Vol #1: Take the Cannolis

MY JOURNEY

I’ve decided to do something most people would call crazy—maybe impossible: write and stage a Broadway-level musical in under one year.

If you know me well, you might be skeptical—but you’re not surprised. I’ve been enthralled with musical theater since 1977, when I saw my first Broadway show, Annie, starring Andrea McArdle. Two years later, I was on stage as the Tin Man in my fourth-grade production of The Wizard of Oz. Since then, I’ve seen more than 250 Broadway, Off-Broadway, and Off-Off-Broadway shows from New York to Chicago.

There are just two small (MAJOR) hurdles that I face in this journey.

First, the average Broadway musical costs $20 million to produce and takes years to develop. Second, I don’t read, write, or play music.

And yet, I’m undaunted. For over 25 years, I’ve been a tech entrepreneur—building companies, raising capital, and creating systems where none existed. Producing a musical in 365 days doesn’t scare me. It challenges me.

THE STORY

Take the Cannolis. tells the epic story of the Millers—an affluent, yet complicated Black family in Boca Raton, Florida. Spanning decades, the musical blends humor, heartache, family conflict, and cultural identity to explore how legacy, ambition, love, and loss shape who we become. The play is scaffolded by the greatest family drama of all time: The Godfather. As the lives of the Millers echo the operatic stakes of the Corleones. Like The Godfather, Take the Cannolis is not a story of crime. It is a story of family; and ultimately, a story about the enduring spirit that makes us who we are.

MY SPARK

Three years ago, I began seriously thinking about writing a musical about my family. I made little progress. I had the idea—but not the spark. That spark arrived through devastating circumstances: the death of my mother. My mom was—and is—my favorite person in the world. She radiated grace, strength, and unconditional love. Even knowing her passing was coming didn’t prepare me for its finality.

A few weeks after her passing, I began building a memorial website for her. When it came time to choose music, I realized I couldn’t name her favorite song. So I decided to create one. Ten years earlier, I had written her a poem called “Mother.” Using an AI music tool called Suno, that poem became a song—a tribute that felt worthy of her. That song changed everything.

(Her memorial can be found here: https://www.forevermissed.com/carole-mitchell/about)

MY PROCESS

Suno, the AI-platform I am using to compose the music, unlocked a creativity that had been quietly simmering in me for forty years. Over Thanksgiving week in 2025, I wrote six songs—not rough melodies, but emotionally grounded pieces shaped by character and story. The process was profoundly cathartic, a way to metabolize grief and turn loss into creation.

This adventure would not be possible without AI. I am an AI evangelist. I spend most of my professional and personal time consuming information and working on AI platforms. I know there will be skeptics that claim that my work is unoriginal, or worse, uninspired, because of the deep use of AI in this process. I hope to convince them otherwise.   

MY PLEDGE

I want to document this journey—openly and honestly—as I create Take the Cannolis. I do still have a day job—building a pretty cool AI company—and I share 50/50 custody of my ten-year-old twin boys. Life is full. But here’s my pledge to you:

Every week for the next year, I will release one song. Some will be rough drafts.Some will end up on the cutting-room floor.And some—hopefully—will become lasting anthems. I’ll share the mess, the doubt, and the breakthroughs. Don't limit your feedback—say whatever you feel. I believe your reactions will help shape this into something truly special.

I know this is a daunting—dare I say impossible—task. I believe I will succeed. But, even if I don’t, this work will endure. It will be a legacy I can pass on to my children—a testament to their heritage and a lightpost for their own journeys through life.

I’m glad you’re here. Let’s take this journey together.