We recently connected with Andy Gullahorn and have shared our conversation below.

Andy, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

Although I am a performer and musician, the heart of what I do is songwriting. How did I learn how to write songs? I think mainly by listening. I spent countless hours in high school just listening for lyrics I liked, and then studying them. What made them hit me so hard emotionally? I studied the structure of the songs I loved – and didn’t love – in an attempt to understand the foundational building blocks of making a song that was both accessible and meaningful. It was important to me to learn the intrinsic “rules” of songwriting and then use them until they were second nature. Only then did I feel the freedom to break those “rules” when needed. As I continued to grow as a songwriter, I learned that one important skill to have in order to write songs that connected to peoples lives – was to have a life of your own. To live a life worth writing about. But also to walk through the world with my eyes open – believing that the everyday moments of the world around me are teeming with stories waiting to be seen – and recognized – and honored.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I moved from one music city (Austin) to another (Nashville) when I went to college. I wanted to be in Nashville because it was where many of my favorite songwriters were – and I loved the way that the audiences there honored the songwriters by sitting silently and really listening to the songs. Shortly after graduation, I got married and my wife (Jill Phillips) signed a record deal with Word Records. I spent the next chunk of my life writing songs for publishing companies and playing guitar for my wife on the road. When she wanted to slow down a bit as we were having more kids, I decided to start recording my own music and traveling to share the songs with whoever wanted to hear them. I discovered that I loved sharing my songs with people in those live settings. So most of my work for the past 15 years has been doing just that – traveling all over playing shows for kind people.

Many of the songs I write have a therapeutic element to them – probably just because I am working out my own struggles, questions and doubts through the songs. I would often use therapeutic language in my songs that I was just recycling from my own therapy. I then found that many therapists were getting their hands on my music and using it in their own work with clients. So somehow over the years I started to get more and more offers to come share my music in some of these therapeutic settings. Retreats, house concerts, conferences, etc. It was not exactly the world I thought I would go into as a young songwriter – only because I didn’t know that such a world existed back then. But I find it to be a great source of purpose and joy to be able to share my songs in such settings.

A big part of my journey as a singer/songwriter has been to recognize where my strengths lie – and where they don’t. I have been able to let go of trying to write some huge commercial success hit because I just don’t believe that is why I am existing in the vast world of song creators. But I know I can write a song that has the hope of connecting with at least one person’s heart and might be a source of healing for them. Even if that one person is myself.

What’s been the best source of new clients for you?

In my work – I rarely think of people as “clients”. But I guess my clients would be the people who pay my bills by booking me for shows and events. And in that sense – the best source of new clients for me is actually the songs I write. If they don’t connect with people, then my career is dead in the water. But beyond that, I exist in a business that is heavily driven by word of mouth. Hopefully people like the music I have created, but also I hope they like the person behind those creations. So if people feel connected to the music – and to me personally, then they are very likely to bring me back for a show or to tell a friend about the music. This is probably why there are many times that I am playing to a room full of people who have mostly not ever heard of me before – but I am there because at least one other person there believes in what I do and wanted to to share it with others.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

There are many goals and missions driving my creative journey – some of them are operating on the subconscious level. But as far as I can tell on the conscious level, I think a main mission is to let people know they are not alone. Hopefully they can connect with the stories and the heart of the song – and see themselves in it.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.andygullahorn.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/andygullahorn
• Facebook: facebook.com/andygullahornofficial
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-gullahorn-026b1a183/
• Twitter: twitter.com/andygullahorn
• Youtube: youtube.com/andygull

Image Credits
Stephanie Hulthen Bob Boyd