Mendhi Audlin 0:02
Hi there friends Mendhi Audlin here with a new episode of my podcast What if it all goes right? Today is International Women's Day and I am celebrating with you by bringing you a special interview with my new friend and an incredible powerful woman. Amy Scruggs Amy is a singer, performer, country music artists extraordinare and she has a new song coming out the title of which is, wait for it. Are you ready? What if it all goes right? That's right. The song is now here. So I'm going to talk to Amy today about the process what it feels like to have a vision in you that you bring to life. We're going to talk about what it looks like to move through life with a what if it all goes right mindset and how Amy moved through some significant personal challenges to get to the point where she is today. But first let's take a listen to her new song. What if it all goes right? Right brain down, you chase your dream
Mendhi Audlin 1:23
what if it all goes right? The new song by country music performing artists. Amy Scruggs, Amy is here with me today to celebrate International Women's Day, I want to share with you her story and how this song came to be. But before we get to that, I want to share the story with you of how Amy and I connected is the Amy is also the author of a book that's about helping people make presentations. And she was on a podcast with a fabulous What if upper Morris sounds now Morris has a podcast called the business of sales, which is also phenomenal, highly recommend it he interviewed Amy and found out that she had this song called What if it all goes right. And in doing the research for that interview. He found me the author of the book. What if it all goes right? Well, when he told me about Amy, I'm instantly googling her finding out everything I can and I shared with Morris I said wouldn't. Wouldn't it be cool? What if I was able to connect with Amy and use her song as the theme song for this podcast? What if it all goes right? Well, connections happen fireworks went off. And now Amy and I are fast friends I want to share with you a snippet of our conversation as we met for the first time and how she shared with me the story of the song and how it found her.
Unknown Speaker 2:43
I started the song search with my a&r rep James Ray. And it had been 18 years since I've been able to go back to Studio in Nashville and record a new project and at this stage in my life after four kids are grown with six total. I was like really who's gonna let this 49 year old woman have a chance to do her passions and her dream again, I toured for years and I still sing professionally on requests and things like that. But to do a major national project, you know, I'm not Carrie Underwood. I'm you know, I pass my prime according to what you know, statistics started this song start and James Right Start with through 1000 songs, we need to do a five song EP Fred Molan, who's a legendary producer. He's the former head of music for all of Disney. He's recorded. He's produced Billy Joel Linda Ronstadt. You name it, he's done it, plus a ton of movie and TV productions that are very famous. And so Fred said yes to be my producer, which was just a dream. James said, I'll start the song search. And so from Nashville, I'm in San Diego, they're sending me music. And James weeded out a lot of it and saved about a couple 100 that came my way. And I saw this title, and I clicked on it, it was also in a stack of other songs that were in one email. And I clicked on it and said, That's it, I need to cut that song. And so we all agreed on that one, it went into the pile a couple months before knowing we were going into studio, we still had to choose the four others, we get to Nashville, and I got to meet the the song plugger that was the one that pitched this to James to get it to me. And he told me the story behind the song that this one was actually given to a woman who had won one of the singing contest. We're not going to name names, nothing like that. But she did a great job. They let her record the song, something happened that that the record label changed their mind. They went another direction something happened, which happens in music all the time. And so this was no longer something that they were going to promote. The song got put on the shelf. And nobody in Nashville was going to touch it because it was associated to what was going on with that and people just weren't taking it. They were trying to pitch it. Nobody wanted it. 10 years later along comes Amy and because of my own life story and passion and never giving up and believing you can still keep achieving and doing that. I don't believe in time limits. And it's just that you know, I had years even when I was touring people say get a real And I'm like, wait a minute, this is much. There was always a bit this will work, there's everything leads to something, even if it is a failure, there's still a life lesson in that. And since then my failures were what was right. So I really just had such an emotional connection to this song. And we went into studio to cut it. And I had world class musicians, I mean just dream musicians on this project. And I was already in awe where I was in one of the biggest studios at sound emporium and Fred in the middle like the maestro, in the first take on this one, there was just magic and we all felt it. And he took off his headphones and he goes, Oh my god, everybody that's a hit. And I was crying we felt like alright, now take two and we there was just something you can feel his production magic on it. It's got that Disney magic to it different than the other recorded version, and different than the than the demo. And there was just something special we all felt at that moment with that song and I knew this is going to be a flagship song for me, especially as, as an older woman, I want to say older, you know, I'm not a 20 Somethings. So I've have like a life experience. But I understand the lyrics of this song. I have, you know, I've raised children, I've had multiple careers, different ups and downs, medical circumstances, things that we all have at this age. And I still truly believe what if it all goes right into song and body that and I got the beautiful opportunity to meet the writer. And she was the backup vocalist on the song came to the to the studio. I got to hug her and fingers she goes thank you so much for doing this. I love what you did with it. It's time to Song finally get to life again. I said I will give it everything I have. I will put everything I have into this one. And thank you for writing such an amazing song. I will never take the credit. I was not the writer. I just got to be the voice I have the privilege of being the voice that got to put it back out there and give it its real life this time it was it was supposed to be mine. It was it was right. This was meant to go right. It just had to wait 10 more. Yeah.
Mendhi Audlin 6:59
What do you know what your, your your story? I'm like paralleling because, you know, at that time, I was launching The What If UP Club, the whole vision for The What If UP Club is coming together in this book that I was writing 12 years ago, 13 years ago when I had my baby on my lap. And I'm writing this, you know, book and doing these workshops and had all these titles like what am I going to call it? What am I going to call it? What am I going to call it? And I had one of my members say hey, did you did you hear this song? And I listened to it and I'm like, oh my god that that song?
Unknown Speaker 7:32
Did you found that song? The first round?
Mendhi Audlin 7:35
If Yeah, I found that the first round like 10 years ago and that inspired the name of the book. So my book actually named, you know, inspired by your song. Yes. Your song now. And like, just like you said, so I had the vision then I was doing the work. I was bringing people together. But I also had a baby on my lap. And you know, life happens and there's ups and downs. And you know, it leads us around and then 2019 it starts tapping at me again like, you know, we need this. We need this. We need this and you're right now we have life experience. Now we have like a deeper wisdom and like, I feel it it is it is time for this song. It is time for this message. It is time for for those of us it is time for a shift in what's appropriate. Like that whole thing of you know, Pastor Prime's like,
Unknown Speaker 8:30
yeah, no,
Mendhi Audlin 8:31
I know,
Unknown Speaker 8:32
I always say I'm still young enough to take action and finally old enough to be taken seriously. Yeah. A lot of years. This pool Yeah, because that's where it's at. I'm like, no, nobody in my 30s Oh, what do you know, you know, and I had younger children and, and then even my early 40s I'm still pushing through this has been a difficult time in a man's world it just it just is and all of my careers especially you know, as a sales leader at the time and and a business coach and as an author as a speaker. And then as a recording artist, it all of this has been very male driven and I've had to push through that and really start understanding how to still just keep that credibility keep pushing through and just allow the maturity and the years and the experiences to keep evolving and and not feel that there was a shelf life or an end to it. It's I would have never dreamed in the last maybe the last 18 months. I released my book and a five song EP of dream project at the same time during a pandemic. Yeah, and I love it my youngest daughter is a senior in high school this year and I I love the modeling and the example that is and what it is to my older kids that you know I have an oldest son who's about to turn 31 And he's like but what have I done so far? I'm like 31 Oh shoot hard yeah,
Mendhi Audlin 9:46
no Oh life ahead of you
Unknown Speaker 9:49
it's nothing so great. I just I love I love the the messaging and and finding out about you. It's just, I just like literally fell out of his chair when I saw more email and I went You got to be kidding me. Of course, I'm looking you up, and I'm reading everything on your website, I get out of my husband. I'm like, look, look, and I'm watching your speaking and I'm like, How have we not met? So far? Most of the title regardless of the song, how have we not met sooner? I know we're on opposite coasts, but you just embody everything that I've already always been out speaking, I do, you know, motivational speaking as well and public speaking. Just just that, that kinship in that same mindset. Yeah, I just had the privilege of the fact that I'm also a singer and was able to put a song to it, and five out of 1000 songs more than 1000 This was no accident. And I'm resting in that now that I don't stress over it. It's it's gone to radio, we've just taken it to global radio. It's doing very well right now. I'm hoping the US is going to kind of kick into gear here. It's
Mendhi Audlin 10:47
what it does. Yeah. And I don't
Unknown Speaker 10:50
I'm not attached to the outcome. This one had a life on its own that was supposed to be out there. And when I see something like that, and you go just okay, it the right doors will open when they're supposed to the right radio stations, the right viewers, you coming into my life now is saying, Hey, this is my whole message that the song is going to take the life that's supposed to take, and I'm no stress over it. Yeah,
Mendhi Audlin 11:11
I love that I heard recently. I wish I could remember who said it. But it's basically the things that we envision. It's like those things already exist. And they're like the target exists that's waiting for the arrow, it's you know, it's like this vision of shifting mindset right now, everything going on, like to be able to support people in wood. If it all goes right,
Unknown Speaker 11:33
I have a friend, she's amazing. She has her own podcast, and she has written four books and it's in, it's changing up everything about you know how to go through change, and helping people in motivating them to go through change what to say when you don't know what to say. And her father was one of the one of the greatest interviews I've been able to do as a TV host was when she introduced me to her father, who's a War World War Two Normandy survivor. And I got to have him on my show a couple years ago and interview him. And it was just an amazing, beautiful moment that I just treasure still, but I treasure her as a friend. And I look at those two, like, wow, I still I got to interview your dad. And so he's just he's still here. He's still wonderful completely. And he's in his late 90s. Well, she played him the song last week. And she said he his her mom was dancing, and he goes, the world needs to hear this, the world needs to hear this. And I was like, I got Jack got men's approval. He was 17 on the beaches of Normandy. And here he is now loving this song and saying the world needs to hear that and I just I just treasure that just getting that kind of feedback for from all ages. And I've had other people just that are hearing it like like with with Morris who introduced us. We we originally booked the podcast for me to just discuss my book and sales coaching. And then he found the music and went oh no, we're talking about me. Actually wasn't gonna talk about it. I was gonna talk about communications, coaching and business coaching and sales coaching. And we ended up doing that, as you heard, the whole podcast was about the music because he he flipped over the song. And so I just I love when I see things like that happening. I wanted every song to have a positive message and to have this same What if message of just possibility and and believing and setting wishing people the best? Yeah, is seeing the best in others. And I just I feel that that is really what came about.
Mendhi Audlin 13:23
I want to stop here and share with you that halfway through our interview, Amy shared with me a sneak peek of her video that she had produced for the song What if it all goes right, and I have to tell you, it brought me to tears.
Unknown Speaker 13:36
Yeah, last clip at the end with the little girl running in the fields that symbolized me the little girl that had these dreams that knew it could go right. And a lifetime of people telling me what are you doing? And what if? And that I wanted that last clip. So it shows me looking back at the camera like yeah, because that was me looking back at my look that little Amy that said, keep pushing through. Don't ever give up. I had my Senate 18 And everybody said my life was over. That was it. What are you going to do? You know, my parents I went to work, you know for a minimum wage job after he was born and was kind of put out on my own to figure that out. And fast forward to once he was 18. He was touring with me as my lead guitar player. We were singing in vet hospitals together. We were out as the spokespersons for the American Veterans together. He's almost 31 years old now. And so amazingly talented and he would still be leading he'll be he leaves my bad he loses his guitar behind me that there was a calling and a purpose on that child's life. And I can share this with you. But my family had me go to the abortion clinic two weeks for my 10th birthday and said we can't have this and raising it in the church. We want to sweep it under the rug. My parents are fine with me sharing this story now because they're healed and blessed and wonderful mom, there's no people need to know. But I was next to go in the operating room to to have an abortion for that little one. And they came out and said that I wasn't pregnant. My urine test showed I wasn't pregnant. I was nine weeks pregnant. God saved him in that Planned Parenthood. And I came out of my mom when there is a plan for this child's life. Okay, I'm sorry, I will scout out to your dad. And so at this stage at 4930, almost 3030 31 years later, to have this video come out to share this message is very special for me. I'm really proud. And I wanted to produce it myself because I knew what it needed to be. I didn't want anybody else saying, well, it should have this and that, no, I've been dreaming of this, this music release. Since then, I've given my life to my kids and went on to have you know, three more kids for C sections and a full hysterectomy. Two more surgeries after that, to undo the damage of all the scar tissue from too many C sections and hysterectomy. And, to this day, I have been living on mostly liquids and baby food for four years now because I cannot any longer digest solid foods because of all that. And in the midst of all of that I still get to do this. And you wouldn't know what to look at me. But But I there has been this obstacles that have come at me my entire life. And we still went out and did it. And I know that this message is supposed to bless lives. There's no accident that this song came to me it was shelved all those years, and came back to me with this project this producer at this time, and now meeting you the way that we did, I found Morris through pod match because I was like okay, I need to book myself on podcast, we were matched up through pod match. And it was just random. It was an algorithm that put us together.
Mendhi Audlin 16:56
But it wasn't there. I felt I
Unknown Speaker 16:58
wanted to share that with you as a woman as a woman of faith. As a mom, as a leader. I wanted you to meet me today. And yes, the song is what it is. And it's such a wonderful not a coincidence but divinely led that our titles are the same but that's the backstory for me. No brought me here to you today.
Mendhi Audlin 17:20
Inspiring. Yes. So what does it look like to live with a what if it all goes right mindset? Maybe it's something like this.
Unknown Speaker 17:29
I tried to describe how I see God maneuvering us together like even him connecting us. I feel like he's up there with it's like herding cats like but you I have to get here or else you won't line up to meet her here. So I you're gonna have to wait here. Well, this one's over here. And then once a year, then I can put you together. It's all being orchestrated. And I know if I stand I sit in that piece of letting things continue to line up. Even whenever the promoter decides to give me the video back on all the it'll be I'll have a YouTube link and a Spotify link and everything else. I'm just waiting. I'm like, it'll line up when it's supposed to because God knows when it's supposed to hit when, where and who it's supposed to be given to. Yeah, and you and I meeting through Morris because a pod match. I love guide sense of humor with things like that. I just I like hugging you through this screen right now.
Mendhi Audlin 18:17
My heart is just like wrapping you up. I just feel it was meant to be it was meant to be now and it's
Unknown Speaker 18:23
magnetic and explosive. I think the two of us together on opposite ends of the coast just went. But I'm really excited to see what God's about to do with this because I know enough to know when to get out of the way.
Mendhi Audlin 18:34
If you're someone who like Amy has a dream, like me has a dream that's been tapping at you for years and years never going away. It's always there for you. Amy has some advice to help you keep moving forward to bring that dream to life.
Unknown Speaker 18:50
When I'm doing my speaking I receive just show up sometimes just show up you don't know what you're going to learn from this person or you know a meeting Why am I having this me just show up and find out. And this is definitely a just show up moment.
Mendhi Audlin 19:00
It's big and I've known it for 20 years movement things. It is a movement. If you'd like to help us spread the word to bring hope to bring connection to bring possibility to people all around the world. I invite you to subscribe to our YouTube channel or if you're listening to this through our podcast to comment to leave a review and to share this with people. What if you share it with someone at the right time for them? What if you're a conduit for bringing hope and peace and possibility to someone when they needed the most? Thank you for tuning in. I'm Mendhi Audlin I'll see you next time right here on what if it all goes right
Mendhi Audlin 19:45
rains down, you chase your dream
