Hullabaloo's Steve Denyes put his rock 'n' roll skills to the ultimate test- 20 Songs in 20 Days! He wrote twenty foot stompin' soulfully addictive catchy tunes to raise money for Happy Star Melodies a non-profit that brings live music, and gives instruments to children fighting life threatening illnesses.
A Hullabaloo concert is a happening, and at one of his shows Steve got to know a little boy named Kelptyn. Kelptyn suffered from an extremely rare blood disease. His mom Sarah Graham saw how music helped her son through many bouts with his disease. "When Kelptyn was just 22 months old, laying on a bed in the intensive care unit with all kinds of monitors, screens, and poles of medicine around him trying to address his painful intracranial pressure, he started to have an extremely low heart rate and doctors and nurses were seconds away from having to perform chest compressions on his small body. None of the medication that typically worked was working so Matthew (Kelptyn's Dada) picked up his ukulele and started to sing. Within seconds, Kelptyn's heart rate came up. The medical staff was able to stabilize him and get him to surgery. Kelptyn lived a little more than two years after that and we witnessed medical miracles such as this again and again with the healing art of music. "
Hullabaloo was set to perform at Kelptyn's third birthday party, but Kelptyn was too ill to celebrate. So when he was better Steve performed a private concert for Kelptyn at his home. Kelptyn passed away shortly after he turned four-years-old. The Graham's founded Happy Star Melodies in his honor, and Steve was ready to lend a hand to bring music to kids who needed to forget about their illnesses for a while. According to Sarah, "Steve was one of the first musicians to say I will help you with anything you need. He has donated CDs, performances, and now he continues to connect us with other musicians who believe in our mission that music is medicine, it heals, and kids fighting life-threatening illnesses need access to it for a variety of reasons. We are huge fans of Steve's musical talent and even bigger fans of his character and heart."
Steve explains how you can help, "20 Songs in 20 Days is set up so that every time you listen or download, my royalties will go directly to Happy Star. So, if you listen on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Music or virtually any digital music service, you’ll be helping to bring music and musical instruments to kids that are facing life-threatening illnesses. And, you can always donate directly by visiting their website." http://www.happystarmelodies.org
If you're asking how did Steve do it? 20 Songs in 20 Days? According to Steve, it was a challenge, "But, having some limits on how long you can spend on a song can really get the creative juices flowing. Under normal circumstances, I can spend a month tinkering on a song. Writing one a day made me trust my first instinct and not fuss too much over the details."
How You Can Help Happy Star Melodies
Follow Happy Star Melodies on social media: Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Sarah says, "We need people to follow us on social media, fundraise with their talent and/or community, musicians that can donate live musical performances at their local pediatric hospitals or as a fundraiser, and new instruments. We focus on portable instruments so patients can transport their instruments to and from hospital and doctor appointments."
It feels good to give, and that's what Steve Denyes has experienced working with Happy Star, "I thank my lucky stars every day that I get make music for the kids and families of San Diego and that I’m able to make a living doing it. Giving back to the community is just a natural part of that cycle."
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