Alongside my passion for writing and recording my own music I work in sales for a software company that supports nurses in the health care industry. My mom has been a NICU nurse for 30+ years so the opportunity to help nurses provide better care for patients was a natural fit for my unique skill set, and it’s a role I’ve found a lot of purpose in over the past year. So imagine my surprise when I found someone else who is also a working professional in the healthcare industry who moonlights as a musician during his free time, the CEO of Advocate Health Gene Woods. Woods’ scope of responsibility is just a little bit larger than mine– I manage a team of sellers for a 200-person company, while he oversees a massive system of over 65 hospitals with 150,000 employees and 6 million annual patients in the Charlotte area. But it’s always great to see how the passion of music intersects so many different areas of life and has the ability to bring folks of different backgrounds together.
His debut album Love & Protest was released in 2022 and features an incredible cast of musicians who have backed James Brown and John Mayer, and led by Mr. Woods they deliver some really great sounding jazz and big band sounds. The Today Show did a great segment on his life and career which is worth a watch as well, where he eloquently describes how leadership and music are connected in ways that help him in every facet of his life. And I couldn’t agree more.
Standout Songs: “Sweet Sweet Love”, “Tears and Laughter”, “Not Enuff Joy”
