Overview

Hello world! My name is Chef Sol, and I'm a singer-songwriter here in the beautiful city of Denver, Colorado.

Music, and especially great song-writing, has been so powerful and influential on my life and on my perspective on the world. I feel called to pay that forward and write songs to contribute to that cultural heritage. It feels like the most meaningful and true thing I can do to experience and reflect the beauty in the world around me. I used to write poems when I was younger, and my first attempts at song-writing were trying to put melodies to those poems. Then in college, I’d steal the melodies of my favorite songs and put my own lyrics to them to match how I was feeling. It wasn’t until I was messing around in my first backyard in Denver that I tried layering instruments and vocals over each other so I could “jam” with myself and realizing, whoa, this is fun and I can make music this way!

While I've learned so much from all the music I've made so far, I feel like I've been limited by just working alone in my own basement, and music is something that is meant to be made collaboratively. Thanks to Plaid Dog's support, I am so excited about this opportunity to work with and learn from Max and the other musicians at the studio.

The material is ready, and the musicians are waiting -- this Plaid Dog campaign is the final step toward creating my first ever, professionally produced studio album.

This campaign is raising funds for my professionally recorded album with Max Challis in Boston, MA. Max is a Boston-based producer and engineer with experience working with both established and up-and-coming musicians. Together, Max and I are digging into my original material, writing arrangements, and reaching out to local musicians to bring the songs to life. 

We’ve been able to cover the costs of recording and producing one song, which is ready for you to check out right here on this page. This first song is called “RBFQDG,” and you can check it out below!

While I’ve been able to fund the recording process for "RBFQDG" on my own, to create an album of songs of this quality, studio costs add up quickly. With that said, this campaign can give us a unique opportunity to collaborate and make great art together. Your donation will cover the following costs of my project:

1. Pre-Production: This is where everything starts. Max and I will start crafting the arrangements for each song slated for the album. We’ll hold rehearsals to fine-tune the songs and arrangements and talk through new and exciting ideas for how to approach the recording process.

2. Recording: This is when we enter the studio and start capturing the music and where the songs become what you'll hear on this album. This campaign will play a huge role in making sure we have enough time to capture great performances for every member of the band.

3. Mixing & Mastering: Each track will get mixed to create the right balance between instruments, texture and color that make up a track. As a final step, the album will be mastered from beginning to end so that the listening experience is cohesive and carefully choreographed from start to finish.

And what will you get for your generosity and support? So many awesome things!

I am so appreciative and grateful for any support you can lend to this campaign. In exchange for your generosity, I've put together a really exciting group of gifts that are available exclusively through your participation in this campaign.

Check out some examples below and a full list to the right!

It's hard to express how much this project would change my life.

The success of this campaign would mean the world to me. I’ve learned so much making music alone in my bedroom, but I know there’s so much more room for me to grow working in a studio with someone as experienced and talented as Max. I really feel like the songs I’m writing now are miles ahead of what I’ve put out so far, and I want to share them in a way where the beauty of the sound and production matches the power of the writing. Once I can promote a professional product in a meaningful way, I'll be able to grow my audience and gain exposure to new listeners and potential collaborators.

If you're ready to contribute, just click the "Back This Project" button on the top right of this page! Every little bit counts, and I’m so grateful for all your support.

If you have folks in your network that would be interested in supporting me, please feel free to share this page with them.

Thank you so much for checking out my campaign page. I can't wait to share this music with you.