On Friday October 21st 2011, 16 months after announcing his retirement, The TradeMark Experience will return to the stage at his favorite venue, the Millcreek Tavern! And what better night for his homecoming than the projected date of the rapture! Come celebrate the end of the world with TTRRAAADEMAAARRRKKK and his special guests, including DJ Loose, indie rock band The Left Lingo (www.theleftlingo.com), hip-hop group ECOMOG, magician RanD Shine, and MORE!
Doors open 8:30pm, show starts at 9. ONLY $8 cover at the door. 21+. Enjoy Millcreek Tavern’s happy hour from 9-11 – cheapest drinks in the city! This event is proudly sponsored by Fourth Wall Arts.
Yes, the rumors are true. After a 5 year career, I have decided that my performance this Saturday @ Raven Lounge will be my last show. Now, I know that I faked my retirement last year as an April Fool’s joke, so I’m trying to avoid the boy-that-cried-wolf skepticism that is bound to follow this announcement. I assure you, this is the real deal.
Why am I leaving the game? A number of reasons. When I graduated from college three years ago, I gave myself a deadline. If I was not where I wanted to be in my career by the age of 25, I made a promise to myself that I would walk away and try something else. I don’t want to end up as some 40-something never-was who is still chasing the dream and waiting for my record deal. The other reason is because I need to get my own personal situation in order right now, and those of you who know me on that level probably understand where I’m coming from. Finally… I’m just not having fun anymore. When I first started doing this, I had no real aspirations to be a famous musician. It was a hobby, it was a fun way to pass the time and blow off steam. Over the past few years, I’ve gotten more and more serious about pursuing this dream, and the more serious I got, the less fun I was having. Over the past year in particular, I’ve dealt with a lot of bullshit, frustration, and politics… and it’s making me hate music. I’ve become bitter, jaded. That’s not the kind of person I want to be. I’ve noticed that I don’t really smile anymore… I guess I’m just burnt-out. I’m tired. Music has become a full-time job that I hate and I don’t get paid for, so what’s the point?
I don’t mean for this to sound overly-negative. The truth is, I had a great run. For the past 5 years, I got to live my dream. How many people get to say that? I accomplished so much more than anybody thought I would (myself included), and I will look back on my career fondly. I suppose that’s why I want to get out now, before all the negativity of this business gets the best of me and I can no longer cherish the good times that I’ve had.
Thank you all for your love & support over the years. Thank you for downloading my mixtapes, watching my videos, and paying your hard-earned money to come to my shows. I’ll never be able to explain how grateful I am for that. I’ll even thank my haters, just because I’m feeling especially generous today
My final show is THIS Saturday @ Raven Lounge. The party starts at 8p.m., I will perform at 9, and we will be celebrating throughout the night. There is NO cover. If y’all can make it out, that would be awesome, because I can assure you, you’ll never see a show like this again.
So, I have decided that it’s time to start better utilizing my blog, and treat it more like, well, an actual blog. So, consider today the unofficial relaunch of this page. From here on out, in addition to providing you with the latest TradeMark content, I will also be featuring videos, music, news articles, random thoughts and musings, etc. that are of interest to me (and yes, I realize that I basically just described what every blog does, haha).
What better way to start than by paying tribute to the man who this blog is practically named after, “The Heartbreak Kid” Shawn Michaels.
Yes, it seems as though Shawn Michaels has retired… for now (although I do have faith that this is one wrestling retirement that will actually stick). Watching this farewell address from RAW was borderline uncomfortable. It was very surreal to see the man that I idolized as a kid walking down the ramp for the last time. My friend Matt, who shared my childhood hero worship of HBK, texted me that night to tell me that he felt the same way. It was the official end of our childhood (well, that and the fact that I’m turning 25… wow).
I know what y’all are thinking… some guy “retires” from a “fake” sport and this somehow marks your loss of innocence? Well… yes. HBK was my idol, my hero. Back in the mid-90′s, I didn’t follow all the backstage wrestling news online, so I didn’t know what a complete douche Michaels was behind-the-scenes until I was much older. I only knew Shawn as the charismatic superstar we all saw on TV. I was devastated when Michaels left the WW(F) in 1998 after suffering a serious back injury. It always bugged me that HBK wasn’t around during the heyday of the Attitude Era. His edgy, controversial character would have fit in perfectly with the likes of The Rock and Steve Austin. When HBK came back in 2002 to face Triple H, I was thrilled that my favorite wrestler was getting the chance to wrestle one last match, and end his career on his terms. Little that I know that his “one night only” comeback would lead into another 8 year run, where he put on countless ****+ matches and gave us some unforgettable promo work. Remember this classic promo in Montreal?
(I always liked HBK better when he was playing heel)
Anyway, the best part of HBK’s comeback was the revelation that, during his 4-year hiatus while recovering from the back injury, HBK had become a changed man. He found God, he found sobriety, and he found a way to make peace with the mistakes he made in the past. I find it somewhat fitting that Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels both bid farewell to WWE on the same night, having made amends with one another after years of real-life animosity. Seeing HBK and the Hitman laughing and joking around with one another after HBK’s final match at Wrestlemania was the perfect conclusion to both of their careers, everything having now come full circle.
It will be sad to see him go, but I would much rather see HBK leave in this fashion than to go out like Chris Benoit or Eddie Guerrero did. For my money, Michaels was the greatest that ever did it.
Hey everyone… I’d like to take this moment to address all my family, friends, and fans across the world. After giving it some serious thought, I have made the decision to retire the “TradeMark” character. I know this may come as a shock to many of you, but this is something that I feel I need to do in order to move forward with my life.
When I first started writing and recording music, I was motivated by the feeling that I had something to prove. Now, almost 7 years later, I feel that I simply have nothing left to prove. I have released 2 mixtapes (which received rave reviews), I have stolen the show numerous times by delivering unforgettable live performances, I put out two music videos which sent the internet into a frenzy, and I’ve silenced many of my critics. I have accomplished more than I ever imagined I could in this industry, and I believe now is an appropriate time to step away from the spotlight, before I let the more negative aspects of the entertainment world overshadow everything I love about being an artist.
I’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who helped me live my dream. Whether you had a hands-on role in my career, or if you were simply there for me to offer support and encouragement, you all mean the world to me and I love you all. My blog, MySpace, and Facebook fan pages will remain active for the time being, so stay tuned as I decide what my next move will be in this three-ring circus we call life.
