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

Alright, Troy thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

I would say that is my non-profit Instruments For Education. IFE, for short, was started in 2018 after I saw a video of a teacher in Nashville teaching with music. I could see how the kids were engaged. They wrote the lyrics, learned the science, and sang songs about what they were learning. It made it so fun for the kids. As a songwriter here in music city, I see a lot of dusty instruments sitting around. I thought if I asked if they would donate the instrument to me and I could get into a classroom or a student’s hands I could be a liaison to facilitate that. Lo and behold, most of the people I asked said “sure” they would donate an instrument. So I went in full force and started a 501(c)(3) non profit which is Instruments For Education. Since then we have donated over 450 instruments to middle Tennessee schools and students. One of the biggest challenges we face is funding to be able to collect and deliver these donations. You can visit instrumentsforeducation.org for more information on how you can help!

Troy, 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’ve been into music since I was able to watch a record spin on our old record player. It was one of those large furniture-type consoles. At about 8 years old I asked for and received an electric guitar. It was a Sears Teisco guitar. That fire has been lit ever since! Fast forward, I played in rock bands in and around Minnesota (my home state) for most of my adult life. During those years my band was able to open for bands like Warrant, Slaughter, Firehouse, etc. We had a good time during those years. I was always writing songs and I put out a few CDs. I realized that my favorite part of music was creating songs. Back in 2010-11 my original band won the local rock station’s (KQRS In Minneapolis MN) battle of the bands. We got to open for Cheap Trick (one of the bands that inspired me big time!) and Styx at Midway Stadium in St. Paul MN. Around that time I was working on an “online” record with a project, Tommy Lee from Motley Crue was doing. I was able to go to Tommy’s house/studio in Calabasas to hang out and listen to the record. I ended up getting credited for guitar on 3 songs on his 2012 Methods of Mayhem record! That made me really want to just do music full-time. I had taken a trip to Nashville for a songwriting workshop and fell in love with the city and the whole music city vibe. I had what I like to call a “midlife revelation”! So deep in the middle of domestic life, in my 40s, my wife and 3 kids packed up and moved to the Nashville area. I have been working in music as a songwriter, demo producer. I am blessed to be able to make music for many years and hope to continue to make more. I am always pitching songs that I write. Some have been on TV shows, and some have been on “hold” with major artists, Keith Urban being one! That was pretty exciting but alas it didn’t make the record. Such is the life of a music maker! It can be hard to deal with the amount of rejection in this business but I love it and my heart will always want to make music! All in all Instruments For Education has been the most rewarding. I love to give back when I can!

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Well, I guess that would be the ability to hear the word “no” over and over again when pitching songs. It’s hard, it’s deflating, and heartbreaking at times. Especially when your goal is to have a hit on the radio. You write songs from the heart, many with a real message, and they get passed on, only to hear songs on the radio that are just shallow and rehashing the same old topic, bars, girls, trucks etc. There are so many more feelings from real life that songs convey and they just get the “no”. Funny thing, I want to create meme about modern country radio songs. If you remember the game “boggle”, you shake up a bunch of dice with letters on them and make words. My “boggle” game would be for writing modern country radio songs. The words on the dice would be” blue jeans, sweet tea, whiskey, girl, moonshine, tan lines, etc. you get the idea! I go through ups and downs about the business side and the rejection but I have found no matter how disheartening it can be my heart and will to create music never wavers! I have learned that you simply have to love what you do. That love will carry you through all of those ups and downs. If you feel like giving up…don’t just keep doing what you love!

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

Of course, it would be to have a hit song! I don’t care if it’s a number one, even a “one-hit wonder”. That would be great. Those songs are not always number ones but they stick around for years and years. That would surely change my life and give me the feeling that I truly was meant to do this with my life and validate to my family why I have chosen this path in life! It would also help me to be able to take Instruments For Education nationwide and reach more kids who want to make music too! That is the most rewarding thing for me!

Contact Info:

• Website: troycastellano.com instrumentsforeducation.org
• Instagram: instagram.com/troycastellano
• Facebook: facebook.com/troycastellanomusic
• Youtube: youtube.com/troycastellano
• Other: Would love if you could add facebook.com/instrumentsforeducation as well.

Image Credits
Photo credits: Jeanne Castellano