Past This End
Click Here To Download
Tiffany Thompson.I recently had the privilege of catching up with Tiffany Thompson, an old friend from college, and by the time we were done talking, I had come to this realization: Tiffany is the definition of an indie artist. To prove my point, let me give you some background. After college, Tiffany headed to DC where she had a job offer and a free place to live, so spent the next few years working and saving money. Meanwhile, she took her first 4-song EP around to local coffee shops, gave them a copy and hoped for the best. Slowly the gigs began to roll in, and she got plugged in with local venues and other artists. Eventually, this led to a two week, six show tour with Steph Modder, a friend and singer/songwriter. They each committed to booking half of the shows as well as share the headlining duties, using personal vacation time to pull this all off. They played shows from DC through Chicago and up to Wisconsin, and at the end had come out on top financially. She realized that stuff like this could actually be done, and done well. She didn’t need a manager or full-time band to be successful. This proved to be a turning point for Tiffany, and resulted in the coolest thing I’ve heard of in a while: she asked her employer for some time off work to explore her music, and they kindly said yes! So, a month into her time off is where we at Indie Monday meet Tiffany and get to see what she’s been up to.
(Tiffany’s responses have been paraphrased and shortened)
Tiffany, what do you have in mind for this year off? What are you trying to accomplish?
At this point, providing my fans with new material is extremely important. Whether it’s through pictures, blog posts, shows, or new music, giving them something to interact with. Along those lines, building the fan base is essential, whether it’s through house shows, hanging out with friends, and advertising on Facebook. Essentially, it’s being a “yes” person. If that means flying to Nashville or California to work with a producer, write a song for someone, work with co-writers, or travel to play a show in someone’s house, I’m just saying yes! As far as new music, there are plans for 2 EPs and possibly a full-length. And I’d love to do a Christmas EP!
How do you go about booking shows and promoting yourself?
I book all of my own shows. I go to venues and give them a business card and my EP, I organize house shows, get in touch with friends and their contacts, and try to say yes to anything that comes along! (Just a side-note: Tiffany recently opened for Grammy award-winning band America, which is legitimate by anyone’s standards). As far as promoting goes, I try to post new material on my website, meet and talk to new fans at every show, have them join my mailing list, join other people’s lists to stay in touch, and use Facebook a lot! In fact, if you’re going to spend any money on advertising, do it on Facebook. It automatically reaches so many people who at least recognize your name.
How do you go about writing your songs?
Well before, I would always write alone, starting with lyrics, and then finding a melody and chords that would fit them. Recently, though, I’ve been doing a lot of co-writing, which has been amazing. What that means is I’ll have a concept, a lyrical image, or an idea of a struggle that I’d like to write about. Then I spend 3-4 hours with a professional songwriter either in Nashville or California making a song out of it. Working with other people has really expanded my songwriting and I love the new material that I have.
As far as content, I am really committed to the idea of contributing to the common good. So I try to write about truth, or thoughts/struggles/situations that contain truth. But I also want my lyrics to contain hope. Having those goals is both freeing and limiting. It’s something to aim for but also to stay inside. I love what The Fray and U2 have done with their lyrics and music. They’re a great example of doing good through their work.
Do you have a “most embarrassing moment” you can share?
Oh man, it actually just happened, and at the America show! We had decided to play “Love Will Keep Us Alive” by the Eagles, something to connect with the audience. But then I started too slow, which threw my guitarist off, who ended up being unplugged for part of it, so I couldn’t hear him. He kept mouthing to me to speed up, which distracted me, so I forgot some of the lyrics and mixed them up. And it was our closing song! Fortunately we got it together enough to end it well, so hopefully that’s what everyone will remember.
Tiffany, thank you so much for talking with me! It’s been great catching up. Do you have any last thoughts you’d want to share?
Yea! I’d guess I’d say that being an independent musician is being part of a community. It’s so important to identify with the fans and form relationships. That’s why I think that house shows are the future of the industry. It’s an intimate setting so people feel like they get to know you and have a reason to follow you. The other thing I’d mention is how important it is to self-fund, if you can. I was able to save money for this year so that I can travel to play shows, to promote myself, and to make new recordings, and I’m not on anyone else’s schedule! If you can figure out a way to do that, it’ll be a huge help.
So there you have it. Tiffany Thompson, one of the coolest people I’ve had the pleasure of talking too, is doing exactly what all musicians dream of doing, but few actually do. Check out her website, like her Facebook page, follow her on Twitter, invite her to play a house show (she’ll probably come!), or maybe ask if she’d write you a song. However you do it, just keep track of her.
.Dan Hawthorne
P.S. Tiffany mentioned that the featured song is a rough draft of a song that will come out on a new EP set to drop in August, so we got an exclusive sneak peek!
Download “Past This End”
Some Links:
(Source: indiemonday)
