We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Mackenzie Wasner. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Mackenzie below.

Hi Mackenzie, thanks for joining us today. We love asking folks what they would do differently if they were starting today – how they would speed up the process, etc. We’d love to hear how you would set everything up if you were to start from step 1 today.

This question really stood out to me. Recently, I have had a real “breakthrough” or so it’s felt like it. Ha! I am a singer/songwriter and have been in the music business for a solid 10 years now. It’s crazy and amazing and thrilling and… HARD. Sometimes I have wished to start over, or to “go back”… But the truth is, I wouldn’t really ever wish that upon anyone. Now, I am starting to realize and SEE the BEAUTY in the failures, the set backs and the successes. It sounds cliche, but it’s true deep in my heart now. So, now instead of starting over, I am starting right where I am. The beginning of right now. Everything I have learned and everyone I have met in my music career is now leading into my newest venture, an event rental company! Life is a journey, but the journey is becoming more fun the older I get. While I am still a musician, artist and songwriter, I am also a business owner… Because, why not?! Just because you’re good at something, doesn’t mean you have to put all of your eggs in that basket and JUST do that… Because when you really take a step back, you realize you’ve got more to offer to the world, and to those around you than just that one thing… Sometimes you just do have to throw your hands up to get there…

Mackenzie, 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?

I am a singer/songwriter born and raised in Franklin, TN, just 20 min south of Nashville. I have been singing since I was a little girl, thanks to my dad, Pete Wasner, who has played with Vince Gill for over 30 years and who had lots of songwriting HITS! (go dad)!… Singing is one of the few things that came very natural to me. It’s a part of who I am at my core and always will be. I have enjoyed all that I have gotten to see out on tour, all that I have accomplished and all that I have gotten to be a part of over the years. I have met amazing people and some of my musical heroes! I am so blessed! I am continuing to play shows around town, write, and release new music as I go… It will always be my first love!

Recently, I have also started an event rental company, Mack Hatcher Events! My twin brother and I have been brain storming for awhile now as to what we could do to work for ourselves, be creative, and help others… This seemed like the perfect thing! We are super excited and are having a lot of fun. If you need event rentals, don’t hesitate to reach out. ;)

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

This feels like an easy question to answer… Don’t ever burn bridges, and be genuinely nice to people. It will get you a lot further than the negative.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I have lots of stories… But I’ll make this one short and sweet. I was 17 years old and tried out for American Idol. I made it to “Hollywood”, but you don’t go to Hollywood until 6 months later. So, 6 months later, I was at the airport, and handed the lady at the front desk my boarding pass and she kindly told me, “your tickets are cancelled, NEXT”! I was stunned. American Idol called me and apologized, but ultimately said there was nothing they could do. To this day, I still don’t know the reasons why. That sums up a lot of things in life, I think. We can keep asking “why” for years or we can move on, and live in the now and see the goodness of the present. It says in the bible, that there’s just enough grace for today. I’ve clung to that over the years, because it’s rang true time and time again… Just enough grace for today…

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @mackenziewasner
• Facebook: mackenziewasnermusic
• Youtube: mackenzie wasner
• Other: mackenziewasnermusic@gmail.com mackhatcherevents.com

Image Credits
Credit: Mackenzie Wasner and Angelina Oliva