Casey Stratton

It’s 2009. The old school “Casey did this and that and is so great and here’s why” thing is passé. So here goes: I was born in 1976. I was obsessed with music. I took curtain rods to my Dad’s guitar in hopes of it becoming a cello that way. I got a solo in the 2nd Grade play. People told me I was good. Eventually I begged my way to violin lessons when I was 8. People told me I was good. I took Junior High choir. I began to learn vocal technique. People still told me I was good and I started to think there was something to this music thing in regard to my future. I begged my way to getting a piano when I was 11. I taught myself to play it and began writing songs, but what does an 11 year old know about anything? Along the way I had a cello for a while. I loved playing that, too. I began to realize that if it has strings on it I can usually figure it out. I dreamed of attending Interlochen Arts Academy and begged my way to an audition. My Mom feared it was too expensive. I was accepted and got a scholarship. After a relentless search for funds (no one seems to sponsor high school kids), my Mom’s bosses loaned us the rest of the money. That was the first time I remember feeling like nothing was impossible if you set your mind to it. This would become very important later on. I graduated in 1994 and moved to LA soon after. I signed to a tiny indie label, then to Rondor Publishing a few years later. I made some records. You can buy them online. LA was sucking the life out of me so I moved to Chicago and then New York City. In New York I finally got what I had always wanted: a major label record deal. RCA and Sony Classical had a bidding war over me and I felt pretty cool right about then. I chose Sony. Now they're the same thing. Who knew? I made a record in LA with Patrick Leonard. It was probably the most amazing experience of my lifetime. I found out that major labels are not a good fit for me. This was devastating for a minute. What do you do when you attain your goals and you are unhappy? You ask to be let out of your contract. Sony obliged at the end of 2004. Since then I’ve made records myself in my apartment. I find I enjoy that. You can buy them online. I tour when I can and wish I could tour more often. Gas is expensive. I have 4 cats. If you have made it this far you have a pretty amazing attention span for 2009. If you want to know anything else find me on Facebook, MySpace or Twitter. I love to hear from people. Don’t forget to eat your vegetables…and mine while you’re at it. Have a nice day.