do i have a story to tell you...

THE KITCHEN DEMOS - DIGITAL-
"TrustYour Fam"
by Lizzie West

If you’ve been following my journey back to work over the last couple of years, you know that last July 4th, I released my first single in 20 years, a sequel to my Christmas Song, called
"Family Fourth"-Recording Available

You may also know about that fan who became my fam (see last year’s blog entry) - how he found me in the Fox hole and helped me get my return album, the Kitchen Demos released.

And now, this is the first full, digital, album I’ve released digitally in 20+ years. Was I even releasing digital back then?

Ongoing and forever, a dream within a dream.

Thank you to Andrew,

And now, Scott Shelley has joined us too. Scott is leading us in the more and more official formation of Because of You Management Group, our bespoke record label and management company.

Andrew and Scott are both my managers now, and so far, we’re working with a Because of You Group in Missouri and a Because of You Group in NY, so, let’s talk about the difference between fan and fam.

To me, a fam is an invested Fam.

ie;

A fan goes to shows and buys merch and music, which is amazing, don’t get me wrong, I love you, my fans are the best.

But, a fam is another kind of friend completely… a fam loves your music so much they’ll fight for your freedom to sing no matter what. They hear you on the radio and become your patron for a decade, or they become godfather to your daughter and teach her guitar on zoom every week for her formative years, or one day they show up in a get away car just as a rebound relationship goes dangerous, or they come find you in a fox hole after a world pandemic and rescue you from ruin.

A fam cares so much about you and your music, they want to help you more than you know. A lot more than your own family does. They care so much about your work and music that they’re willing to empower you to build your greatest career yet, a victorious, comeback from the ground up, in whatever way they can.

My growing group of fam and I are building Because of You Management Group, an artist and fam owned and run artist management company, together, and thank God, I have learned to trust them all the way Home.

When Andrew wrote me recently and said it’s time to release the Kitchen Demos digitally on band camp. I was excited about it. It’s perfectly timed really, with my life right now and with Mother’s day. Especially since the songs share my mom journey back to work after becoming a homesteady mama for 15 + years.

"The Kitchen Demos"are solo demos that I sent my fam as examples of my thinking for show songs- as samples of a concert I was rehearsing starting Fall 2024. I told him I thought of the collection as "the bones of my new show..." as you’ll read about below… But… his choice was surprising to me and that’s how it all got started really, my comeback empowered by a whole fam group… Because of one fam who wrote me at the exact right moment, and who cared enough to script a a letter that I really needed to hear.

He helped me remember how to reclaim my name on time, and to fight to do what I’m meant to do - Music! - so the next twenty + years and beyond can be Victorious for us all.

Now my fam, Andrew and Scott, and a bunch of other fam, and I, we all running our bespoke management company/boutique record label together. The Kitchen Demos Exclusive CD has been out for 8 months. It feels like the right time to release it digitally now, and also, if I’ve learned nothing else over the last 20+ years, I have learned to trust my fam.

***
If you want to be part of Because of You, email us at dharmabell@gmail.com.
I have definitely created a more and more healthy, family life, from scratch Because of You… Andrew, Scott and all of my fam. I have created a new pie crust", so to speak, - started all over in the Kitchen and created a bunch of new songs, yes, but even more importantly, over the last couple years, I found a bunch of new people, the kinds of friends you can take count on to see you through the storm,

Thank you, always, to everyone helping me return to commercial recording and touring. If you once wrote and didn't get word back from me yet, please know I meant well and wanted to be in touch but please send me your email again. I'm just resurfacing to find you. Join the team. Listen. Download. Follow. Come to one of my 2026 Reunions, Previews or NYC Off Broadway Premier. No matter what,Stay In Touch. We Love You.