What's in a Name?

I recently had the wonderful opportunity to be a musical guest on a local TV show (click to watch). I was there in anticipation of a performance later that same week, so the station was interested in having me there to perform and talk about the upcoming concert. Halfway through the live interview I noticed that my name on the enormous projection screen inside the studio was misspelled. I immediately pointed it out to the host (we happened to be on a commercial break) and it was soon remedied, but the tape had already rolled and the beginning of my interview was to always remain stamped with my incorrectly spelled name. For a former national spelling bee state finalist, mistakes like these can be rather frustrating and difficult to swallow... This experience caused me to empathize with all my favorite singers and artists over the years who likely experienced a similar blunder by the press. But even if Bing Krosby, Frank Sinnatra, Judie Garland and Mel Tormay had been misrepresented by faulty nomenclature, their faithful fans still know who they are! We still love and cherish their wonderful work! Nobody is exempt from innocent mistakes, no matter how egregious they seem to those who are the unsuspecting recipients of those mistakes... So sing on, Diana Kral and Jane Monhite! Keep on crooning, Tony Benet and Michael Bublie! We love you-- and I, for one, promise to respect and dignify you (after this silly blog is finished) by at least getting your NAME right.

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