We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Michael Elliott from the band In Consistent Seas. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Michael below.

Hi Michael, thanks for joining us today. Do you think your parents have had a meaningful impact on you and your journey?

It’s my pleasure! I appreciate you all reaching out! Yes, I am very fortunate to say that there are a great many things that my parents did right, but there is one thing that they did exceptionally well that I carry with me in music everyday. They very kindly helped me set expectations when I was first starting out. I have always loved music. I started playing piano when I was 8 and picked up guitar when I was 13. I took some lessons and taught myself a lot, but also had very divided attention with sports. It wasn’t until I was a senior in high school that I decided that I wanted to pursue music.

When I decided to go to Nashville my dad sat me down and told me that in my hometown, I may be a big fish in a small pond, but in Nashville I was going to be the smallest fish in the ocean. It’s hard to write this conveying the hopeful and genuinely helpful tone he had but the advice he gave me after that has defined my artistry. He told me to “walk into every room as if you’re the worst musician in the room”. That could sound like an insult when reading it but his tone and intention was for me to go into every room with the mindset of “I can learn something from anyone and everyone here”, and that is what I did.

I tried my best to learn and understand every style of every genre that anyone brought to the table. I also tried to make as many connections from every genre of music that I could and fell in love with many different aspects of music. That is what led me to combine many different styles of music in my own. My first album “Reckless” pulls from rock/jazz/big band/country/gospel/singer songwriter/alternative and anything else I may not have listed. This also helped me produce many different styles of music and know a lot of musicians who specialize that I could hire. It may seem a little odd to not hyper focus on a specialty but I don’t think I would want to do it any other way. It definitely has defined my style and found a pocket in the industry that I love!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

Of course! I fell in love and started in music at a young age when my parents forced me to take at least one piano lesson to “try it out”. I went into my first lesson kicking and screaming and left absolutely in love. However, when I decided to move to Nashville, that is when I truly believe my music industry start began. I studied music business and production at Belmont and started figuring out all of the different avenues that you could be successful in. From there, I just started making connections and putting myself out there!

I would write with anyone who would give me a chance. I made some really amazing friends and then got invited to help start a rock band. We were together 5-6 years and had some awesome opportunities opening up for bands like Hoobastank, Hinder, Saliva, Saving Abel and NonPoint.

During that time some of my friends who I had been writing with started working on albums of their own and asked for my help with arranging. My specialty in most writing sessions was music and melody so it felt like a natural road to go down. Producing and arranging became one of my favorite things and so I offered to help on anything that my friends were working on for free. This allowed me to discover that there are a couple things I seem to specialize in when it comes to working with other musicians.

1.) Openly and comfortably communicating different ideas and financials (hiring different studio musicians or live performers)

2.) Taking care of schedules and getting the right people in the room to vibe well

3.) Helping songwriters bring their music to life with arrangements and sounds they may not have thought of on their own

I think I skewed towards these things because I wanted the musicians I worked with to love working with me and these seemed to be the biggest frustrations with others they have worked with in the past, and because I want artists to be able to walk into the studio and just be able to focus on being an artist.

Throughout this whole process though, one of the things I am most proud of is creating my own artistry. Bringing my solo project ‘In Consistent Seas’ to life and recording my first album “Reckless”. I was able to use all of the things I had learned about writing, producing and recording. I was also fortunate enough to hire some of my favorite people and musicians to work with me. Whether they were writing with me, playing on a song or designing my entire brand and website (shout out to Pen and Mug) it made the whole experience incredible.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

I believe that the best thing we can do to support artists and creatives is understanding the amount of work that goes into creating. If you believe that something is easy, it becomes much easier to illegally download it, or try to pay someone less than they deserve. It makes it easier to justify in people’s heads. Once you understand that the person you hired can play the guitar solo you couldn’t, and can play it in one take is because they have been playing and practicing for 20 years, the amount they ask to be paid doesn’t seem as daunting!

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I currently have two goals with my journey. With my own artistry, I am trying to get my music into more ears. Play more live shows, get more active on social media, do whatever it takes to pursue it.

When it comes to producing, my current goal is to build a team where we can take care of a musicians studio time, help them make connections, and help with their branding and marketing. This may lead me more into a managerial role but I would love to create a team of honest people who value creatives and desire to support them so they can simply focus on being creative.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.inconsistentseasmusic.com
• Instagram: @Inconsistentseas
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/InConsistentSeasMusic
• Twitter: @NConsistentSeas
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5rZlNrqKDPOLkXX6MK9h8r?si=U9_1C8IQStySNr7hOj4nog

Image Credits
Album artwork credit: Pen & Mug