'Port Clinton's Calling Me' is city's new theme song

PORT CLINTON  - It’s likely the most-heard song in Port Clinton’s downtown district this summer. Whether they are rock and rollers or country crooners, many musicians are kicking off their performances with “Port Clinton’s Calling Me,” the city’s theme song that was written and produced by longtime musician Ron Miller. The song, and its accompanying video, were revamped and given a fresh image this summer.

Last year’s project promoted Port Clinton’s attractions and businesses. This year, Miller — who has worked with hundreds of renowned musicians across the country — wanted to build on the local concept and feature area residents. He enlisted Port Clinton entertainers, artists, organizations, first responders, and government entities, all of which have helped the city develop its unique identity.

Now that summer is coming to a close, Miller can look back and see the marketing power of the song which helped highlight the city to the world. It is not just the local music scene that enjoyed “Port Clinton’s Calling Me” in the past few months. Over 96,000 people have viewed the video on YouTube, and musicians are making it part of their sets as they perform across the state.

Among them is Jerry Zsigo, a singer-songwriter who performed in the video. About 125 people and over 25 combinations of individual musicians, bands and artists are featured in the project.

“I try to put the song in sets about every night now because people are requesting it,” Zsigo said. “People love it because it highlights the city — the schools, the musicians, the police department, the fire department. It’s a joyous little number.”

People know Port Clinton 'because it's paradise up here'

Zsigo plays the song in many of the approximately 125 gigs he has across the region each year, including in Fremont and Huron.

“I start talking to the crowd, and they want to know where I’m from. People know Port Clinton because it’s paradise up here,” he said. “I tell them, ‘Here’s a little song to tell you about my city.'"

“Port Clinton’s Calling Me” was Miller’s first experience with jingle-type promotional music, and he has since written the “Welcome to Fiberhood” jingle recently heard in Omni Fiber’s radio ads. “Port Clinton’s Calling Me” has proved so effective that Miller is now in early discussions to produce a “Calling Me” campaign in other resort markets.

“And we have another, totally different song and branding campaign that will be rolled out this spring for a market in this region,” Miller said.

Many know about Port Clinton from the video

The marketing power of “Port Clinton’s Calling Me” to highlight “the paradise up here,” as Zsigo says, has caught the attention of people around the region.

“I’ve been shocked at how many times people came up to me and said they visited the area because of the video,” Miller said. “I’ve been really pleased with the response to it.”

“Port Clinton’s Calling Me” was a collaboration between the local music community and Greater Port Clinton Area Arts Council (GPCAAC). GPCAAC designed the project’s logo which is featured on a line of “Port Clinton’s Calling Me” merchandise. The 2022 and 2023 videos were filmed and directed by Shay Rickard, videographer and owner of Shot by Shay. This year’s updated version of the song was recorded at Ohio Recording Co. in Fremont. Jennifer Cadmus is the project’s brand manager.

This summer, a new twist was added to the project when Miller and Cadmus asked locals to create their own “Port Clinton’s Calling Me” video shorts. Fun and hilarious videos have already been created by locals in places like Mary’s Blossom Shoppe, the Port Clinton Police Department and Gully’s Lake Wear.

Now, Miller and Cadmus are hoping more people will create and share their own “Port Clinton’s Calling Me” videos.

“Jen’s thoughts were to invite locals and visitors to make their own videos,” Miller said. “Our plan is to run them on Facebook, TikTok and Twitter.”

The “Port Clinton’s Calling Me” video and shorts can be viewed at youtube.com/@portclintonscallingme1140, and the merchandise store can be found at portclintonscallingme.com/store.

Contact correspondent Sheri Trusty at  sheritrusty4@gmail.com.

This article originally appeared on Port Clinton News Herald: Local musicians include city's new theme song in most shows