This year, I am using Valentine's Day to remind myself of the many different and important types of love I have in my life, including family, friends, music, and universal concern for others. This has been highlighted for me with the recent development of working with Pastor Wright out of Seattle to use my song 'Blessed' to raise money for Hurricane relief in Louisiana and Mississippi. This is truly a 'blessing' because I've been searching for a meaningful way to do this for over a year now, and I also wanted to be sure it was something legitimate where I knew the funds would be received by the right organizations and people. This project with Pastor Wright is just such a thing and I'm thrilled and honored to be part of it! Much of this newsletter is devoted to the project, so read on for lots more information about this exciting development!

Recently the band and I were chosen from Sonic Bids to be part of the regional Wakarusa Winter Classic competition. We competed with several other awesome area bands for the chance to be able to play at Wakarusa this June in Kansas. Although we didn't win (it was based on audience votes-if you were there, thank you!) the representative from the festival said we are 'on the radar' and that the vote was neck-in- neck, and we hope this develops into the opportunity to be booked at this festival at a future date.

Although the work I've been doing to develop my music has seemed like a never-ending uphill battle, things really do start to happen 'all at once.' With a new partnership with a booking agency, the Blessed project, a new mentor in well-known songwriter Keith Colley, possible tours on the horizon and lots of great stuff happening with the material I wrote last year in Nashville, things seem to be coming to fruition. I am so glad to share the news with you all as you continue traveling with me and the band on the 'Road to Hope.'

One of the fun things I had a chance to do this winter was speak at a Career Day for a local high school. It's great to be able to give aspiring musicians some concrete advice and to let them know that with hard work, a professional career in music really is possible. It's not always MTV and diamonds, but you can make a living doing what you love if you stay focused and take the time to learn the business of music while continuing to develop your talents. It was great to see their eyes shining with interest and hope. This Friday myself and three members of the band will perform at a local Catholic school for their career day. I am honored to be a part of music education in whatever way possible.

In addition to sending truckloads of relief items, last August Pastor Wright and the choir toured the hurricane devastated areas in Mississippi and Louisiana. They found that even a year after the storm there had been very little improvement in the plight of the storm survivors, which is even more heartbreaking, since the initial response was so woefully inadequate. You can read about the Choir’s trip and the suffering they witnessed in the archives of the Seattle Times (click on the link below).

Total Experience Gospel Choir has over 150 awards and have performed on the same billing with the late Dr. James Cleveland, founder of the Gospel Music Workshop of America, Quincy Jones, Ray Charles, Michael Bolton, Pete Seeger, Steely Dan, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir and many others. They are known nationally and internationally and have performed on 5 continents and in 29 countries.

One idea in the works is for the choir to add vocals to the recorded track of Blessed on Road To Hope, burn it as a single on a CD that would have a cover and label with photos taken in the devastated areas by the Seattle Times (pending approval by the Times).
Donors who give $10 or more to the Choir’s hurricane relief efforts would receive a copy of the CD as a gift. check out the Hilary Scott website for updates on the project. Other ideas are being discussed, including the possibility for Hilary to perform the song with the choir at the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Peacemaker Awards Banquet and joining Pastor Wright and the Choir when they revisit the hurricane- devastated areas.

On April 4th, The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Peacemaker Awards Banquet will honor several high school students from schools in the Puget Sound Area of Washington who have been chosen from their student bodies. The criteria was that they exemplify the work and ideals of Rev. Dr. King in their daily walks at their schools. These students were given "seed" monies donated by friends of the Hurricane Relief Team. The students are encouraged to use their creative energies and creativity to "grow" these funds and report back by March 31. The student who raises the most money above the "seed" money will be flown along with his/her chaperone to the Mississippi Gulf Coast Area to present the money to three agencies that have already been identified by Total Experience Gospel Choir. It is Hilary's hope that Blessed will help further augment the fundraising efforts of the students and the Total Experience Gospel Choir.

In addition to monies being raised, the choir has been donated a pickup truck from one of the members of the choir. The pickup is being refurbished by another parent and being readied to drive down to Mississippi. The truck will be loaded with additional supplies to be used for hurricane relief. It is the intention of the Hurricane Relief Team, student and chaperone and the truck to arrive in Mississippi at the same time for full delivery.

Recently, Hilary has been in contact with legendary L.A. recording artist and songwriter Keith Colley. Keith has enjoyed regional hit records and one national/international hit record, the beautiful Spanish language single, Enamorado, on the first White Whale Records phantomJukebox. He has performed with many top name personalities including Bob Hope, The Beach Boys, and Seals & Crofts, to name just a few.

However, he is even more well-known for his songwriting. He has written ten national hits and approximately 400 songs, with air play in the US., Canada, Mexico, Europe, South America and Japan. His songs have been recorded by an impressive list of artists including Tom Jones, Rick Nelson, Abba, Glenn Campbell, The Knickerbockers, the Sandpipers, Jackie DeShannon, Gene Vincent, the New Christy Minstrels and jazz great,Chet Baker. Keith is also an accomplished producer, arranger and musician.

Keith has also served as East Coast Division Manager, West Coast Division Manager, and executive producer for 4- Star Music Co, Inc. and Challenge Records, Los Angeles, New York and Nashville. An album featuring several of Keith's L.A. song demos, Bird Doggin' was released by Rev-Ola in 2005. You can find Bird Doggin' on Yahoo Shopping, and another album, mindstones , on CDBaby.

Keith is advising Hilary on the information and music she will need to put together for possible presentation labels and industry insiders, and has offered to mentor her with her songwriting as well.

A project that Keith is passionate about, the Can Do! Project was honored on July 4th as one of Salute America's Top Ten for 2006, receiving the "Most Inspirational Youth Program" award. The Can Do! project promotes positive thinking and a "can do" attitude among young people through fun, educational multimedia projects. In 1999, the Can- Do Kids' singing and dancing troop was recognized by the Washington State House of Representatives for "significant contributions" on behalf of fighting crime and boosting kids' self esteem.

The Home Grown Radio Show, KRMS 93.5 FM, based out of Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri, recently invited Hilary back for a return appearance as a featured guest artist. Host Baub Eis featured Hilary in a one-hour segment of interviews and music. The show aired at 11 am on Sunday, February 11th. Baub and Hilary discussed the release of Road To Hope, the opportunity to work with Pastor Wright and the Total Experience Gospel Choir on hurricane relief, and other topics as eight songs of Hilary's songs were played at various times during the hour.

The 5-song co-writing and publishing agreement between Hilary Scott and Matthew Wilder (Wilderness Productions) in Nashville is moving forward with tracks (ranging from pop-rock to techno and dance) garnering increasing interest. Hilary plans a trip to Nashville in the near future and hopes to continue co-writing with Wilder and other contacts in the area.

This monthy, the Hilary Scott Band will be appearing for a two-night engagement at Uncle Bo’s in Topeka, Kansas, a return to Jim Curley’s Mountain Music Shoppe in Shawnee, Kansas, and an appearance at Knuckleheads in Kansas City this spring.

New gigs, events and news are added often on the Hilary Scott website, Hi lary Scott MySpace page and the Hi lary Scott Band MySpace page. Check back often. You can also read Hilary’s and the Band members’ musings on their blogs

Philadelphia classic rock radio great, DJ Michael Tearson, who is also a DJ for Sirius Radio recently requested a copy of Road To Hope because he was interested in playing To Make You Feel My Love (track 11) on his his show, the Bob Dylan Hour that airs each Sunday at 10 am and 7 pm Eastern time on Sirius channel Disorder 32. We learned this week that the song will be on his March 11th show, so tune in on March 11th (and any other Sunday) to enjoy Bob Dylan's music and Michael's great shows!
Michael had this to say about Hilary Scott's rendition of To Make You Feel My Love, "It is really one of the best versions of the song I have heard. Kudos to Hilary".

The Martini Bar of Columbia, Missouri is running a television commercial mentioning Hilary and her band as regular live performers at the Martini Bar. Never been to the venue? Check out the DVD or come see the Hilary Scott Band there live.

A clip from the video is available for viewing on Hil ary Scott's MySpace page. Follow the link below. Another clip will soon be available on the Hil ary Scott Band's MySpace page.