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Help Seattle Musician Shawn Smith *Update 7/15
https://www.gofundme.com/helpshawnsmith
Hello Seattle music community and friends all over the world. It has come to my attention that our beloved musician Shawn Smith, often refered to as " Seattle's best kept secret " has recently hit some hard times.
I do not know many details, other than at this point he is technically homeless ( someone gave him a room for he and his dog temporarily, but I don't think he's happy there-and again, its temporary ) I saw him yesterday, and he was in tears and not in a good place emotionally. Although he seemed happy to see me, and we had fun listening to Prince. He tried to joke and played it off like it would be okay -in a way, but I can tell you that honestly-I barely got any sleep worrying about him.
He is a long time friend, as in I've known him since the 80's. He has brought endless happiness to millions over the years with his original music. I say original becasue there is no one like Shawn. If you know his music, you know what I am talking about. His music resonates with many because of his bare honesty and unmatched vocal range. If you are not familiar, I have lots of video of him and he has a webpage that you can purchase his music from. ( LINK BELOW ) I will be uploading some of the video I took and others over the duration of this campaign. He has had songs on The Soprano's and toured Europe. If your not familiar with his music, watch the videos I post so you can see how amazing he is and see that it is just not acceptable that someone so talented is having to worry about shelter and food. He also has a 12 year old son, who can't even stay with him, becasue he's not able to do stuff with him that a dad should be able to, like drive him to and pay for a movie. H'e almost 50 years old and not getting younger, so he needs to get some help now. Or should we wait until there is a health crisis?! No!
If you know his music you also know that he was once in a band with Peral Jam's Stone Gossard. The Band BRAD. I know that Stoney did help him for a while, but it was a long time ago. If you personally know any of the members of Pearl Jam or have any way to contact them or their management, please do so. I don't think they realize the severity of his current situation, and I can't believe that they would sit and do nothing if they did. They have a foundtaion that donates millions of dollars, so to help Shawn would be nothing to them-financially, they are in the best position to help, so I hope this gets to them, so they can.
I have talked for years about how getting ones music on a soundtrack or a TV show can generate some serious money. So anyone with connections to do this should do so. I know I have asked about this before and was told " Thats not how it works " but if you don't ask, submit music, network and so on, then how can one get their music noticed? There MUST be a way. I find it hard to believe that if certain people emailed other people who are saavy about how it ' does work ' that nothing would come of it.
What is the best long term solution to this? I don't have the answer to that. He's too proud to ask for help himself. He can't work. I have a friend who lives comfortably and happily in a van that has a bed and all sorts of ammenities. Maybe something like that would be good so he can get around to shows and be mobile. I also think his musician friends need to put together a benefit for him immediately. We need to think creatively here. Let's say he got in a small house and rented one of the rooms on airbnb. Lanlords actually love that becasue they know your keeping the house clean for guests. $ $80.00 a night for a room, 20 nights of a 30 day month is $ 16000.00. I saw one lady who rents her couch and rents it for $21.00 a night and has a young son and a dog. So why can't Shawn do something like that? Let's think outside the box and come up with something that will work long term. He can't do this alone!!!! And should not have to!
Shawn has never hurt a living soul. He is one of the kindest sweetest people on the planet. He's played 100's of benefits for other people. He's a rare gem and beloved to our music community, with a long history that dates back to the 80's when he was good friends with Andrew Wood, he took the loss of Andy hard, and in many ways has never gotten over it.
He gives his music away online, becasue he hates to ask anyone for money. He is not an addict, so he is not going to get money and use it for anything bad. I am open to suggestions on what would be a good long term solution. I know that when I had a go fund done for me last year, I was not able to get an apartment because I was not working full time, becasue I was extremely sick. I ended up living off the money for a while and it helped but no one would rent to me becasue I was not making enough money. That being said, please donate here and NOT to him on Facebook or cash. People see other people donating, and then they donate. Go Fund me shares stories too, especially ones that resonate with what they believe they were set up for. And lots of people doante to people that they don't know, having seen the campaign get a lot of attention. So the best way to help is to donate HERE. I already set up the account so that the checks are made out to Shawn. If he's not comfortable accepting this money as a gift, fine-then he can send you all CD's and t shirts, etc!
Housing in Seattle is getting ridiculous. All the 1000's a week of people moving here are getting all the jobs and apartments. I have had a hard time finding a job I like and that pays a living wage and I have a great resume and thousands of " friends " and endless connections. Every time I'm in a bar I'm reminded of why I'm not a bartender. I'm sure he has the same dilema's....so how is someone who hasn't worked for years and is not in good health suppose to support themselves? I think if he had a cool opportunity to work at someplace chill like Easy Street Records, he would do it. But he's extremely shy and anyone who knows creative geniuses, knows its a bit of a disability in itself. It's also hard for an older person to simply " go back to work " or fit in with a younger work force. Plus, having no car and no money does not help.
Shawn's music has touched so many peoples lives, if something happens to him while he's roaming around Seattle at night, I don't think I or Stoney or any of the other people who have known him for years would be able to forgive themselves.
Shawn does not know I am doing this, but I feel I have no choice. Again, this is just unnaceptable for him to be worrying about where he is going to sleep or how he will eat. I am sure he will be forever grateful and do his best to use the money to get in a safe and permanant living situation. I am not sure where he stands with state assistance or SSI, which he certainly qualifies for but I can tell you from experience it takes YEARS to get assistance through SSI, and right now we have a lot of Vets coming back from this BS ongoing war and they are mentally and psysically crushed and so of course getting priority assistance. I can certainly help him with that and facilitating any other assistant programs that could help. He has stated that he tried MusicCare. I am not sure what their qualifications are but I think we can do this ourselves, with a benefit especially.
Please, friends in Seattle music community, this is one person we cannot add to all the people we have already lost. And I fear if he does not get real help soon, we could lose him.
To buy Shawn's music go HERE!
http://www.shawnsmithsinger.com/
Thank You!
Xana La Fuente
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7pKRNwwptm4
Hello Seattle music community and friends all over the world. It has come to my attention that our beloved musician Shawn Smith, often refered to as " Seattle's best kept secret " has recently hit some hard times.
I do not know many details, other than at this point he is technically homeless ( someone gave him a room for he and his dog temporarily, but I don't think he's happy there-and again, its temporary ) I saw him yesterday, and he was in tears and not in a good place emotionally. Although he seemed happy to see me, and we had fun listening to Prince. He tried to joke and played it off like it would be okay -in a way, but I can tell you that honestly-I barely got any sleep worrying about him.
He is a long time friend, as in I've known him since the 80's. He has brought endless happiness to millions over the years with his original music. I say original becasue there is no one like Shawn. If you know his music, you know what I am talking about. His music resonates with many because of his bare honesty and unmatched vocal range. If you are not familiar, I have lots of video of him and he has a webpage that you can purchase his music from. ( LINK BELOW ) I will be uploading some of the video I took and others over the duration of this campaign. He has had songs on The Soprano's and toured Europe. If your not familiar with his music, watch the videos I post so you can see how amazing he is and see that it is just not acceptable that someone so talented is having to worry about shelter and food. He also has a 12 year old son, who can't even stay with him, becasue he's not able to do stuff with him that a dad should be able to, like drive him to and pay for a movie. H'e almost 50 years old and not getting younger, so he needs to get some help now. Or should we wait until there is a health crisis?! No!
If you know his music you also know that he was once in a band with Peral Jam's Stone Gossard. The Band BRAD. I know that Stoney did help him for a while, but it was a long time ago. If you personally know any of the members of Pearl Jam or have any way to contact them or their management, please do so. I don't think they realize the severity of his current situation, and I can't believe that they would sit and do nothing if they did. They have a foundtaion that donates millions of dollars, so to help Shawn would be nothing to them-financially, they are in the best position to help, so I hope this gets to them, so they can.
I have talked for years about how getting ones music on a soundtrack or a TV show can generate some serious money. So anyone with connections to do this should do so. I know I have asked about this before and was told " Thats not how it works " but if you don't ask, submit music, network and so on, then how can one get their music noticed? There MUST be a way. I find it hard to believe that if certain people emailed other people who are saavy about how it ' does work ' that nothing would come of it.
What is the best long term solution to this? I don't have the answer to that. He's too proud to ask for help himself. He can't work. I have a friend who lives comfortably and happily in a van that has a bed and all sorts of ammenities. Maybe something like that would be good so he can get around to shows and be mobile. I also think his musician friends need to put together a benefit for him immediately. We need to think creatively here. Let's say he got in a small house and rented one of the rooms on airbnb. Lanlords actually love that becasue they know your keeping the house clean for guests. $ $80.00 a night for a room, 20 nights of a 30 day month is $ 16000.00. I saw one lady who rents her couch and rents it for $21.00 a night and has a young son and a dog. So why can't Shawn do something like that? Let's think outside the box and come up with something that will work long term. He can't do this alone!!!! And should not have to!
Shawn has never hurt a living soul. He is one of the kindest sweetest people on the planet. He's played 100's of benefits for other people. He's a rare gem and beloved to our music community, with a long history that dates back to the 80's when he was good friends with Andrew Wood, he took the loss of Andy hard, and in many ways has never gotten over it.
He gives his music away online, becasue he hates to ask anyone for money. He is not an addict, so he is not going to get money and use it for anything bad. I am open to suggestions on what would be a good long term solution. I know that when I had a go fund done for me last year, I was not able to get an apartment because I was not working full time, becasue I was extremely sick. I ended up living off the money for a while and it helped but no one would rent to me becasue I was not making enough money. That being said, please donate here and NOT to him on Facebook or cash. People see other people donating, and then they donate. Go Fund me shares stories too, especially ones that resonate with what they believe they were set up for. And lots of people doante to people that they don't know, having seen the campaign get a lot of attention. So the best way to help is to donate HERE. I already set up the account so that the checks are made out to Shawn. If he's not comfortable accepting this money as a gift, fine-then he can send you all CD's and t shirts, etc!
Housing in Seattle is getting ridiculous. All the 1000's a week of people moving here are getting all the jobs and apartments. I have had a hard time finding a job I like and that pays a living wage and I have a great resume and thousands of " friends " and endless connections. Every time I'm in a bar I'm reminded of why I'm not a bartender. I'm sure he has the same dilema's....so how is someone who hasn't worked for years and is not in good health suppose to support themselves? I think if he had a cool opportunity to work at someplace chill like Easy Street Records, he would do it. But he's extremely shy and anyone who knows creative geniuses, knows its a bit of a disability in itself. It's also hard for an older person to simply " go back to work " or fit in with a younger work force. Plus, having no car and no money does not help.
Shawn's music has touched so many peoples lives, if something happens to him while he's roaming around Seattle at night, I don't think I or Stoney or any of the other people who have known him for years would be able to forgive themselves.
Shawn does not know I am doing this, but I feel I have no choice. Again, this is just unnaceptable for him to be worrying about where he is going to sleep or how he will eat. I am sure he will be forever grateful and do his best to use the money to get in a safe and permanant living situation. I am not sure where he stands with state assistance or SSI, which he certainly qualifies for but I can tell you from experience it takes YEARS to get assistance through SSI, and right now we have a lot of Vets coming back from this BS ongoing war and they are mentally and psysically crushed and so of course getting priority assistance. I can certainly help him with that and facilitating any other assistant programs that could help. He has stated that he tried MusicCare. I am not sure what their qualifications are but I think we can do this ourselves, with a benefit especially.
Please, friends in Seattle music community, this is one person we cannot add to all the people we have already lost. And I fear if he does not get real help soon, we could lose him.
To buy Shawn's music go HERE!
http://www.shawnsmithsinger.com/
Thank You!
Xana La Fuente
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7pKRNwwptm4 Post edited by demetrios on
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Also, 10c phone number is on this website right?
Doesn't Shawn has Stone's phone number...?
Calling Stone, PJ and PJ management out publicly seems...
Edit: and thanks demetrios for sharing this link
If the guy genuinely needs help, I hope he gets it.
My limited view on the situation is that Shawn is struggling financially, but I hope that those managing the GoFundMe page think to create a sustainable solution, much like the team that was set up for a Detroit man who had been walking 21 miles to work every day until a crowdfund was set up in his name. They created a team which included donated services from an attorney from a large law firm in Michigan, a CPA and a certified financial planner to ensure the donation money is handled appropriately and in a way that best serves Robertson, the man who was funded.
Though much of Shawn's music is freely available on his site, I believe it's his bandcamp site that he makes money off of if anyone would rather "donate" through buying his music. shawnsmith.bandcamp.com
At the end of the day, it's incredibly easy to fall on hard times and it's wonderful to see an upswell of support.
For more on the Detroit story I mentioned: cnn.com/2015/02/03/us/detroit-man-walks-21-miles-for-daily-commute/
I haven't met him, but I love his voice and style. Videos and interviews give the impression that he's a good guy, genuine. Beyond that I don't know him or his story. I think it's crazy to call out PJ though. They help plenty, probably more than we know, and I think it's in poor taste to put them on the spot.
Look forward to hearing more about this and helping out if it is legit.
First it was rent and a car, now its he should go to the doctor?
And she's his landlord, and raised his rent?
And he wrote someone he's fine?
I'll gladly donate but I think we all need to know what the issue is and what type of help he needs.
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I do hope Shawn is okay...immensely talented and a super nice guy everytime I bumped into him at shows around Seattle in the early 2000s.
I can't believe so many people donated already, before the facts were in...
And they are still not in.
Sucker born every minute I guess...
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