OCTOBER 22, 2018
ROCKWiRED NOTES: SCREW THE HOLiDAYS VOLUME THREE

ith the midterm elections looming closer, you can be assured that no matter what the result is, this great nation of ours will only become further divided and the toxicity of our current affairs is only going to make this year's Holiday Season that much more unbearable. Who the hell wants to sit around a family dinner table and get into a heated debate over possible Russian collusion and TRUMP's pick for a Supreme Court Justice? Personally, I'd rather cuddle up with a significant other by a fireplace with a glass of red wine and some music in the background and thankfully RADIO KSCR has that very same thing in mind for this Holiday Season with their latest Holiday-themed music compilation. For the past few years, the online radio station has reached out to the segment of the population that wants to snap every time they hear Christmas music being played through the overhead speakers of this or that retail store as early as Halloween. This most welome compilation has been dubbed SCREW THE HOLIDAYS and for two volumes, artists and bands from numerous genres have contributed songs that celebrate the yuletide season without all of the cloying, saccharine sweetness one has come to equate with Holiday music. Now, after a two year hiatus, RADIO KSCR is due to release SCREW THE HOLIDAY VOLUME THREE and producer and RADIO KSCR founder JOWANNA LEWIS promises a collection of Holiday themed songs from various genres that will speak to the adult in you that doesn't want any grief this Holiday Season. At press time, RADIO KSCR is still accepting submissions for this compilation up until October 31, 2018.  ROCKWIRED had a chance to speak with JOWANNA LEWIS of RADIO KSCAR regarding the plans and the forthcoming release of SCREW THE HOLIDAYS - VOLUME THREE. Here is how the inerview went.

In the past few years, I've gotten so used to expecting a a release of the SCREW THE HOLIDAYS music compilation. After not releasing a new compilation in two years, you will be releasing SCREW THE HOLIDAYS VOLUME THREE.  Why did it take so long to get around ot releasing VOLUME THREE?
VOLUME ONE came together and happened really fast and when it came time to do VOLUME TWO, I was trying to recreate that magic without some of the help that I had with VOLUME ONE.  The first one was released through MANTARAY RECORDS and it all just fell into place, and in trying to do that again on my own label, I ran into a few issues and obstacles that I didn't anticipate. Handling all of that stuff was crazy. I tried to do VOLUME THREE two years ago, but it just never came together.  It didn't come together at all so I ended up taking a little bit of time away to find out a way to do this a little better and now, I'm really ready to do VOLUME THREE.  This is one of those projects where I feel that Christmas isn't a thing for me if I haven't done this.

THE ARTiCLE WiLL CONTiNUE 
FOLLOWiNG THE ADVERTiSEMENT BELOW

So far, have you been pleased with the music submissions that have been coming in?
Yes. I'm calling this the adult version. We've grown up now! This is a sexier version of SCREW THE HOLIDAYS.  There are some really fun songs that we've got on this particular volume. For this collection, we've got a comedic outro where someone is doing a little comedy routine at the end of the album about the Holidays. Right now, it'll either be the intro or the outro. This is the year where I've gotten to do this thing exactly the way that I wanted to do it. I've always wanted to do  something where you have a comedic intro and a comedic outro also. I also got to go to artists directly and let them know that I was putting this collection together and showed them the previous volumes. I gave them artistic liberty to write what they wanted, but I really wanted songs from these artists. This experience has been really nice because I was able to go to artists directly and say that I wanted something from them for this album and that  was fun for me!

Are there any particular songs from this collection that have you exicted to talk about in advance of the release?
I am very excited about WHITTNEY MIEKKEL. She recorded this song called STOCKING for the album and this is that "Hey, I'm with somebody and we're not doing the family thing this Christmas" kind of song.  This song is all about the fireplace and the martinis. It's got the Christmas Eve kinky sex kind of feel going for it.  When she sent me this song I was like "You knocked it right out of the park! What did you send me?" She just wrote the song where every guy who hears it is going to say to his girlfriend "Why can't you do this for me?"  There is some really cool stuff this time. I've got some really cool DJ instrumental stuff that is happening. It's a very well rounded album. The other ones were cool but this album is like "What are we doing here?"

Already, it sounds like this collection will stand out a mile from what you've done in the past.
This one is definitely different than the other ones. This one has a definite Christmas feel. I'm not going to be surprised if we end up with this years version of a RUN DMC Christmas rap. I won't be shocked if some really cool rap song ends up on this collection. This CD is absolutely poised for it. It's almost not complete because we don't have a cool Holiday rap song because we've got everything else. We've got a cool country song and a cool low key, super sexy song and then we've got some great instrumentals and some DJs doing some amazing stuff. I'm really excited to see how all of this is going to come together.

Are you still accepting submissions from artists?
I'm accepting submissions until October 31rst and that gives me enough time to make sure everything is mastered. As submissions are coming in, I am working on the production of the album. I've got songs and I'm working on the order of the tracking.  Once October 31rst is behind me, everything will be done. We're still looking for material to consider and people who submit will know within three days if their song will be included or not.

In the past, a portion of the proceeds for the release would go to a charity of some sort. What charity do you have in mind this year?
We are looking at that right now. I'm doing something a little different this year. Charities are great, but I want to donate and be a little more proactive. The proceeds that would've gone to charity will probably go to the LA REGIONAL FOOD BANK, but we're also going to do homeless care pacakges. Out here in LA, the homeless epidemic is insane! There are places where homeless encampments are happening now and you're like "Wait! What's going on here? This is not LA!" This is all happening in the suburbs. I live in the suburbs about twenty minutes from LA and there are homeless encampments even in our area. That is something that was unheard of before and they are not hidden away in allleys and stuff like that anymore. It's all out in the open. Next to the mall, there is this grassy area and there are tents being set up. What we're going to do is make homeless care packages with things that homeless people need like soap and lotion  and hand wipes and feminine products and canned good to put into this bag just to help them out a little bit.

THE ARTiCLE WiLL CONTiNUE 
FOLLOWiNG THE ADVERTiSEMENT BELOW

Even in my own town of Albuquerque, you can see homelessness everywhere in a way that you didn't before. A few weeks ago I saw someone on the stret and it was someone I knew.
It's scary, especially if it's someone you know.  We always say that most people are a paycheck and a half away from being homeless, but really it's more like less than a paycheck away from you. What happens when you get super sick and can't work for three weeks? If that happens, I'm through. It becomes terrifying. When we were growing up, you were taught that homeless people were people with mental disabilities or people on drugs  but when you go up and talk to these people, you find out that a lot of these people still have jobs and go to work. They just can't afford a house or an apartment and section 8 housing is like a ten year waiting list or something crazy  like that. It makes you wonder what's going on. It's the craziest thing and I think this year, working with the homeless is going to be our focus. This year is going to be the first time that we're going to be doing a CD release party  and to get into the release party you need to donate something. We need donations. We want you to bring  some canned goods and toiletries.

Given the way the world is right now, I couldn't imagine a better time to release an album of unconventional Holiday songs. 
I think, as a country, we need it. Not to bring in politics, just because it's everywhere around us, but there is this need to be like "Hey! We're still all human and we still have Holidays and most of us still think that they suck. Le'ts just all come together just for a couple of months. Sure the Holidays can suck but lets make it all one big party and then we can go back to hating each other's guts."  So let's all get along for just one month and here is some music to help that happen. 

RELATED LiNKS:
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rian Lush is a music industry professional and entrepreneur. In 2005 he launched the online music site Rockwired.com to help promote new music artists in conjunction with the weekly radio show Rockwired Live which aired on KTSTFM.COM from 2005 - 2009. In 2010 He launched the daily podcast series Rockwired Radio Profiles which features exclusive interviews and music. He has also developed and produced the online radio shows Jazzed and Blue - Profiles in Blues and Jazz, Aboriginal Sounds - A Celebration of American Indian and First Nations Music, The Rockwired Rock N Roll Mixtape Show and The Rockwired Artist of the Month Showcase. In 2012, Brian Lush and his company Rockwired Media LLC launched the monthly digital online publication Rockwired Magazine. The magazine attracts over 75,000 readers a month and shows no signs of stopping. Rockwired Magazine also bares the distinction of being the first American Indian-owned rock magazine. Brian Lush is an enrolled member of the Yankton Sioux Tribe. Brian Lush's background in music journalism, radio and podcast hosting, podcast production, web design, publicity, advertising sales, social media and online marketing, strategic editorial planning and branding have all made Rockwired a name that is trusted and respected throughout the independent music industry.

CONTACT BRiAN LUSH AT: djlush@rockwired.com