Help Bentley Make An Album!

Hi Everyone!

My name is Bentley Caldwell! I am a singer-songwriter out of Nashville, Tennessee and I need your help!!

Who Am I?
I was born in a small Kentucky town named Paducah. My mother was 19 when she had me. Even though we didn't have much growing up, there was always love in the house. Oh, and music! My mother had music playing all the time! I grew up listening to old schoo soul and gospel  music. That's where my love for music really comes from. It's safe to say, I was a fan of music before I was a musician. 

After college, I lived in South Korea for almost 2 years. While I was there, I learned how to play the guitar. I had always been a vocalist, but now I could write and play the songs I always wanted to perform! After Korea, I moved back to Paducah and began playing the local music scene. I really began to come into my own as a musician during this time.

In 2011, I moved to Nashville. The first few years were anything but pleasant! A string of bad jobs and bad living situations all culminated to the most defining moment of my life: the death of my mother.

In 2012, my mother passed away suddenly from a stroke at the age of 49. This rocked me to the core. I stilled needed her. How was I supposed to do life without her? I begin to spiral downward into a pit of depression, anger and self-destruction. I knew I needed to channel this energy into something positive, so I went back to music.

In November of 2012, after some deep soul searching, I began recording my first EP, "A Place To Be." I released it on March 10th of the following year. This would have been my mother's 50th birthday. 

With the release of "A Place To Be," everything changed! I went from being "a guy who plays music" to becoming an actual musician. People I didn't know knew my music! In 2013, from March to December, I played almost 60 shows. All while having a full time job. 

In 2014, another defining moment occurred... Through a strange chain of occurrances, I found myself jobless and homeless. Now, I had a choice: Stay in Nashville and continue to pursue the dream that I believed in or go back to Paducah and let all my hardwork go to waste? I decided to put my dream to the test and, for a little over a year, I lived in the driver's seat of my car. I believed in it that much. Was it easy? Heck no! But I'm glad I did. That year, I went on my first tour, played in two different countries and played on the West Coast! All by the grace of God, no doubt.
Side note: I'm no longer homeless. In case you were wondering. 

What Am I Raising Money For?
My new album!!! Over the past few months, I've been playing music with a couple of great guys named Pat Graves and David Martin and we've decided to form a band! The band will be called "Bentley and The Hustle!" With a new band, there needs to be a new sound. Hence the need for a new album. We already have a great team put together to make this album something special, including the audio engineer who mixed the demos for Adele's last album!!

The money would go towards paying the engineers and additional musicians, as well merchandise and music videos!

In Conclusion
I've always believed that our ultimate goal as humans is to lighten one another's burden. Thank you in advance for helping me lighten mine!! I love you all! Thank you so much for all of the continued support! This is just the beginning!