Nashville, Tennessee (The Singer)

Intro: Ooo Ooo Ooo Ooo Ooo Ooo

Ooo Ooo Ooo Ooo Ooo Ooo

Starting out from Kansas City

This heartland has been so good to me

But I’ve decided to leave,

To follow a dream of what I want to be

Hop in a sport utility

I have no possessions, just Genie and me

We travel toward Music City -

Nashville, Tennessee

Six hundred miles from Kansas City

Six hundred miles toward Nashville, Tennessee

Whatever there will be

Only God can see.

She looks in my eyes, showing her trust in me

She says if anyone can make it, it’s got to be me

She has such faith in me

She lets me know it will be right.

Near Music Row when we first arrive

I start wondering if this is it for my life

Wondering if this move is right

If tomorrow I will laugh or cry.

Doesn’t take much to start a new life

Sometimes, I am a bartender

Sometimes, I am a demos singer

Sometimes, I am a taxi driver.

She still looks in my eyes, showing her trust in me

She still says if anyone can make it, it’s got to be me

She still has such faith in me

She lets me know it will be all right.

As long as Genie still trusts in me

As long as she still believes in me

As long as she still has faith in me

I know that it will be all right.

It's going to be all right.

Only God can see.

Only God can see

It's going to be all right.

Intro: Ooo Ooo Ooo Ooo Ooo Ooo

Ooo Ooo Ooo Ooo Ooo Ooo

Starting out from Massachusetts

The city of Boston has been good to me

But now it’s time to leave,

To follow a dream of where I want to be.

Hop in a sport utility

Farewell friends, goodbye Berklee

I travel toward Music City

Nashville, Tennessee.

Eleven hundred miles from Boston and Berklee

Eleven hundred miles toward Nashville, Tennessee

Whatever there will come to be

Whatever is my destiny

Only God can see.

All my friends have faith in me

My lover always trusts in me

They all stand behind me

They make me feel it will be

It will be all right.

Near Music Row when I first arrive

Wondering if this is it for my life

Will this move be wrong or right?

Will tomorrow I laugh or cry?

Doesn’t take much to start a new life

Whatever work brings in the dimes

Quickly I become a carpenter

But my dream is still to be a singer.

(Back to Chorus)

Thirty-some years ago in a different corner of the world, I was dreaming of becoming a singer and songwriter. I had some opportunity to try to pursue my dreams when I was a teenager, but then that dream suddenly ended when I left Vietnam and came to the United States at the war’s end. I decided at that time to pursue a different career, mainly because of the English language barrier.

To reminisce over the dream of my younger years, in spring of 2006, I decided to begin writing songs for fun. As you may imagine, when you have a passion for something, it is hard to stop once you have started. As a result, I am still writing and continue to try to find time to write more songs.

In August of 2007, I decided was time for my wife and me to take a weekend trip to visit Nashville, as a few dozen of my song demos had been done by Nashville professionals. As I listened to all the talented singers singing demos for my songs, I was inspired to write this song, Nashville, Tennessee (The Singer) in dedication to all the music professionals who have made Nashville such a unique city. The second version of this song was written about one week after I finished the first (original) version, as I was inspired by reading the biographies of two of my demo singers, who received music education from the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts.

On a personal level, in a way, this song helps answer the question I have occasionally asked myself since I’ve been back in Houston since the visit to Nashville: “What would I have done as a young man had I been born and raised in this country?”

I earnestly wish you success in pursuing your life’s dreams, whether you are singers or other music professionals. To me, you are such a talented group of professionals and I feel privileged to have the opportunity to share my songs and my works with some of you.


Nashville Tennessee (The Singer)	Hello Nashville, Goodbye Boston & Berklee

Michael Lusk, Vocalist	Artist from Nashville, Vocalist