Last night I had my debut performance with the world's premier Johnny Cash tribute band "Cash'd Out" in front of a sold out crowd at the Belly Up in Solana Beach, CA. It was an amazing night, and an amazing experience to have the opportunity to play with such an incredible band and be a part of such a great show. The crowd was fantastic -- excited, supportive, and totally into it. They welcomed me to the stage with big 'ol cheers and really seemed responsive to what I was giving them. I loved it. I even had a posse of girls screaming that they loved my shoes... which was awesome. Especially since I got them at Target! Woo-hoo!

Before this gig, I was only able to have ONE rehearsal with the band. Other than that, I have obsessively been listening to Johnny Cash/June Carter and Carter Family tunes almost constantly trying to learn all the words, harmonies, and nuances of the real deal. At night Patrick and I walk the dog and I wear my iPod and sing all the June Carter parts like some crazy person with a bad case of the Johnny Cash Tourette's. I feel for the folks whose apartments we walk by every night, as they get a 1am surprise performance out their window.

At home I'm learning to play a bunch of the Carter Family stuff on guitar and it would be super awesome if we ended up working that into the Cash'd Out stage show somewhere down the line. While I may have played it a little coy last night on stage (out of first gig nervousness and respectfully not wanting to overstep my bounds first show out the gate) I'm very much looking forward to how my role in the band might grow and develop as I do more gigs and more songs under my belt and get more comfortable with the group and finding my place in it.

All in all, it was awesome. It's awesome being in another band with George Bernardo. It's awesome being in a band where I wear a dress and curl my hair. It's awesome singing classic Cash & Carter family tunes to shrieking crowds of totally into it fans. It's awesome. I am blessed, blessed, blessed!

Next show is at UCSD and it's already sold out, and then there's the House of Blues in Anaheim on Saturday night. I'm stoked to get to play that stage!

I can't wait till I get to do a show closer to Los Angeles so that my friends and curious Evangenitals fans could come check it out. It's definitely one hell of a show!

- Juli