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

Keifer, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

The best advice I ever received on the creative process was to give yourself permission to fail. In any creative pursuit, no one is going to create good art every time they put pen to paper. From the songwriter’s perspective, you are going to write some bad songs. In fact, you are probably going to write a lot of them. So you might as well write as many bad songs as you can starting out so that you can get to the good ones. Basic statistics! You might want to double-check my math on that. But the point being, by giving yourself permission to fail, you remove the paralyzing aspect of fear from the creative process, which allows you to create spontaneously and joyously.

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?

I am a Nashville-based singer-songwriter, audio engineer, and producer. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, I have been performing for audiences all over the world, playing everything from cruise lines to amusement parks to corporate events. My interest in the performing arts actually began in musical theater. I got my start in second grade as a background character in a community production of Annie. I learned to play the guitar in middle school and wrote my first song that summer. From early on in my career, I had always been very interested in the technical side of the music industry and began self-producing my own releases in high school. My first album, “Not Perfect,” was produced entirely in my childhood bedroom. From there, I have had the opportunity to work as an audio engineer and producer for amazing artists across several genres. Here in Nashville, I currently write with T-Ray Chaney of SoNash Publishing, Alex Amato, Taylor Borton, Alex Shernit, Justin Gild, and many others. When performing, writing, or producing, I strive to bring out the sincere moments of lyrics and melody to tell vivid relatable stories.

Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?

I highly recommend Stephen King’s “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft” for writers looking to draw inspiration for developing their craft as well as the creative process in general. In fact, I feel that any creative would benefit from King’s candor about his own creative process, how he receives and gives feedback, his daily professional objectives, as well as his approach to writer’s block. Sometimes the muses are not on our side, and King offers some excellent insight on conquering your fear of the blank page.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

With advances in social media, we now have unprecedented access to our favorite creators and celebrities near or far from anywhere in the world. While I see this new access and interaction as positive overall, it can create an additional barrier of entry for newer creatives attempting to gain attention for their work. I would encourage consumers of music, art, and writing to take time to explore their local creative scene. Every city, small town, or village has its own wealth of creative souls creating great art. I would encourage everyone to support platforms such as community arts centers and writers’ collectives in their own communities in order to give local talent the chance to grow into the creative voices of tomorrow.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.keiferwiley.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keifer.wiley/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KeiferWileyMusic/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keifer-wiley-10a404ab/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@KeiferWileyMusic/featured

Image Credits
Marion Shaina Dynasty Marie