We recently connected with Isabelle Grogan and have shared our conversation below.
Isabelle, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
The SwiftArtists group I founded and continue to run, has been such a meaningful endeavor. When I moved to Nashville, I was meeting so many artists and songwriters who were in the same boat as me. Fresh out of high school or college, looking for a way to get their music heard. I also was meeting a ton of Swifties- more than I had ever met in my life, living elsewhere. After attending the annual Music Biz conference, and sitting in on a panel about the power of fandom- I got an idea. I found a way to merge my love for Taylor Swift, my desire to meet and connect with other writers, and my goal to share my own music and discover music in the process. From there, I started SwiftArtists. I created an instagram page and submission form, spreading the word in facebook groups for Nashville locals and Young Entertainment Professionals. Immediately, I got responses. I received about 50 music submissions, and 100 Instagram followers within the first few days. My goal all along was to hold a live show, featuring a variety of artists who submitted, including myself as a performer. But, I didn’t mention this at the page’s launch, due to hesitance that the page would get any traction at all. I launched the page in May of 2022, creating playlists of music I had curated, new release announcements, and highlights for “Song of the week” and “Cover of the week”- all from the submissions I had gathered. As the page grew, I decided to finally run the idea of a live show by some of the artists active on the page. Every single artist I invited to perform said yes- and I held the first showcase the following August. At that point, I brought on my friend Natalie Johnson, a fellow Swiftie- to help out with the page and the shows. Since then, we’ve hosted seventeen showcases, always falling on the 13th of the month (Swifties understand). We book 9-13 artists each month, to perform original music and Taylor Swift cover songs, acoustic in the row. I’ve met so many friends and collaborators through the group, and it has been an extremely rewarding experience. I’ve also learned more about reserving venue spaces, booking lineups, and food & beverage profit potentials (we have held all shows free of charge thus far). I also got experience as an emcee, introducing the event and each artist. I’m so glad I got the idea for this group that day in May, and continued to grow along the journey.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I’m Isabelle, and I go by the artist name Eezabelle (which is the phonetic spelling of my commonly mispronounced French name). I’m from upstate New York, but always dreamed of pursuing a music career in Nashville. I got my Music Industry degree from the University of Memphis in 2020, and moved to Nashville the following year. I’ve released 2 EPs and a handful of singles for my artist project. I’m most proud of my latest 10-song EP, Temptation. It’s a pop/rock storytelling project, explaining my personal views on religion and more. I’m also a huge Swiftie, and I’m super proud of my group SwiftArtists- a Nashville based project for promoting independent artists in the Swiftie community. We hold Nashville showcases each month, curate playlists and highlight new releases from artists all over the world.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
I find it so rewarding as an independent artist, to have full control over my work. Without a contract, you don’t have to follow the rules of some random businessman in a fedora telling you what to do. You can choose what your own creative boundaries are, or not to limit yourself to any at all. I deeply value the authenticity of my work- so I push myself to write raw, honest lyrics that resonate with my experiences and beliefs. I never censor myself or cut out controversial takes for the sake of seeking popularity. Detailed, confessional lyrics will forge a unique connection with listeners, built on trust and candor. I write what is on my mind, and my thoughts aren’t always clean, simple, or popular.
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
I’m still working on building my audience- as artists, that process never seems to end, even for those with millions of followers. With my SwiftArtists page, I gained my audience by involving those who already tuned in. I kept them interested and grabbed the attention of their friends and followers. SwiftArtists is not just about me, or about Taylor Swift. It’s about the artist community- not just in Nashville where we are based, but internationally as well. We’ve had submissions from all over the US, and overseas as well (Malaysia, Germany, Singapore, UK, etc). Many out of town artists have travelled to Nashville to play a showcase. On our page, we make sure to highlight the work of our followers, by announcing new releases, adding them to playlists, or naming them “Song of the Week”. We jump at the opportunity to congratulate SwiftArtists on their achievements. We also reach out to and shoutout smaller artists that we find other ways, beyond just our submission page. We are always looking to discover a new talent to include.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/swiftartists/ (SwiftArtists page) https://www.instagram.com/iameezabelle/ (artist/personal)
- Other: https://linktr.ee/swiftartists (all SwiftArtists links) https://linktr.ee/eezabelleartistlinks (Eezabelle artist links)