Born in Manhattan NY, I was always into music at a young age. At 11 years old, I stole (borrowed) my sister’s guitar and took free classes at my local grade school, (mostly because she was getting too much attention around the house playing for our family).

 = )) 

As a teen, I would drive my friends crazy in the car, singing backgrounds to other artist's music and pretending I was part of their band! But at some point, early on, I realized this was the THING I was excelling at and from there, it was all about finding MY PATH to what I loved most, MUSIC.

Living in South Florida, I played music through High School, and was in a few small bands, but mostly played by myself, from my heart and wrote songs about being alone, being in love, and it's funny how a young artist thinks. Eventually, I went to North Texas State University (University of North Texas Today) to study music, leave the comfort of my parents "nest" and mostly not be left at home while all my “book smart” friends went to fine schools across the country.

I was NOT a very good student and struggled a lot with learning, as mostly I was just a hyper creative and rarely could settle my mind enough to focus on school work. I do not, however, condone giving an excuse for being a poor student. I think "education", at any level, is an ESSENTIAL building block for life. Knowing you can be disciplined and accomplish basic things like school is paramount. I was extremely lucky to get my eventual break. But I think, overall, "continuing" education is up to the individual, their families and your own personal goals. I think it is rather good to have a back-up plan, but it's equally important to give your DREAMS every chance and opportunity you can.

ADVICE: Make sure you have a "day job" while building your dreams. No one needs to starve and we all can multi-task while we work towards our BIG BREAK!

After a brief year of struggling scholastically in college, I decided to come home and “get a job.” I had some AMAZING odd jobs. Managing a video store— Yes, VHS, all the way!

I was a Producer for a Sports Information company, (most of you don’t know I’m a sports junkie!) and eventually I was reaching the age where I knew the next thing I did had to be related to my ultimate dream of being a “singer/songwriter". (Which was my ORIGINAL goal).

So, I was making music with a buddy and he was an assistant at the world famous “Criteria Recording Studios” back in the late 80’s. It’s the place Eric Clapton did “Layla" and James Brown did “I feel good” and basically anyone who was anyone would go to Florida and record. I asked my friend if maybe he could get me an interview to get a job there. So I met with the Studio Manager and they said they didn’t have anything right then. 

Weeks later, they called me and said the only thing available was being a night receptionist. I thought about it for a day, and was like: “I need to find a way, to put myself in front of the most talented Artists and Producers that came through South Florida, where I lived at the time.

Turns out, I was also able to hone my craft, record in my down time and ultimately, it was the best decision I ever made! Even though it took EIGHT very long and tedious years of being nearly 30 years old and STILL being the highest paid receptionist in Criteria HISTORY, I  had more life lessons THERE, then most of my life strung together. 

I'll never forget, a week before my big break....The ONLY time in my life, I started to have self-doubt, 8 years after starting at the studio, I was 30 years old and thought I was having a nervous breakdown not making it in music yet, still answering phones, and I'll never forget my Mom saying: "Adam, you don't want to give up on your dreams "today", and turn 50 years old and wonder why you didn't try a little longer." All these years later, I'm so grateful to her.

She was very right. 

Soon after, the singer of, Collective Soul asked to hear my Demo "cassette", then the Producer of the band heard it and wanted me to meet a few guys he was putting together in Orlando, FL to form a new band. Those people were Rob Thomas, Paul Doucette and Brian Yale, eventually becoming my new bandmates, and after we discovered Kyle Cook in Atlanta, we all, together, became Matchbox20.

That’s the super short version, but the idea was, sometimes it's best to stay true to yourself, make sacrifices, and accept something you may not think EXACTLY fits you, and put yourself at the right place at the right time is SO important. You just have to find a way to get INTO the building. If you're talented, people will recognize you. 

I paid my dues, made it fun, and eventually it all paid off, by having me realize my very first dream!

Look, this is the place I could talk for hours. But basically, what it’s like to be in a band is, it’s like having 4 brothers, you love each other, sometimes you hate each other, but mostly you care about a common cause. For us, it was music, and of course each band member has their own perspective on their time in the band. Mine was both wonderful and sometimes not so, but at the end of the day, I’m beyond proud of what we achieved as a group. I ultimately, got to live my very first dream. I worked very hard to make it happen and adjusted along the way. 

Here’s the stats sheet I usually include in my bio to sum up some of the accomplishments during my days in Matchbox Twenty.

“According to Billboard Magazine, for almost 10 years, Matchbox20 was one of the top 3 bands on radio. From 1996 to 2004, Matchbox 20 sold in excess of 30 million records, and played thousands of shows to millions of fans around the globe. The band also received four GRAMMY nominations, two American Music Award Nods, Earned a People’s Choice Award and was named Rolling Stone Magazine’s Band of Year in 1998.”

Not bad for a guy that was answering phones

until he was 30 years old! = ))

After making 3 Hit-albums, and touring the world for a decade in the band, my time there was done, and I was so proud of reaching my first “true intention”. But I had a lot of other things I wanted to accomplish, so I learned Photoshop, making weird and lovable “creatures and characters", started working with ONE illustrator and eventually, in 2008, I incorporated “Creationville, Inc.”

It started as a Multi-Media Creative Content Studio, that shot some Reality Sizzles, Animation Shorts, wrote a children's book about following your dreams, and manufactured some Plush Toys, like Edgar Pingleton as an extension of the book.

So while I was building the company, I loved “advising” friends. Helping other colleagues focus their business plans and construct a “Do-able” mission statement to reach THEIR goals. After years of doing this, I thought, ”There HAS to be a better way to inspire and teach more people at the same time and present small lessons and tricks that “I” used to reach my goals, and bring it to the masses. 

Which is why I created an action plan that works, to help reach as many people

possible attain THEIR dreams.

In the meantime, I enjoyed creating a light-hearted, "slap-stick" style video podcast, "Creationville" where I and my amazing drummer friend, Randy Cook interviewed talented artists in the entertainment industry. It was a fun way to see, and hear other artists' crazy journey's, while offering Tips and motivational Tools we all learned along the way to success. 

If you want some extra laughs and inspiring stories of people hustling, check out my video podcast, "Creationville" on YouTube.

As of 2023, I am thrilled to find my way back to my first love, MUSIC! I plan to launch my first Solo Album, and also working on Music Production for TV & film, while creating catchy "pop friendly" Corporate Jingles. In addition to offering Music Mentoring, I Co-founded the Owensboro Music Business Expo. It was a one-of-a-kind event designed to bring together like-minded musicians, and provide them the Resources needed  to build a Career and Community in the music industry.

"...after privately consulting with Artists, Bands and Corporate Brands for decades, this year, I decided to extend my outreach in hopes to pass on my life experiences, career accomplishments and knowledge to those who might be stuck or need an extra boost! Ultimately, I LOVE helping people be the best versions of themselves, by identifying their strengths and help propel them to accomplish their dreams."

I can't wait to see who signs up!

~Adam Gaynor/Noise11.com