I was born in Washington, D.C.
Now, I'm a creative in Toronto.
A lot happened in between.
At the height of the recession, I graduated with a BA in Philosophy from Tufts University, where I had founded an after-school arts education program for at-risk tweens. After being spotlighted in a best-selling book about grassroots activism, I was recruited to join the leadership team at a national education non-profit in Newark. Life was going according to plan until my after-work band released our debut single and accidentally blew up overnight. We're not talking, like, Beyonce success, but it was enough for me to quit my job and tour full-time. Over the following two years, I peaked at #15 on rock radio, signed a management deal, played hundreds of shows, recorded dozens of songs, and even wrote for a few talented nobodies who later went on to become Top 40 pop stars.
Or at least, that's what it looked like on Instagram. In real life, I was exhausted. And smelly. As my friends started saving for retirement, couch surfing just didn't seem as cool and fun anymore. I decided to stop touring and focus on landing a publishing deal so I could write full-time, even though it would mean that I would have to get a dreaded "real" job in the meantime. Ass-backwards, I stumbled into my first ad agency as an account executive and was amazed to discover an entire industry that had the same relentless obsession with creativity that I did. By the end of my first day, I was hooked. With the help of a few friends and an ad class, I put together a spec portfolio, began my copywriting career, and never looked back.
The music industry conditioned me to never say "no" to an opportunity, so over the past six years, I've said "yes" to basically everything: Agencies. In-house departments. The United States. Canada. 20-person teams. 13,000-person companies. Freelancing. Full-timing. Jingle-writing. Speaking. Teaching. I've worked at Apple headquarters in California, Leo Burnett, and more. My campaigns have been recognized at international award shows like Cannes and the One Show as well as media outlets like the New York Times and the Globe and Mail. But my biggest flex is just making ads that normal, human people actually like.
In my free time, I teach at Miami Ad School, write and produce songs, and hang out with my dog, Scrabble.
I do it all for him.
