Megan Knight was standing in a freezing line at her American Idol audition when the judges popped out and invited her onto their yacht. She auditioned on the helicopter pad, right next to the White House, while helicopters kept flying over.

In Episode 17 of Backstage Bucks County, hosts Matt Freedman and Dustin Napoli sit down with country singer-songwriter Megan Knight. She taught herself guitar on YouTube, got hired at her first open mic at 13, and plays 150 to 200 shows a year. She tells how her dad's morning YouTube habit landed Tom Bukovac on her next album, how she manifested a show with Trey Lewis and Ella Langley, and why crowds now get mad when she plays covers instead of her own songs. She also talks about finally taking the guitar off on stage, the stranger who said her music stopped her migraines, and the advice she would give her 17-year-old self.

Chapters:

0:00 Cold Open

0:35 Meet Megan Knight

2:54 From News Anchor Dreams to Her First Open Mic

4:41 Why Her Voice Went Country

5:06 The Female Rick Rubin

6:12 Kacey Musgraves' Engineer Wants Her Drum Covers Back

7:10 Writing Her First Song at 13

8:43 Grandpa, Merle Haggard & Black and White Westerns

9:28 When Crowds Started Demanding Her Originals

11:38 Writing Season & Why She Needs a Deadline

13:19 6 Songs a Day in Muscle Shoals

15:08 The Next Album (and the Title She Won't Say)

15:59 Matt's 380 Unreleased Songs

17:17 Almost Signed by a Top 10 Manager

18:07 The 12 Songs That Scare Matt

20:51 An Album About Healing

22:23 The Song That Stopped a Stranger's Migraines

23:35 150 to 200 Shows a Year

25:12 A Quick Vocal Lesson

26:29 Saying Yes to American Idol

27:50 The Judges Were on the Yacht

29:02 Auditioning on a Helicopter Pad by the White House

29:56 They Changed Her Song the Day Of

31:06 Watching Her Soul Leave Her Body on Stage

32:00 Taking the Guitar Off

33:53 What Musicians Steal From Other Shows

36:03 What's Still Holding Her Back

37:17 Finding Her Own Vocal Pocket

39:40 Chasing the Whistle Note

41:17 Warm-Ups & the Last-Set Drink

42:20 Her Favorite Songs to Play

44:11 What Success Looks Like

46:53 Ella Langley, Her Dream Show

48:09 She Manifested a Bill With Trey Lewis

49:26 The Barefoot Poster

51:49 The Muscle Shoals Crew

52:40 Dad's Cereal & Tom Bukovac

54:49 Justin Holder & Dierks Bentley From Side Stage

56:05 How the Hosts Got Started

58:07 Advice to Her 17-Year-Old Self

58:57 Phones, Creativity & Touching Grass

1:00:07 The Ring Camera Horror Movie

1:01:20 Next Year's Goals

1:02:11 Folds of Honor & Giving Back

1:03:59 Off Days: Sims & Pilates

1:05:56 What's on Repeat

1:06:59 Her Favorite Italian Dish

1:08:43 What Only a Local Knows

1:09:31 Find Megan & Brooklyn Bowl Dec 11

See Megan live at Brooklyn Bowl Philadelphia on December 11: https://meganknightmusic.com

Watch the full video on YouTube: https://youtu.be/OKHRg6SaZqI

More episodes and guests: https://rhythm.house/backstage-bucks-county

Backstage Bucks County is produced by Rhythm House. https://rhythm.house

Stasia Kauriga runs Love Saves the Day, the vintage shop on Main Street in New Hope, PA that started in New York's East Village in 1966 and once hosted Madonna on the set of Desperately Seeking Susan.

In this episode of Backstage Bucks County, hosts Matt Freedman and Dustin Napoli talk with Stasia about how the store landed in New Hope, leaving a decade at Harley-Davidson to run it, and the time the building almost got sold until the town pushed back. She tells the story of a Trocadero bouncer who rescued her at a Beastie Boys show and then walked into her store decades later, plus run-ins with Daryl Hannah, Priscilla Presley, Jason Segel and the Indigo Girls. She also shares why New Hope's vintage shops send customers to each other, her perfect New Hope meal, and the local history she wants people to remember.

Chapters:

0:00 Cold Open

0:29 Meet Stasia Kauriga of Love Saves the Day

1:25 1966: Love Saves the Day Opens in the East Village

3:07 Madonna, Pee-wee Herman & the Autograph Wall

5:21 How Love Saves the Day Landed in New Hope

6:32 "I'm Gonna Own That Building One Day"

7:53 New Hope Is Changing. Can It Stay Quirky?

11:53 Why Vintage Shops Send You to Each Other

13:30 Love What You Do and You'll Never Work a Day

15:09 From Art School to Harley-Davidson Manager

17:59 A Meeting With the Bobs

21:45 Learning From Leslie (and Telling a Biker Off)

22:49 The Love Saves the Day Family

29:56 Meet Bethamphetamine

31:28 Laid Off the Morning After the CMA Awards

38:04 "The Minute You Stop Getting Nervous..."

38:46 Growing Up in a House of Musicians

43:56 Who Makes You Starstruck?

46:44 How Corporate Prepped Her to Run Her Own Shop

49:15 The Building Almost Got Sold

50:41 "Rip the Paperwork Up. It's Not Time Yet."

52:35 The Window Complaint & Why Everyone's Welcome

55:43 When Did the 90s Become Vintage?

57:27 Radio Mixtapes & Trocadero Memories

1:00:04 Beastie Boys, House of Pain & Run-DMC at the Trocadero

1:02:25 The Bouncer Who Walked Into Her Store Years Later

1:06:16 Fred Durst, Daryl Hannah & a 1930s Zipper

1:08:02 Jason Segel & Stasia's Christian Slater Grudge

1:10:37 Indigo Girls, Didi Conn & Chasing a TV Mom

1:13:55 Meeting Priscilla Presley

1:17:42 What's on Repeat: Elvis & Tom Waits

1:20:44 The Tom Waits Ticket Quiz & Elvis Costello

1:22:33 Stasia's Perfect New Hope Meal

1:26:28 What Only a Local Knows: Don't Forget the History

1:32:39 Find Stasia & Love Saves the Day

All episodes: https://rhythm.house/backstage-bucks-county

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/s7zPq7fKzMU

Follow @backstagebuckscounty

Brian Quinn went to a studio to play one guitar solo. He walked in, saw the whole band standing there, and thought, "I think this might

be an audition." Not long after, he was in Candlebox.

In Episode 15 of Backstage Bucks County, hosts Matt Freedman and Dustin Napoli sit down with rock guitarist, songwriter and

producer Brian Quinn. Brian started the Pennsylvania rock band Octane, played in Fosterchild and Burial Ground, spent years as a

Candlebox guitarist, and now he's releasing solo music that mixes hard rock, slide guitar and country. He calls it dark country.

This Brian Quinn interview is for Candlebox fans, guitar players, songwriters and anyone who has ever sat on a song they were scared

to share. Brian talks about recording 12 guitar songs in 6 hours on Candlebox's Wolves, learning slide guitar from Warren Haynes,

church basement hardcore shows and how "bloodcore" got its name, working at Tower Records, what cover songs taught him about

songwriting, his honest take on AI in songwriting, and his new song "Until Fall." Plus his pick for the best bowl of pho around and what

he loves about Bucks County.

Chapters:

0:00 An Unexpected Candlebox Audition

0:38 Meet Brian Quinn

2:00 Two Brothers, Kiss & Randy Rhoads

7:54 Church Basement Hardcore Shows

9:33 Burial Ground & How "Bloodcore" Got Its Name

11:11 Tower Records, Octane & Learning Songs Note for Note

14:12 How Playing Covers Taught Him to Write

17:12 Writing for Yourself & the Song "Cardinal"

18:45 Leaving Octane & Starting Fosterchild

21:39 How Fosterchild Met Candlebox

22:47 "I Think This Might Be an Audition"

24:18 Joining Candlebox & Making Records in Two Weeks

25:55 6 Hours to Record 12 Guitar Songs

29:22 Building a Music Career on Relationships

32:29 Until Fall & Brian's Solo Sound

33:29 How Warren Haynes Showed Him Slide

36:29 Dark Country & the New Music

39:31 Stephen Wilson Jr., Hudson Freeman & Finding New Music

44:36 How Brian Writes: Voice Memos & Morning Warm-Ups

48:42 Brian on AI in Songwriting

51:43 The Song That Didn't Fit Any Band

53:13 What's Next: Cardinal & the Full Album

55:15 Testing Songs Live & the Fear of Being Honest

59:51 The Song He Played at a Friend's Life Celebration

1:04:24 "What Do You Sound Like?"

1:05:15 What's on Repeat, Wild Game & the Best Pho Around

1:09:17 Bucks County Secrets & Where to Find Brian's Music

Listen to Brian's music: https://brianquinnguitar.com

Watch the full video on YouTube: [https://youtu.be/ttr5ofPIXc8]

More episodes and guests: https://rhythm.house/backstage-bucks-county

If you like the show, follow us, leave a review, and send this one to a friend who plays guitar.

Backstage Bucks County is produced by Rhythm House. https://rhythm.house