It all started with his sister’s boyfriend and a beat up guitar with no strings that started Garrett’s passion for music. Garrett started reading tabs with his sister‘s boyfriend and slowly learning to play by ear. At the age of 16 is when Garrett started to actually sit down and write music. He went to college while still keeping his love for writing. Garrett DeVaughn then wanted to keep his dream alive and move to Nashville, TN. Growing up in a small town in Alabama, a big city like Nashville seemed like the perfect place to settle down with his wife. So in 2005, he made the move to Music City.
Before the coronavirus hit us last year, Garrett was playing writer’s rounds around town. Now, he does a weekly live stream for his fans on social media of originals and covers. He works from home as a full time customer service rep while still trying pursue his music career. However, a full time artist would be the dream career.
“I had to change my mindset of not wanting to take risks, to trying everything.”
Garrett DeVaughn is an interesting artist to follow considering his music is played and written on a tenor ukulele. When discussing how he writes his music, he said that the melody is already in his head, it’s finding the perfect lyrics and story to fit. “What does the message need to be that fits the music.” Garrett is going for simplicity with his music.
A tour outside of Nashville is definitely in the future for Garrett. As of now, he’s planning to make more co-writing connections. The last two years for him has been a learning process for him while recording his new music. Some can refer to his sound as “old school Rush” music. Corey Horn, the producer on his recent EP, has also been a mentor to Garrett. By the time Garrett had found Corey, his music had been finished with the writing process, he just needed someone to bring it to life. Both of their unique sounds and taste in music helped shaped the EP to what it is today.
Something else I would like to mention is how UNIQUE Garrett DeVaughn and his performances usually are. If you see some of the attached links below, just like Kiss, he’s a face paint guy. It sets him apart from everyone else and makes him stand out. To me, that’s something you need to do in the music industry. Not specifically paint your face, but be different. Be okay with being different. Nobody wants to look at the same person and hear the same songs over and over again. Live performance is a key factor for Garrett’s career. He loves it and lives for it.
Starting by the end of this year, he wants to be more involved in the studio process and wants to start learning about audio engineering at home. There are so many resources for people out there like Lynda.com to learn about what you’re interested in. Lynda is a great resource for engineers to start the basics and for extensive training in DAWs such as Pro Tools.
If you like indie, alternative or metal folk, these are some songs you need to listen to. Reach out to Garrett over social media or through the links below to get to know him and follow him on his journey. Maybe join him on tour, the world is starting to open back up slowly and surely! Let’s bring back live music together.
LINKS:
