We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Katelyn Woodmansee a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Katelyn, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

My parents were in Christian rock n’ roll band when I was a kid called Phyre. They met in the classic 90s fashion a preachers daughter & the rock n’ roll rebel. When my dad got into church he wanted to make songs like AC/DC but about Jesus & so “Phyre” was born. Growing up with the music in the church as well as their band created a spark in me very young for songwriting. We would play so much that we had a rule in our house that you could only play during the commercials on Tv!
Over the years that love for music has grown & has come full circle with me playing in a band now with my Dad & Uncle!

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?

My name is Katelyn Woodmansee or as some say K8lyn. I play music in and around Nashville solo & also with my family band the Highway Wildflowers. We play a mix of genres to keep the crowds entertained. Being of all generations we have a wide range of music from classic rock, to pop, throw in some classic country, & of course the songs I have written.

My writing is inspired by the music that was cranked all the way up on the way to school every morning! Classics like Tom Petty, Seether, & so many amazing writers that wrote from who they are and not to fit into a box. That is exactly how I write music. “I write the stories of the captive,” (Lyrics from Writing Secrets). I want my music to make people feel something. So that when you close your eyes you may be taken back to a place you remember. Sometimes that will be a place of joy, loss, or even sadness but the most important thing is that you know that you are not alone. So many times in life we and I myself have gotten in a place where it feels like no one else could ever understand or there’s no way out, but when I write I want to help others see that there is hope. You’re not crazy for feeling and it is okay to not be okay as long as you get up and keep going even if that first step doesn’t start until tomorrow.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

I think the best way to support artist is to listen, share, & show up! One of my favorite things about living in Hendersonville is the neighbors. It reminds me of how I grew up. When my car burnt to the ground in high school with all of my clothes and books everyone rallied together to help me get to work, donated clothes, & helped me through it. That’s exactly how the neighborhood is they show up & are there for each other always! That is my theory on the best way to support your local artist show up! Whether that is sharing their post, tagging them in a video or photo of their work live, or being at their events you can support them for free!

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

One thing I had to “unlearn” is that you have to strive to be the very best at your craft.I don’t compete with others. I push to be better than myself. To continue pushing myself to be my best self, but not in comparison to someone else’s success. Success is relative. To a small town artist affording to record a song is success, but to a American idol contestant making it to the top 3 is success, but to a top 40 artist winning a Grammy is success. All are success in relativity to where the artist is at the time. I don’t want to be misunderstood, I think as an artist it is very important to be in tune with the industry and push yourself beyond your dreams. However what I mean is that when you look around at others and constantly compare yourself to someone else then you are missing out on the best parts of who you are!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @highwaywildflowersmusic
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/highwaywildflowersmusic?mibextid=LQQJ4d
• Youtube: Highway Wildflowers Music