We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Keith Reynolds a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Keith thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.
The biggest risk I’ve taken in my life (that I can recall anyway) has been moving from Virginia to Utah to pursue a career playing music. I’m a drummer and it’s been my dream to play professionally since I was about 14. I made the move in January 2018 to play in a band. I won’t spend a lot of time on that, but suffice it to say that I gained a lot of experience and made some great memories. Unfortunately, in December of 2021, that band broke up.
The bassist of that band, and my close friend, Bryson Murdoch and I decided we didn’t want to throw in the towel like the other members had. We wanted to keep chasing this crazy dream of ours and make it a reality. We started going to work trying to find members for our new band. That was a lengthy and frustrating process with a lot of speedbumps. I won’t go into too much detail, but for anyone going into the music business, just remember that it can be cut-throat and sometimes people/things aren’t what they seem to be. Anyway… Fast forward to August 2022. Our new project started to take form as we found our singer. Fast forward again to February 2023. After many auditions and organizational changes, we found our guitarist. And just like that, our new band, Ideal Horizon, was born!
The band has been working tirelessly since then, writing music, recording, doing photoshoots, and booking shows. It’s a grind. That’s one thing I always have to remind myself – and want to point out here – even though playing music is the dream, it’s still a job. There are days I don’t want to do it, but I have to get after it anyway. Otherwise, it could slip away. Anway…here we are now in July 2023. Ideal Horizon released its debut single, “The Day” on all streaming platforms on 7/8/23 and it’s gotten fantastic reception from listeners! And on 7/21/2023, we play our debut show at The Boardwalk in Orem, UT. I couldn’t be happier about how far we’ve come and how bright the future looks for us!
I love music. I’ve loved it my whole life! More than that, I love performing and making music that touches others. And there it is…that’s why I do what I do and have been chasing this dream for almost two decades. The bands I love have made such an impact on my life. They’ve helped me get through the bad times and have made the good times even better! I want to pay that forward. Even if I don’t get to the level of bands like Foo Fighters and Third Eye Blind…as long as my music has made a difference in someone’s life…all the heartache, frustration, blood, sweat, and tears are worth it.
Keith, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
Well for starters, my name is Keith Reynolds. I’ve been playing music since I was 5 years old. It wasn’t an option for me haha, but I love it so much and am so grateful that my parents put me into piano lessons all those years ago. I have an extremely musical family so I’ve been around it my whole life. No professionals, but musicians nonetheless.
I realized I wanted to be a professional musician when I was 14. I had been playing the drums for about 2 years at that point. I don’t think I was in my first band until I was 15, but as soon as we played our first song together, I was hooked. I’ve been chasing it ever since!
As far as the services I provide go, I’m a drummer and I suppose you could also say a booking agent. I’ve played the drums for about 20 years now and I’ve booked all the shows for every band I’ve been in since 2011 in Virginia and Utah. Specifically, now I drum for my new band Ideal Horizon and take care of all the booking there as well. However, I have done some consulting/coaching for other bands that have needed help getting started booking their shows.
Currently, I’m most proud of my new band Ideal Horizon. Our debut single, “The Day”, has been received unimaginably well and our first show is coming up on 7/21/2023. I’m very excited about the potential of the band. As far as personal accomplishments I’m most proud of go, I would say landing my first endorsement deal with Kickport back in about 2012 and the experience I’ve gained as a booking agent.
How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?
As a fan, the biggest thing you can do is share music and buy merchandise. A lot of people don’t realize that bands (especially local bands) don’t make much from ticket sales and streams. But merchandise like shirts, hoodies, etc go a long way. Streaming services don’t even pay a full $0.01 per stream and when it comes to ticket sales, the venue will take their cut first and then the headliner is paid a percentage of that which they then have to divvy up between the other bands that have performed. Merchandise is the only thing that the band will get 100% of the income. Of course, it’s not all about the money, but recording, practice spaces, instruments, the list goes on and on…it all adds up quickly.
As a fellow artist, my advice is to remember that there’s room for everyone to win. You don’t have to muscle someone out or put them down to make sure you succeed. There’s enough success to go around for everyone! The industry and local scene are so much better off when the talent works together. And remember, there’s a difference between giving constructive feedback and being rude. If you don’t want to play with someone because they aren’t very well known or because they are only able to get shows on weekdays, that’s fine! Be honest about it. Maybe even offer to help them. What goes around comes around and I’ve seen that repeatedly in my life.
Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?
There are two big things I want to mention here that have helped me a lot. Discipline Equals Freedom by Jocko Willink and The Music Industry Blueprint Podcast by Rick Barker.
Discipline Equals Freedom isn’t for those who want to have things sugarcoated. It’s a kick in the butt for sure! Jocko helps you see how by being disciplined, day in and day out gets you where you want to be and makes you the kind of person you want to be. This is especially helpful when trying to start a business, or in my case working to start and become successful with a new band. I’d highly recommend this book to everyone.
The Music Industry Blueprint Podcast is great for musicians at every level! Rick breaks things down in a way I hadn’t thought about before. One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned so far, that I never realized before, is that at the beginning you’re the radio station. You’re the booking agent. You’re the manager. And on down the line. You’re not getting radio play? Well if you’d expect a radio station to play your song three times a day, why aren’t you posting it on social media three times a day? My band Ideal Horizon’s first single The Day broke 2,000 streams in 48 hours and I truly feel that our tenacity on social media greatly helped that.
Contact Info:
- Website: IdealHorizon.co
- Instagram: @_Keith_Seth
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keith-reynolds-a7b47713b/
- Other: Ideal Horizon’s Instagram: @IdealHorizonOfficial