Lambertville native Pat Foran was always told that his songs were too long. When they clocked in at four minutes, he was told they needed to be trimmed down to three. It was always a challenge for him until he began working with Rob Figarola, a Los Angeles based A&R consultant who was with UnsignedDaily.com - a site that identifies and develops unsigned artists.
Figarola found Foran’s music via ReverbNation and contacted him. They worked together for about a year before Figarola passed away. It was quite a blow for Foran. We spoke a few days after he got the news and it was clear Foran was both grieving and in shock. The two had become quite close and Figarola had become his mentor. He not only gave Foran the confidence boost artists need, but was able to help him understand what his songwriting needed to reach that next level.
“His death was crushing because he thought my potential was there and that I already had good material,” said Foran. “He was into my music and was talking about a possible record deal for me. It’s going to be hard to find someone who believes in me the way he believed in me.”
As great of a loss as it was, their time together was very productive. Figarola had a knack for picking out the parts in Foran’s songs that were important and the ones that should be removed.
“He would hit the exact points in my newer songs that I was questioning without me saying anything,” said Foran. “He would say this one line needs these three words need to be changed. I’d tell him that a lot of times when I wrote songs I would have 85-90 percent of the lyrics ironed out, but I’d want to test the song out for an audience and see if people like it at all before continuing with it. In a live performance, people aren’t going to pick up on a throwaway line, they’re just going to follow the rhythm and general spirit of the song. What he would do is call me out on those parts.”
Foran’s debut record, Foran Policy, came out in 2013 and he’s written a lot of songs since. His goal was to release several new singles this year. He still hopes to do that, but now must rely on what Figarola taught him rather than ongoing instruction.
“Rob gave me reasons to focus on things like what should and should not be used,” continued Foran. “He didn’t have me change anything; he just had me tweak things here and there. He understood what I was doing. To him, he would hear a value in the song and we would go from there. I endeavor to write three minute songs and am now doing it regularly. I think it’s made me more economical in my writing and I think it helps render more power in my songs.”
Foran studied jazz and contemporary music theory at Berklee College of Music in Boston. He continued his studies at Trenton State College and studied classical guitar and voice. After one year at Trenton State College (now TCNJ), Pat pursued jazz guitar studies with guitar legend Joe Federico of Philadelphia, developing his guitar technique with jazz studies and classical pick-style of the Federico protégé Dennis Sandole.
He always knew he wanted to play the guitar, but his parents were told by a local music teacher that Pat should start out learning the piano first. His family didn’t have a piano, but they got him an accordion to use instead. He reluctantly played it for a year. Even at 8 years old, he tried doing things his own way. He would veer off the written music and begin improvising by adding his own notes.
“I was improvising and investing and creating my version of how I thought the piece of music should go,” he recalled. “It could have been Chopin and I’d be like I don’t agree with it this way. My sisters would be two rooms away while I was playing and would know how the song was supposed to sound. They’d tell me I wasn’t playing it right and I’d say, ‘I like my version better!’”
His jazz background and improvisational skills help his songs sound different from most pop artists. Fans say his music sounds “familiar, but different”, which is like a badge of honor for him.
Foran performs throughout New Jersey with upcoming shows in Ocean Grove, Hamilton, Somerville and Milford. But you can find him every Wednesday hosting an evening of original music at Havana in New Hope, PA - just a town away from where he grew up. He’s had Wednesday nights for years and has turned it into something of a destination night for original music fans. He chooses the performers with one caveat - they have to play originals.
His goal is to have his songs placed in television shows and films. Losing his mentor was a blow, but he recently learned he will be working with an A&R rep affiliate with BMG music. So the dream lives on.
Upcoming Shows
September 9 The Dragonfly Music and Coffee Cafe, Somerville NJ
September 16 Music in Milford, Milford, NJ
and every Wednesday at Havana in New Hope, PA
Join us for McCarter at the Museum - renowned performing artists in one-night only events at the Princeton University Art Museum.
Jason Robert Brown is a four-time Tony Award-winning composer and lyricist of The Last Five Years, Parade, Songs for a New World, 13, The Bridges of Madison County, Honeymoon In Vegas and The Connector, has performed as a soloist or with his band in venues around the world, including sold-out shows at the London Palladium and Carnegie Hall. His albums as a singer-songwriter include Wearing Someone Else’s Clothes and How We React and How We Recover on Ghostlight, and Coming From Inside the House and Live In Concert with Stephen Sondheim on Concord.
With Special Guest Tony nominee Betsy Wolfe. Tony Award-nominated actress Betsy Wolfe is currently starring as Audrey in the acclaimed Off-Broadway production of Little Shop of Horrors, following her recent Broadway run as Madeline Ashton in the hit musical Death Becomes Her. She previously originated the title role in Joy, the new musical inspired by inventor Joy Mangano, and earned a 2023 Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her celebrated performance as Anne Hathaway in & Juliet. Other Broadway credits include starring as Jenna in Waitress, Cordelia in the acclaimed revival of Falsettos, Bullets Over Broadway, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Everyday Rapture, and 110 in the Shade, as well as her critically acclaimed performance as Cathy in the Off-Broadway revival of The Last Five Years. Wolfe made her Metropolitan Opera debut in Die Fledermaus and has appeared as a guest artist with more than 65 symphony, pops, and philharmonic orchestras worldwide, including the New York Philharmonic and BBC Symphony Orchestra, with performances at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. Her screen credits include First One In, Estella Scrooge, CBS’s Instinct, and the film adaptation of The Last Five Years. Wolfe is also the co-founder of BroadwayEvolved, the acclaimed musical theatre training program she launched in 2018 to train and mentor the next generation of theatre artists.
A limited number of early access tickets for McCarter Director’s Circle members and members of the Museum’s Partner Circle are available, on sale Wednesday, September 16, 2026 at 12:00 PM. General public on sale begins Friday, September 18, 2026 at 12:00 PM.
Please be aware there is no public drop-off or parking at the Museum. For visitors with mobility needs, please contact the Museum at least three business days in advance of your visit to request special access to the Museum via Elm Drive. Call 609-258-3788 and select option 1 to speak to a visitor services staff member, or email Louise Barrett at [email protected].
