My Story

I am Christena Graves, a singer/songwriter based in Lawrence, KS. After an 18 year hiatus to raise my kids, I am unpausing my music career. While it’s been a long space of time, I haven’t stopped writing. I’ve been collecting songs and waiting for the right time to make a record. When COVID hit and slowed things down, I found myself with time to work on new music. In August, our dear friend and record producer, Greg Lafollette, moved back to Kansas City after being in Nashville for many years. He agreed to work with us and in the late summer of 2020 we brought this collection of 10 songs to life. I’ve named the album Finding My Footing.  I’m finding my footing as a songwriter and performer again, and as a woman, mother, and partner, I’m always on a search to find my footing through the challenges of life. 

This Record

I've realized as I've gotten older that songwriting is one of the ways I process through life's ups and downs.  We've had a lot of loss to work through the last several years: a life threatening miscarriage, a close friend's suicide, losing a parent, Brandon's heart attack three years ago.  Sometimes all I can do is pick up my guitar and strum.  Sometimes songs come, sometimes tears come.  It's a time of healing for me.  Most of the songs on Finding My Footing came from these very moments.  Some of them come from the joy of having a friend and partner of 24 years for whom I am so thankful to have in my life.  

Greg arrived at exactly the right moment for us.  We tried several times to work on making a record but always ran into some snag. He stepped in when we needed both inspiration and direction.  I have so appreciated his sensitivity to getting the emotion of each song right. He worked hard to make me feel comfortable and helped me process some difficult feelings during the recording. His production style and addition of vocals and instruments have helped to make this collection of songs a moving, beautiful album.  

Our Plan

That brings me to asking you, our friends and family, fans old and new, for your help to see this project through to the end. We have finished the recording but now we need to duplicate, and market the record in addition to covering initial expenses from recording. I know this is a hard time for so many people with all of the COVID shutdowns and changes. It has been difficult for many musicians who have had to find new ways to keep performing and creating. I believe this is the right time for this record. Even though some were written before COVID, the sentiment is right for this season and I hope it brings comfort to many people. I know music has helped me through many hard times. 

What the funds will help us accomplish:

Making cds (which includes packaging)

Vinyl record pressing (which involves extra vinyl specific mastering and packaging) 

T-shirts

Stickers

Artwork prints

Any extra monies will go to cover expenses related to recording and production.

We have come up with different perks packages to help you get the items you are most interested in. Any amount is so appreciated! The packs will offer anything from a single sticker to a homemade meal and private concert at the Graves home in Lawrence, KS. Also, we are so very excited to be able to offer a one of a kind custom snare drum with art inspired by the album cover thanks to WFLIII Drums. 

Risks and challenges:

As you may know, crowdfunding is risky business. If we don’t raise enough money, we won’t be able to duplicate the record which will make it more challenging for us in the long run. CD and vinyl pressing is done in batches, usually not less than a few hundred.  Basically, if we sell 25 vinyl records in the funding campaign but we order 300, we will have records left to sell on our web store to new fans. This will help us offset the very low rate that we receive from streaming sites. The current pay out for streaming is $0.00331 per play. That’s $33 for 10,000 streams. Your support of this project will set us up for success by helping us launch without going in debt. 

Ways you can help:

Share with your friends!  Share this campaign on your social media pages or tell a friend who might be interested in supporting us.

“Follow” and “Like” @christenagravesmusic on Facebook and Instagram

Go to https://www.christenagravesmusic.com to join our email list for updates about gigs and upcoming projects.  

I am so excited to bring this project to you at this time! I think it is music that will bring peace.

Thank you!

Christena