Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Dallas Pryor. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Dallas, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

In the beginning, I really had no idea that I wanted, or had the option to sing country music for a living. My thinking was that the people at the top of the business were so far away, they didn’t even seem real. And from my experiences, I didn’t see anything in the middle. Like where I feel I am now. I’m not entirely sure if we even have a mission, but from the beginning to present went something like this. I always sang from the time I was a small child. My mom tells me that at 4 or 5 years old if missed a note to a song, I would start the whole song over until I did it right. I didn’t learn guitar until I was about 20 years of age, and wasn’t really any good at it until I got to be about 27 or older. But none the less I tried playing my first shows at my favorite bar in New Jersey, close to where I was stationed in the USMC, at 23 years old. I moved home shortly after and played the occasional show near my hometown, Abilene, KS. Ended up getting an acoustic duo partner in 2016 and we came up with the name of Lazy Wayne Band. Lazy K was Keegan Knox’s nickname through college, and my middle name was Wayne. In 2017 the full band was formed, and we would every show we could until I ended up quitting the day job in 2021 to do music full time. Somewhere in those years this became a passion and profession more than a side project and hobby. I think the professional development of the band and the music that we continue to release is an a testament to that. If we have a mission in the Lazy Wayne Band, it’s to continue to write, produce, and release new original songs for our fans, and to continue and grow the effects of our touring to expand our already outstanding fanbase.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Whether on the farm south of Abilene, on the outskirts of Topeka, or on the road somewhere in between. As a child, Dallas Pryor could be caught singing away to whatever country music that came through the speakers. Dallas enlisted in the Marine Corps months after high school, where he was given his first guitar at 20 years old. Other than his love for country music, Dallas never had it in his mind that a career in music would have ever been a possibility, but 25 miles outside of his duty station in New Jersey. He was offered his very first paying gig.

Freshly out of the USMC, Dallas met Keegan Knox at a Bar right outside of their hometown, Abilene, KS. Just weeks after meeting, the duo set out to play their music together as what would become, the Lazy Wayne Band. From the first formation of the Band to the first song written and released, Dallas has worked this “music thing” into his lively hood. Completely independent, through the years Lazy Wayne Band has released the complete “About Damn Time” collection. Bringing their original music to streaming platforms everywhere and radio waves across the TExas country and Red dirt music Scenes.

The Lazy Wayne Band is currently touring non-stop, Playing hundreds of shows around and beyond the region. From sharing their story on podcasts across the nation, to sharing the stage with countless stars in the Texas & Red Dirt Scene, to packing the house in honkytonks across their region. This band has cut their teeth and paid their dues to be known as one of the most electric, Talented, and fun bands in the scene.

Can you open up about how you funded your business?

In a side of business like entertainment, without wealthy connections or investors, you may need to build your infrastructure by funding it with a more traditional career. Keeping this part of your career part time. Thats how I slowly invested in the $50k+ worth of live music equipment that we have now. Including vehicle maintenance, paying for merchandise, and studio time to record and release your work, the amount of money it takes for people to see you as more than a run of the mill local band is significant. The leap you take when you finally do take the “hobby” that you’ve monetized, to full time is always terrifying. But if you remain persistent, intelligent, and dedicated to whatever it is you choose to do, you will find out how to succeed.
Now that I’m full time at this “music thing”, as people like to refer to it as, I’m still figuring out how to fund more equipment, vehicles, and studio time. Our next steps are to approach businesses that we believe in for sponsorships, and to cross what some refer to as “the ticket bridge”. Which means stepping out of the bar scene, with a lower guaranteed rate and start betting on ourselves by playing shows for ticket sales. High risk high reward. From what I’ve learned, the only way to become successful in this endeavor is to A) Release quality work onto streaming services. B) Put on a lively, quality, and wholistically entertaining show that patrons can’t help but have a good time at. You need both. If you have no music for folks to listen to, You’ll be forgotten to everyone but locals and those who know you in a week. If you put on a show that either looks like you’re not loving what you’re doing, where the singing is pitchy, where the instrumentation is lacking, or the sound and lighting production is not up to par, people will lose appreciation for your recorded work.
If you have both of these on point, developing a fanbase in familiar and new places, with a little bit of marketing, will not be as difficult. Growing your fanbase will allow you to get out of bars that try to book bands for $400-$600, and move towards music venues that you have the potential to take home up to and over tens of thousands in ticket revenue. With ticket and merchandise sales on the up and up, professional development only gets easier.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

We’ve gained an audience by touring. But through social media, the word of mouth has taken on a new role. With the help of music streaming services, I’ve learned how to create more interactive social media content. I’ve spent money on real photographers and apps that allowed me to create higher quality graphics and videos. But maybe the most valuable marketing tool I’ve learned is to keep things simple. You don’t need to muck up posters with unnecessary words that some would say are flashy and appealing. Including only the important information is the best way to keep interest in a post and to drive interaction. From the little I’ve been self-taught, that’s what I’ve learned. Professional photos, and precise information has been a valuable lesson I’ve learned.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lazywayne.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lazywayneband/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lazywayneband
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/LazyWayneBand