Now that we seem to have a handle on cruising, Sixthman has decided to spread its proverbial wings and try out new experiences to continue growing our community. This week, we focused on our artists for the first time, and took six (old and new) Rock Boat artists on a writing retreat in Augusta, GA. We wanted to give them a safe place to collaborate, build relationships, and let them know we appreciate having them in our family.

So on Monday, Emerson Hart, Ryan Newell of Sister Hazel, Pat McGee, Aslyn, Stephen Kellogg, and producer Mike Daly joined a couple members of the Sixthman team at this amazing, 2,000 acre bluff in Augusta. I have never seen the songwriting process from start to finish, so this trip was a real treat for me.

We matched everyone up into groups of three and got several sessions in throughout two days. By the end, they demo-ed seven (!) songs and found time to record a podcast while we took pictures and video to document the entire thing. I have posted a couple pictures on our event message boards, but here are a couple more:

The podcast we recorded should be out to the world in the next couple of weeks, as well as some of the video footage we captured.

I’m sure you’re all chomping at the bit to hear the songs created this week, but you’ll have to wait! We’re putting together some clips of each song for you to hear, but until then, here are the song titles and the people who wrote each song:

Adrienne – Aslyn, Emerson, Stephen; Take a Bow – Pat, Mike, Ryan; What You’ve Never Known – Aslyn, Mike, Emerson; What Have You Done to Me – Emerson, Stephen, Pat; Release – Pat, Emerson, Ryan (no lyrics); Turn it All Around – Aslyn, Ryan, Mike; Peaches in the Summertime – Stephen, Pat, Ryan

The retreat was so successful that we can’t wait to do another one (or two!) before the year is over.

Oh, and Melissa drank grease. But that’s a different story entirely.

-Lauren