Brad Robins

Day 3 - Life's Lessons

2011-08-25T20:16:00.000-07:00

Another day down only 87 more to go. Today I didn't even try getting up early for day 3 of P90X. Instead I waited until this afternoon to do it. I have loved having a set workout routine to look forward to every day. I hope that once work, school, and rehearsals really pick up I will be able to make time for this because I love how I feel after a good hard workout. Today I sang with a couple of other YA's at a School of Music faculty meeting where they honored Ron Simpson, the (now) former YA show band director. Our performance came as a surprise to him. We sang a beautiful jazz-like arrangement of "Love at Home". After our small group of YA's were done singing the entire recital hall rose to their feet clapping in honor of Ron and his legacy. The spirit that the song brought into the room was very strong and undeniable. This experience got me thinking a lot about my legacy. Sometimes I get so busy that I don't stop to realize that every day is another page in MY book of life. Today was one of those days where I stopped to ask myself "if someone were to read my book of life right now would they be inspired by what they read, or would it be a perfect example to them of what not to do?". I have never once professed to be perfect or anywhere near it, but I have made the decision to try to one day become so. Being perfect is certainly a process not an event. It requires patience, diligence, and sometimes learning from one mistake after another. The little things truly make the difference. I am grateful for this week to ponder and reevaluate where I am going and what I want to accomplish. I know that a big part of where I end up in the next year will be determined by the choices I make day to day, not just how I respond in the few big moments along the way. I must stay true to myself, and remain focused on my objective. I must be honest and straight forward with others, and maintain my integrity. I will not allow the actions of others or external things beyond my control dictate how I feel, act or live. I finally am starting to feel like I truly know who I am to become and be. I won't allow trials, adversity or myself stand in the way of that. I'm not sure why I felt the need to say all those things, but it sure felt good. If you are still reading this I want to share with you one of the most profound and powerful declarations I have ever read in my life. I first heard this 3 years ago at my first ever Young Ambassadors retreat, and I have had it printed out where I could read it often ever since. I like to think that this to some degree is representative of where I am/where I am headed. I hope that it inspires and motivates you as it does me...
In 1980 a young man from Rwanda was forced by his tribe to either renounce Christ or face certain death. He refused to renounce Christ, and he was killed on the spot. The night before he had written the following commitment which was found in his room:

“I’m part of the fellowship of the unashamed, the die has been cast, I have stepped over the line, the decision has been made- I’m a disciple of Jesus Christ. I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away or be still.

My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, my future is secure. I’m finished and done with low living, sight walking, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed vision, worldly talking, cheap giving & dwarfed goals.

My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road is narrow, my way is rough, my companions are few, my guide is reliable, my mission is clear. I won’t give up, shut up, let up until I have stayed up, stored up, prayed up for the cause of Jesus Christ.

I must go till He comes, give till I drop, preach till everyone knows, work till He stops me & when He comes for His own, He will have no trouble recognizing me because my banner will have been clear.”

Day 2 - Early Bird Gets the Worm

2011-08-24T06:50:00.000-07:00

It's 7:50 in the morning. I tried to wake up at 7:30, but I guess my body is still in "summer sleep" mode. It's amazing that I was able to work early morning custodial from 5-8 in the morning for an entire year, when I can barely get up at 7:30. I guess the important thing is that I am up. I'm feeling a little sore from yesterday's workout, but the good news is I am not as out of shape as I thought I was.

I set a goal yesterday to read the entire Book of Mormon cover to cover before the end of the year. Since I still have over 4 months it's only going to take reading 1-2 chapters every day for that to actually happen. As I read the first chapter of 1 Nephi, I was reminded just how quickly the spirit of the Lord can come into your life when you are reading the holy scriptures with a purpose. My favorite verse of that chapter comes right at the end,

"But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender ^cmercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of ^ddeliverance."

The power of faith is something I take for granted and perhaps do not even fully understand. I'm hopeful that as I stick to my reading schedule that my faith in Christ deepened and understanding of his Atonement will be quickened. I am also going to start reading a book by one of my favorite LDS authors, Brad Wilcox, called The Continuous Atonement. I have heard Brad speak many times at various Young Ambassadors events, and even heard him tell stories from that book, but I have never sat down and read it in its entirety. Between the two I feel that my love for the Savior will increase dramatically.

If any of you want to join me in my reading challenge I welcome you. I could use the encouragement, and any insights you have about the things that you read. As for now, it's time to his Day 2 of this P90X thing! I'm out.

Day 1 - Whatever It Takes

2011-08-23T19:28:00.000-07:00

Here I am just six days away from starting my 4th year of college. What an adventure this has been. I have gone through trials and had experiences that I never would have expected over the last 3+ years. I am grateful for all of them as well as the people in my life that have helped me to become who I am today. I have moved into a new place with a new roommate and am eager and excited to begin a new year. Along with all these "new" things I am beginning a 90 day workout plan known to the world only as P90X. I have heard that it is extremely difficult, but that it provides excellent results. I am hoping that this will raise my energy level and overall fitness and I get set to embark on one of the most challenging academic years of my life. In addition to this fitness program each day I will also be balancing my first semester in BYU's Marriott School of Management, working 20 hours a week as an administrative assistant at Performing Arts Management, and serving as the president of the BYU Young Ambassadors. I don't know if anyone will ever actually read/follow this blog, but this is my way of keeping myself motivated. Just knowing that someone somewhere might at anytime be reading this and checking on my progress gives me the needed push to want to keep going.
In addition to pushing myself physically and academically, I also hope to deepen my spirituality and strengthen my testimony. For without my Savior I would be nothing, and would not be enjoying all the wonderful blessings I have today. It is the least I can do to show him that I love Him and am committed to His cause. As president of the BYU YA's I have helped come up with the theme "Whatever It Takes: Committed to the Cause". This will be my motto for the next 90 days, for it truly will require all of me. It will not be easy. I will probably hate it sometimes, but I know that it will be worth it. Any comments that any of you wish you post as a means of keeping me motivated are much appreciated, and hopefully in reading these posts you become a little better and more motivated to better yourself as well. I'm about to push myself harder in every aspect of my life than I have ever done before, and I'm willing to do "whatever it takes". Day 1, here we go. Day 90, here I come...

April 18, 2009: www.bradrobins.com; The official site of Brad Robins unveiled

2009-04-18T08:36:00.000-07:00

After months of waiting, Brad has finally launched himself into cyberspace with his bold new website: http://www.bradrobins.com/ . His website contains many features that will help keep you connected and up-to-date on all that Brad is doing. On the site you can browse photos, listen to and download music, read recent news, find out where Brad will be performing, post comments, sign-up for fan mail, request Brad to perform at your event or party, and even follow him on Twitter and find out what he is doing on a day-to-day basis! On the site you will also find information about his debut album, "Center Stage". Be sure to check back often for important news, notes, and updates about Brad.

"Thank you to all of you who have sent e-mails, facebook messages, and left comments on YouTube or my blog. Your support has really helped me to keep going forward. I hope that you will enjoy the website and find it "user-friendly". I am open to any suggestions you as fans might have. After all, I built the site for YOU! For those of you I know and those of you I may not, thank you for supporting me in any way. The main reason I love to do what I do is because of people like you that I have inspired or touched with my voice. I hope that you will find nothing less with "Center Stage" and any other upcoming albums. Again I express my gratitude to you all for your encouragement and love."

-Brad Robins

http://www.bradrobins.com/

The official website of Brad Robins

April 2009 Update: "Brad performs at local fundraisers"

2009-04-17T11:21:00.000-07:00

April has been another great month for Brad Robins. He was invited to be the featured artist at a few local fundraisers. He sang for the Syracuse High School fundraiser, performing songs from popular artists, Josh Groban and Diamond Rio, to help raise money for the choral and theater departments. Most recently, Brad was invited to be the closing act for a banquet put on by the "Courage to Hope" non-profit organization, which is a charity dedicated to bettering shelters for women and child victims of domestic violence all over the world. The event was held at the Tahitian Noni corporate headquarters in Orem, UT. All proceeds and money donated were put towards bettering shelters specifically in the Ukraine, a region of the world that Brad is fond of and familiar with. On the "Courage to Hope" fundraiser he said:

"As soon as I found out what 'Courage to Hope' was all about, I knew that I had to be apart of helping in any way that I could. I lived for 2 years in Russia, which in many regards, is similar to the Ukraine. I witnessed, firsthand, some of the ill effects of domestic violence on both innocent women and innocent children. I grew up in a house of love, respect, and understanding. Home has always been the place I ran to when I felt there was nowhere else to go. It has always been my shelter from life's storms. The very thought that there are people out there who aren't able to consider home a place of peace sends a chill down my spine. I hope that my small contribution, in raising awareness of the need to help those victims, helps to change the lives of those wonderful people for the better. A special thanks to Kristy Ashworth and the other Board of Directors for all their efforts."

Brad with Zack Oates and Kristy Ashworth

(Members of the Board of Directors)

If you are interested in helping the victims of domestic violence

and donating to the "Courage to Hope" foundation visit:

http://www.couragetohope.org/

Brad Robins sings "This Is The Moment" from the Broadway musical "Jekyll and Hyde"

2009-03-11T19:23:00.001-07:00

Check out a "sneak peak" video on YouTube of one of the tracks to be included on Brad's upcoming debut album, "Center Stage"

February - March 2009 Update

2009-03-11T18:23:00.000-07:00

Brad's most recent stage appearances were with the BYU Young Ambassadors. They performed on their own turf February 5-7 in the De Jong concert hall located in the HFAC building on the Brigham Young University campus. He and the group later traveled down South on a ten day tour through New Mexico and Texas. Among the cities visited were: Farmington, Albuquerque, Alamogordo, El Paso (UTEP), Tucumcari, Hobbs, and Raton. The Young Ambassadors performed their 90 minute show, which consists of music from Elvis to Michael Buble, and also of Broadway musical selections from Charlie Brown, In the Heights, and Wicked. In the show, Brad performed the Diamond Rio hit "One More Day". Brad and the group also participated in an outreach at a local hospital in El Paso, Las Palmas Medical Center, and held inspirational music "firesides" at local church buildings throughout the states. The group held their final show in the states March 7, 2009, wrapping up with a show hosted at the brand new, state of the art Syracuse High School located in Syracuse, Utah. The show was particularly important to Brad because the music director of Syracuse High School, Sherryl Cazier, was one of the first people to ever see the musical potential in Brad. Over seven years ago, while teaching at Centerville Jr. High, Sherryl cast him in his first stage role, Harold Hill in "The Music Man". The BYU Young Ambassadors will continue to rehearse until April 27, 2009, when they depart for a 4-week tour to the Nordic countries of Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland.

Brad continues to spend time each week in the studio working on his greatly anticipated debut album, "Center Stage", scheduled to be released on iTunes for downloads this April. A "sneak peak" video of a track on his upcoming album can be found on YouTube at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rATWJV7vuRw

Brad Robins Update: December 2008 - January 2009

2009-01-23T21:37:00.000-08:00

December and January have been busy months for Brad. They started when he was asked to play the role of "Joseph" in the live nativity "Echoes Of Christmas" which took place December 16-23 at Liberty Park in Salt Lake City, Utah. The music, which was all original, was written by Clive Romney and the show was produced by Viriginia and Robert Baird. A video of Brad performing the song "Tiny Babe" can be found on his facebook profile page: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=713118698&ref=profile#/posted.php?id=713118698 &ref=profile#/posted.php?id=713118698 or by visiting: http://echoesofchristmas.com/video/video_122208.htm istmas.com/video/video_122208.htm (scroll down to the fifth video entitled: "Brad Robins 'Joseph'").

On December 29, 2008, just a week after finishing up the live nativity, Brad had the honor of performing the national anthem before a sell out crowd and the most attended Utah Jazz basketball game of the year at Energy Solutions Arena. Brad was welcomed, before performing the anthem, by Utah Jazz President Randy Rigby. A video recording of Brad singing the national anthem can be found on "YouTube": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPTlvpO3YGs vpO3YGs

Brad's most recent live performance took place on January 23, 2009 at the Mckay Events Center located on the campus of Utah Valley University, where he again performed the national anthem, this time before the Utah Flash basketball game. The Utah Flash is the deveopmental team for the Utah Jazz and the Boston Celtics. A video of Brad performing the anthem can also be found on "YouTube" at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXTxUNZq28s

Brad currently continues to work on his much anticipated debut album, "Center Stage", which, he announced, is scheduled to be completed along with his website, www.bradrobins.com, March 31, 2009. "Center Stage" will be available for download on "iTunes" and other music downloading sites shortly thereafter. Brad began his work in the studio two weeks ago, laying down his first two tracks on the album. On his recent performances and beginning to record the album, Brad had this to say:

"Each morning I get up and realize that I am one step closer to making my vision a reality. Each event that transpires in my life seems to be a stepping stone as I cross over the river towards my final destination. Performing in 'Echoes Of Christmas' brought a needed dimension of light and reflection to my life during the busy and often stressful Christmas time. Performing the anthem of this great nation is always an honor for me, and to be able to do it on a few separate occasions and in front of so many people was truly an amazing experience for me. Beginning to work on "Center Stage" is like a dream come true. To go into the studio, put on my headphones, and sing like no one is watching is one of my favorite things to do, and now I have an excuse to do it each week!"

"Center Stage" Coming This Spring...

2009-01-14T07:34:00.000-08:00

It's official! Brad Robins has begun working on his newest project that will showcase his voice in it's purest and most beautiful form. Robins will begin recording his new album "Center Stage" on Friday January 16, 2009. The album is scheduled to be completed around late March and will be available for downloads on "iTunes" and other other various web downloading sites early to mid April. The album will consist of hits from broadway classics like: "The Scarlet Pimpernel", "Les Miserables", "Miss Saigon", and many others. The album will also include the "YouTube favorite", Anthem from the musical "Chess". To pre-order a cd version of "Center Stage" go to www.bradrobins.com and send an e-mail via the "Bookings" link with: your name, address, daytime telephone number, and e-mail address. A representative will send you an e-mail confirming your "cd request". A representive will then contact you once the album is completed for credit card and billing information. Don't miss this opportunity to get your hands on the the hottest collection of broadway hits: "Center Stage!"

Pre-order your copy today!

Vocal Demo "Anthem" from the musical Chess

2008-12-30T18:45:00.001-08:00

This is one of two demos that I did during the Summer of 2008.