Music

The Voice’s Kristen Merlin Don’t Call It A Comeback

Published

7 years ago

February 6, 2019

In 2014, Kristen Merlin captured America’s hearts with her explosive voice and high-octane performances on Season 6 of NBC’s Emmy-winning “The Voice,” working under the guidance of Shakira to place fourth in the competition. Tracks created from her takes on hits by Sugarland (“Stay”), Passenger (“Let Her Go”) and Lee Brice (“I Drive Your Truck”) becameTop 40 hits on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, and her 2015 debut EP Boomerang soared to #2 on Billboard’s Heatseekers chart.

Now, the Massachusetts bred, Nashville based and career-immersed singer-songwriter returns with a fresh, vibrant new vibe and a single that’s about to make a major impact – but she has one request before you tune in: “Don’t Call It a Comeback.” Produced by Alex Kline (Tara Thompson, Adam Brand, Ronnie Dunn) and penned by Kline, Kellys Collins and Hannah Blaylock, the soulful and infectious pop/rocker is pure energy from start to finish, weaving a sly story of an exciting but emotionally dangerous single night reunion with a lover she broke up with. She sings “Won’t regret it/We can still be over/Even if I’m coming over. . .It’s just the lonely, someone to hold me tight.”

“It’s a song about just living in the moment, not overthinking things,” says Kristen, who has perfectly embodied that spirit in her own life these past few years, collaborating with Nashville based songwriters and participating in writer’s rounds when she’s not hitting the road solo or with a band. Fans of all ages have been enthusiastically following her journey, but she’s found an especially inspiring niche performing on the college circuit, where her natural gifts for motivational speaking and life coaching come into play during and after her performances.

“Whether I am writing my own songs or choosing outside material to record, my goal is to connect with an audience and move as many people as possible,” she says. “They will only feel that connection with me if I feel it with the song. The second I heard ‘Don’t Call It a Comeback,’ I knew it was the perfect way to introduce my new, more country-rock oriented sound. Its energy immediately grabbed me and pulled me in, and like many people, I completely relate to its theme of going back to something you shouldn’t, but doing it anyway because it feels good.”

Following the release of “Don’t Call It a Comeback,” Kristen will be rolling out four other tracks, either as single releases or as an EP. Three of them showcase her exciting development as a songwriter. “Disengage,” written with Rob Pagnano and Lauren Weintraub, is a mid-tempo country rock tune with an unexpected, ear-popping pre-chorus, about breaking free from a toxic relationship; in some ways, it reflects Kristen’s own experiences. “Anyway,” a fiery pop rocker penned with Chris Parker, is thematically along the same lines of “Don’t Call It aComeback,” another throwing caution to the wind tune about a love that isn’t quite burned out. “Humans Being” is an uplifting, socially conscious anthem about the essential qualities all humans share despite our differences, and the importance of learning to accept one another for who we are.

Tracing her performance history back to her first solo spotlight in first grade, Kristen grew up singing in school choruses and taking drama classes. Immediately after receiving her B.A. inmusic and sound recording at the University of New Haven (Connecticut), she hit the open mic scene at home in Hanson, MA, performing her original songs. This led to an opportunity for a paid gig singing covers at J.P. Ryan’s Tavern in Abington, and she worked the local and regional circuit (doing originals and covers) for several years before following her ambitions to Nashville. It was during her first trip to Music City when she was flown out to L.A. for the second round of auditions for “The Voice.” She has been living full time in Nashville since her run on the show ended in 2014.

“More than any others I have ever recorded, the new songs truly represent who I am, where I am, and are a lot more relatable than my previous material,” Kristen says. “There are no true ballads here, and that’s because I wanted everything to feel good and be uplifting so people can get lost in the music and have a great time.”

Related Topics:Don’t Call It A Comeback Kristen Merlin New Shakira

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Suzanna Bowling

Suzanna, co-owns and publishes the newspaper Times Square Chronicles or T2C. At one point a working actress, she has performed in numerous productions in film, TV, cabaret, opera and theatre. She has performed at The New Orleans Jazz festival, The United Nations and Carnegie Hall. She has a screenplay and a TV show in the works, which she developed with her mentor and friend the late Arthur Herzog. She is a proud member of the Drama Desk and the Outer Critics Circle and was a nominator. Email: suzanna@t2conline.com

Health

Countdown To Christmas: A Crystal Singing Bowl in the Note of Your Soul

Published

10 hours ago

December 17, 2025

Suzanna Bowling

8 days to go! Every year people panic to find the perfect gift. We at T2C have been collecting idea’s all year long to bring you the perfect gift guide at all price levels. When you’re at the end of your rope trying to find the perfect Christmas present this year, come to this guide for some great suggestions.

There is a sound that remembers you. A tone that vibrates with the exact frequency of your becoming. It’s not always audible—but when it is, something in you exhales, softens, realigns. This is the sound of your soul. One of the most sacred gifts you can give—to yourself or another—is a crystal singing bowl tuned to that frequency.

Sound is not just vibration—it is memory. The cells of your body are encoded with harmonics from before this lifetime. Trauma distorts those frequencies. So does grief, programming, betrayal, and silence. But resonance—true resonance—can restore what was lost.

A crystal singing bowl, especially one made of pure quartz and tuned to a specific chakra or solfeggio tone, acts like a tuning fork for your energy field. It doesn’t force healing—it reminds you of your own signature.

When played, it reweaves the fractured frequencies. It calls you home.

There are many ways to discover your resonant tone. Some choose based on: astrological sun/moon sign correspondence (e.g., C note for Capricorn root energy). Chakra alignment (e.g., F note for heart, G for throat, A for third eye). Numerological life path or soul number or Intuitive pull—you hear it and feel tears form, or your body lean forward

Crystal bowls differ from metal ones in their purity and clarity. Made from 99.99% quartz, they amplify intention and respond to touch like light to a prism. Many healers believe quartz bowls are the most effective for energetic clearing and DNA-level recalibration.

Some bowls are now infused with minerals—rose quartz for love, amethyst for intuition, gold for sovereignty, selenitefor clarity. You can also customize your bowl with an engraving, a mantra, or even light language sigils.

You can find these bowls here: crystaltones.com, silentmind.com, buddhanature.com, thealchemistskitchen.com and templesounds.com

If you want a quick, traceable option, Amazon has bowls in specific notes and sizes — great for gifts, travel, or first‑time players.
Just search:
“Crystal Singing Bowl C note”
“Amethyst infused singing bowl”
“Quartz sound healing bowl 7‑inch”

Tips for Choosing Your Bowl

By Note / Frequency

C or D — grounding, root

F or G — heart / throat

A or B — third eye / crown
Choose based on where you feel pulled energetically.

By Material

Pure quartz — clearest resonance

Infused (e.g., amethyst, rose quartz) — specific energetic qualities

By Size

Smaller (6–8″): lighter, intimate sound

Medium (8–10″): balanced

Larger (10–12″+ or bowlsets): deep, expansive vibration

How to Use It

Start with silence. Let the room and your body listen before sound begins.
Set your intention. Healing, clarity, remembrance, truth.
Play with breath. Let your hand and breath move together. You’re not just making sound; you’re opening space.
Speak your name to the bowl. Let it answer you.
Let the bowl close the portal when it’s ready. The fading resonance is just as powerful as the strike.

This is not just a holiday gift. It’s a soul retrieval tool. It’s a healing companion. It’s a memory trigger. It’s something sacred disguised as simple.

Whether you’re walking through grief, awakening, or stepping into your next timeline—this is a way to carry sound with you. To remember the note you were always meant to sing.

Entertainment

Live From The Hotel Edison Times Square Chronicles Presents: Mark Green and The Show Must Go On

Published

10 hours ago

December 17, 2025

Suzanna Bowling

Live From The Hotel Edison Times Square Chronicles Presents”, is normally filmed live from the Hotel Edison. This interview we did almost 11 months ago and somehow it never got published. It is one we are proud of and wanted it to be seen.

Live From the Hotel Edison, owner Suzanna Bowling talks to Mark Green and The Show Must Go On. Mr Green is the owner of Celebrity Talent Agency, a venture 25 years in the making. Starting as a mentor to future Hip-Hop legends like Guy O’Brien, aka Master Gee of the Sugarhill Gang. Green’s influence on O’Brien helped shape the early Hip-Hop scene.

Green’s professional career began with an internship at Sugar Hill Records, the label behind the first major Hip-Hop single, “Rapper’s Delight.” He went on to work full-time at Hush Productions, where he handled various roles, including project management, artist development, and road management. His work with notable artists such as Melba Moore, Freddie Jackson, Dru Hill, Prince, Al B Sure, Grandmaster Flash, and Usher solidified his reputation in the industry. This experience paved the way for his next role at Associated Booking Corp, where his talent for spotting rising stars led to the signing of chart-topping acts like Salt-N-Pepa, Roxanne Shante, Kid & Play, and DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince.

Mark Green

Green moved on to EMI/Capitol Records, where he was the Director of Marketing and held roles in Radio Promotions, Jazz, and Rap, earning accolades such as the Promotions Person of the Year in 1992. His work at EMI included producing, writing, and publishing successful tracks like “Remember the First Time” for Eric Gable and “Midnight Hour” for Spice MC.

Green ventured into independent marketing and promotions consulting and secured a record deal with Light Year/Warner Brothers for his independent label, with Teena Marie as his first artist.

One year later, as a consultant at Northstar Distribution, Green became General Manager, distributing music for Prince’s independent label, which included Chaka Khan and Larry Graham on NPG Records. This role laid the groundwork for launching Celebrity Talent Agency, which represents a wide array of stars, and secures talent for tours, festivals, and commercials globally.

Currently, Green serves as Associate Director/General Manager of Lehman Performing Arts Center, Chairman of Artist Relations for The Hip-Hop Museum (THHM), and maintains ownership of Celebrity Talent Agency. He continues to influence the entertainment industry profoundly because, The Show Must Go On!

I am so grateful to my guest Mark Green for being with us.

We are so proud because the show and our guests are featured on the TV screens in the lobby and the hotel rooms.

Thank-you Magda Katz for videoing and creating the content to go live, and Rommel Gopez and The Hotel Edison for their kindness and hospitality.

We are so thrilled that Variety Entertainment News just named us one of Summer’s Best Picks in the category of Best Television, Radio, Podcasts. The company we are in, has made us so humbled, grateful and motivated to continue.

“The Daily Geek Report” has also named host Suzanna Bowling on the list of Most Engaging Hosts.

You can catch us on the following platforms:

Pandora:

https://www.pandora.com/podcast/live-from-the-edison-hotel-times-square-chronicles-presents/PC:1001084740

Stitcher:

https://www.stitcher.com/show/1084740

Spotify:

Amazon:

https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/e3ac5922-ada8-4868-b531-12d06e0576d3

Apple Podcasts:

Cabaret

Christine Pedi Is a Christmas Gift to New York in Snow Bizness

Published

10 hours ago

December 17, 2025

Craig J Horsley

Christine Pedi is a gift to New York. I have seen Christine perform at various fundraising events over the years. She is a welcome performer at the Broadway Cares/ Equity Fights AIDS Follies each year where she delights the audience with her multiple takes on current and past theatrical stars. She has over a dozen voices from Ethel Merman to Bernadette Peters (and she proves that her catalogue of personas is plentiful as she sings The Twelve Days of Christmas with each day being sung in the voice of a different diva.) I have enjoyed seeing her at these events but on those occasions, she is usually limited to one song where she sings in a different person’s voice and style. So, it was a wonderful treat to hear her sing in her own voice that has the same richness and feeling of any of the legends she interprets.

Christine Pedi – Snow Bizness is a delightful evening at the Laurie Beechman Theater. When she sings she gives us a holiday glow as warm as the toddy she sips throughout the evening. She and her musical director, Matthew Ward, have created a show that touches both the heart and the funny bone. Those heart strings are equally played by her adorable dog, Clarence, who shares the stage with the two.

I hesitate to list the songs she sings or how she sings them because every tune is a surprise. What will her Barbara Streisand sing? Which tune will Liza sing with her trademark body contortions? What will Joan Rivers crack about? And which beautiful Christmas carol will Christine charm you with in her own voice?

The evening is a wonderful reminder of what the Christmas season is and provides us with the positivity that life is a gift. It is not news that Ms Pedi is losing her sight. This does not stop her from bringing joy to other people, to give back to her community, and to inspire those to see the good things in life. To her, being able to clean up the droppings of her adorable Clarence on a freezing cold evening can brighten her day. She reminds us that gratitude especially now is an emotion that we need to experience during this season and throughout the year. In one of the songs she asks us to do something and thankfully with her wit and voice she does actually gets us to Put on a Happy Face.

Christine is at the Laurie Beechman on December 19 and 27 at 7PM (with Livestream on the 19^th) .

Celebrity

The Glorious Corner

Published

2 days ago

December 15, 2025

G. H. HARDING

G.H. Harding

PRESTON PRESENTED — (via Deadline) Two years after it debuted at the SXSW film festival, music doc-biopic Billy Preston: That’s The Way God Planned It is getting a theatrical release via Abramorama,White Horse Pictures and Homegrown Pictures.

The film went on the play DOC NYC last year and Palm Springs early this year. Abramorama will open the film in select North American markets in 2026, with the U.S theatrical premiere beginning February 20 at Film Forum in New York City.

The film, which overcame a legal challenge on the eve of its 2024 debut, charts the story of legendary keyboardist and Grammy winner Preston who played with The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin, Barbra Streisand, Little Richard and many others.

Preston generated his own No. 1 hits, including Outa-Space, Will It Go Round in Circles, Nothing from Nothing, and You Are So Beautiful. His first hit single, That’s The Way God Planned It – recorded in 1969 for The Beatles’ Apple Records – was produced by his lifelong friend, George Harrison. Fifteen years after his death in 2006, Preston was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2021.

Despite his preternatural talent, Preston had a challenging personal story, including childhood abuse, addiction, run-ins with the law and demons he battled over his sexuality.

Directed by multi-Emmy winner Paris Barclay (Glee), the film is produced by Stephanie Allain, Jeanne Elfant Festa, Nigel Sinclair, Cheo Hodari Coker with executive producers Olivia Harrison and Jonathan Clyde.

Score was composed by multi-Grammy winner Robert Glasper and Derrick Hodge. Executive producers also include Paris Barclay, Daniel Shaw, G. Marq Roswell, and White Horse Pictures’ Nicholas Ferrall and Cassidy Hartmann.

“We are more than thrilled that the soul of Billy Preston will be reborn thanks to our friends at Abramorama — and in the theater, where everyone can experience it,” said director Barclay. “His story has reverberated with festival audiences, in part because we illuminate Preston’s brilliance — and also because it has so much to say about the world we live in today.”

With 22 producers listed on the credits, I’m quite sure there were fractured rights-issues galore. Preston was so talented and generous; and a follow-up album on Apple, entitled Encouraging Words, was even better than his first. Can’t wait to see. I remain a fan.

SHORT TAKES — Medium profiled the new Lalu Toot Toot children’s book from Micky Dolenz and his daughter Ami. Take a read: https://carolruthweber.medium.com/micky-dolenz-unveils-2nd-kids-book-lalu-toot-toot-a-collaboration-with-daughter-ami-f9c64177372f?sk=d379414f18da2962970efd5357767713 … We watched Rian Johnson’s Wake Up Dead Man and enjoyed it terrifically. A tad long, but Daniel Craig; Josh Brolin and Andrew Scott are terrific.

Definitely worth a holiday-view … In our year-end wrap up, we left off Lessons in Chemistry which was simply sensational. Brie Larson and Lewis Pullman were terrific. Check it out, you will not be disappointed …

Scarlett Johansson

Scarlett Johanssen looks to be in Batman 2 with Robert Pattinson. Poison Ivy? Phantasm? Harvey Dent’s wife? For 2027. Stay tuned … Check out the trailer for Bowie: The Final Act coming soon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IICw4IB0Obk … Is Steven Spielberg’s next movie another alien encounter; to be called Disclosure? Check this out from the U.K.’s Telegraph: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/0/steven-spielberg-aliens-disclosure/

…Micky Dolenz interviewed by Uncut ‘s Peter Shepherd Watts for a cover story on the Monkees 60th. Will be out in January …

Fleetwood Mac

Fascinating story on Fleetwood Mac’s (via Ultimate Classic Rock) biggest year yet and they didn’t even have to perform or release anything new: https://ultimateclassicrock.com/fleetwood-mac-billboard-2025-charts/?_kx=c44j6IuRT3l32YmTfCSvl5k6GG8YhWbqMqpcVwf5BFw.WeA7qn … And, Happy Bday Deb Caponetta; Wayne Robbins; and Ken Melamed.

NAMES IN THE NEWS — Art Powers; Art Rutter; Jane Berk; Judy Kaufman; Michelle Grant; John Hughes; Jodi Ritzen; Jeff Vogel; Tom & Lisa Cuddy; Steve Leeds; Bruce Morrow; Bruce Grakal; Jane Berk; Ringo Starr; Marty Lager; Bob Buchman; Jeff Vogel; Pete Sanders; Mike Jensen; Daryl Hall; James Edstrom; Marlos Papadatos; Randy Alexander; Claire O’Connor; Daryl Estrea; Greg Brodsky; Manse Chase; and CHIP!

Cabaret

Joe Iconis and Family’s Twisted Holiday Extravaganza Returns to 54 Below

Published

2 days ago

December 15, 2025

Genevieve Rafter Keddy

Joe Iconis and his delightfully unhinged gang of musical theater punks are back at 54 Below, decking the halls (and every square inch of the venue) with their riotous holiday tradition. Now in its 15th year, this beloved NYC spectacle is part rock concert, part theater piece, and part theme park fever dream — all wrapped in red and green and doused in whiskey.

Joe Iconis

Conceived and written by Joe Iconis, directed by John Simpkins, and produced by Jennifer Ashley Tepper, this yuletide explosion features an avalanche of brand-new holiday songs, cult favorites, and a massive cast of Broadway stars.

Kevin Michael Murphy and Jennifer Ashley Tepper

Expect feisty elves, sobbing reindeer, an inebriated Mr. and Mrs. Claus, and enough glitter-fueled, whiskey-laced chaos to shake a candy cane at. This is not your grandma’s caroling — unless she’s into holiday hoedowns that flirt with full-blown musical mayhem.