We were lucky to catch up with Doyle Turner recently and have shared our conversation below.
Doyle, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.
I’d met a lot of talented performers, and the conversations had always felt awkward and stilted. Lance Benson had just finished an amazing set in a house concert setting in July of 2018. I was mesmerized and was drawn to his songwriting. He was doing something I didn’t even fully realize that I wanted to do. I approached him after the show, and before I knew what was fully happening, I was asking him to help me produce an album of original songs (most of which had not been written yet). Who was I to ask this accomplished performer anything? I laid out the basic outline of a dream I hadn’t even fully formed yet. Lance was kind, open, and held my dream with a care that showed he remembered what it was like to start out.
That conversation led to my first solo EP “Until The Good Comes Back Around” in the spring of 2020. lance produced that album. That EP led to a second and a third EP (“Clear & True” 2021 and “Sweet, Difficult Sounds” 2022) as well as several singles. All of that has led to a practice of regular songwriting, collaboration with artists who astound me, and chances to perform on stages that are beyond my dreams.
It seems every risk I take with songwriting and music leads to such growth, connection with people, and even more risks. I’ve come to see risk differently. I see a pathway to growth as an artist.
Doyle, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I am a songwriter, a singer, and a recording artist from Northern Minnesota, White Earth Nation. Songs are ways to draw people into community, a source of connection for all involved: writer, performer, and listener. Songs can express a thought or an emotion that resonates with the listener, and can be a way for a listener to examine a feeling or problem, and to ultimately not feel so alone in this human experience.
Songwriting for me is a calling. It is a perfect melding of music and words, both of which have held such huge places of importance in my world. As I cast about as a younger person, searching for my place, words and music have always been the areas that have echoed back to me as having made some impact outside of myself.
I get to sing songs in front of people. I get to practice songwriting. Through this practice I have been able to connect with other artists, collaborate with them, and ultimately learn from them.
I write heartfelt songs that try to get at a particular feeling or situation. I write songs that invite the listener into this conversation about what is important about our experience as humans.
I write songs that seek connection.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
My ultimate goal in songwriting and performing is to improve. In my study of songwriting, I’ve run across a quote: “You become what you do.” I’ve used this as a guidepost in my journey to improve as a singer/songwriter. It makes sense that the more you do something, the better you become. I met prominent songwriter Steve Seskin after a performance he gave many years ago. He told me that he’d written over 800 songs at that point, and of those 800 he had several that he considered successes. His approach showed me that songwriting needed to be an ongoing search. It helped me to calibrate my expectations and outline the type of work ethic required to improve, so if I write a song that doesn’t end up feeling as though it will resonate, I don’t worry too much. It is just a stepping stone to better. If I write two or three in a row that don’t quite measure up for me, I know that I am closer to a song that will resonate in a stronger way. I also have learned that the pursuit is a joy in itself. No matter how the song is ultimately received, I have, as my songwriting friend Lance Benson says, “created something that didn’t exist when I got up today.” Creating is its own joy and reward.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
The most rewarding part of this artistic pursuit has been the connections I have made. Music creates community. A friend of mine and I tried a little experiment in his neighborhood last June. He has a wide open area in the middle of his development, and we got out our instruments and began to perform to an empty grassy space. After about 10 minutes, we saw a window open. After another five minutes, a neighbor came out and walked her dog kind of close to us, listening. Soon, someone brought out a lawn chair. Another person showed up with a blanket to use and one to share. Soon someone showed up with a drink in an insulated cup, and between each song we performed there was talking, jokes, laughter, conversation, and the sound of kids running around us. Music did its job that evening and created a community where there was none 30 minutes prior. That was a rewarding experience! My duo partner, Ted Hajnasiewicz says that in music, “no one gets there alone.” Man has that come true over and over again for me. As I have shared more and more music, I come into contact with the most generous, most kind human beings. I have the most beautiful and talented friends simply from sharing the songs I have created with the world. Those connections are the best reward. That, and every time I finish a song, I feel as though I’ve won the big prize. There’s other no feeling like it!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.doyleturner.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/doyleturnermusic/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/doyleturnermusic
- Youtube: doyleturnermusic
Image Credits
TJ Turner, https://tjturnerpictures.com/
Sophia Joel photography
Molly Turner