The Creative Download

Identity Alignment

Fri, 29 May 2026 06:00:00 -0600

We have a special guest in our episode today, Jody Friedman.

He is an entrepreneur, keynote speaker, and music supervisor who has spent more than two decades working in the entertainment industry on major television franchises including The Bachelor. He has also produced a feature film (Ethan Bloom) and built multiple seven-figure businesses in entertainment and coaching.

Through his keynote and transformational framework, Wreck the Room, Jody helps high achievers recognize when the identity that created their success is no longer aligned with who they are becoming. His core message is simple: success without identity alignment doesn’t sustain

Links and References:

Jody Friedman links:

Failure Isn't Really Failure - With Special Guest, RJ Kenna

Fri, 08 May 2026 06:00:00 -0600

Doubt Riding Shotgun, by Dave Hill, Jr.

Thanks so much for joining us! Our special guest today is Rebecca J. Kenna, an artist who works in watercolor, pen and ink, and pencil, and a writer whose first novel is coming out this summer. She is also launching her publishing company/imprint soon. And she has a fabulous phrase that she teaches all of her students, encouraging them to apply it not only to their writing or art, but to their lives as a whole, which is to “Fail Magnificently.” So with that, on today’s show, we’ll be chatting with Rebecca about her art and writing, and her life, and the topic of Failure - with the specific goal to begin the process of reframing the way we look at failure.

Links and References and Mentions:

Rebecca's Art Website

Dave Hill, Jr.

Bittersweet - by Susan Cain

Chelsea Spotify

Christy Spotify

The Creative Download Podcast website

Overcoming Obstacles, Part 2, with Special Guest, Brita Ferm

Fri, 17 Apr 2026 07:00:00 -0600

https://www.absolutearts.com/portfolios/o/oceanbeachart/aboutartistbritaferm.html

Join us this episode as we continue to discuss obstacles in art. Today we have a special guest, Brita Ferm.

Brita is the author of the book Secret Families Problem Families, the host of two podcasts, The Loving Parent Podcast, & The No More Elections Podcast. She is an accomplished pianist, an amazing painter, a wife, mom, mother-in-law, grandma (known as Grams), and Christy’s mentor & friend. In previous iterations of her professional life, she worked as:

a telephone operator, a big box store manager, a corporate billing clerk, a non-profit grant writer, and an artist. She went to college in her late 30’s, earning a BS in Health Science and an MA in Education. She co-founded Happy Child, Inc. and served as its Executive Director and Principal Investigator. Happy Child provided substance abuse prevention education to children and parenting/reparenting classes for adults, while researching self-esteem in the families before and after the classes, all of which was funded by the US Department of Health and Human Services.

She played in the 1988 Super Bowl halftime show as one of the pianists.

Mentions:

Romero Britto, artist and painter - https://britto.com

Super Bowl Halftime Show, January 1988: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wqrksVDVO6w&list=RDwqrksVDVO6w&start_radio=1

rjkenna.com → writing class

Brita’s Links:

https://www.instagram.com/oceanbeachart/

https://lovingparentpodcast.com/

Chelsea Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5pC0sv2owewxT0u7moL7Pe?si=6A6QAveCQUq-yf9GNkIbfQ

Christy Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2FBHoxFWv0iDmfVMAQl4h6?si=ZkO6rhamRWaqHv7JmPZI6A

thecreativedownloadpodcast.com

Getting Through Artist Obstacles (Season 2, Episode 5)

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0600

As artists, we face a lot more obstacles than people may realize. And sometimes it can make us feel very lonely or like giving up. So join us as we dive into this topic.

Spotify:

Identity Revelation! With Special Guest, Robin Duffy-Wirth

Mon, 23 Feb 2026 06:00:00 -0700

Join us as we chat with Robin Duffy-Wirth about identity and how it relates to you as an artist.

Robin Duffy-Wirth's website

Spotify:

Social Media:

What Art Does

Fri, 16 Jan 2026 07:00:00 -0700

Welcome to the Creative Download!

Today we are talking about the importance of what art does. We'll be looking at Brian Eno's book of the same title.

Referenced in the episode:

What Art Does - Brian Eno
Atlas Of The Heart - Brene Brown
A Beautiful Day In the Neighborhood (movie)

Spotify:

Doubt Riding Shotgun! with Dave Hill, Jr.

Fri, 14 Nov 2025 07:00:00 -0700

Doubt Riding Shotgun book on Amazon

Join Christy and Chelsea as they interview and chat with Dave Hill, Jr., musician, singer/songwriter, and author of the book Doubt Riding Shotgun. Dave has an illustrious career in the music world, and is truly a creative to his core.

Dave’s book, Doubt Riding Shotgun book on Amazon and on his website, davehilljr.com.

You can find him on Social media:

IG: davehilljrmusic

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davehilljr/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/davehilljr

You can also find him on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/@DaveHillJr

Spotify Music for Chelsea and Christy:

Even Elton John Deals with Self-Doubt!

Fri, 24 Oct 2025 07:00:00 -0600

Songwriting for Guitar/Mike Meiers

Christy and Chelsea talk about their adventures at the Production Music Conference in LA, walking through self-doubt and imposter syndrome, meeting other amazing production music folks, and taking next steps on their TV series.

Resources Used/Mentioned:

Websites:

Judy Stakee

Elite Music Coaching

Production Music Association

Books/Authors:

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert; Elizabeth Gilbert Website

The Wart of Art by Steven Pressfield; Steven Pressfield Website

The Artists’ Way, Julia Cameron

Doubt Riding Shotgun, Dave Hill Jr.; Dave Hill, Jr. Website

Other:

Smartless Podcast Episode with Elton John and Brandi Carlisle

Spotify:

"Just Say Yes!"

Fri, 29 Aug 2025 06:00:00 -0600

Songwriting for Guitar/Mike Meiers

In this episode we are recapping our season 1. We focus a lot in this episode too on saying "yes" to your creative ideas and passions and paths, as well as that it's never too late to pursue your art!

Resources Used/Mentioned:

Websites:

Judy Stakee

Books/Authors:

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert; Elizabeth Gilbert Website

The Wart of Art by Steven Pressfield; Steven Pressfield Website

Find Your Unicorn Space by Eve Rodsky; Eve Rodsky Website

The Artists’ Way, Julia Cameron

The Collaborative Habit, Twyla Tharp

Spotify:

Songwriting for Guitar/Mike Meiers

Social Media:

Instagram

Facebook

YouTube

Mentions:

Judy Stakee

Books/Authors:

Find Your Unicorn Space by Eve Rodsky; Eve Rodsky Website

The Artists’ Way, Julia Cameron

Big Magic, Elizabeth Gilbert

The Creative Download, Episode 12, Part 2 on CollaboratIon

Fri, 15 Aug 2025 08:00:00 -0600

YouTube.com/@aoristsounds

In this episode, we have our amazing guest, George Slavik, back with us to chat more about collaboration - what is it, why it's important, and how to get started.

Guest: George Slavik:

https://songworking.substack.com/p/a-songstory-i-want-to-know

https://www.instagram.com/aoristsounds/

Mentions:

Songwriting for Guitar/Mike Meiers

Judy Stakee

Books/Authors:

Find Your Unicorn Space by Eve Rodsky; Eve Rodsky Website

The Artists’ Way, Julia Cameron

Spotify:

Social Media:

The Creative Download - Collaboration (episode 11)

Fri, 25 Jul 2025 08:00:00 -0600

In today's episode we have our first guest, George Slavik, fellow musician, and music producer. We talk with him about collaboration and co-writing, among other things. Join us as we dive into collaboration!

Guest: George Slavik:

YouTube.com/@aoristsounds

https://songworking.substack.com/p/a-songstory-i-want-to-know

https://www.instagram.com/aoristsounds/

Mentions:

Songwriting for Guitar/Mike Meiers

Judy Stakee

Books/Authors:

Find Your Unicorn Space by Eve Rodsky; Eve Rodsky Website

The Artists’ Way, Julia Cameron

Spotify:

Christy Bruneau

Chelsea Nettleton

Social Media:

Instagram

Facebook

YouTube

Instagram: @thecreativedownloadpodcast

Facebook: @thecreativedownloadpodcast

YouTube: @thecreativedownloadpodcast

The Creative Download, Episode 10 - Curiosity Does NOT Always Kill The Cat

Fri, 11 Jul 2025 07:00:00 -0600

Songwriting for Guitar/Mike Meiers

In today's episode we continue our discussion on Curiosity, and how to apply it to your art and your life.

Resources Used/Mentioned:

Websites:

Judy Stakee

Books/Authors:

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert; Elizabeth Gilbert Website

The Wart of Art by Steven Pressfield; Steven Pressfield Website

Find Your Unicorn Space by Eve Rodsky; Eve Rodsky Website

Spotify:

Social Media:

The Creative Download - Curiosity Does NOT Always Kill The Cat (episode 9)

Fri, 27 Jun 2025 07:00:00 -0600

In today's episode, we delve into the fascinating topic of curiosity and how to apply it to your art and life.

Resources/Sources Used:

Books Mentioned:

Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert; Elizabeth Gilbert Website

The Wart of Art by Steven Pressfield; Steven Pressfield Website

Find Your Unicorn Space by Eve Rodsky; Eve Rodsky Website

Spotify links:

Christy: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2FBHo...

Chelsea: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5pC0s...

Follow us on:

Episode 8 - Allowing The Mystery

Fri, 13 Jun 2025 07:00:00 -0600

Hey everyone! In this episode we're chatting through part 3 of Steven Pressfield's The War of Art. One of the biggest things in this episode that we're talking about is looking at your art as something that should be shared, not kept to yourself (most of the time). So when you KNOW it's time to share, you KNOW, and you need to listen to that.

Books Mentioned:
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield

Spotify links:

Christy: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2FBHo...

Chelsea: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5pC0s...

Follow us on:

Instagram:

Be Who YOU Are! (Part 2 on Mindset)

Sat, 31 May 2025 15:00:00 -0600

The Creative Download Podcast Episode 7 Part 2
Welcome to part 2 of the mindset episode. We continue our talk on being who YOU ARE, living in your values, living your day with intention, breaking down moments of our past, continuing to clear our channel, and so much more…

Referenced in this episode:
https://brenebrown.com/resources/dare...
https://lovingparentpodcast.com/

Books Mentioned:
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
Awakened Awareness by Dr. Lisa Miller
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
Be Your Future Self Now by Dr. Benjamin Hardy
A Man’s Search For Meaning by Viktor Frankl
Day By Elie Wiesel
Night By Elie Wiesel

Chicago “Hard To Say I’m Sorry”

PMC-Production Music Conference https://pmamusic.com/pmc-2025-save-th...

Tom Ferry Coaching https://www.tomferry.com/

Spotify links:

Christy: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2FBHo...

Chelsea: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5pC0s...

Follow us on:

Instagram: The Creative Download Podcast Episode 7 Part 2
Welcome to part 2 of the mind set episode. We continue our talk on being who YOU ARE, living in your values, living your day with intention , breaking down moments of our past, continuing to clear our channel, and so much more…
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Episode 6 - Part 1 - All About Mindset

Fri, 25 Apr 2025 07:00:00 -0600

Chelsea Nettleton Spotify

In this episode, we begin to scratch the surface of the all-important Mindset - again, drawing from the book by Steven Pressfield, The War of Art, we talk about the amateur versus the professional mindset, and how that plays into our/your artistic passions and pursuits.

Referenced in this episode:

Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert

The War of Art, by Steven Pressfield

Music by Unlove from the TV show, Killing Eve

Song by Gary Jules, titled "Falling Awake"

Christy Brunea Spotify

Episode 5, Part 2 on Resistance

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 08:00:00 -0600

Welcome back to our chat on Resistance! In this episode we continue our conversation about what Resistance is, and begin to take a look at how to combat it. But we'll get into that more in our next episode, so stay tuned for that.

Follow us on:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecreativedownloadpodcast/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thecreativedownloadpodcast

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheCreativeDownloadPodcast

Links for the notes on episode 5:

Songtown Podcast: https://songtown.com/on-songwriting/podcast
Songtown website: https://songtown.com
Songwriting for Guitar: https://www.songwritingforguitar.com/
The War of Art book (Thriftbooks): https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/the-war-of-art-break-through-the-blocks-and-win-your-inner-creative-battles_steven-pressfield/247932/?resultid=51ed8c54-74b3-4829-b2cf-d9fc53a96ffc#edition=6601327&idiq=4053732
Heather Evans (singer/songwriter): https://www.heatherevansmusic.com/
Songwriting consultant and Creative Extraordinaire: https://www.judystakee.com/

And just in case you want them again, here are our Spotify links:

Christy: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2FBHoxFWv0iDmfVMAQl4h6?si=dALiXEK9TTysOFq6VrYjpQ

Chelsea: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5pC0sv2owewxT0u7moL7Pe?si=JLB43PSJRAesYa3O8bvBOw

Episode 4 - Part 1 on "Resistance"

Fri, 28 Mar 2025 06:00:00 -0600

In this episode we begin our discussion on Resistance, with a capital R! Resistance is what stops us from pursuing our passions, and anything else good in life. But we can fight back! Join us as we begin part 1 of our discussion on this enemy of all!

It's Never Too Late To Pursue Your Passion

Mon, 03 Mar 2025 23:00:00 -0700

Chelsea Nettleton Music Website

Here are the links to the different things we mention in this episode, as well as other info mentioned:

Song: Still Your Only One, by Chelsea Nettleton & Circle of 3rds

Christy Bruneau Spotify

Chelsea Nettleton Spotify

Songwriting For Guitar/Mike Meiers

The Artists' Way, by Julia Cameron

Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert

Clearing The Channel

Mon, 17 Feb 2025 20:00:00 -0700

Chelsea Nettleton Music Website

This week's episode is about learning what it means to clear the channel, to let yourself be open to the creativity that wants to fill you and flow through you, as well as what to do with those creative downloads that start coming.

Here are the links to the different things we mention in this episode, as well as other info mentioned:

Song: Still Your Only One, by Chelsea Nettleton & Circle of 3rds

Christy Bruneau Spotify

Circle of 3rds

The Judy Stakee Company

Songwriting For Guitar/Mike Meiers

The Artists' Way, by Julia Cameron

Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert

YouTube videos Chelsea referenced regarding Logic Pro:

The Creative Download - Here We Come!

Thu, 23 Jan 2025 19:00:00 -0700

Chelsea Nettleton Music Website

This is the pilot episode for The Creative Download. In this episode, take a little time to get to know your hosts, Chelsea Nettleton and Christy Bruneau, as well as find out more about what to expect with this creativity-inspiring podcast.

Here are the links to the different things we mention in this episode, as well as other info mentioned:

Song: Still Your Only One

Christy Bruneau Spotify

Circle of 3rds

The Judy Stakee Company

Songwriting For Guitar/Mike Meiers

The Artists' Way, by Julia Cameron

Big Magic, by Elizabeth Gilbert