LAKELAND/WINTER HAVEN on NSAI

Coordinator: Bonnie McMillian
Bio: I was born in Kentucky and have a Bluegrass,Country and Gospel music background. I sang back up vocals with my mom in a band called the Kentucky Mountain Sweethearts. We sang country music every Saturday morning on the WFTM radio station and did shows all over Kentucky. We played Renfro Valley once, and it amazed me as a child of 10 years old. I have lived in Florida over 30 years now and am an active member of NSAI. I have written over 30 songs but didn't think seriously about writing for up and coming artists until becoming affiliated with NSAI. I am anxious to share the information NSAI provides with songwriters who will be attend our Lakeland workshop. For information on when and where the local NSAI meetings will be held, please contact me.
Phone: 863-268-1146
Email: mcmillian333@msn.com

Coordinator: Larry Bryson
Bio: Music has always been one of my greatest interests. Country, Bluegrass and Southern Gospel was spread deep within my family. I remember well my grandfather playing banjo as my grandmother sang and danced, my uncle and his family tearing up the strings and singing bluegrass and country sounds that would ring out over the mountains of western North Carolina, and my cousin singing southern gospel throughout various churches from Carolina to Florida. As a child I was greatly influenced by the new sounds of rock?n?roll, with Elvis, Nelson, The Beatles ect., and a natural love of the blues. I guess it?s no wonder I love music as I do, it?s in my soul. Throughout the years I have written many songs and played many shows. My real interest now is writing. I have been a member of NASI for two years and have attended the Tampa and Orlando workshops regularly and have found NASI to be very helpful. I look forward to sharing the extended professional knowledge of NASI with songwriters in the Lakeland, Fl. area.
Phone: 863-412-4951
Email: larry_bryson_2@msn.com

Coordinator: Carl Chambers
Bio: I grew up and have lived my entire life in Auburndale, a small town located almost dead center of the state of Florida, half-way between Tampa and Orlando, just off the I-4 corridor in North Polk County. During the 1960s BD (that=s Before Disney), this small rural patch of sandspurs and orange groves (about a 10 or 15 mile radius) produced numerous talented individuals (dubbed by Bobby Braddock as the PolKats) who would go on to leave indelible marks on the national and international entertainment industries. This was my peer group. In the late 1970's, I was fortunate enough to be asked to play the guitars, both in the studio and on the road, for the Bellamy Brothers. We recorded two albums that yielded four #1 hits for writer David Bellamy and it was this experience that brought songwriting out of the abstract and into the realm of reality. I had a less than stellar brush with trying to be an artist in 1980, but did manage to land a staff writer position with a major Nashville publisher. In 1982, I scored a #1 hit when Alabama recorded Close Enough To Perfect and in 1984 had a #4 hit with Ricky Skaggs, Love's Gonna Get You. During the 1990s, I began producing demos and budget projects for the local music community and still operate a small home studio today. For more in-depth information about my career and this Central Florida area that has produced so much talent over the past few decades, please visit: www.dizzyrambler.com.
Phone:(863) 967-9129
Email: carl@dizzyrambler.com

Coordinator: Patricia Borden
Bio: I have always loved music since my childhood. I express myself in the written word better than in person, which has been extremely valuable to me in my songwriting. I started taking Piano and Guitar lessons four years ago with my grandkids. It has opened up a whole new world for me. I started writing songs and the melody. My Grandkids and I started doing gigs at Nursing Homes, Churches. and Orphanages. We have been having a wonderful time putting a smile on faces.

My skills as a songwriter are constantly becoming stronger since I have been involved with NSAI. They have been very helpful and informative to me. I hope to have a hit one day, but if not, I am having fun creating new songs and performing them for others to enjoy.

I enjoy helping other potential writers and giving them support to help them achieve their goals

Phone: 863-662-5868
Email: pborden48@yahoo.com