Jess Nelson Ohhhhhhhhhh hey. Welcome to my first official ARTIST INTERVIEW. I’m not sure why I didn’t think to add this to the blog sooner, but God bless Tyler for being persistent and giving me the idea. You da bomb.com. I recently saw him play a show in Denver (if you didn’t already, check out the write up on the show here) & we got to talking about a little Q&A. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to do one in person (besides a lovely insta story below)
if you want to know a little more about Tyler, ch ch check it out. Let’s just dive right in…
Tell meh about your first initial start in the music industry & how you got to where you are today.
“Well I had a dad that was a tour promoter so I was always around it. He had guitars lying around the house and always encouraged me to play. Around 7th grade, I started learning John Mayer and Keith Urban covers on youtube. By high school, I was writing songs every night. I spent most of my weekends in college playing on 6th street and tailgates while going to the University of Texas. I’ve been in Nashville for the last year and a half writing full time and I can’t wait to put out music from this period in my life.”
How do you continue to push through towards your goals in music when you may hit a bump in the road or get told “no”?
“When I get told no, it’s easy to get down on myself until I look back on each year and realize how far I have come!”
I find it hard to self-motivate, what helps you stay grounded to set your schedule to write/continue to make music?
“Totally! I surround myself with friends and roommates who make music. I have a little bit of a competitive spirit in me so I’m always trying to push myself because my friends are. I also have a manager and a team who keep me busy!”
What was your draw of wanting to be a country artist versus any other genre? (I think it may be that deep southern voice, but that’s just a guess)
“Ha! My dad is from Texas and his clients were mainly country artists. I’m definitely influenced by all kinds of music but country was always going to be my path.”
I’m not sure your situation in the industry (label, how that works with songwriting etc) but do you find that you still have creative control when it comes to making and writing your own music?
“I own all my music as an independent artist so yes I do! Sometimes my team and trusted friends encourage me to try different things.”
What is your ritual (if you have one) for getting in the zone when writing a song? Where do you find your inspiration?
“Exercise before always helps clear my mind. Learning cover songs also help a lot because you’re basically diving headfirst into a song, figuring out what you like and don’t like about it and why it works.”
I’ve always been one that is drawn to songs or artists that do not sound the same as the current “Top Hits” or songs on the radio & I have heard from other artists that when songwriting, they’ve been told to pull that inspiration from what those top songs are. Do you have any experience with this & how do you work to make yourself stand out from the rest?
“To be honest I’m not that big into the top hits! I love listening to the Nashville independent radio station. I also draw inspiration from songs my cowriters and producers show me. I don’t make that conscious of an effort to stand out.”
I saw on your Spotify bio you got to open for Migos – I’m very curious as to what this experience was like for you and how it came about. Follow up: would you ever considering doing a county/hip hop collab and if so, with who? (I think this would be dope, btw)
“Haha that was a crazy night! I was opening for them at a fraternity party during college. They missed their flight and were super late to the show so we all had to stall. I would love to do a country/hip hop collab. I actually have a song called Damn Good Time that has a rap bridge. I think it’d be cool to do one with someone like Post Malone or Travis Scott.”
I am ALLLLL for a Post Malone collab, BTW.
What is your favorite place/city to perform in?
“Austin, TX! We have such a big fan base there but Denver was awesome as well.”
What’s your favorite song you’ve ever written and why?
“It’s always the last one I wrote! I have one called “Left of Center” that I’m really excited to record soon.”
A passion of mine is being a professional “concert-goer” – do you enjoy attending live shows & who is your favorite artist that you have seen live?
“Yes!! Wow what a tough question. I went to a Chris Stapleton show 2 weeks before his big break with Justin Timberlake. There was one hundred people there and it was EPIC.”
Who is the one person you’ve met that you were completely star struck over?
“Garth Brooks”
LASTLY, I just wanna say I’m sad you didn’t dance on any tables this time around in Denver.
“Hahaha there weren’t many tables nearby!”
Want to see Tyler dance on a table, check out it out HEYAH (Mom, that is my lame-o slang for here, if you’re confused). Yes my mom reads my blog & just had to clarify cause she f’sho wouldn’t know what that meant, lol.
Well that’s a wrap. If anyone, anyone at all has any questions for da man, Tyler, just drop them in the comments.
*photo of Tyler & I after da show*
Welp, now I have post interview depression (a new term?). Probably a flop. Anywhoozle, until next time….