Who is that guy singing “Up in the Air,” the high, breathy tune playing as the closing credits roll in the new Paramount Picture of the same name, directed by Jason Reitman (Juno, Thank You For Smoking) and starring George Clooney?  That guy is singer-songwriter Kevin Renick, and his wonderful, evocative little song about the uncertainty of life may not only cause moviegoers to stay in their seats a few extra minutes at the tail of Reitman’s new film, but it appears on the soundtrack to Up in the Air alongside contributions from artists such as CSNY and Elliott Smith.  Renick's song is also featured in a fresh new studio version, on his debut full-length CD, Close To Something Beautiful, now available on CDBaby.com and iTunes (see next page).

The story of “Up In The Air” reads as a serendipitous alignment of stars for Renick, a St. Louis native, and is one that aspiring artists usually can only dream about. Renick is a passionate music lover best known around his hometown as a freelance journalist who has contributed countless album, film and concert reviews to publications such as Playback:STL, Sauce, The Riverfront Times and various online music hubs over the past three decades.  Renick’s talent as a songwriter, however, has remained hidden for years – that is, until recently.  Always privately nurturing a dream of being a singer-songwriter himself, Renick has tucked away well over 100 original songs in his personal notebooks and on old cassettes.

In the Fall of 2008, after an unexpected layoff from his long-standing advertising agency job as a proofreader, Renick was moved to take his dream public.  With guitar in hand, he began performing live for the first time – mainly to an audience of close friends and family – bravely including a handful of originals on his set lists, which mostly consisted of Neil Young, Dylan and Beatles covers.  Only a few months later, in February 2009, Renick’s chance to meet director Jason Reitman at a college lecture provided him with the opportunity of a lifetime.  Renick handed Reitman a cassette tape featuring his original composition titled “Up in the Air” and told Reitman the story of his recent layoff.  After Reitman looked at the primitive format and wondered aloud where he would be able to listen to the cassette, Renick admits he left the encounter without a lot of expectations.  But thanks to Reitman’s unique diligence in seeking out a cassette player, the song – which echoed the movie's theme and aesthetic – would not only become the title track of Reitman's new movie, but the version appearing in the film would be the same one Renick recorded that night, sitting on the couch in front of his old cassette recorder, specifically to give to Reitman.

"I find songwriting an immensely challenging and rewarding process,” says Renick.  “It's weird, though — for the first time I’m on the other side – someone is researching my music and interviewing me!  It's surreal.”

Renick’s biggest musical influence by far is Neil Young, but his other major influences include The Beatles, Paul Simon, Nick Drake, Brian Eno and a whole host of lesser-known Scandinavian singer-songwriters, whose “intimate, upfront, usually melancholy vocal styles” have long entranced him. 

With Close to Something Beautiful now released, Renick is busy promoting it with concert appearances, interviews and active communication with fans on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Official-Kevin-Renick-Page/220775148224?ref=ts) and MySpace (http://www.myspace.com/kevinrenick). Plans for other artistic ventures are under way, including the imminent  release of an Eno-inspired ambient/spoken word collaboration with Canadian soundscape artist John Sobocan entitled The Road to Olandra, which has already been recorded, and the publication of a volume of compiled original poetry and “existential prose” entitled Self.  But Renick’s most heartfelt project will surely be a planned CD commemorating his mother, who died in April 2009, and the stages of grief one endures after a profound loss.  Most of the songs for this project, which bears the working title Our Mother's Place, have already been completed, and the disc will feature contributions from many of the musicians Renick has met over the past few years.  Some of the tunes, such as “Light a Candle” and “The Woods Around That House” have become favorites at Renick's regular gigs in St. Louis.

As for the unique journey Renick now finds himself embarking upon, thanks to an old cassette recorder and a little help from Jason Reitman and Paramount Pictures, Renick couldn’t be more humbled and amazed.  “I truly love the movie,” he says, “and I’m captivated by the parallels between my song and the movie's underlying themes.  I’m grateful to Jason Reitman for opening this door for my music, and proud to be a small part of this terrific film.”