Five Ways to Make Money Online When you Travel

Lots of us who go travelling experience some of the most intense, life-altering experiences of our lives. We see just how big and interesting the world is, and we begin to wonder if we could make it a more permanent thing.

Thanks to the internet, the old days of having to secure a work visa in every country you land in are gone. Provided you’re in a place with a decent internet connection, there are a few different ways to make money so you can travel indefinitely.

Making Money on the Internet to Fund Travel

  1. Freelancing – If only someone had told this author how much money could be made from freelance copywriting, web design, and affiliate marketing before she settled down, her travels could have been much longer and more interesting. Typically, she only found out it’s possible to make up to $1,000 a week online quite easily after she had kids and was looking for a job she could do from home. If you have a way with words, can put together nice WordPress websites, or can do both, then it’s possible to make a decent living on the road. Check out sites like peopleperhour for leads.
  1. Gambling – It can be dangerous and addictive, but if you do it right, gambling can also be highly lucrative. The trick is to find the games that involve skill rather than just blind chance. For example, if you master poker or learn how to count cards when playing blackjack, you can make consistent gains by gambling. Sites like Gamblers pro show the best sites with big welcome bonuses. Just stay away from the video slots and scratchcards – those are mugs games and you’re likely to shorten your adventure rather than prolong it.
  1. Trading – It takes a little skill and time to learn, but trading financial markets, cryptocurrencies, and other financial instruments can be highly profitable. Apps like Robinhood allow you to buy and sell fractions of stocks and shares, and some other trading apps allow you to bet on what direction the stock market will go in. It’s not the same as casino gaming; there are definite patterns to it such as trading moving averages. It’s worth looking into if you have a knack for understanding the markets.
  1. Teaching – Back in this author’s day, you had to take one-year contracts in China, Indonesia, and elsewhere to fund your next journey. That was no bad thing as you really get to dig deep and learn the culture when you spend a year or more there, but she’d have loved the flexibility to teach online, too. These days, there are all sorts of websites and apps hiring teachers who can teach English, French, Chinese, Arabic, and many other languages. You can also stop and teach in a real school if you find a place you particularly like.
  1. Hospitality – If you’re interested in working your way around the world, there’s no better industry to be in than hospitality. Whether it’s pulling pints or waiting tables or working on cruise ships that go all over the world, there are plenty of jobs in the travel and hospitality industries. The main benefit of this industry is you’re getting paid to travel rather than paying to travel. Of course, you’ll have to do your fair share of the work to earn your keep.

Go Live Your Dreams and Travel Far and Wide!

There really are no excuses anymore. If you really want to travel and have the work ethic to make it happen, there’s no stopping you. There’s nothing to stop you combining one or more of the methods above to make money on the road. There are very few places in the world today that don’t have an internet connection, so have at it and have fun!

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Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: money, online, travel, ways

The Pros and Cons of Using Cryptocurrency as Money

In this modern day and age, especially in today’s uncertain times, more and more people are shopping online or are making purchases from their home computers, smartphones and tablets. While most online companies accept debit and credit card payments, it is not uncommon to see certain retailers accepting a form of payment known as cryptocurrency. Understanding what these types of funds are and how it can work for you is crucial when using it correctly.

What is Cryptocurrency?

Essentially, cryptocurrency is digital money that is created and protected using code. This form of payment is monitored heavily by a peer-to-peer protocol and includes an encrypted string of data specific to its worth. Some of the most popular forms of cryptocurrency include Bitcoin and Ethereum, with Bitcoin being one of the most popular and widely used. The value of such currency has increased over the course of the few years it’s been in circulation. Different cryptocurrencies can be traded against each other via dedicated crypto exchanges, without the need for traditional cash transactions. Additionally, crypto CFDs (contracts for difference) are available for those who wish to speculate on cryptocurrency price movements against the US Dollar.

Pros

One of the most obvious benefits of using cryptocurrency is that it is not specific to one country. Unlike money that is specific to one or two areas, this form of payment offers ubiquity. Funds are effortless to transfer, authenticate and secure, so you won’t need to worry about issues with late payments. Transactions are final and cannot be reversed, so you won’t need to deal with people wanting refunds and returns when handling payments. Transfers take just seconds in comparison to other forms of payments that can take minutes, hours or even days.

Cons

A common problem with cryptocurrency is that some establishments may not accept it. This means that you won’t always be able to use your Bitcoin everywhere that you go shopping. Bitcoin and other methods are vulnerable to theft like any other form of payment that you might have used in the past, so you’ll need to take security measures to keep your balance protected. Because Bitcoin and other types aren’t government-backed, some people don’t trust payments using these methods and will not accept them at all. While it might be considered a positive for many people, the fact that all sales are final and irreversible can be a deterrent for some.

The Bottom Line

Bitcoin and other options are still considered a relatively new form of currency and they aren’t entirely understood by a lot of people. It’s not used everywhere and even though it’s gone up in value since first introduced, it has had issues with maintaining this value over time. For this reason, it’s crucial that you educate yourself about different methods before investing into anything or using them for yourself. Many people rely heavily on funds, like Bitcoin, while others may be hesitant to make the switch. Educating yourself about how cryptocurrency works and what you can expect out of it will make all the difference in terms of your financial security.

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Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: cons, cryptocurrency, money, pros

Taylor Hawkins & The Coattail Riders “Get The Money” Set For Nov. 8 Release

“GET THE MONEY” ALL-NEW FULL-LENGTH ALBUM FEATURING ALL-STAR ROCK ROYALTY SUPPORTING CAST OUT NOVEMBER 8 ON SHANABELLE/RCA RECORDS

On November 8, Taylor Hawkins will descend from the levitating drum throne on which he’s spent two years on tour supporting Foo Fighters’ international #1 album Concrete and Gold. The forthcoming third Taylor Hawkins and the Coattail Riders album, Get The Money, will be released by Shanabelle/RCA Records on that date, and can be pre-ordered now with all pre-orders receiving the instant grat track “Crossed The Line” (featuring guest turns from Hawkins’ bandmate Dave Grohl and Yes vocalist Jon Davison).

Pre-Order Get The Moneyhere. Listen to “Crossed The Line” here. Exclusive Merch bundles are also be available here.

Produced by John Lousteau and Taylor himself, and mixed by Sylvia Massy, Get The Money follows Taylor’s 2016 six-song mini-LP KOTA by three years almost to the day, and features a scope far wider than KOTA’s takes on suburbia’s bizarro underbelly. The new album finds Taylor and Coattail Riders Chris Chaney, Brent Woods and John Lousteau accompanied by an all-star supporting cast including Taylor’s fellow Foo Fighters Dave Grohl and Pat Smear, Roger Taylor, Joe Walsh, Duff McKagan, Nancy Wilson, Chrissie Hynde, Perry Farrell, LeAnn Rimes and more, collectively creating a staggering, epic sprawl that swerves from classic rock to prog and glam and all points between.

The track listing for Get The Money is:

  1. Crossed the Line (featuring Dave Grohl, Jon Davison)
  2. Don’t Look At Me That Way (featuring Duff McKagan, Nancy Wilson)
  3. You’re No Good at Life No More (featuring Dave Grohl)
  4. I Really Blew It (featuring Dave Grohl, Perry Farrell)
  5. Queen Of The Clowns  (featuring Mark King)
  6. Get the Money (featuring Joe Walsh, Chrissie Hynde, Duff McKagan)
  7. C U in Hell (featuring LeAnn Rimes)
  8. Middle Child (featuring Dave Grohl)
  9. Kiss the Ring
  10. Shapes Of Things (featuring Roger Taylor, Pat Smear)

Since the Texas-born Laguna-bred force of nature made his Foo Fighting debut on the tour supporting 1997’s sophomore opus The Colour and the Shape, he has been an essential element of the sound and personality of the last great American arena/stadium rock band.  He’s played on Grammy-winning FF albums including “There Is Nothing Left To Lose” , “One by One” and “Wasting Light”, and contributed lead vocals to Concrete and Gold’s “Sunday Rain,” as well as “Cold Day In The Sun” from 2005’s In Your Honor.

Taylor’s previous extracurricular output includes two albums from Taylor Hawkins and the Coattail Riders, one with The Birds of Satan, the above-mentioned KOTA mini-LP that featured Hawkins on lead vocals and nearly every instrument.

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Filed Under: Music, Music Headlines Tagged With: 8, coattail, hawkins, money, nov, release, ...

Best Online Tournaments to Make Money

Gone are the days when video games were played just for fun or to kill your spare time. Now video games online are played in the form of tournaments and can help you to win a handsome amount of money. Many of the games like virtual slots, solitaire and many more flash games reward you in terms of cash on winning these type of tournaments. You do not necessarily be a pro-found online gamer to win these games. If you want to have an easy win over these online gaming tournaments you can get several tips and tricks about the casino games at casinoluv.net.

The write-up below covers a list of top games that are considered as the top-notch option to make money with online gaming tournaments.

List of Online Tournaments to Make Money:

There is not a single online tournament that allows you to make money. You can play different games in a different genre as per your interest. The various tournaments held online are:

• Fortnite PC tournament
• FIFA 19 PC tournament
• NBA 2k19 PS4 tournament
• NHL19 PS4 tournament
• Call Off Duty Black Ops 4 PS4 tournament
• Madden NFL 19 PS4 tournament
• UFC 3 Xbox 1 tournament

And many more. The details of the online tournaments with the date, time and device compatibility are detailed on various sites online. You can also get im-portant information like which all countries can participate in the tournament? How many players can participate in the gameplay? How many players have enrolled? How many seats are left? You also get to know the cash prizes avail-able on winning.

Some of the games can be played free of cost and still offers you money on winning the game while other tournaments have entry fees of around 5 to 10 dollars and the winning amount can be very huge. The seats in the tournaments are allocated to the participants on the first come first serve basis. Playing and winning such games is highly exciting.

These type of tournaments not only credit you with the cash amount but can have gifts in terms of goodies, coupons and much more. PUBG was recently famous for treating the players with a chicken dinner.

These tournaments have rules and regulations to be taken into account. The players are provided with all sorts of guidelines before starting the game. If you have to invest the money as a entry fee you can do it by creating your online gaming account just like that in the case of casinos. Once you provide your basic information and the necessary identity details you can avail your prizes easily. Due to spams in such types of games, the originality of the play-er is checked through this information and identity proofs.

Final Words:

If you also love playing online gaming and want to participate in these types of tournaments check the various tournaments that are available for your play online. There is no specific and hard way to participate in such tournaments. You just need to create your profile online, create a funding source to pay the required amount to start the play and just enter the tournament. Make sure the details you enter are valid and not fake else you may not be able to encash your prize even on winning.

Do not make use of any fake details. Before getting into the tournament make sure it is not against the laws of your state. Most of the tournaments are le-galiced in maximum states. So, do not just play alone. Test your skills by en-tering and winning these tournaments.

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Filed Under: Commentary Tagged With: money, online, tournaments

“TOPGOLF” – A waste of time and money

 

Last year my wife gifted my son and I gift cards to the new-to-Kansas City attraction known as TOPGOLF..  TOPGOLF is basically an elevated driving range with various targets which you can hit to score points while competing against your friends.  Sounds fun, I know, but the constant hassles are not worth the energy and time spent.

Depending on where you live, the hourly rates may differ from the ones in KC.  Here the cost is $25 an hour if you go before noon, $35 an hour between noon and five o’clock and $45 an hour after five.  We got there at 11:30 a.m. and were sent to one of the elevated tees.  We were going to play for two hours (thinking since we were there before noon that the cost would be $50.00) but learned that, even if you’re there before noon, once the clock strikes “12” the price goes up.  Not wanting to pay $60 we elected for play for 90 mins at a cost of $42.50.

My son “signed in” to the game and his name appeared on the screen.  We tried to “add a player” but were unable to.  I finally signaled one of the employees and he came over.  We explained the situation and he said that I’d have to pay $5.00 to add my name.  I told him we had already paid for the time and he told me that there is also a $5.00 charge to come in.  It reminded me of the old casinos here in Kansas City -when they first opened you had to pay a $15.00 “docking fee” to go inside.  That’s right…you had to give them money for them to allow you to spend your money!  I agreed to pay the five bucks and we began hitting balls.

At TOPGOLF, if you want a ball you have to wave your club over a sensor, which then has a machine spit a ball out.  Sadly for us, you had to wave your club over the sensor repeatedly…sometimes five or six times…before a ball came out.  The constant wait for a ball obviously ate into our time.  Also, we would alternate our shots but sometimes, even though I was noted as the player up, after I hit the ball it would suddenly change to my son and award him the points.  At 12:15 everything stopped and a message on the screen told us we had 15-minutes left to play.  As we had signed up for 90-minutes we were surprised to see this.  After a few minutes I tracked down the same employee.  Again he came over and pushed some buttons.  “You only paid for an hour,” he told us.  “No,” I said, “we requested 90 minutes.  The cost was $42.50.”  Again, he had to push some buttons.  The whole exchange probably took another five minutes off of our playing time.  I mentioned that and he shrugged.  It was obvious he could care less.  I jokingly said to my son, “well, this isn’t going to look good in my write up.”  As if I had flicked a switch, he immediately showed some interest in us, asking if there was anything he could do for us.  I told him “no.”  A few minutes the manager approached us and asked the same thing.  I explained to her all of the problems we had had and how we had probably lost 15-minutes of our time to glitches.   Obviously she felt that, despite hearing about all of the problems we had had, none of them qualified for the “something I can do” request to be followed up with actually doing something.  No “I’m sorry, let me extend your time” or “I’m sorry, let me get you a pass to come back another time.  Like the previous employee, she just shrugged.  She walked away, we finished up and left.

Maybe when everything is working properly TOPGOLF is a fun time.  But if I’m going to drop $45, I’m going to play 18 holes.

 

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Filed Under: Style Tagged With: money, time, topgolf, waste

Of Mice & Men + SiriusXM Premiere Cover of Pink Floyd’s “Money”

OF MICE & MEN + SIRIUSXM
Premiere Cover of Pink Floyd’s “Money”

New Album “DEFY” Out January 19

Winter 2018 Headline Tour With BLESSTHEFALL, CANE HILL, & FIRE FROM THE GODS Kicks Off On January 31

Of Mice & Men —vocalist/bassist Aaron Pauley, guitarist Alan Ashby, drummer Valentino Arteaga, and guitarist Phil Manansala— have shared another new track from their forthcoming and much anticipated album “Defy”, out January 19 through Rise Records. The song “Money,” which is a Pink Floyd cover, premiered via SiriusXM’s Octane earlier this week and is now available at all DSPs.

Listen to “Money” here.

The band will embark on a headline tour, which kicks off on January 31 in Berkeley, California, with Blessthefall, Cane Hill, Fire From the Gods, and Mscw in tow. The trek runs through March 7 in San Diego. All tour dates are below. Tickets and VIP packages are available here.

Defy was produced by Howard Benson (My Chemical Romance, Three Days Grace, Skillet, The All-American Rejects) and mixed by Chris Lord-Alge (Green Day, Breaking Benjamin, Shinedown, Rise Against).

Of Mice & Men released the explosive and unforgettable new tracks “Warzone” and “Defy,” which followed the previous one-two punch of the singles “Unbreakable” and “Back to Me.”

OF MICE & MEN ON TOUR:
With Blessthefall, Cane Hill, Fire From the Gods
1/31 — Berkeley, CA — The UC Theatre*
2/1 — Santa Cruz, CA — Catalyst*
2/2 — Portland, OR — Wonder Ballroom*
2/3 — Seattle, WA — El Corazon*
2/4 — Boise, ID — Knitting Factory*
2/5 — Salt Lake City, UT — Complex*
2/6 — Denver, CO — Summit Music Hall*
2/8 — Minneapolis, MN — Music Hall MPLS*
2/9 — St. Louis, MO — Ready Room
2/11 — Chicago, IL — House of Blues
2/12 — Detroit, MI — Crofoot
2/13 — Toronto, ON — Opera House
2/14 — Montreal, QC — Corona Theatre
2/16 — Boston, MA — Paradise Rock Club
2/17 — New York City, NY — Gramercy Theatre
2/18 — Asbury Park, NJ — Stone Pony
2/19 — Philadelphia, PA — Trocadero
2/20 — Charlotte, NC — Underground
2/21 — Atlanta, GA — Masquerade Heaven
2/23 — Orlando, FL — Beacham
2/24 — Destin, FL — Club L.A.
2/25 — New Orleans, LA — House of Blues
2/27 — Houston, TX — White Oak
2/28 — Dallas, TX — Canton Hall
3/1 — Albuquerque, NM — Sunshine
3/4 — Vegas, NV — Vinyl @ Hard Rock Live
3/5 — Flagstaff, AZ — Orpheum
3/6 — Phoenix, AZ — Nile Theatre
3/7 — San Diego, CA — SOMA
*No Cane Hill

DEFY TRACK LISTING:
1. Defy
2. Instincts
3. Back to Me
4. Sunflower
5. Unbreakable
6. Vertigo
7. Money
8. How Will You Live
9. On The Inside
10. Warzone
11. Forever YDG’n
12. If We Were Ghosts

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Filed Under: Music, Music Headlines Tagged With: cöver, floyds, men, mice, money, pink, ...

Film Review: “All the Money in the World”

 

ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD

Starring:  Michelle Williams, Mark Wahlberg and Christopher Plummer

Directed by:  Ridley Scott

Rated:  PG 13

Running time:  2 hrs 12 mins

Sony Pictures

 

 

J. Paul Getty was a son of a bitch.

 

The first person in the WORLD to accumulate a fortune worth one BILLION dollars, he was a hard-driven man who had no time for family.  So when his assistant announces that the police are on the phone because his grandson has been kidnapped, it’s no surprise when he instructs her to tell them that he is “not available.”  Thanks grandpa!

 

Based on a true story (one I clearly remember from my youth), “All the Money in the World” is a tale that lives up to the old saying that “money can’t buy everything.”  We meet 16 year-old Paul Getty (Charlie Plummer, no relationship to Christopher) as he prowls around the red light area of Rome.  Clearly under-age he is scolded by the women he approaches and walks along the road.  Suddenly a van pulls up and Paul is swept inside and quickly blindfolded.  He is secluded out in the country and his mother Gail (an always great Michelle Williams) is contacted.  The kidnappers want $17 million for Paul’s return.  They are unaware that, like the majority of the Getty heirs, she has no money.  She turns to the boy’s grandfather (Christopher Plummer) for help.  He gives her his answer when he is asked by a reporter how much he would pay to rescue his grandson – “Nothing.”

 

This film has gained some extra notoriety due to the fact that Kevin Spacey had originally been hired to play J. Paul Getty and that, in fact, the film was finished when news of Spacey’s alleged misdeeds was made public.  In an unprecedented move, director Ridley Scott chose to replace Spacey with Christopher Plummer and reshoot every scene that had once featured Spacey.  In six weeks’ time he managed to gather the entire cast and crew and pulled off a cinematic miracle by meeting the film’s original release date.  And what an amazing cast.

 

Williams, who was heartbreaking in last year’s “Manchester by the Sea,” is the tough, no nonsense mother who puts her son first in every decision.  She is cool and collected even when we, the audience, would be inconsolable.  Wahlberg is a former CIA operative who now runs Getty’s personal security.  He does his best, at Getty’s request, to negotiate with the kidnappers but finds little luck.  But the film rightly belongs to Christopher Plummer.  You can still watch the original trailer for “All the Money in the World” on YouTube, and you’ll come away with the feeling that Spacey would have given a strong performance.  But here Plummer is more than strong.  He’s brilliant.  He’s taken a character that the audience should hate and somehow makes his actions seem sensible, no matter how little.  Also, J. Paul Getty was 80 years old when Paul was kidnapped.  Spacey is 58 and required a lot of make-up.  Christopher Plummer is 88 and every year is ingrained on his still handsome face.  He recently received a Golden Globe Award nomination for his performance here and I wouldn’t be surprised if that is soon followed by his third Academy Award nod (he won an Oscar in 2012).

 

Director Scott keeps the story moving and the technical aspects, from art direction to photography, are well deserving of praise.  This is an amazing piece of filmmaking, made more so by the quirky back story, and is easily one of the best films of the year!

 

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Filed Under: Film Reviews, Movies Tagged With: film, money, review, world

Win tickets to the Kansas City Premiere of “All the Money in the World”

 

 

 

 

Media Mikes has teamed up with their friends at Sony Pictures to give (25) of our readers and a guest the chance to be among the first to see the latest film from acclaimed director Ridley Scott, “All the Money in the World,” at an advance screening to be held on Monday, December 11, 2017 at the AMC Studio 30 in Olathe, Kansas.

 

The film, starring Mark Wahlberg, Christopher Plummer and Michelle Williams tells the story of the 1973 kidnapping of John Paul Getty III, whose grandfather, one of the richest men in the world, refused to pay the ransom.  The screening will begin at 7:00 pm.

All you have to do is click  HERE   

The first (25) readers to do so will receive a pass for (2) to attend the screening.  This is a first come/first serve giveaway.  Once the allotted number of passes have been claimed the giveaway is over.  Good luck!

 

“All the Money in the World”

Where:  AMC Studio 30 Theatre – Olathe, Kansas
When:  7:00 pm

 

 

“All the Money in the World” opens nationally on December 25, 2017

 

ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD follows the kidnapping of 16-year-old John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer) and the desperate attempt by his devoted mother Gail (Michelle Williams) to convince his billionaire grandfather (Christopher Plummer) to pay the ransom.  When Getty Sr. refuses, Gail attempts to sway him as her son’s captors become increasingly volatile and brutal.  With her son’s life in the balance, Gail and Getty’s advisor (Mark Wahlberg) become unlikely allies in the race against time that ultimately reveals the true and lasting value of love over money.

 

 

 

 

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Filed Under: Kansas City Tagged With: city, kansas, money, premiere, tickets, win, ...

Beebs and Her Money Makers’ Michelle Beebs talks about new album “The Wurst Album Ever”

Michelle Beebs is the lead vocalist for the funk/ska band Beebs and Her Money Makers. The group was featured heavily on the Fuse Channels original series “Warped Roadies” and have been burning up stages across the U.S. ever since. The group recently released a brand new studio album titled “The Wurst Album Ever” and is set to take over the Journey’s stage as part of this year’s Warped Tour line up. Media Mikes had the pleasure of speaking with Beebs recently about the new album as well as about the impact of being on “Warped Roadies”.

Adam Lawton: What can you tell us about the band’s new album?
Michelle Beebs: Honestly it’s the worst album ever! (Laughs) We didn’t put a lot of effort in to it but we did what we could. (Laughs)  It’s a really fun album that I think everyone is going to really enjoy. We have been on this sort of ska frenzy lately so there is quite a bit of that on their mixed in with some funk as we certainly are a funky band. We also included a cover of TLC’s “Waterfalls” on the record which was a lot of fun to work on.

AL: Were you working on this record while being out on the road this past year?
MB: We were writing while we were out on tour and as soon as we got home we just started compiling everything. We found that the songs you work on the most tend to be the ones that suck while the ones that come together pretty quickly tend to be more fun. We work pretty fast and generally end up with songs that are really poppy and catchy. The ones that we decide to put to the side and go back to later generally don’t make it.

AL: can you tell us about the video for “Out the Door” and what made you decide to choose that particular song?
MB: We had originally planned to release a video for “Death to Ego” first but last minute we switched it to “Out the Door”. We just weren’t quite sure if the world was ready for that much funk at once. Our drummer Paul actually directed the video and I got to drive the coolest car ever. I wish I could have kept that car but they wouldn’t let. I keep trying to wear them down so I can have it. I have found that being persistent can either get you a restraining order or get you lunch with someone. (Laughs) That was the case with John Stamos.

AL: John Stamos has a restraining order against you or you guys are going to lunch?
MB: Well I want to put on record that Beebs and Her Money Makers have beef with John Stamos. He promised to have lunch with the band and then totally bailed on us. I’m not saying that my feelings are hurt but he certainly disappointed me.

AL: This album has similar artwork to your previous releases. Can you tell us a little bit about that?
MB: We have had the same guy doing our art work since the very first album. His name is Tony Baldini and he is just amazing. He actually did a full comic book on as and we are currently working on a second one which should be out next year.

AL: Can you tell us how you first got involved with performing on the Warped Tour?
MB: It was like magic! We were playing the Florida Music Festival which was being held in downtown Orlando and Kevin Lyman was a keynote for the festival. He saw our performance and came up to me afterwards and introduced himself. He said he thought we were amazing and asked if we would come out on Warped Tour the following year. I still to this day don’t know if that was even real.

AL: How did being involved with the television show come about?
MB: Kevin called me and told me they were going to do a second season of “Warped Roadies” and they were looking to follow two female artists this time around. They were looking at doing one independent artist and one that was on a label. They chose us and Echosmith who are on Warner Brothers.

AL: You and the band had a lot of big moments happen while on the tour. What was it like having the cameras there to capture everything?
MB: It was all just so crazy! Everything you saw was real and I am glad the cameras were there as the summer just happened so fast. So much went on it was hard to retain it all. (Laughs) I met my brother for the first time, my dad came out to the tour, I met a boy, got to sing with Reel Big Fish and ended up becoming good friends with those guys. We actually got to tour with them recently which was awesome! It’s really just hard to believe that all that stuff happened within two months.

AL: Were you surprised with the impact the show has had on the band?
MB: Kevin Lyman has been a huge inspiration to me on a business level. I was already trying to make it to the lecture the day he asked us to be on Warped Tour but I didn’t make it. That day was crazy and then I end up meeting him and being asked to be on the tour. This whole experience has been so surreal and leading up to all this we were working and still are working very hard. I will forever be in debt to Kevin for everything.

AL: Can you tell us about the bands plans for this summer and any other plans you guys might have?
MB: This summer is going to be crazy! We partnered with a company called Flutter Fetti who is the industry’s leading confetti maker. We are going to be playing on the Journey’s stage this year and we have so much cool stuff added to the show that our performances are going to awesome. We are going to have confetti at our merchandise stand for people to throw during our set. We are bringing out the Jam Bot this year and we are also encouraging people to come dressed as their own super hero. It can’t be one that already exists it has to be something they created. We plan to pick the top three or four at each show to come up and dance on stage with us during our set. It’s just going to be a lot of fun.

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Filed Under: Interviews, Music Interviews Tagged With: album, beebs, makers, michelle, money, talks, ...

Zachary Levi Raises Money For Operation Smile at NYCC

If you found yourself in The Nerd Machine booth this past weekend at New York Comic Con, you may have noticed a multitude of celebrity guests dropping by for impromptu photo and signing sessions with fans. These guests, as announced via the twitter hashtag #Smiles4Smiles, included stars such as Seth Green, David Duchovny and “Community’s” Yvette Nicole Brown. Actor Zachary Levi, who is currently in New York appearing in Broadway’s First Date, was behind bringing these guests together at NYCC to raise money for Operation Smile.

Can you talk about what Smiles4Smiles is?
Zachary Levi: “So basically, I’m an ambassador for Operation Smile and our main events called NerdHQ that we do at San Diego Comic Con, we make most of our money doing the panels that we do called “Conversations for a Cause“. But there’s a lot of time in between where celebrities might not be able to do a panel for us but they have time to do some photos for us or or do some signings for us. And by for us, I mean for the fans obviously. And I just kind of believe that, I don’t know, for me, you know I’ve been really blessed and…I make my money doing the acting gigs that I do and I love that I’m able to do signings and do photos and stuff and make it affordable– twenty bucks a pop–and you tell people that that all goes to charity, everyone feels a lot better about the whole process of it. So then I was just trying to figure out a catchy way to call it. So it’s Smiles, you’re smiling for a camera for Smiles, Operation Smile. And Signing4Smiles. So that’s what Smiles4Smiles is.”

Levi will next be seen in Thor: The Dark World and I couldn’t help putting a spoiler-free question to the new–taking over the role from Thor‘s Josh Dallas–Fandral the Dashing.

What’s the coolest thing about being an Asgardian?
Being a blond, I guess. (Laughs)

It was more fun being a blond?
It was! It was fun. It was different.

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Filed Under: Film Interviews, Interviews Tagged With: Fandral, levi, money, nycc, NYCC 2012, operation, ...

Zheng Liu talks about film debut “Blood Money”

Zheng Liu made his film debut in the action/thriller “Blood Money”. The film also co-stars rap superstar Pitbull and martial arts legend Gordon Liu. Zheng is already being compared to be the next Bruce Lee. Media Mikes had a chance to chat with Zheng about his film, doing his own stunts and what he has planned next

Mike Gencarelli: How is it already being compared to be the next Bruce Lee?
Zheng Liu: I say this to people. Of course no-one can be Bruce Lee, It is crazy to say this. I don’t really like hearing it at all. It is embarrassing with me. I think what they are saying is that maybe I could be in films that go international like what Bruce Lee did. But Jackie Chan and Jet Li do this already. I hope people can see me not like someone else.

MG: Tell us about your experience filming “Blood Money”?
ZL: I always watched action and kung fu films and believed I could do what they do, but never thinking I would go into a film myself. When Greg the Director visited us in China, I did not know what he was here for. He filmed many students but said they were not what he wanted. Then they asked me to show him what I could do. Straight after that he asked me to go in the film. I was not sure about leaving Shaolin and going to another country away from my family, so I thought hard about it for nearly half a year. I decided to do it and my Master agreed to let me try this which would be a good way to maybe show Shaolin to the world through films. The

hardest part was actually saying the words in English as I was still learning. The other part was controlling my kicks and punches because I was making contact with the other fighters. Many people got hurt and it was hard physically doing all the stunts. But awesome also!

MG: What was your most difficult stunt in the film?
ZL: Breaking the steel bar over my head is difficult but I have done it many times before. It takes great concentration and power from within. Maybe the hardest stunt was when I did a running somersault over a motorbike that was coming at me at maybe 50mph. That was quite hard as any misjudgment and I slam into the motorbike.

MG: “Blood Money” was your film debut, what did take away from working on the project?
ZL: I think finding my true love of acting. I am very new to this and still have many things to learn, but it is very exciting to think that we can create all these real action stunts and spectacular fighting and show them to people around the world. Also show what Shaolin means to us all.

MG: How was it working with martial arts legend Gordon Liu?
ZL: I remember when our Director Greg showed me a picture of Gordon Liu and said to me that he would be in Blood Money. I said that he must have the wrong actor because this man is a very very big star in China. He would not go in a film with us. But he did. He is so nice and knows everything about acting and martial arts. When he sucks the air out of the flame, it is awesome. I have never seen this. He showed all of us many things when we were together. I have to thank him a lot.

MG: After “Blood Money”, what do you have planned next?
ZL: We have many films ready to make and our next film is probably in New York around winter time.Gregory has told me about this story and it sounds very strong. Not just action but when Chinese culture meets America culture in real life. We have many big stunts and fighting and action planned for this. It will look very real with real street gangs. A very scary but interesting story. I hope you see this next year. If we work hard maybe we can make many movies and help show Shaolin to the world

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Filed Under: Film Interviews, Interviews Tagged With: blood, debut, film, liu, money, talks, ...

Blu-ray Review “Blood Money”

Directed by: Gregory McQualter
Starring: Gordon Liu, Pitbull, Zheng Liu
MPAA Rating: R
Distributed by: XLrator Media
Release Date: August 28, 2012
Running Time: 107 minutes

Film: 2.5 out of 5 stars
Extras: 1 out of 5 stars

“Blood Money” tries to be a fun and action packed movie and it delivers most of the goods…except a cohesive plot. The film stars newcomer Zheng Liu and cameos from “World Famous Rap Star” Pitbull (don’t blink) and Kung-Fu legend Gordon Liu (“Kill Bill 1 & 2”). The only thing that keeps this movie from computer sucking is because it includes real action and real fighting. The film’s fight sequences are done without stuntmen or CGI. One of the most noteworthy scenes are where Zheng Liu does a flying somersault over the raging Harley Davidson. If that isn’t cool enough, Zheng Liu sldo breaks a steel bar on his dead with the actual location sound captured. The action is awesome but doesn’t make it overcome its weak and blotchy plot.

SYNOPSIS: BLOOD MONEY introduces American audiences to the martial arts sensation Zheng Liu, often called “the next Bruce Lee,” and features world-famous rap star Pitbull and Hong Kong film legend Chia Hui Liu aka Gordon Liu (Kill Bill 1 & 2). When a powerful Shaolin warrior (Zheng Liu) turns to crime after his parents are killed and sister kidnapped, the drug cartels of America, Australia and Hong Kong are about to feel the sting of the world’s deadliest hitman.

I think we are going to be seeing a lot more of Zheng Liu in the US. This film is being released by XLrator Media as a combo pack with both Blu-ray disc and DVD disc. The Blu-ray presentation overall is good. The 1080p presentation is sharp and the DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 tracks works perfectly with the film’s action sequences. If you are looking for special features to see behind-the-scenes on this production you will be very disappointed. Since this film promotes “real action and real fighting”, I would have loved to have seen how it was all done etc.  Oh well. There is only a trailer included on this release.

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Filed Under: DVD/Blu-Ray Reviews Tagged With: blood, bluray, money, review
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