1 . There is not one way to find success. Everyone will have a different path.
2 . Take advice and gather as much knowledge as you possibly can. The people in this industry are so willing to help and offer insight, so never hesitate to ask.
3 . Try not to get too caught up in comparing. Your journey will be very different from the next artist, so try to stay in your own lane.
4 . Don’t let the lows define your career. The highs can feel few and far between sometimes, but the times that you are knocked down are the times where you’re going to learn and find that extra determination to keep going.
5 . There will always be opinions on what you are doing. You get to decide which to take to heart and which are worth letting roll off your back. Trust your gut!
As a part of our series about “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Became An Artist” I had the pleasure of interviewing Taylor-Rae.
Alberta-born country artist Taylor-Rae is winning fans with powerhouse vocals and an infectious personality. Her hit single “Are You Still Up” has already passed 1.5 million streams and keeps climbing toward two million, landing on top playlists like Spotify’s Women of Country and Amazon Music’s Top Country Station. This summer, she dropped “I Can’t”, which hit 100k streams in its first month and even scored her the cover of Amazon Music’s Breakthrough Country playlist. With momentum like this, Taylor-Rae is quickly becoming one of country music’s next big names.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?
I grew up in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. I’ve got an older brother, Cole, and a younger sister, Alex. My family and I have always been super close and we would definitely be what you consider a hockey family. All of my siblings and I grew up playing so my parents were always chasing us around the province! My parents were always very encouraging of following your passions, so in our house there was always a lot going on. From electric guitars to singing to playing paintball in the backyard, we were always getting into something.
Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?
I grew up singing with my dad, which is what really got me into music. We grew up singing karaoke and I really found my love for singing there.
From there I went to university in Vancouver to learn the business side of the music industry, so I could be a little bit more prepared for what the industry had to offer. During that time of living alone in a new city, I started writing a ton by myself and teaching myself guitar. That was really where I found my love for writing.
Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
That’s fairly tough to narrow down. There’s been a lot of cool moments. I would have to say being involved in the Boots and Hearts Emerging Artist program. We flew across the country to, potentially only play a 10 minute set, in the semi finals. We were lucky enough to be selected as one of the final two, so we got to perform on the main stage during the finals on Shania Twain’s Headlining night. It was such a whirlwind but I was so happy and excited to be a part of it.
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?
I just recently put out an EP called “Heaven Right Now.” This was a project I was able to lean fully into who I am as an artist and that was really special for me. Coming up in October I will be putting out a project with an incredible artist from Canada, Antonio Larosa. I’m super excited for you to hear it!
Who are some of the most interesting people you have interacted with? What was that like? Do you have any stories?
In this business there are always interesting people you get to meet! I would have to say, as of late, meeting Carolyn Dawn Johnson a couple of years ago was pretty cool for me. I grew up listening to her music on repeat and so to meet one of my idols was pretty wild. We ended up getting to write the title track of the EP together “Heaven Right Now” and it’s definitely one of my favorites off the project.
Where do you draw inspiration from? Can you share a story about that?
I get inspiration from everywhere. I typically find it when a feeling is just so big that I have to get it out. Whether it’s exciting or sad, writing is kind of my outlet for that. For example, my song “Heaven Right Now” was inspired by feeling like I was so worried about everything going on around me and the thoughts of everyone else that I wasn’t focusing on being who I wanted to be. So that ended up being a really cathartic song to write.
How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world?
I hope so! I try to go about my days with kindness and remembering that we never know what someone else is going through. I think leading with empathy is really important.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.
1 . There is not one way to find success. Everyone will have a different path.
2 . Take advice and gather as much knowledge as you possibly can. The people in this industry are so willing to help and offer insight, so never hesitate to ask.
3 . Try not to get too caught up in comparing. Your journey will be very different from the next artist, so try to stay in your own lane.
4 . Don’t let the lows define your career. The highs can feel few and far between sometimes, but the times that you are knocked down are the times where you’re going to learn and find that extra determination to keep going.
5 . There will always be opinions on what you are doing. You get to decide which to take to heart and which are worth letting roll off your back. Trust your gut!
If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. 🙂
Hmm, that’s a really good question. Maybe it would be more of a TikTok inspired trend where you and your friends or family try on each other’s shoes. Simply to show that, whether they are too big or too small, you will never quite know what it’s like to be in someone else’s shoes. Kind of a literal take on the idea that you never know what someone is dealing with, so try to lead with kindness and empathy
Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why?
OK, I think I would have to say two people, Martina McBride and Kelsea Ballerini. I would love to know how they have navigated the music industry while still holding on so strongly to the type of artist they are, in two different eras. I think it would be so interesting to know the things they would or wouldn’t do again and their thoughts on the current climate.
What is the best way our readers can follow you on social media?
They can find me on socials at taylorraeofficial and my website is taylorraeofficial.com which will have show updates and links to all of my socials aswell!
This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!
Taylor-Rae: 5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Became An Artist was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.