Ian’s family on his mother’s side was always into music, especially country. He remembers listening to artists like George Strait, Hank Williams, Merle Haggard, Joe Diffie, and a lot of others with his grandfather and uncles. But it wasn’t until he was 18 that he truly leaned into music in a more personal way. He was signing up for classes to study marine biology in college, but before he hit submit, he hesitated. He realized he didn’t want to go down that route at all, he wanted to be a singer. In an instant, he changed the course of his life from the classic pipeline of going to college, getting a degree and then a job, and became the dreamer. This must have been scary for his parents to hear, but they made him a deal. He was to get some kind of degree to have a backup plan in case music didn’t work, and once he did that, they’d help him get to Nashville. He’s now been in Nashville for almost five years.

Ian was very fortunate to start music work in Nashville right away with a full time band gig on day one. He got a trial by fire hiring experience, and got thrown into live music performing on Broadway five nights a week. While it’s a dream job for many, it is still that: a job. He explained how stressful and exhausting it can be to sing 20+ hours per week, which takes a huge physical toll, but learning to take care of yourself was something he took very seriously.  He says, “if you want to do music in Nashville, you have to be a yes person. It’s far less glamorous than the “rockstar” scene a lot of people think it is. It’s honing your craft, making connections with other musicians, sound engineers, bar owners, etc. But from fostering these connections comes art, creation, the thing that we’re all down here trying to do: make music”

Since moving to Nashville, this past year has been the first time Ian has focused on himself: his original content, this website, building his platforms, etc. He’s not just focused on paying his bills anymore, he’s doing what he came here to do, and his head is in writing and creating. It’s time. He hopes that if you take anything away from his story, let it be that you can fail in life at something you don’t want, but if you’re going to fail at something, let it be at doing what you love–take a chance. Life is too short to be doing something that doesn’t make you happy. From his music, he hopes you see the authentic him and the stories he’s painting from within that. In everything he releases, and everything he does, it is Ian.