The things we think and do not say
Hello Friends,
I am writing to from my home in Edinburgh the
greatest city I have ever lived in, on the
final day of the world famous Edinburgh
Festival. As I now feel ready to pay tribute
to my Mother and mentor Linda Ni Dubhtaigh
who passed away suddenly on the 28th February
this year at the age of 49 years young.
My Mother was a kind and intelligent woman
who supported me both personally and
professionally in every way imaginable. She
was in actual fact out flyering and putting
up posters for one of Fredag’s gigs the night
before her passing. While I will miss her
everyday for the rest of my life I am
eternally grateful to have been fortunate
enough to have had her in my life for as long
as I did. Something which sadly she missed
out on herself due to her own Mother passing
when she was only a very young child. Which I
know impacted her life significantly and so
influenced her dedication to be the greatest
mother to myself and my sister we could
possibly wish for.
A friend and artist who has experienced the
same tragedy pointed out to me that we don’t
discuss these things enough in our society.
So it is without apology that I introduce
this personal story to you all in the hope it
can go some way to correcting this. We are of
course a product of our parents and
upbringing and so it is that you cannot
discount the significant influence that my
Mother has had on Fredag both directly and
through me. I am not religious in any way but
her spirit will never leave me and will
continue to guide my actions and provide me
with strength for evermore.
I have spent the months that have followed
reflecting as one does, on life. Don’t worry
I am not going to bore you with some half
baked philosophies on the meaning of life the
universe and everything. Suffice to say I
have taken to take a hard look at what is
truly important.
I recently returned from the US & Canada
where I have sought inspiration for the next
chapter in Fredag’s development. Notably
visiting Portland, Oregon where the music
community was kind enough to share their
thoughts with me. A talk by Nettwerk’s Terry
McBride hosted by Music Tank has also
provided me with new clarity on how to
proceed.
As well as further developing the existing
artists on our roster I have been working
with some exciting new artists which you will
be hearing more about as our work together
begins to bear fruit.
So I have begun putting in motion some
changes to Fredag that I will be
communicating to you all over the following
weeks and months.
All that remains to be said is to thank my
family, friends and artists for their
incredible continuing support. I am indeed
truly blessed in this regard. And to leave
you with some music from our artists in the
new Last.fm player on the right, because of
course there is nothing without great music.
Love
David
david@fredag.co.uk