speaker 5 (27:45):
Well, and I was going to tag onto that too.
It's now that you're talking about this, art seems not
that it's not a group effort, but it's so much
more individualized, whereas band.
Speaker 2 (27:55):
Is definitely a group effort.
Speaker 5 (27:57):
Like if Trump's playing too loud, the whole band is
going to sound bad. So I get what you were
saying too. It's like, well, you know about the single
person not being as strong as the rest of the crowd,
but it can still work.
Speaker 2 (28:09):
You just have to work as a team.
Speaker 5 (28:11):
And I tell my band all the time, like in sports,
there's a bench, and in band, you are the only
person that can put you on the bench. So either
you're on the bench or in the game. But anyway,
it's just analogy that I use, like we're all part
of this, but it's your choice put yourself on the bench.
And I guess maybe it's more individualized for art. I
(28:31):
don't know, because they do you guys do collaborative We do.
Speaker 4 (28:34):
We have a couple of collaborative projects that I like
to do. We do critique a lot, which is a
really cool way to get the whole classroom involved, and
it's honestly one of my favorite things about teaching. But
they all sit at those tables, you know, where you're
facing each other. So you would be shocked at the
amount of collaboration that goes into every single project, especially
(28:56):
if you have one of those classes, like I'm sure
you've had them before where it's magic because everybody wants
to do the thing, so they all lift each other up.
It's like the sum is greater than the parts or whatever.
I don't remember how that saying goes, but anyways.
Speaker 2 (29:12):
That sounds good though.
Speaker 4 (29:13):
Yeah, but yeah, they do. They collaborate, collaborate a lot
more than you think they would.
Speaker 5 (29:18):
Yeah, okay, that's really neat. Then it's like the only
thing they do independent are like things.
Speaker 2 (29:24):
Like trying about Gabe.
Speaker 5 (29:26):
Yeah, trying out individually, and sometimes that gets that gets
a little bit tricky. But people like the kids who
are in band, to be in a band, to be
a part of a group, they just kind of stay
away from the solo aspect of it.
Speaker 2 (29:38):
But some kids just need to be forced.
Speaker 1 (29:40):
I know, like my son, Yeah, Aaron, I think it's
very interesting your song choices, and they feel so good interesting,
not bad, interesting, and like especially the spring concert felt
so yeah personal.
Speaker 2 (29:55):
I mean it was beautiful. I feel like I know that.
Speaker 1 (29:58):
I mean, it was the most beautiful music. I sit
there and think, how are these middle school students playing this?
Speaker 2 (30:06):
That's it?
Speaker 5 (30:07):
And I know that you get this from I know
you get this from your job too.
Speaker 2 (30:12):
We played Can I talk about that? Okay? So there's
a piece that's.
Speaker 5 (30:15):
Called Stay and it's written by Randall Sandridge. I'm not
sure I'm allowed to talk about that, right, sure, but
on each kid's piece of paper at the very top
it said you you playing this music, you matter And
it was called Stay and it is about mental illness.
Speaker 2 (30:35):
And that's a really hard topic to talk.
Speaker 5 (30:38):
About with any age group, but with middle school and
you know, I know in our community we have we
have lost several students in the past few years to
mental illness. But I did have a talk with our
awesome guidance counselors.
Speaker 2 (30:52):
I was like, Hey, this is what I plan on.
Speaker 5 (30:54):
Doing, and they were awesome about it, and they just
basically said, hey, just give them the paper.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
And then I told them.
Speaker 5 (31:00):
It was about maybe three days before the concert, and
I told the counselors. I was like, Okay, now I'm
gonna say now I'm gonna tell them why we're doing this,
and they already knew, but it was like, yeah, now
I'm really gonna tell you. And a very quick personal story.
A girl that I went to college with she passed away.
It was a year ago. Yeah, it was a little
(31:22):
over a year ago. One of my best friends, a
beautiful vocalist. We were in a signe al Fayota together
and one of my four like we had four minutes sisters,
and she was one of them and very close with her.
Speaker 2 (31:33):
I was in her wedding.
Speaker 5 (31:35):
Two beautiful kids. We would go camping with our families
and everything, and you just wouldn't see it on the outside.
And I just had to tell my kids, like, this
is who I think about, and I need you to
know that you are better being here.
Speaker 2 (31:49):
And that was hard to talk about.
Speaker 5 (31:50):
But I had so many kids come up to me
after that class in then, sorry, so many kids come
after me that class. Just give me huge hugs and
go and you.
Speaker 2 (32:00):
I know that is so.
Speaker 5 (32:01):
Hard to talk about and I was scared to talk
about it. I was like, I want to lose my job.
But that's why, like people are so worried to talk
about it. But anyway, they uh. One more thing. I
had the administration and the guidance counselors come in for
their dress rehearsal in the band room, and I mean
our principle and our counselors were they were in tears.
Speaker 2 (32:21):
And they just played that piece at the concert Ooh.
Speaker 5 (32:26):
It was amazing because they actually had something to put
into that, whether they were going through it or whether
they saw the emotion through me or anything.
Speaker 2 (32:35):
But that's one of the most important thing about arts
is creating right.
Speaker 5 (32:38):
And I feel bad for those kids that never get
to get that experience because either they choose not to
or they think they're not good at it. Because even
the worst player in that group, I know they felt it.
And that's going back to what you said. You don't
have to be the best player, you need to be
a part or something.
Speaker 2 (32:55):
Don't do that.
Speaker 1 (32:55):
I know.
Speaker 2 (32:56):
I'm not crying. I have allergies.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
Some are allergies listen, but as a parent, I I
would never have expected for band, for them to talk
about the importance of mental wellness and mental health and
to go through that like seriously, it was. It was
very special in that concert. Like I mean, I feel
like all the pieces were very like they are emotional,
(33:21):
and I mean it was something.
Speaker 3 (33:22):
Else well, I think especially with like music and art,
I mean, it comes from inside, you know. You just
you can't create a piece of you know, something without
like putting yourself, moting right without putting yourself and how important.
Speaker 5 (33:35):
That Like, especially in middle school going into high school,
it's like you're just learning who you are and you're
this quirky were your kid, especially seventh grade where the
girls are fine, but then this you know, against the boys, Tessa,
But you know, most of the Symphonic Fan is made
up of eighth graders, but like her son was in
Symphonic Fan is the seventh grader. But to be able
to give that gift to a mote through music or art,
(33:58):
like that's.
Speaker 2 (33:59):
What it's about. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (34:00):
They call it the humanities for a reason and teaches
you how to be human.
Speaker 2 (34:04):
And it's never too early to learn and it's never
too early learned to deal with that. It's never too either, right, yeah, exactly.
Speaker 3 (34:12):
I mean there's people that they don't come artists till
they're sixty seventy eighty. Don't, you know, start playing music
until much later in their lives, you know.
Speaker 2 (34:19):
I think that's they.
Speaker 4 (34:20):
Don't start their weird musical theater situation.
Speaker 2 (34:25):
Until soon when we have that.
Speaker 4 (34:27):
Right now, you're.
Speaker 2 (34:28):
About to have your debut. Are you ready? Are you ready?
Absolutely not here or of your debut? It's coming. We
got got the arts councilor y'all come see it.
Speaker 3 (34:37):
I know, all right, Well, now that we've made everybody cry, yeah,
I really.
Speaker 2 (34:43):
Didn't expect to be that way, but I did want
to talk about.
Speaker 1 (34:46):
Her, her beautiful song choices that you wouldn't expect in
middle school band.
Speaker 2 (34:50):
So it was beautiful. Thank you appreciate They're awesome.
Speaker 1 (34:54):
Awesome, awesome, Well, thank you all for being with us today.
Speaker 2 (34:58):
This was a great We had everything. You had, every
cries you know, there were for there there's still our dinosaurs,
there's musical theater.
Speaker 3 (35:10):
We talked about rent. I mean, gosh, gosh, we covered
it all, so everything. Thanks ladies for being with us.
Speaker 2 (35:18):
Thank you for.
Speaker 3 (35:18):
Educating the children of the world. We need more people
like you, so right, Bet to get out there and
do it.
Speaker 2 (35:26):
See are important? So important?
Speaker 1 (35:28):
Yes, thanks for tuning in. I know y'all can check
them out on their schools.
Speaker 2 (35:33):
Pages and social media pages.
Speaker 3 (35:35):
And yes absolutely yeah we'll link your website. Great, exactly,
so thanks.
Speaker 2 (35:41):
For being here today.
Speaker 3 (35:42):
We are officially on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, so if
you don't want to look at us, you can at
least last us and you can always find us on YouTube.
So at Shelby Counting Arts Council dot com. That's our website,
so you know, yeah, thanks for joining us a great
We'll see you next time. Want to bet the fu
On today's show, we have these two beautiful educators.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
Michelle Branson and Aaron Lyon. We can't wait to get
to know them.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
Stay tuned, Welcome to conversations with Creatives.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
With the Arts Council. Ladies. I'm Lindsay and I'm Leslie.
And today we have a really fun show. I've been
looking forward to this one. We have educators, which I'm
a big fan of. We're all a big fan of.
We love education.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
Yes, so we have Michelle Branson Hello, and then Aaron
Lyon Hello.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
You will get to know them a little bit and
a bit. But first we have a very important question. Ladies.
Speaker 1 (00:55):
We always start with a very important question, So be
ready to break the ice a little bit to help
you kind of get loosened up a little bit.
Speaker 3 (01:02):
Okay, Michelle, I picked this question especially for you because
you and I have done this activity together.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Oh my god. Okay she told me Aaron, I knew
you would love it. Yeah. I was like, I'm a
little concerned. An I know what it is?
Speaker 3 (01:14):
Oh?
Speaker 2 (01:14):
Can I guess? Yeah? Is it? What's your karaoke song? Oh?
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Wow? What? I have a little caveato, Okay it is
see And also I have written down right here beside you,
so you might have.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Well, I didn't cheat. I'm not a cheater. I was like,
this is pretty planned, that's what I Yeah, No, I
didn't do that.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
If you had to karaoke one song for the rest
of your life.
Speaker 2 (01:33):
What would it be.
Speaker 3 (01:34):
You can also karaoke other songs, but you have to
sing this one song every time that karaoke.
Speaker 4 (01:41):
It would definitely be. There's a song in Rent that
I made my husband learn and it's got like really
the one with the really goofy lines in it, like
who do you think you are barging in on me
and my guitar and he's just like a.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Total goof oh yeah yeah.
Speaker 4 (01:58):
And my husband is not like a new theatery kind
of guy, but man, he learned it and he commits.
And I would definitely choose that.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
As the song because.
Speaker 4 (02:09):
It's still funny to me, and we've been married.
Speaker 2 (02:12):
For over a decade, so love that. It's so good.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
Dawson, like the Bonjovie guy and yes yes o kyeah
yeah yeah, like the No Day but Today yeah yeah song,
yeah yes yeah, yeah yeah.
Speaker 5 (02:25):
Yeah's say that soundtrack actually Yesterday and Getting Ready and
I haven't listened to it in a couple of years.
Speaker 2 (02:30):
This is great. We should be friends. Let's just all
do karaoke together. There you go.
Speaker 3 (02:35):
Michelle does have a sweet karaoke set up at her house,
which is where I did some like it was like
jazzer sized karaoke.
Speaker 2 (02:42):
I have a picture, I'll show it to you.
Speaker 4 (02:44):
Great.
Speaker 2 (02:45):
Yeah, I got it for my forty birthday.
Speaker 4 (02:51):
I was like, we're going to have a funeral for
our youth and we're gonna have karaoke and a bunch
of stupid stuff.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
And it was great, and I just kept it because
why not? Why not?
Speaker 3 (03:01):
Why not?
Speaker 4 (03:01):
Why not?
Speaker 2 (03:03):
So there's a party tonight at her house. Yes, let's go.
Speaker 3 (03:06):
Absolutely, So I get really into the songs. I'm not
a good singer, but I'm great performing.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
You're great at carryo.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
I am, well, not not the singing aspect of it,
but the I just agree.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
I shut it on the show. Lindsay will definitely sing
along to our lobby music. Sometimes. It's one of my
favorite parts of.
Speaker 3 (03:23):
The day because it's really bad. It's it's really really bad.
Speaker 4 (03:26):
It does I do, and so I try I try
to make it.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
Bad so it's entertaining. I mean, I get it.
Speaker 3 (03:33):
Yeah, and I throw some high kicks in there too.
I'm really good at kicking. I want to see this,
I know, I don't know, I might I might kick
like a light out or something in here today.
Speaker 5 (03:44):
So yeah, yeah, okay, well mine is going to be
probably pretty super cheesy. So I was in the Army
as a musician for nine and a half years and
I played the obviously, but I.
Speaker 2 (03:57):
Also obviously well it's seriously right. Sorry, so, but.
Speaker 5 (04:02):
Didn't have an obo air about you, so yeahdness. But anyway,
so I was a vocalist for them too, and my
favorite thing to sing with them was God Bless the
USA by.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
Lee Green Would.
Speaker 5 (04:14):
I know that's really cheesy and all that, but I
love it though, And yeah, when that comes on karaoke,
I'm sure people are like, okay, let's get out, But
that's one of my favorite things.
Speaker 4 (04:23):
It's way now, what makes you feel feelings like it's good.
Speaker 5 (04:27):
Well, and just like I don't like personal experiences like
especially the older generation too, they love it.
Speaker 2 (04:33):
Oh yeah, and just.
Speaker 5 (04:33):
Remember so many Fourth of Julys and everything like that,
serving singing that even though.
Speaker 2 (04:37):
It's kind of cheesy to us in the same age,
but so meaningful, but ren is awesome too. Oh real,
I gotta do it.
Speaker 3 (04:44):
We're gonna have like a rent, patriotic karaoke night.
Speaker 2 (04:48):
The kid's good. Yeah, maybe it's wicked too. Oh yeah,
eleven out of ten.
Speaker 3 (04:53):
Oh yeah, actually Michelle, Michelle did Michelle and Carlos sang? Uh.
Speaker 2 (04:59):
What was the song for the one with the feelings? Feelings?
Speaker 1 (05:03):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (05:04):
Yeah, yeah yeah, it was bouncing that with you. It
was very good. Look and cameras, let's go. Would you
be wrap it up?
Speaker 4 (05:12):
Philip or Glinda the book Dealer's choice when you're gonna.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Look my secret?
Speaker 4 (05:21):
Like I wish that you know how you have art
classes for like people that you can just audit.
Speaker 2 (05:25):
You just go in, you do a craft class or whatever.
Speaker 4 (05:28):
Where is the like musical theater audit audit for like
people like me who never did theater but.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
Like we will like love it.
Speaker 4 (05:37):
I just want to be just only in the car,
only in the show, like we could just put on
a production. I mean, you guys are arts council ladies,
like maybe I happened do put on productions actually yeah,
but like with real actors, not like crazy ladies who
want to see if they can like wear a costume
and belt it on.
Speaker 2 (05:54):
I don't know if you've ever hit that note. I
don't know if you've ever met.
Speaker 1 (05:57):
An actor, but they are kind of would be. I
think it would be really fun. We just have a
musical theater night and you can get up and would just.
Speaker 4 (06:04):
In the only role is you can't be a professional,
right but.
Speaker 3 (06:08):
You but you have to have costumes and everything. It's
like a musical theater open mic night kind of thing.
Speaker 2 (06:13):
I know, what what have I done? Here's the foundation
it's happening. I just I just walked into something, didn't I. Yeah,
Oh boy, I'm sorry. You ready for it? Everybody get
your favorite theater song?
Speaker 3 (06:27):
So okay, well those are some pretty solid you're gonna
answer the question. So I had a I mean whatever,
I karaoke. I just like karaoked everything. So like Chapel Roane.
Always can get down with some Chapel Roone. But mister Brightside,
I feel like I really like put By Basic. I
put my best effort into mister kography.
Speaker 2 (06:49):
Yes of course, Yeah, yeah, I was.
Speaker 3 (06:52):
There was hand motions, lots of pointing, more kicks, more.
Speaker 1 (06:55):
Kicks lot that song been in something recent like well,
it's strength and fame.
Speaker 3 (07:00):
It's been in everybody's brainstem since well, it.
Speaker 2 (07:03):
Has to be in something like TikTok.
Speaker 3 (07:05):
So I don't know because my kids have just like
fallen in love with it, and well if they had
yours then yeah, well they don't do that unless it's
like some trend.
Speaker 1 (07:14):
Sorry, I love you, kids, but that's free. Well it's
really Hannah getting the trend. And then she commences Gabe
to join.
Speaker 2 (07:21):
She's just losing so much.
Speaker 3 (07:24):
Yeah, anyway, so kills all right, So let's are you
not going to ask me mine? I'm sorry, I feel
so left out. I'm sorry, Hey, Leslie, I've been thinking
about it and I still really don't what's your kids?
Speaker 1 (07:35):
I'm very I was very obviously into the nineties country
or nineties you know, so a lotus more set well
praise music, yes, but a lot is more set and
Shania Twain anything by them, Oh yeah, but I would
probably do. I don't know why, because I mean I'm
married for women, but I would probably do any man
(07:57):
of mine.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
Okay, I mean I don't know. It's sing it. It's
a banger, so it doesn't matter if you're married or not.
Speaker 3 (08:05):
That a single lady song.
Speaker 2 (08:06):
But Beyonce. Yes, since it doesn't matter married, that's right, sings.
There you go, awesome, Ma rive, Okay, good choice, this
a good choice. Your party tonight.
Speaker 4 (08:16):
Yay, look, don't play, I'll do it.
Speaker 2 (08:21):
She comes to win, I do.
Speaker 3 (08:23):
Yeah. All right, Well, let's kind of get to know
you a little both yours, right, we have what we
call our villain origins.
Speaker 2 (08:30):
Yes, so villain Aaron.
Speaker 3 (08:32):
You mentioned you were in the Army, so I'm kind
of curious how you went from like nine years of
army to middle school band.
Speaker 2 (08:38):
So I didn't. I think that's kind of a fun part.
So I guess.
Speaker 5 (08:43):
I was teaching for about seven years at this point,
and I was just in a spot in my life
where I didn't have any I didn't have any kids
at this point, and I was connected to nobody. And
at twenty nine years old, I got a call from
one of my dear friends in the one fifty first
Army Band. It was like, hey, we obo player, and
I was like, okay, cool, I'm twenty nine and they're like, yeah,
(09:05):
you'll be fine, You'll be great. I was like okay,
So I did, and I went. I went in the audition,
and I'm in a tangent for a second. One of
the I h spoke to my commander, Commander Mills, and
you know, he's like, you're a great player and everything,
and here are your strengths. And I was like, and
here are my weaknesses and he was like, no, those
are your lesser strengths. So it's something like really big
(09:27):
that I actually got from that audition, but passed the
audition and.
Speaker 2 (09:31):
Lo and behold.
Speaker 5 (09:31):
About a week later they said, okay, you're going to
Fort Jackson. So at twenty nine years old, I went
through basic training for ten weeks and did something called
split ups.
Speaker 2 (09:41):
So I make you take your obo with you, Like no,
so with basic training, I know, right, I actually like,
you're going into battle with yeah, so no.
Speaker 5 (09:49):
So my mos was actually it's it's called a soldiering musician,
so you're a soldier first. But the cool thing was
that like I could actually split it up, they called
it up. So I did basic training one summer, then
I taught the next year, and then I went to
the Army School of Music for ten weeks the next
year and then graduated from there.
Speaker 2 (10:09):
And I was a part of the army for nine
and a half years. But it was awesome. Army School
in music was amazing. I got to.
Speaker 5 (10:16):
Just learn so many different techniques and everything. But I
was training with the Marines and the Navy and the
Air Force too, so it's a really cool experience.
Speaker 2 (10:24):
That's insane, I know, I know, the idea of doing
basic training is like, yeah, I.
Speaker 5 (10:30):
Don't know what I was thinking, but you know what,
you just kind of have to get out there and
do it right now.
Speaker 2 (10:33):
No, that's awesome, but.
Speaker 5 (10:34):
It was awesome, and I actually ended up getting out.
I was spending a lot of time away from my kids,
and it was at a point of my Army career
that it was either you move up or it's not.
It doesn't look good. So for me to move up,
it would have been more time away. So I just
decided to go ahead and table that for a minute.
And who knows what's in store. I may end up
(10:55):
going back completing my eleven years, so we'll see.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
Wow, that's awesome.
Speaker 3 (10:59):
So then how did that lead into the working at
the school.
Speaker 2 (11:03):
So it didn't. I actually taught.
Speaker 5 (11:05):
I taught like seven or eight years, and well, I
guess maybe at this point six years and the school
distrut said I was working for they completely supported me
in doing the military stuff. And so anyway, when I
got out of the Army, I still taught at Claychopoel
Middle School for a few more years and ended up
teaching at Leeds and Hoover Met Chelsea. So going into
(11:28):
my nineteenth year of teaching. Wow, So yeah, I've just
been teaching all along the way.
Speaker 2 (11:32):
That's awesome. And so you teach a middle school band.
Speaker 5 (11:35):
I do teach middle school band at Chelsea Middle School
and absolutely love it. I can't believe I'm going into
your nineteen. It makes me feel really old. But yeah,
I just keep learning that to complete my DS at
Auburn and music education.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
I'm just plowing through.
Speaker 5 (11:51):
But I love what I do. I know you love
what you do too. Oh yeah, And I have so
much respect for that too.
Speaker 4 (11:56):
Girls saying which is harder basic training or dealing with
middle school?
Speaker 3 (12:01):
It might be equal, might be it's like going through
basic training every middle.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
By teachers are vikings like especially it's the beginning band though, right, that's.
Speaker 5 (12:13):
It takes a little bit, but it's so much it's
so much fun. And I guess the same. I do
a lot of army analogies in my room. You probably
heard you say some I talk a lot about you know, crawl, walk, run,
and I talk about that in band, but that's what
we talked about an army, and I talk about ready
in fire.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
It's not ready fire. You're not going to do it.
Speaker 5 (12:31):
So it's kind of cool to make those just like
those analogies with the military.
Speaker 2 (12:37):
That's all I know. And I almost just busted out
with I know one thing.
Speaker 1 (12:41):
You train your kids and you say I'm old, they're
supposed to say you're not old.
Speaker 5 (12:45):
Yeah, that's the most important about about the bed because
Gabes told me about that.
Speaker 2 (12:49):
They're scared. Yeah, I'm scared.
Speaker 1 (12:51):
So my Gabe is one of her students and he
adores her, adores.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Her so great. He's in going into eighth grade. Bell
I don't want to I know, so last year with
Miss Lyon and he is in the marching band.
Speaker 5 (13:06):
So he made it and he auditioned as a seventh
grader and made it as an eighth grader marching up.
He's a great kid, awesome and well we don't have
to go into that story, but I well, I am
going to go into that story. A sweet woman I knew,
I know that her son is very talented and he
was about to skip out on my mission.
Speaker 2 (13:26):
And I was like.
Speaker 5 (13:29):
Ring ring, and they were in the car and I
said that probably a word, hey, miss bell I, Gabe
is supposed to audition today, and Gabe's I can probably
see him in the backseat, Like anyway, she made him audition.
Speaker 2 (13:42):
Yep, and did you make it? He did? And did
he have an awesome experience? Head And that's what it's
all about, Shelby County on her baby.
Speaker 5 (13:49):
Yes, okay, yeah, but that was one of our first
like true meetings meetings.
Speaker 2 (13:53):
Yeah, you know right. I was like, no, your son's
trying out. He said he was, and we're not going
back on our work. But it worked out and it
propelled him forward.
Speaker 1 (14:00):
And my wonderful workplace was like, sure, just leave out
of flu and go pick up your kid and go
to I.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Don't remember where we went. It was Thompson, I think, yeah,
was it? That sounds good? Hoover.
Speaker 3 (14:12):
I don't know where it was somewhere Actually, that's right,
that's what it was. I also got to be a chaperone,
mind you.
Speaker 2 (14:25):
The what else? O bus captain? What was my day?
I needed you? Bus Captain? Bus, captain Bus, one best.
Speaker 5 (14:32):
Bus, one best bus. She got promoted too. I lost
my voice. I think it was day two.
Speaker 2 (14:41):
Yeah, yeah, and she had to translate for me.
Speaker 5 (14:43):
It didn't always come out accurate. But she did a
great fun and I'm very thankful.
Speaker 2 (14:48):
Yes, it was such a good.
Speaker 1 (14:49):
Trip and the way that Aaron is so cool and
calm and just yeah.
Speaker 2 (14:55):
But you just took everything with stride. I mean, we
had how many middle schoolers at Disney the world It's
a lot is two charter bus loads of humans.
Speaker 4 (15:04):
So yeah, we've all been there the Disney. The Disney
trip with the two charter buses, it's like it's chaos.
Speaker 5 (15:11):
But I will tell you with all the awesome chaperones
and my like favorite colleague in the world, one of
my best friends, Jill Harry. She's the choir director at
the middle school, screen tag team everything, and so without
her and the chaperones, I couldn't have done it.
Speaker 1 (15:23):
But she's great and theids were great, they really were.
So Chelsea Middle School does have good kids. I'm not saying,
you know, as favoritism here, but a little bias. Other
ones are good to.
Speaker 2 (15:35):
Anyway.
Speaker 3 (15:36):
Some well, Michelle, let's talk about your you're a background.
Speaker 2 (15:40):
It's so boring.
Speaker 4 (15:42):
I feel we should have done these like flip flots whatever.
I've never been in the army.
Speaker 2 (15:47):
Anything about you is boring.
Speaker 4 (15:49):
Run my couldn't run half a mile?
Speaker 3 (15:53):
How about you could run half a mile if somebody
were chasing you. Yes, so it would take like a
full zombie.
Speaker 4 (15:58):
I think it would take like a threat to my
life and livelihood. But yeah, I mean it's a pretty
boring story. Like I just went to college and you
went to Monavella.
Speaker 2 (16:11):
Went to Montavallo.
Speaker 4 (16:13):
Thought I was just going to do elementary education, got
into it, stuck out like a sore thumb, like I
was such a weirdo, and like all the people there
were all in a sorority and super normal and very
like a whole thing that I am not. And so
I was like, oh my gosh, do I really want
to teach?
Speaker 2 (16:31):
And I was like yes.
Speaker 4 (16:32):
And then, much to everyone's disappointment, I think, because I
always made like really good grades and all that kind
of stuff, I was like, you know what I'm gonna do.
I'm going to be an art teacher. I'm going to
go to school twice. I'm going to get a master's degree,
so I can have like the least job security and
education ever. And so my parents were like cool and
(16:53):
bartended through college which really trained me for kindergarteners.
Speaker 3 (16:57):
And there's not a big difference between kindergarteners and drunk people.
Speaker 2 (17:02):
No, there's really not.
Speaker 4 (17:03):
They randomly cry they had to go to the bathroom.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
All the time. You can't draw a straight line yelling
for no reason. Yes, okay, so you guys get it,
I baby said before, So yeah, I get it, that is.
Speaker 4 (17:18):
And then like I remember my the job that I
was taking before I started my internship. Right before that,
I took a pay cut to start teaching. And again
it's one of those things like you never know. You're
in your twenties. You don't know what you're supposed to
do with your life. So I was like, oh my gosh,
am I making the right choice. And like a year
(17:39):
in traveling because I was two different elementary schools, we
had like nine hundred students. There were a couple of
days I didn't have a planning period and it was
like you have to run everything like a cooking show,
you know, like have everything pre planned out to the
in degree, and like I just loved it. I had
no I was obsessed with it, and I'm still obsessed
(17:59):
with it. Like this is year thirteen, and I went
from teaching elementary to teaching high school. I never did
middle school. I did my internship in middle school.
Speaker 2 (18:08):
I'll do it. I what are you doing it now?
I cannot. It's because, okay, so I love high school. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (18:16):
Oh, so I love the littles because it's like enthusiasm,
be goofy, right, And then I love the high school
students because I'm obsessed with all of their ideas. Like
anytime somebody says like these kids nowadays, I'm like, they're
literally better than all of us. Stop talking, like kids
are all right?
Speaker 2 (18:33):
Yeah, So.
Speaker 4 (18:35):
I don't know, I just I love it so much.
But like in middle school, it was just like, you know,
how kids are like trying on their new identities, so
like you can have one kid who is three different
kids in one week.
Speaker 5 (18:45):
You know, And that's you know, one of the things
that I like about teaching band because like they come
to me like babies, and then seventh graders they're like
like little dinosaurs, yes, and then when they're eighth grade,
they're actually kind of adulty and then you ship them
off and it's sad to see them, but to where
they came from. So you get to see like the
finished product of you know, sixth, seventh and eighth grade
(19:06):
and then yeah, see their ideas that they got in
middle school and all that.
Speaker 2 (19:09):
I love it so much. I'm obsessed with my job. Yeah,
it's actually kind of.
Speaker 4 (19:13):
My only personality trade at this point.
Speaker 2 (19:15):
So oops, you know, and.
Speaker 5 (19:17):
I and not to be a conversation hijacker, but it's
really interesting that you said that you kind of accidentally
got into arts education. I wanted to go into performance.
I was like, I'm going to perform, that's all I'm
gonna do. I'm gonna get my education degree as a backup.
Speaker 2 (19:31):
And I did it like you.
Speaker 5 (19:32):
I was like, now I'll get my master's in education
as a backup. And nineteen years later and I wouldn't
have it any other way. But yeah, it's just neat how.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
You know, the universe just kind of aligns everything. Oh absolutely,
this is cool. Never know where you're going to end up,
so not at all.
Speaker 3 (19:46):
And I met Michelle because she would enter artwork into
our shows at the Arts Council and so met Yeah, okay,
I just forced my friendship upon her.
Speaker 4 (19:55):
Look, I was trying to figure it out because somebody
asked like, oh, how long have you known Lindsay, And
I was just like forever, I don't know, and in
a determinate amount of time.
Speaker 3 (20:03):
And it's just like there was never like a starting period.
We were just friends, like yeah, it just happened.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
And I mean she.
Speaker 4 (20:09):
Worked at She'll Be County High School, which was four
seconds away from the artic councils. I just see her
over there a lot too, And that's really She always
encouraged her kids to enter our high school juried art
show and so yes encouraged bullied. Yeah, potato tomato whatever.
Speaker 3 (20:25):
So she's at Helena High School now doing a great
job over there. Yeah. So so I'm curious to know
from both of you, like kind of just like day
and age, there's a lot of technology, a lot of
like AI kind of art or even music. You know,
like how has that kind of changed the landscape of
like how you teach or how you still get your
(20:47):
students to be like use their own creativity instead of
you know, trying to like use a computer or a
program or something like that.
Speaker 2 (20:55):
It's probably different for me because.
Speaker 5 (20:59):
Mine is literally I teach at least for my band
program anyway, I teach it very.
Speaker 2 (21:05):
It's very fundamental and.
Speaker 5 (21:07):
There's not a lot of opportunity for technology being involved
because it's very straightforward, like here's our piece of music.
Speaker 2 (21:13):
This is the reason we're learning it.
Speaker 5 (21:16):
But as far as it hasn't really done anything for
band really, but it is neat to see the kids
like we we played a piece that was about Pearl
Harbor bombing and you probably remember that right for the
Veterans program, but it was neat. I can see a
huge difference of kids now versus ten years ago actually
(21:36):
going on their own and researching and going what is
this piece actually about? And then they'll come back to
me and tell me where it's ten years ago. I
don't like, I just don't remember kids doing that. So
I know that's not AI. But that's one way I
see a huge difference in it, which is neat.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
That's really neat. You have that, okay, So that's that's right.
Speaker 4 (21:56):
Art's probably so AI makes me a little spice because
you know, in the art realm, a lot of those
models are trained off of like stealing people's stuff, right,
So and there is also a touch of like I'm
basically a lotite, Like I was the last person to
get an iPhone. I am the actual worst at technology,
(22:17):
So there might be a little bit of bias there,
but it's it's just like any tool, right, Like you
can use it appropriately or you can use it inappropriately.
And so we have a really great educator that I
so at Helena. There are three teachers. Summer Simpson is
our like technology guru. You know, She's figured out ways
to ethically include AI into the preparation process. So in
(22:44):
my classes it's all traditional media, but she does more digital.
So we really just try and be super mindful of
like make sure that you're using this tool to enhance
the ideas that you already had and to prepare for
the artwork that you were already trying to make. And
I think that that has to be the focus, right
(23:05):
because at the end of the day, yeah, it's a
valuable tool, but you have to think about like, Okay, well,
who's our work got fed into that tool, Like what
can we do on our own to make sure that
we have like integrity in our process.
Speaker 2 (23:19):
Right. So it's a little bit of a tightrope.
Speaker 4 (23:21):
And you know, if you teach ap I don't know
if you guys are familiar with like the ap Art program,
you know, they're very personikty about what is plagiarism. And
just because a lot of people think you find a
picture online and you paint it and that's your work
of art.
Speaker 2 (23:37):
But it's not.
Speaker 5 (23:38):
Well now, as we go along, it has to be
so much that has to be really kind of complicated
to know if it is or isn't, Like it does
take integrity, like you said it, and that's got to
be right, yeah.
Speaker 3 (23:51):
Because even in music you can plagiarize like Vanilla Ice.
Speaker 2 (23:55):
And Queen Hello, you know, yeah, yeah, And.
Speaker 3 (23:58):
It's trying to get like if you're using like samples
of yeah.
Speaker 5 (24:02):
And if I were like teaching like jazz, and I've
really wanted to incorporate that in the program, but there's
just a lot of children, so I have to stay
on the straight and narrow. But with jazz, you know,
you have improvisation where it's like you can make up
your own stuff, and that's where like I think we
would run into stuff because you know, they might go
look up different licks set this awesome jazz musician did.
But as for band it's just so different. I know,
(24:24):
you have to deal with it so much more.
Speaker 4 (24:26):
Yeah, we but then you know the difference between like
are you using your cell phone? Are you using what
image sources? Like can we compile? Like yeah, it's a
little bit of a minefield. But honestly, the kids want
to make their own stuff, like they want to be original,
So you just it's all about being a facilitator as
an art teacher, like making sure that they have everything
(24:48):
that they need and just like yes, anding them.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
Right, you know what I mean?
Speaker 3 (24:53):
Yeaheah, And I mean I think it's just a good
a good way to educate them, especially on plagiarism and
like this is what we don't do. You know, if
we're gonna use this piece of art, we have to
change it so much or something like that. So I've
encountered that with a couple of other art teachers, especially
for the high school juried Art show, because oh yeah,
plagerism a couple of times and we've.
Speaker 2 (25:13):
Had to address it.
Speaker 3 (25:14):
And one of the teachers she's like, I always use
this as a tool to like talk to my kids
about this and how this is not appropriate out in
the real world. You cannot professionally get out and do this,
and so I think that's a really important tool too.
So I appreciate teachers that address that and like, you know,
try to teach kids.
Speaker 2 (25:31):
You know, whenever you know better, you do better. Yeah,
of course that's right. The arts you're creative.
Speaker 1 (25:36):
I mean that's a huge part of just using your
own creativity.
Speaker 2 (25:40):
And that's the fun part.
Speaker 4 (25:42):
Like why are you going to skip the fun part
where you get to say the thing that you wanted
to say?
Speaker 3 (25:47):
Right?
Speaker 4 (25:47):
You know, No, it's like that's the that's the part
that I don't know, that's the part that is that
makes it all worth doing, right would you?
Speaker 1 (25:56):
I feel you like you would struggle with that more
with like beginners students? Do you teach like beginning art?
Speaker 4 (26:03):
We at Shelby County High School, which I spent a
big chunk. I think I was there four seven years
and so I taught everything because I was a single pringle,
So it was art one, two, three, four, AP two,
d AP, drawing. We had a service based art club,
so it was a.
Speaker 2 (26:21):
It was all of it.
Speaker 4 (26:23):
And you know, one of the things that I was
proud of was that I had kids who weren't like
good at you know those kids that struggle, they're just like,
can you just do me a step by step so
I can make something pretty and my mom will put
it on the refrigerator.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
And just like I believe in high school, yes, they know,
they're still kids.
Speaker 4 (26:42):
They want I say, there's still kids. I still would
be like, you.
Speaker 2 (26:45):
Put my drawing on the refrigerator. Oh my gosh, but.
Speaker 3 (26:52):
There's you.
Speaker 4 (26:54):
This is awkward to talk about, but it's like, you
don't have to be good at art to get all
of the things that you need to get out of art.
So like, once you take away that fear of like, oh, well,
I have to make something that looks good, it's like, no,
you don't. You just have to not know a skill
and then I'll tell you about the skill and then
maybe you'll be better at the skill and that's enough.
Like nobody thinks, oh well, I'm not a beautiful musician.
(27:18):
I'm not a great singer, so I can't sing in
the shower, I can't sing in my car.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
But for some reason we think that about the visual arts.
Speaker 4 (27:25):
Oh I'm not good at it, so I can't do
it incorrect, like it's for everybody.
Speaker 2 (27:31):
Yeah that's great. Yeah, I mean, I'm not hard to
put that way.
Speaker 3 (27:34):
Yeah, I mean sometimes it's just about like having fun
and you know, learning something new and.
Speaker 2 (27:38):
You might not be great at it.
Speaker 3 (27:39):
You know, I'm not always great at everything I do,
but you know you're great at everything, lindsay.
Speaker 5 (27:45):
Well, and I was going to tag onto that too.
It's now that you're talking about this, art seems not
that it's not a group effort, but it's so much
more individualized, whereas band.
Speaker 2 (27:55):
Is definitely a group effort.
Speaker 5 (27:57):
Like if Trump's playing too loud, the whole band is
going to sound bad. So I get what you were
saying too. It's like, well, you know about the single
person not being as strong as the rest of the crowd,
but it can still work.
Speaker 2 (28:09):
You just have to work as a team.
Speaker 5 (28:11):
And I tell my band all the time, like in sports,
there's a bench, and in band, you are the only
person that can put you on the bench. So either
you're on the bench or in the game. But anyway,
it's just analogy that I use, like we're all part
of this, but it's your choice put yourself on the bench.
And I guess maybe it's more individualized for art. I
(28:31):
don't know, because they do you guys do collaborative We do.
Speaker 4 (28:34):
We have a couple of collaborative projects that I like
to do. We do critique a lot, which is a
really cool way to get the whole classroom involved, and
it's honestly one of my favorite things about teaching. But
they all sit at those tables, you know, where you're
facing each other. So you would be shocked at the
amount of collaboration that goes into every single project, especially
(28:56):
if you have one of those classes, like I'm sure
you've had them before where it's magic because everybody wants
to do the thing, so they all lift each other up.
It's like the sum is greater than the parts or whatever.
I don't remember how that saying goes, but anyways.
Speaker 2 (29:12):
That sounds good though.
Speaker 4 (29:13):
Yeah, but yeah, they do. They collaborate, collaborate a lot
more than you think they would.
Speaker 5 (29:18):
Yeah, okay, that's really neat. Then it's like the only
thing they do independent are like things.
Speaker 2 (29:24):
Like trying about Gabe.
Speaker 5 (29:26):
Yeah, trying out individually, and sometimes that gets that gets
a little bit tricky. But people like the kids who
are in band, to be in a band, to be
a part of a group, they just kind of stay
away from the solo aspect of it.
Speaker 2 (29:38):
But some kids just need to be forced.
Speaker 1 (29:40):
I know, like my son, Yeah, Aaron, I think it's
very interesting your song choices, and they feel so good interesting,
not bad, interesting, and like especially the spring concert felt
so yeah personal.
Speaker 2 (29:55):
I mean it was beautiful. I feel like I know that.
Speaker 1 (29:58):
I mean, it was the most beautiful music. I sit
there and think, how are these middle school students playing this?
Speaker 2 (30:06):
That's it?
Speaker 5 (30:07):
And I know that you get this from I know
you get this from your job too.
Speaker 2 (30:12):
We played Can I talk about that? Okay? So there's
a piece that's.
Speaker 5 (30:15):
Called Stay and it's written by Randall Sandridge. I'm not
sure I'm allowed to talk about that, right, sure, but
on each kid's piece of paper at the very top
it said you you playing this music, you matter And
it was called Stay and it is about mental illness.
Speaker 2 (30:35):
And that's a really hard topic to talk.
Speaker 5 (30:38):
About with any age group, but with middle school and
you know, I know in our community we have we
have lost several students in the past few years to
mental illness. But I did have a talk with our
awesome guidance counselors.
Speaker 2 (30:52):
I was like, Hey, this is what I plan on.
Speaker 5 (30:54):
Doing, and they were awesome about it, and they just
basically said, hey, just give them the paper.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
And then I told them.
Speaker 5 (31:00):
It was about maybe three days before the concert, and
I told the counselors. I was like, Okay, now I'm
gonna say now I'm gonna tell them why we're doing this,
and they already knew, but it was like, yeah, now
I'm really gonna tell you. And a very quick personal story.
A girl that I went to college with she passed away.
It was a year ago. Yeah, it was a little
(31:22):
over a year ago. One of my best friends, a
beautiful vocalist. We were in a signe al Fayota together
and one of my four like we had four minutes sisters,
and she was one of them and very close with her.
Speaker 2 (31:33):
I was in her wedding.
Speaker 5 (31:35):
Two beautiful kids. We would go camping with our families
and everything, and you just wouldn't see it on the outside.
And I just had to tell my kids, like, this
is who I think about, and I need you to
know that you are better being here.
Speaker 2 (31:49):
And that was hard to talk about.
Speaker 5 (31:50):
But I had so many kids come up to me
after that class in then, sorry, so many kids come
after me that class. Just give me huge hugs and
go and you.
Speaker 2 (32:00):
I know that is so.
Speaker 5 (32:01):
Hard to talk about and I was scared to talk
about it. I was like, I want to lose my job.
But that's why, like people are so worried to talk
about it. But anyway, they uh. One more thing. I
had the administration and the guidance counselors come in for
their dress rehearsal in the band room, and I mean
our principle and our counselors were they were in tears.
Speaker 2 (32:21):
And they just played that piece at the concert Ooh.
Speaker 5 (32:26):
It was amazing because they actually had something to put
into that, whether they were going through it or whether
they saw the emotion through me or anything.
Speaker 2 (32:35):
But that's one of the most important thing about arts
is creating right.
Speaker 5 (32:38):
And I feel bad for those kids that never get
to get that experience because either they choose not to
or they think they're not good at it. Because even
the worst player in that group, I know they felt it.
And that's going back to what you said. You don't
have to be the best player, you need to be
a part or something.
Speaker 2 (32:55):
Don't do that.
Speaker 1 (32:55):
I know.
Speaker 2 (32:56):
I'm not crying. I have allergies.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
Some are allergies listen, but as a parent, I I
would never have expected for band, for them to talk
about the importance of mental wellness and mental health and
to go through that like seriously, it was. It was
very special in that concert. Like I mean, I feel
like all the pieces were very like they are emotional,
(33:21):
and I mean it was something.
Speaker 3 (33:22):
Else well, I think especially with like music and art,
I mean, it comes from inside, you know. You just
you can't create a piece of you know, something without
like putting yourself, moting right without putting yourself and how important.
Speaker 5 (33:35):
That Like, especially in middle school going into high school,
it's like you're just learning who you are and you're
this quirky were your kid, especially seventh grade where the
girls are fine, but then this you know, against the boys, Tessa,
But you know, most of the Symphonic Fan is made
up of eighth graders, but like her son was in
Symphonic Fan is the seventh grader. But to be able
to give that gift to a mote through music or art,
(33:58):
like that's.
Speaker 2 (33:59):
What it's about. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (34:00):
They call it the humanities for a reason and teaches
you how to be human.
Speaker 2 (34:04):
And it's never too early to learn and it's never
too early learned to deal with that. It's never too either, right, yeah, exactly.
Speaker 3 (34:12):
I mean there's people that they don't come artists till
they're sixty seventy eighty. Don't, you know, start playing music
until much later in their lives, you know.
Speaker 2 (34:19):
I think that's they.
Speaker 4 (34:20):
Don't start their weird musical theater situation.
Speaker 2 (34:25):
Until soon when we have that.
Speaker 4 (34:27):
Right now, you're.
Speaker 2 (34:28):
About to have your debut. Are you ready? Are you ready?
Absolutely not here or of your debut? It's coming. We
got got the arts councilor y'all come see it.
Speaker 3 (34:37):
I know, all right, Well, now that we've made everybody cry, yeah,
I really.
Speaker 2 (34:43):
Didn't expect to be that way, but I did want
to talk about.
Speaker 1 (34:46):
Her, her beautiful song choices that you wouldn't expect in
middle school band.
Speaker 2 (34:50):
So it was beautiful. Thank you appreciate They're awesome.
Speaker 1 (34:54):
Awesome, awesome, Well, thank you all for being with us today.
Speaker 2 (34:58):
This was a great We had everything. You had, every
cries you know, there were for there there's still our dinosaurs,
there's musical theater.
Speaker 3 (35:10):
We talked about rent. I mean, gosh, gosh, we covered
it all, so everything. Thanks ladies for being with us.
Speaker 2 (35:18):
Thank you for.
Speaker 3 (35:18):
Educating the children of the world. We need more people
like you, so right, Bet to get out there and
do it.
Speaker 2 (35:26):
See are important? So important?
Speaker 1 (35:28):
Yes, thanks for tuning in. I know y'all can check
them out on their schools.
Speaker 2 (35:33):
Pages and social media pages.
Speaker 3 (35:35):
And yes absolutely yeah we'll link your website. Great, exactly,
so thanks.
Speaker 2 (35:41):
For being here today.
Speaker 3 (35:42):
We are officially on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, so if
you don't want to look at us, you can at
least last us and you can always find us on YouTube.
So at Shelby Counting Arts Council dot com. That's our website,
so you know, yeah, thanks for joining us a great
We'll see you next time. Want to bet the fu
Popular Podcasts
Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang
Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.