Today we’d like to introduce you to Andy Hanson.
Hi Andy, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I began writing music over 15 years ago and noticed it had a positive effect on my mood and emotions so I stuck with it. I’ve always been in school bands, but this type of music was very different.
It spoke to a part of me that felt bigger than myself. Whether you call it being inspired by a muse or just random synapses forming music that sounds good, I felt myself leaning toward a folky, singer-songwriter sound where I try to write about the human experience.
There is good and bad in life and I want to celebrate that through my music. In the last few years, I have spent more time focusing on honing my craft as a musician and songwriter. I’ve written a lot of bad songs that fell by the wayside very quickly, songs I still play to this day, and still others that are almost too special to be heard.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Nope, not at all. I was initially terrified by the fact that to do this I would need to perform and sing my songs in front of people. I knew it was something I needed to do but that fear delayed my starting more than I’d like to admit.
The thought of being the center of attention made me sick to my stomach. I did, however, know that I needed to take small stepping-stone steps to get over my fears. I played my first gig and was so glad when it was over. I played my second gig with a little less fear. I kept going and after many, many shows I am very comfortable with performing and almost get antsy when I’m not on stage.
I’ve also struggled with boughs of imposter syndrome. That is not necessarily unique to me, but I am not trained in performing, nor do I hold a degree in music. I have waves and seasons where I get too much into my head believing that someone will find out the type of musician I truly am.
Like my performances, I just kept at it and I have experienced less and less of those feelings. They still appear sometimes, but I found I’d rather do my own thing within music than never try at all.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am such a sucker for honest and raw songs and lyrics. The more genuine the song, the more I fall in love with that music. This tends to lend itself to sad-sounding songs but if done right a sad song can still be uplifting and encouraging. I try to emulate that as much as possible in my music.
I won’t lie, I do find myself drawing from my own life experiences for many of my songs. I guess you could say the act of writing is a form of therapy for me to try and make sense of the things I’ve experienced. The reason I am comfortable with writing and sharing from my life is that I think most people have questions, concerns, and blank spots in their memories when they look back at their histories. I don’t mean that my life is emblematic of everyone’s experiences but instead, my music is a call saying that it’s okay to work through, in our ways, the good and bad we have in each of our lives.
With that, I say I’m a folk musician, but in reality, I will let the song lead me to where it wants to end up. If that means the song feels like it should be something other than your traditional folk-style music, I will pursue that and encourage that feeling within the song. There are far too many songs to write that can’t fit into a genre box. I like that about my process, my music, and the music I have yet to write.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk-taking.
I think the risks I took have primarily been the mental health items that have challenged me. It may not seem like it to some people but to step out of one’s comfort zone can feel very, very risky in and of itself.
As someone who hated the center of attention, performing music is the last place I thought I’d find comfort and solace, and felt like the biggest risk in the world. Despite the fact I love playing music now, stepping on the stage felt like a huge thing that leads to a negative outcome. I am so thankful it has not been that in any way.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://andyhansonmusic.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andyhansonmusic
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AndyHansonMusic
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@andyhansonmusic
