Monday, April 25, 2011 at 10:45PM I took this video last week while I was at Frontier Ranch, a YoungLife camp on the side of a mountain above Buena Vista, Colorado (where my family is about to spend a month serving high school kids.)
This is slated to be the first song on the record. I thought it would be fun to share it with you. Hope you enjoy it!!
Monday, March 21, 2011 at 10:20PM I got this idea a few years ago, thought it was crazy, and decided not to do it. But I had made the fateful mistake of telling a few friends.
They agreed it was crazy, and also that it was awesome.
The longer I went avoiding this idea, the more I couldn't stop thinking about it. And finally, it's time.
My next solo record is going to tell the story of a man named Leonard Belle. He lives 300 years from now and loses his wife in a sudden accident while their divorce is being finalized. In his rage and grief he takes a gig driving a long-distance space freighter for a year. (Due to relativity, by the time he returns to Earth everyone he knows will be old or dead.) He decides to bring along some antique instruments and recording equipment (just like the stuff I have!) and will make a record.
This is the record I will make; the man whose story I will tell.
I'm going to build the interior of a spaceship, like the set of a play or a movie, and record the album in there. In uniform. I think it will be crazy fun, inspiring and will allow me to really get into the character and the idea and give it everything I have.
Plus, if I don't do it, I'll end up 75 years old muttering, "Dang it. I never built that spaceship."
Like every kid in every basement with blankets covering the ping-pong table, it's the desire to reach forward and explore.
When I was that kid, it was adventure and galaxies I wanted to explore. Now it's the depths of who we are as people, the galaxies we have to cross to find each other.
I'm so excited for you to join me on this journey!
Not only am I offering many different incentives to help support this project, I'll also be hosting a "Bring a hammer, build a spaceship" weekend in September. Come to Nashville, bring some tools, and you can help me build the set. I'll cater a couple meals and play a private concert for the builders. It will be an amazingly fun time.
More details on that once we raise the funds to get this project off the ground.
I should add, if I don't raise the total amount of my budget here on Kickstarter, I'll lose every dime committed, so I've set the budget a decent bit lower than what I think it'll actually cost. Hopefully we can get it closer to $20,000. This will also allow for some film and making-of video content.
You guys have supported me so well for so many years, and I honestly could not be more grateful. I absolutely love what I do and the people I get to do it with. You have made that possible and continue to. It's an honor and a privilege. I hope you have as much fun with this new project as I will.
Thank you.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011 at 01:50AM 
Holy Schnikes. I have been traveling a lot all of a sudden. Omaha, Nebraska to Connecticut in about a week. I'm home now. And tired!
But it has been awesome.
I started up in Omaha with my writing seminar. I spoke for seven, yes, SEVEN hours about my story, why we write, what to write, how to write, what to do with it once it's written, etc...
It really went amazingly well and I had a blast. These people were actually taking notes:
A few days later my buddy Nick joined me and we headed off in my Toyota Matrix to Virginia. Nine hours through the rain and we barely made it to the show in time.
But, oh what a show!
Not only was it a full house, but the crowd was super fun and responsive.
Nick played a couple tunes off of his new CD and sold like twenty records. Not bad!
Then we headed up to Matthew and Maggie's house to play a living room show.
I swear they fit more people in that room than one would think possible. Very surprised the flood didn't collapse.
And what a blast. What an honor that folks would stand in that crowded room for two hours to listen to songs in absolute quiet!
Here's Nick:
(He sold even more CDs this night)
Then we crashed with Peter and his kind family before heading up to the Community of the Cross in Danbury, CT.
One of my favorite places to ever play. The folks there may be some of the most loving, gracious and wonderful people I've met in my years of travel.
They always make me feel so welcome, and they were just as inviting to Nick. He sold out of the rest of his CDs in about six seconds.
We left right after the show, drove about four hours, got a hotel with a very chatty front desk lady, slept for four hours, drove for nine, played one last show at this place:
...where a fully insane man drove me up and down the side of a mountain at Mach 4 on an ATV in the dark, once I came to the realization that I had not just died we had some Waffle House with a few of my YoungLife friends and drove four and a half more hours home.
And I have not really been awake since.
Monday, February 28, 2011 at 11:07PM It's no secret. I like to read. The classics: Steinbeck, Hemingway, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Vonnegut, Chesterton.
It's also no secret I like to read novels that involve spaceships and aliens. Because it's fun and I'm a nerd. So in light of my next project (details coming VERY soon) and in light of a book I'm currently reading, recommended to me by one Pete Peterson, here are a few of the most embarrassing covers of some of my favorite books.
Enjoy.
First up, the book Pete recommended (that's actually quite good...)
And a few of my other favorites...
Tuesday, February 22, 2011 at 12:43AM 
It's been an incredible couple of weeks at the studio. I mean, amazing. I produced an EP for my friend Jon Troast. We tracked it live, no click tracks, and it's pretty much drums, bass, two guitars and vocals. And all of it's awesome. As you can tell, I'm very excited about it.
The day after that record finished up I started a second EP for Adam Wheatley. We've just wrapped up drums and bass on it and will begin overdubs next week. The songs are really strong, and it's going to be a great one.
I love working with these people, making this music and doing this job. Punch me in the mouth if it ever seems that I take it for granted.
In other news, I'm heading out in a couple days to start playing some Andy O solo shows. Would love to have you join me. It's going to be a lot of fun. The info is over on the tour page, but I thought I'd post it here, as well.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
First United Methodist Church
206 Grand Ave. NW,
Ft. Payne, AL 35967
256-845-1141
6:00 PM
FREE
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Shorter University
315 Shorter Avenue
Rome, GA 30165
7:30 PM
FREE
Friday, February 25, 2011
Salvation Army Corps #614
800 McCallie Avenue
Chattanooga, TN 37403
423-756-1023
7:00 PM
$5 for members, $10 for general
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Songwriters Workshop @ Knowles Mercy Retreat Center
2304 Campanile Rd
Waterloo, NE 68089
402.359.4288
10:00 AM
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Knowles Mercy Retreat Center
2304 Campanile Road
Waterloo, NE 68089
402.359.4288
7:00 PM
$15
Friday, March 4, 2011
Brandon Heath w/ Dave Barnes & Andrew Osenga
Bethany Lutheran Church
4200 N. 204th St.
Omaha, NE 68022
402.289.4440
6:30 PM
$15
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Old Powhatan Baptist Church
2202 Old Church Road
Powhatan, VA 23139
(804)598-4241
7:00 PM
$6
Friday, March 11, 2011
House Show
1819 Presstman St
Baltimore, MD
(443) 553-2589
7:00 PM
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Community Coffeehouse
7 Madison Ave.
Danbury, CT 06810
203-748-4972
7:30 PM
$10
Sunday, March 13, 2011
A Benefit for Hope 221
Chateau Selah
Johnson City, TN
423-341-8359
7:00 PM
$40 Donation for Hope221.org
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Full Band @ 12th And Porter
114 12th Avenue North
Nashville, TN 37203
9:00 PM
$5
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Andrew Osenga w/ Jenny and Tyler - A YoungLife Benefit
Second Presbyterian Church
313 N. East St,
Bloomington, IL 61701
309-310-4827
7:00 PM
$10 Suggested Donation
Friday, April 1, 2011
The Union
129 W Benton Ave
Naperville, IL 60540
(630) 637-5417
8:00 PM
$5
April 2 - Looking for something in Indiana or Ohio.
Give me a shout if you're interested!
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Lifepoint Church
3915 Dublin Road
Columbus, OH 43221
6:30 PM
Tickets: New Bath Towel (to be given to the Rescue Mission)