Meet Jeannie Caryn | Singer Songwriter/Musician & Author/Illustrator of The Adventures of Hugo the Round Pug” – A pet lovers book series. “

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jeannie Caryn and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jeannie, how has your work-life balance changed over time?

As a musician, the work/life balance can be tough! Gigs are almost always at night, on weekends, and often on holidays, so there’s always a choice to be made about where to spend time.

When my kids were little, I did my best to not schedule shows when it was my turn to have family time. Luckily, I was divorced! While at first it devastated me to have to split time with my children’s father, I made myself stay busy when my kids were with their dad, and ultimately, that split time gave me the space and time to start my business as a musician. It also allowed me days where I could avoid the world and focus solely on my craft to write and practice without feeling I was missing something with the family.

As my kids are now older and in college, there has been much more freedom, and I have had a good run of time where I could perform three or four shows a week without any conflict. Recently, however, two of my dogs have developed medical conditions, so that has brought me back to having to choose between what is best for them and what I need to do to work and grow as a musician.

But like all things in life, there’s a yin and a yang. The extra time at home with my older pups has given me more time to write stories and songs, work on the business and marketing end of my business, and take time to practice guitar again.

All things tend to come “Full Circle” it seems, and that’s the title of a new song I am currently working on– I hope to get that song and a few others released summer of 2024, on my upcoming album called, “The Nest!”

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.

I never expected to have a career as a musician or author!

During my divorce, which took several years, I taught myself guitar as it was the only way I knew how to cope with not having my two small children, four and six at the time, near me every day since we had shared custody.

One day, I went out to an open mic, and the manager booked me for my first gig! That was 15 years ago now, and I am so very grateful for the opportunity I have had to become the singer songwriter/musician and author/illustrator that I am today.

But it was not easy! It has taken a long time to take myself seriously as a professional musician. Since I taught myself guitar, I struggled early on with managing the expectations I had of myself as a performer. While the singing and songwriting came naturally to me, playing guitar has always been and will always be a never ending quest for me to improve. Since I do not read music, I am constantly challenging myself to learn more about that crazy instrument. Luckily, that’s also something I love doing!

What sets me apart from many other songwriters is that music was not my first career: I am also a teacher, writer, and illustrator. Because of that, I am always thinking about audience during my performances, and likely, during my writing as well (at least the editing part). Knowing your audience is the absolute best tool for creating more authentic communication: While an artist can focus on the internal muse, a performer must know how to externally feed that art to the audience by knowing what they need – In a best case scenario, those two selves collaborate, but it can be a very difficult dance for the artist/performer. But we do it because we have to in order to share our work!

I am proud of every song and story I have written, and I am especially proud of releasing my first album MOTHER’S SELF-RISING during Covid- I had been lucky enough to meet Larry Mitchell during that recording of “Go to Sleep Little Baby” and he invited me to work with him. Talk about a GREAT opportunity. We started that album in the fall of 2018, and we were sitting in the studio together when we learned of Covid in March of 2019. We finally finished the album in early January 2020 and just released it then despite the chaos. (Please take time to check out Grammy Winning Producer/Guitarist Larry Mitchell as well)

I’m also proud to say that I have learned how to create home studio albums, and I have two of those available on Bandcamp/jeanniecaryn:  

MERRY CHRISTMAS is an album, released December 2022, of two original Christmas songs and five classic Christmas covers, and I so loved creating that festive album.    

LOVE IN AN RV is my most recent album, released February 2024, of six songs that tell the story of Love found and Love lost, and I’ve also created lyric videos for all of the songs on that album, so do check out my YouTube channel! 

Currently, I am about to launch a new Podcast called, PARTY IN THE FROG!  I purchased a little rPod travel trailer, “The Frog,” and the first episode “leaps” on April 1, 2024. The podcast will be somewhat of a variety show recorded in the Frog, and will mostly feature a guest and explore a similar set of questions for each one. Guests will be creatives such as artists musicians, but also will include interesting business folk, fans, and more!  The podcast will stream where all podcasts are available. 

I’ve also created a new website to host the merch for all of my projects that come from The Belly of the Frog.  Please visit bellyofthefrog.com to shop and read my new blog! 

One project I am most proud of is my pet lovers book series, THE ADVENTURES OF HUGO THE ROUND PUG (available on Amazon) — For this project, I wrote the story which will end up being four books in total; I drew the illustrations; I self-published the first book on Amazon; and I have written several songs for this story. Hugo, the main character, loves the blues, so this project has taken my songwriting in a new direction! You can find the first book in the series on Amazon now, and the first two songs for the story are available on Bandcamp.com/jeanniecaryn .

The reason I am most proud of this project is not because I created it, but because I believe it has a larger promise! I hope that someday soon, I’ll be able to use this project to help spread the word about dangerous food items for pets and ultimately, with proceeds from the project, donate more and do more to help save homeless pets.

The book was inspired by my own dog Hugo “ALMOST” eating a piece of gum. Most people don’t know that gum and many other common household products have a FATALLY TOXIC chemical called Xylitol (Birch Sugar) in them — Please make sure your pets never consume this accidentally or on purpose! Unfortunately, this sweetener is in peanut butter too, and many folks don’t realize it. Please always check anything you give your dog and do not leave purses, backpacks, bags, pockets, or other items with gum anywhere near where your pet can steal it. I was lucky that I caught Hugo stealing, and he is fine, but far too many pets tragically die from accidental consumption of Xylitol.

Through all of these experiences, I have developed what I hope is perceived as an authentic brand in Jeannie Caryn Music. Having grown up in Las Vegas, being authentic is very important to me. Ultimately, I’d love for my personal story to help others see that overcoming challenges and obstacles that seem impossible, can be done by focusing on what and who you love, and pursuing your dreams one day at a time.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.

For the best weekend, my best friend and I would visit the Atlanta Belt line, stopping at New Realm Brewery for live music, the Margarita Pizza,  and people watching. We’d then head over to Black Bear Tavern for the Chicago style menu and live music and the late night crowd. 

On Saturday, we’d head up to Dahlonega, tour the town, have cocktails at Bourbon Street Grille, and end up at Shenanigans for Irish style grub and live music. 

On Sunday, we’d start out with brunch at Madlife Stage and Studios patio and listen to live music,, and then we’d head out to Lake Allatoona and spend the day at Sunset Grille, listening to live music and watching the boats! 

Since I have performed at all of those venues, hopefully, one of those gigs would be mine, but getting to listen to other artists is always my favorite down time activity. Honestly, I could list 100 more venues and places to visit – North Georgia is an amazing place to be.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?

I am blessed to have many good friends and fellow musicians in my world, so it’s very easy for me to give a Shoutout!

While I could write an entire book about the people I am grateful for (see my website “Gratitude” page for some of those), for this occasion, I want to thank two lovely souls who are my bandmates/colleagues/besties/sisters: Fellow members of THE GEORGIA SUCCULENTS! — Katie Martin Music and Lianne Hutcheson.  Both are extraordinary musicians with music on all of the platforms.  Go find them!  

We are three female solo artists who met doing what we love, and one day, we decided that we needed to start meeting regularly to support one another on the business side in an industry where women are not the dominant force, at least at the local level. As female artists, we compete constantly with more men than women for local gigs, showcase spots, and major bookings in town.

During our first meeting together, we also decided that we would be a great “band” so we learned and practiced that tune from the movie “O’ Brother Where Art Thou” called “Go to Sleep Little Baby,” as performed by three amazing women – Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, and Gillian Welch. 

We practiced that tune and started performing it at local songwriter events, and eventually, we went into the Chocolate Room Studio of the great Larry Mitchell in Opelika, Alabama, to get a solid recording of our acapella harmonies. You can see that performance on YouTube on Katie Martin Music’s page. (Do subscribe to her channel and spend time there listening to her amazing solo work!)

We have been THE GEORGIA SUCCULENTS for more than five years now, and we have had several small shows, but time is always against us for doing more – We hope in the future to push this collaboration to a larger scale.

Luckily, Lianne Hutcheson wrote a great tune called, “Food for the Soul,” and she invited Katie and I to each sing a verse and harmonies on that single, which is part of her first album. You can find the song, “Food for the Soul,” now on all major streaming platforms! Do follow Lianne too! Her recently released album is brilliant!

I am truly grateful for all of the wonderful people I have in my life, most of whom I have met through music. I am surrounded by wonderful souls. 

Website: linktr.ee/jeanniecaryn

Instagram: @jeanniecaryn

Linkedin: Jeannie Caryn Bellisario

Twitter: @jeanniecaryn

Facebook: Jeannie Caryn Music

Youtube: Jeannie Caryn

Orginal Music:  www.bandcamp.com/jeanniecaryn

Merch and Podcast:  www.bellyofthefrog.com

Other: amazon.com/jeanniecaryn www.jeanniecaryn.com www.reverbnation.com/jeanniecaryn www.bandcamp/jeanniecaryn

Image Credits
Stephen Blackburn Lisa Diamond