RussHutto.com

I have a massive list of blogs that I follow in my RSS feedreader. I follow a ton of blogs through Our Creative Community (a creative blogging community). Most all of the blogs I follow are somehow related to worship, church leadership, or creative arts. Here are some of the creme de la creme. If I follow you and comment regularly on your blog, you’re already worthy of being called a favorite.

But here are my TOP picks (in no order):

MandyThompson.com:
Mandy brings a very transparent and real approach to blogging about her experiences in songwriting, worship leading, and being married. She is an inspiring young woman and I enjoy listening to her music and reading about her journey to be a better songwriter.

mandythompson.com

FredMcKinnon.com:
Fred hosts Sunday Setlists each Sunday where worship leaders from all over the world share their Sunday experiences each week. It’s an amazing resource in itself, but Fred also offers great worship leadership insight and runs TheWorshipCommunity.com and HighestPraise.com both of which are excellent resources for worship leaders and worshipers alike. I enjoy watching Fred’s video worship confessionals from time to time and it’s neat to read about his great family (which I met last summer).

fredmckinnon.com

InProgress (Tammy Hodge):
Tam runs a great blog complete with a carefree writing approach and a real, authentic desire to express encouragement and ministry to her readers. I’m encouraged daily by the questions she asks her readers and I participate in conversation there regularly.

kassota.wordpress.com

Indian Lake Papa:
Papa isn’t a worship leader/songwriter/or photographer but he always makes my top list! Papa is amazing. I got to meet him in person in December of 08. I wish he were a member of our church family here in Valdosta, but I know that he IS a member of THE church which we’re all a part of through JESUS! Papa writes with authority. Each story he shares is encouraging and thought provoking and when he says he’s praying for his readers I know that he is. His blog is a ministry in itself and you’ll be encouraged just by reading it.

choicesrmine.blogspot.com

Clarus Photography:
Jon and Carrie are some of our best friends here in Valdosta. They have such a gift in capturing life moments in photography. If you’re in the Southeast and are looking for a non-traditional, but amazing photographer please look them up!

clarusphotography.blogspot.com

Part of the spring challenge over at Our Creative Community.

Carving Out Creativity

For me, creativity is something that doesn’t just happen. Oh, sure, I have those moments of inspiration or I get a great idea, but for the most part, my own creativity is something that needs to be shaped and honed.

Not too unlike a statue being chiseled out of stone or a figurine being whittled from wood.

See, I’m a creative type by nature. My family has “naturally” provided me with a knack for music and art. I guess you could say it’s in my genes.

However, my creative output doesn’t automatically match my creative nature.

I have to work at it.

I need discipline and accountability.

Disciplined Creativity

This year I’ve written more music than in any other period of my life. It’s not because I’ve become more creative, it’s because I’ve channeled my creativity into a disciplined approach at writing songs. One per week.

I’m also in an accountability group of photographers, writers, wongwriters, musicians, and other creative types over at Our Creative Community. It’s always such a great feeling to hear others in the group give feedback when I submit a song. It HELPS me want to churn out songs.

I struggle with structure. Not necessarily IN structure, but with establishing it for myself. I’m a pretty typical right-brained creative type. My office is a mess, though I know where everything is (contrary to what my neat wife says)! I procrastinate. I wing things A LOT!

However, give me parameters challenge me, give me a deadline, and I’ll crank em out. I actually thrive within structure. The problem is having the discipline to establish that structure for myself.

Enter Discipline.

Joining a group was the best thing that ever happened to me. Sharing my music on my blog keeps my friends and family in the loop and gives me a great opportunity not only to “give” my music to others, but to also “receive” all kinds of feedback from people from all over.

Carving Out Weekly Time

For me, I spend my day at least an hour off writing music. Sometimes it ends up being longer than that, but I commit to at least an hour. This happens once a week. Already this year, I’ve written more songs than in the last 5 years combined. Which is pretty amazing for this year, but pretty sad for the last 5.

Some weeks I feel totally unmotivated and the writing is more of an exercise not unlike the ones I used to do in college while studying Music Composition and Theory. Other weeks it seems like the ideas just roll in from minute one. Either way, I’m honing my skill as a songwriter.

Creativity Takes Work

Being creative doesn’t take work, but creativity as a whole does. Why? because just being creative doesn’t result in anything. Taking a creative idea and working on it until completion is good. Getting a ton of ideas because you’re a creative type but doing nothing with them is not so good.

Part of my 50 Songs this year challenge.

I love hip hop. I love rap.

This week’s song is me doing what I love. When I was younger I did this for hours. Made beats. Slung rhymes. The works.

Influences:

Influences for this song are many and made themselves manifest as I worked through the song. Though I purposely never “sample” or rip songs to build other songs, there’s definitely a buffet of influences mashing-up into a whole new song. Some of them I might not even know. See if you can hear some of these influences:

• Early boy band/bubble gum pop
• Mozart
• Tupac
• The Truman Show
• TobyMac
• Weird Al
• Hustle & Flow
• Madagascar & Madagascar 2 (the movies)
• My days studying Music Comp/Theory at Georgia Southern

I’m sure there’s more. Now before you assume I went and consumed all of this entertainment and then attempted to make a song out of all of them, I didn’t. I got about halfway through the song when I started hearing a lot of this stuff.

Anyways, get your Dirty South Crunk Boy Band on and bounce with me. This song will make you wanna nod your head in time. It’s about being in a tough spot and crying out for help. Hence the name “Drowning” —lyrical inspiration comes loosely from an old Blind Men See (my old band) song of the same name.

And yes, that’s me, rapping.

Drowning (New Rap Version) [ 0:01 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Lyrics:

It always seems like I’m having the time of my life
And I feel like I am walking in the prime of my life
And the sun is shining down on my shoulders
And I’m feeling good, though I’m getting older
But just as the sun rays are kissing my face
Thunder starts rolling in and invading my space

And the clouds keep on getting darker
And the days keep on getting darker
The rain starts falling on my face, washing away
the sunny days, and I gotta pray
For a break in this stormy weather
I feel I’m caught in this flood forever

Can you hear me
Can you see me
I’m drowning

How did I end up, not being able to man up
My feet are far from the bottom, I can’t stand up
The flood waters keep rising
And my head is going under, I keep sliding
Deeper and deeper, I’m going under
Flashes of lightning rolls of thunder

And the clouds keep on getting darker
And the days keep on getting darker
The rain starts falling on my face, washing away
the sunny days, and I gotta pray
For a break in this stormy weather
I feel I’m caught in this flood forever

Can you hear me
Can you see me
I’m drowning
Can you hear me
Can you see me
I’m drowning

And the clouds keep on getting darker
And the days keep on getting darker
The rain starts falling on my face, washing away
the sunny days, and I gotta pray

Song: How Great is Our God by Chris Tomlin

Worship Ninjas: Mark Thomas (denverintranslation.com); Russ Hutto (russhutto.com)

Vid #1:

Mark breaks down this song and shows how he leads it from acoustic guitar. He mispronounces Russ’ last name since he’s never actually “heard” it pronounced live (only seen in the blogosphere), but after a throwing star contest in which Mark hits a dancing fruitfly at 600 yards, all is forgiven.

How Great Is Our God from Mark Thomas on Vimeo.

Vid #2:

Russ breaks down this song and shows how he accompanies the vocals with simple, straightforward chord shapes. At the throwing star contest he de-cigarettes a smoking camel at 400 yards, but it isn’t quite enough to win his family’s honor back.

How Great from Russ Hutto on Vimeo.

Tune in next time for more easy to follow song tips for Guitar and Keys.

Ok, ok. Just kidding.

But seriously.

This is the beginning of a great new series that I am putting together with the help of Mark Thomas (denverintranslation.com), and in the future, other online friends who are bloggers and worship leaders.

We’ll be taking songs for worship (popular ones and some originals) and breaking them down on acoustic guitar and keys.

Each post will contain 2 videos. One from Mark giving the guitar perspective and one from Me, Russ Hutto, giving the Keys/Piano perspective.

We hope you enjoy these vids and can glean a little bit here and there, especially if you’re picking up a new instrument or are just wanting to learn a little here and there.

Get ready the next post is where the goodness begins!