#367 - Tenille Arts on Discovering Her New Song on TikTok and Going Viral + How She Failed Writing a “Truck Song” + Her New Record Label and Getting To Own Her New Music

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Speaker 1: Episode three sixty seven with Tanil Arts. She had her first number one single, Somebody Like That, back in Here's a Clip. That single made history as the first song written, produced, and performed by all females. Pretty cool top country charts, first time that ever happened. So she's in today. Her latest album, Girl to Girl, was released October. She has a new song out this week called Jealous of Myself and just a few Things. I don't understand. There was so much drama with her and putting out new music. I actually saw it on the internet after the interview because I went and looked up stuff about her, but I guess I didn't go to any Facebook pages where they were gossiping about record deals, and so she talks about it here. I knew that there was an issue where she wasn't putting stuff out, but I didn't know that maybe it was a big contentious We get into it. She just signed a new record deal deal to allow her allow her to own her own music, which is a big deal. She has the first artist to sign to Dream Catcher Artists and it's just pretty cool. So our second time talking with her, we referenced the fact that she was the first person to ever bring her guitar in the studio. We were like, well, that's interesting because we don't really have a place to play. And she's like, yeah, you do. You have a microphone right here and she played and that has inspired so many other people to bring instruments up here. So pretty cool. She was born in a small town of Wayburn, Saskatchewan. She now lives in Nashville. She was back with US many many years ago. At age thirteen. She began singing her own songs. At age one, she released her first single and here she is at tanil arts on Instagram and TikTok episode three sixty seven tanil arts. You know, as long as you stay close to the mic, you don't need the headphone. Well a lot of people do this though, and they don't put on headphones and they started talking over here and then you're like you get to stop it and be like, hey, lean into the mic. I was posting a video of TikTok a second ago. What what is your TikTok strategy? Like, what are you guys trying to do? Um? I mean we haven't really been able to promote I mean, the new song much because you don't you don't want to put it up yet. No, we just couldn't for a minute. So now we are full steam ahead. We can post whatever we want. You couldn't for a minute. What does that mean? I mean we were just in a transition. So oh, got it. Okay, I'm gonna do it. You have to get closer to the microphone. Okay, I just did it. Really um, So okay, it's been a while since we've talked. I guess since probably you were at my last studio in the other house, like the other pre covid it was pre covid. Um, somebody like that just came out. I think, Mike, and this has happened a bunch of cents because I think you kind of set the trend. Correct me if I'm wrong, Mike. But wasn't the first person to bring a guitar up? Ye? I think people heard that episode and they started showing up with instruments too, and they were like, we started a tea, We'll just bring our and we were like, well we don't. We don't really have anywhere to plug in. And they're like, other people have done it. You are other people. You set that trend coming up. And I was like, dank. She was cool, and so we have a rule that we can play no more than six seconds of the song, right like five? Is it five? Okay? Apparently the podcast lawyers come at you. So we're gonna play five seconds. Do we have a clip in the new single? We do? Okay, let me hear five seconds of jealous of myself? We don't go to jail. Well, here another five seconds of that in a second. So you say you've transitioned. I don't know about this. Yeah, Uh what management label? Which? Which part label? I actually? Um, I'm now on DreamCatcher Artists. So my manager and I've worked together for a long long time, and it was always a dream of mine to be um at an independent label where I could have ownership in my music and full creative control. And you know, as we kind of decided that we wanted to transition to something new, they created DreamCatcher Artists. So now, yeah, I get to be a big part of my music and have ownership and all of that, which is something that I've dreamed about since day one. It's always stressful and I say, oh, I just moved agencies and I've been with my agency a for ten years. I've never had another agent, and I still like them and had a great relationship with them. But my agent, who is was she was my agent. She was she's awesome, but she had gotten so big in the news world where when we started we were both just like kids, and I was like, dang, you're in New York in the news world, but I need somebody who's so I opened it up and said, okay, So I moved and I'm now at U t A and I had all the meetings and it was a positive experience overall, but it's stressful to have to change one of those fundamental parts of your community, your professional community. Stressful for you to change. No, I felt like it was um the best option for me, and also a lot of those core people that were a part of the beginning of my career and a part of the success of somebody like that, they're all still with me, you know they were. They were really um just super loyal and wanted to continue to be a part of the team. So I pretty much took everybody with me that that had been very pivotal in my career. So it's been great, Like give me five seconds to somebody like that, but not not a tenth of a second more, Okay, that's enough. My friends was gonna kick the door in. And it's been so crazy with his music right forever, it was you can't play more than thirty seconds. Then it was okay, you can play up like fifteen, which you have a talk over it so people can't actually take it from the podcast. And now it's like five seconds five seconds, So I mean you can't even get a full hook in there, not at all. Whenever you're new to a label, what especially a label, that's something that's new, right, they're making you the first point? What does that mean? What's the responsibility for you? Now? How's that different? I mean, I just get to be super involved in everything. And I'm a little bit of a control freak and I do like to be involved in a lot of the decisions. And um, I have been super involved with my managers in the last I think we've worked together for like five six years, So it's really not that much different. I just actually feel like what I say has power and can I can do what I want, which is awesome. Have you been on the road a lot playing shows? Ye? What where? Like? What kind of shows? Oh? My gosh, we I mean, we did the full um summer circuit, you know, and then we were over in Europe. That incredible. I have a friend that will go over there every year and he it's a pretty successful artist and he goes over and he's like, you know, it's a little humbling because the shows aren't as big, he said, but they're dedicated, die hard and I'm like, building a base over there. Do you feel like that's the same thing for you, Like you're you're building fresh over there. I feel like it's bigger over there. Really. Yeah, when I go over there, it's like, I mean, we did our first real kind of headlining tour over there and they were sold out, packed rooms and even though there were small, all they were i mean die hard fans. It was really really cool. So after that European tour, we went to Bahrain and Kuwait and played for the soldiers over there, and it was do you get there and what's the plane light? Do you strap in with a helmet? Like, because I'm sure it's not a delta flight. I mean actually yeah, you kind of just fly in and then you're you know, you're driving a couple of hours to get to where you want to go. But um, it was definitely an eye opening experience. Like I slept in bunks one night and it was very different than than what I expected. But it was so eye opening. And I just have so much respect for everyone over there. I mean, like you Land, talk me through this, you Land and they go okay, and are you like running out under gunfire or no, you're good, You're super safe when you're on this pretzels in the airport actually there was like there was Knes in the airport wait in the Middle East had a cane Chicken. Yes, they had a Cane's Chicken. They have all of our regular chains over there, which was crazy. But we didn't get to see a lot of the city's We were mostly on base um and getting to tour around and see what those guys and ladies do every day. So you drive for a couple of hours and what kind of car um a van that the A C couldn't even keep up with. It was like like that that's what I need to hear. I don't need it was all comfortable and get in the Lexus. No, it absolutely wasn't comfortable. We were very very hot. All of our shows were outside. Um. Yeah, it was it was an experience, but one that I'll never forget. Any alarms go off and then all the night and you're like, get out. I should have been one of those stories. I mean there was um when we were in the dining hall, um an alarm went off that it was too hot to be outside, that everyone needed to um take their daily like our break or whatever. So it's not nice. I feel like they needed one of those here, Mike for part of the summer, like it's too hot to be outside. You talk about your team. Is your sister part of your team? She is now she's doing day to day management. She's moving here in January from Canada. Yeah. Is she excited? She's very excited. So she's doing management now from Canada. Yeah, she started part time like a month ago and so she's just been Yeah, she's texting me to be like you need to do this today. So have you guys ever worked together? We haven't. But honestly, it's a dream come true for me because I bought her around anyway, so I'm like, she might as well get paid for it. And where does she live right now? In Vancouver? Vancouver is pretty cool too, so it's beautiful. I've been there to visit her quite a few times, and it's awesome. I'm honestly sad for her that she has to leave there. It's French the language of Vancouver. No, it's mostly English. What am I thinking of? What's the Quebec? I wasn't thinking of that, but I just learned that, Okay, what what's the really French one? Is that the most French one? I think Montreal? I call it Montreal? Is that is that? I don't know. I've only been there one time. I can't confirm. Yeah, Avery once in a while. And and what is home? Like, what's what's your town like? Now? I mean, my hometown is awesome. When I get to go home, it's like I have a lot of my friends and family in town. Last time I was home, I did a big concert, like they've never done this before, and they just had me. I was like this headliner and it looked like a festival, Like it was crazy how many people showed up. And there's like ten thousand people in my town and I swear they were all there. Um, so it's awesome. And then I have a little nephew, and so when I go home, it's just like all I want to do is play with him and hang out with family. The radio station in your town, do they play your songs first and foremost? Yeah? Awesome? Actually, you know when you like are in school and you get to do the career day where you get to go, like hang out with somebody and see what they do. I went to the radio station and I hung out in the radio station for a day. Then, yeah, was it because you thought you wanted your music played on the station or because you wanted to work in the radio station. I don't know. I just wanted to do something in music, and you know, they were always so supportive. I don't even think I had anything that they could play at that point, but I just wanted to see what the behind the scenes was like. When you were nine and they said what do you want to be when you grow up? What did you say? Then? I said, I wanted to be on American Idol for real. I was like so obsessed with Kelly Clarkson that I would go to school wearing the little like number thing on my chest, like like you were auditioning. You wouldn't even go to the finals, you know, was to wear the number? Did you ever try out for it? Idol for any of the shows. No, because I think when I don't even know being Canadian if you can now, um yeah, I don't think. Back back when I was like thinking about it, I don't think I could. Did they have Canadian Idol? They did, but they don't anymore because it wasn't Carly ray Jefson on Canadian Ray Jefson one of my favorite bands. I don't think they're even together anymore, but yeah, they were on Canadian Idol. Who's your favorite bands? Well it was Headley. They were a band, um, but not anymore. They're not together anymore. I don't think so. Who who's your favorite band now? If you were to pick your favorite, and it could be anybody, but don't pick somebody to be cool, but pick like because it's a difference. There's your cool favorite band, there's your real favorite band. I don't even know what a cool favorite band would be. I feel like I'm not that cool. But um, I grew up listening to Paramore and that's just like still one of my favorites that I go back to all the time. Here's the story for you. I was in Las Vegas and I was I was disheveled, not because I don't drink, so I wasn't drunk or anything, but I was just like it was I get dehydrated out there really quick. I don't sleep well. I have to work. If I'm out there, I'm working, and I'm just kind of lost. And those you know, they have different places to get, different elevators to go to different places. So I getting this elevator and I'm like, oh crap. I said, I don't have my key to get up there with this girl Chitta key, and I was like, and I don't have my headphones, and she like gave me her head fight. It was Haley for Paramore. She wasn't Haley for Paramore that she was a girl, but she was so nice to me in the elevator and I got out and I think someone said was Haley for Paramore and I was like, oh wow, that was just somebody really nice to me in the elevator right now when I was like complete struggle bust, just trying to get anywhere. That's my only Paramore story. It was her being a normal human and being super kind. And I don't know if she still does, but she used to live here. Yeah, I think she was originally from Franklin. A lot of those I don't know, but I mean I went through a very punk phase. I had purple hair, the whole thing, and it was just very into that kind of music. So correct me if I'm wrong, because I think just from remembering our last time together, were you like singing in the backyard or something? Yeah, yeah, the first time that I mean, I was always singing and performing as a kid, like I was just super extra. And so the way that I was like not discovered but like started into music, um was I was just belting out some shinnai in my backyard and my neighbor was like, she came over and said she thought I had a great voice and that my mom should maybe do something about it. And thankfully she put me in voice lessons. I mean she asked me, She's like, do you want to be in voice lessons? And I said, absolutely, I want to do this, And honestly, I remember being eight years old being like, this is what I'm doing for the rest of my life. This is my career. You know, did you ever feel bad that other kids in your classes did not know what they wanted to do? Because I did. I knew what I wanted to do immediately. That to me, it was super tough. Like all of my friends in high school, I already knew what I was, what I wanted to do, and I was already working towards it. So in my mind, I'm like, I'm already like five years ahead of like even if I went to college. I'm like, I'm I'm already doing what I want to be doing and I can just like keep doing it. Versus you know, some of my friends that I just went to school doing arts and science, like they didn't really know what they wanted to to do. And to me, that's it's a blessing and a curse to know what your passion is. Yeah, I can't agree with that because I've always known exactly and I think it kept me from opening myself up to other things. But I've always been extremely dedicated to making sure I had the best shot to get goal right, not that I would get it, but just give me the best shot. I'm gonna work hard. You're sixteen, seventeen years old. I gues you're getting close to graduate in high school. What do you think the step is after you graduate high school? Like, what in your mind, what's going to happen at that time. Well, I had already been in Nashville when I was like fifteen doing what I was signed in a duo. I did not know what was the duo. Um. We were called Taylor and Taniel. Um we were both fifteen. What year was this two thousand nine? Because I guess I wasn't here yet, And so you were signed by by like a management company or a label or what. Um it was called Art House Entertainment, and so you moved down here at I was pretty much here um every other month for like weeks at a time. It's graiz. You and taylor'sife had your own duet. I wish as if if you could tell that fifteen year old something, no, now, because you've definitely been through a lot, what would you tell that fifteen year old now? I mean, just keep going because there's so many things that are it's never just going to be smooth sailing. I'd be concerned if it was to be totally honest, like, there's always going to be things that are in your way, but um, you're going to be successful and it's going to be great. What happened to Taylor to New Um, Well, I was like seventeen, I guess and creatively, I mean it's the same thing that I'm going through now, is like creatively, it just wasn't the direction that I wanted to be going, And um, thank god I spoke up at that time and said that that wasn't quite where I wanted to be. Were you guys grinding like going to doing any radio staff? No, it was very early early on. We were signed and all of that stuff. I mean, we recorded, we had songs ready to like all of that. Yeah, when you come down of fifteen, do you just homeschool then down here or did you just check out? I actually like did most of my school. Either they would send send it with me before I left, or I would do skype with with the teachers would put me on the same teachers, so you would just skype into the classroom and everybody else was what kind of student were you? Very? Um, I was a perfectionist so great. You almost have to have that if you're going to not be able to be there, because it's easy to be distracted when you're not there. Yeah, I I mean I was hardly there, But at the same time, I was like anytime I was just I needed good grades. That's all I wanted. So did you finish high school? And so you graduate high school? Did you to college? You went to College of Hard Knocks, which is the College of Nashville commun Nashville College. So after high school, did you moved down fully? Did you ever go back after fift Yes, so you did. You moved back home. So after the duo was like no longer a thing, I went home and honestly, I kind of just lived like a normal, very normal, um teenage life like I I used to be in dance, Like I was in dance for years of my life. And then um, I decided I wanted to be a cheerleader. So I for the last for my senior year, I was a cheerleader and I just got to hang out with kids like normal. And then all of my friends went away, um to college, and I just worked in my hometown and saved up to move to Nashville. When you were a cheerleader, was it just be a teenager or was it you thought maybe you'd be a cheerleader out of high school. I don't know. I never really was like, oh, I'm going to be a cheerleader, but I I'm not really athletic, but I was like, this was my kind of like team sport, Like I wanted to be a part of that. So in that year, what do you do? Because you've you've been down, you have taste of it. It's a business. It's also fun. It's also awful. Like there's a lot to it. Right you go back? Are you singing it all? Or you just kind of cleansing the palette. I was a little defeated. Um it was you know, it just wasn't the experience that I thought it was going to be. And um, yeah, I guess I needed some time. I was still training classically, so I was still singing, you know, competing doing all of that, but I wasn't out singing as much as I had been before. Will you explain to me what that means? Because even working on American Idol, I would give these kids and be like, I'm a classically trained singer, and I would just go cool because I didn't know what does that mean? Class trained? I mean I was doing exams singing like site singing and um singing operas and in different languages, so like old school, old school, old school music, and then also learning via paper literature. Yeah, I literally like, I I can play piano. But the only reason why I was still in piano um was so that I could take my theory exams for my voice training, because I had to have theory to to take those exams too. Is theory why music is like it is? I never studied music. My excellent voice comes naturally. Honestly, I don't know. I don't get theory like I I have tried to understand it, and I just I don't quite get it, especially in the in the piano space. If I had a paper with a bunch of notes, you can make it work. If you played me a chord, I might be able to, like site sing it. I don't even know what question I'm asking is. I know so little about it, so I'm like, if there are a bunch of I took piano lessons for a bit, so when I was like eighteen or nineteen, I would go on. I would do little bits of stand up comedy at club shows, but I was working, but I would do all these songs and I would use other people's music like parody stuff, And I was like, I don't want to use the people's music because I know there's just there's a life on that and I can't own it. And so I went and bought a guitar to paunch up. And I bought a chord sheet at Walmart. It's put these big poster pep slap and I bought it. And I learned like C G D A A Mine or the easy ones right with very very limited on the bar accords. And that was all my music knowledge. And if you handed me something, I would have no idea what that is. But I thought, Okay, I'm gonna take piano lessons and I'm gonna learn so I can see it. I was an adult, and so I had this lady coming over and she was like mean. I think she thought. I was like seven, Like you do your lessons, lady, I'm paying you. My mom's not here, so let's be cool about this. And so I actus, but I think learning it older. Maybe I just had too many distractions like bills. I don't know, but I never could I could never see the notes. I could never do what naturally came to some of my friends. I'd say naturally because they were just they were good at it, had to work, that worked hard. But they were also they were good enough at it to give them enough confidence to keep going with music. Did you do you feel like you kind of accepted it easier or has it always been a process for you vocally? It's always been That's always been my like true love is like just singing all of the other things. I learned guitar to accompany myself. I didn't learn guitar because I wanted to be a guitar player. So you learned guitar because you were already singing, you had studied vocal. Was how hard was that to learn guitar? For me? Was way easier than piano. Like I remember, I learned by, like you said, like guitar charts. My mom had this old I had my grandma's Martin and my this old literally paper of all of these different chords, and I just I looked up Taylor Swift songs and you know, at the time, there were like three chords in those songs. So I was like, how many of these songs can I learn? And I just, yeah, I learned. I had literally blisters and my fingers were bleeding, and I was just obsessed with it. Your grandma had a Martin did so she was musical. Yeah, what what? What? What does she do? How where did she play music? I mean, my mom and my grandma both played a little bit of guitar, like it was never they're like passion, but they both could. I think my cousin actually got that Martin. Where where did you did your grandma die and leave it? No? But she just gave it to my cousin to learn, And I was like, dangn she gave without dying. What the crap? I know? I want the Martin? So, but where would your grandma play? Like? How would how did she learn to play? Do you have any idea? I have no idea. Actually, I'm going to guess it was a church thing or just you know, wanted to have a guitar and the single do you ever sing in church? What kind of songs? It was? It like now if we go, there's a whole band, and it sounds very temporary. However, when I grew up, that was the kind of church I went because I was either in a Baptist church or Pentecostal church. And there may have been one person with the guitar, but it's a lot of hymns. Is that? Like? What was your church? Like? I went to Catholic school and went to Catholic Church, so it was all, um, you know hymns. There was no you don't know them? Some of them me too, And like I'll hear like a little snippet of something random and I'll know it all and somebody like, how do you know that whole song? I'm like, man, the guy knew that book that we had a Mountain Pine Baptist. I knew pretty much all the songs. I remember a lot of the childhood songs too, Like we used to go to vacation Bible School and like all of those little kids songs were just looking back on them now, they're hilarious, Like I just think it's so funny that we were just sitting in pews singing that all summer long. Do you ever think about writing songs for kids? Uh? No, I mean I've just never. Maybe if I have kids someday, well then I feel weird because I don't have any kids. That did a whole album with kids. Do you like kids? Do you hang out with kids a lot? I don't. I'm not gonna say hang out with that'd be a terrible answer that you have kids in your family, not particularly you know, I did a kids album because I thought that kids music kind of sucked what I would hear, and I was like, oh, I can also teach the kids stuff, so just for fun. One day, Eddie, my partner of the redging Its, was late and so I wrote like this planet rap and and he was like what is that? Said, well, I've taken some sir, mix a lot you know who used to do baby got back and take some of these elements. I did a planet song and it was like, you do the planets Mercury, my very energetic mother just served nine pizzas and Pluto sometimes the planet sometimes, the dwarf planet sometimes isn't want at all. Right, all right, I started the whole thing and it's like a really high pitch mike do you have? You can't play the planet song? But I did this kids. I did one song and then I thought, oh kids liked it. I said, okay, well let me write some other stuff that's not so immature. It sounds a bit contemporary and kids could learn. So I did, like Cracker bought the whole thing. That's incredible. Still like you don't have to annoy the crap out of parents. Still act, I still did like this song. Though it is and you can probably play this. What are you gonna sume me? Am I gonna su me? Yeah? Um. But doing the kids record was a lot of fun and very very basic and it really helped me be like a comedy music writer. That's so fun. That a kid's book and still no kids, so it sounds creeping and she was like, we have a lot of kids, I have none. That a kid's book that was successful, And then it was mostly I wanted to do a book about kids fitting, not feeling the need to fit in, like to they can stay who they are. You know, when I was a kid, I didn't fit in with anybody. I don't know if you were a cool kid or not seem pretty cool. No, I always felt like I wasn't like we said, like when you know what you want to do when you're older, it kind of alienates you from people a little bit. And I had a great group of friends, but it was always just yeah, like I always felt a little on the outside where people mean, do you because you were the performer? No I was. I think I was more mean to myself, like I thought nobody I thought I wasn't good and that nobody would want to hear me, do that? Were you good? What would you tell that kid now that you're freaking good and you should sing at the talent shows and do all of the things that you want to do not be held back by you know, stage fright? Do you still have stage fright? When does it hit you? It'll be random, It's not all the time, It'll just be you know, if I build it up too much in my head, that's when it gets to me. What do you build up? Like what kind of performances to you? Do you think you build up the most? Like when I'm only singing one song or anthem or something like that, Like it's just you have that one little like three minute amount of time to like make it good. Anthems. I've done some anthems and both. Have you done that? American? Do you ever do them? Do you ever do them both at the same time? I have? Yeah? You ever got pressure from two countries? Now? I know everybody? Yeah? Are they as hardcore in Canada about you not messing up the anthem as they are in America? Yeah? I mean if you mess it up and there is also like some of our lyrics changed, so then it's like if you sing they changed lyrics. Yeah, they change um. It was like in all our sons and then they changed it two in all of us. And so depending on the version you sang, people get upset either way. Yeah, because if you sing the new one, they're like, oh, you're gen z, you're not respecting the old the ideas of the country. They if you're singing the other way, it's like, why are you just singing about sons? Yeah? I mean I sang it the new way, and I've felt like I got backlash from people being like, you're singing it wrong. I'm like, well, no, it's like it's actually this way now. Which one is harder to sing? Uh? The American anthem? Is it? Because it's so high? Yeah? And also just like I didn't grow up singing up my whole life, so it's just not as natural. I feel like, when's the first time you had to sing the American national anthem? I was like fifteen. In my hometown, I sang for our baseball team and they had because we're so close to the border, we had a lot of American players. You grew up near the border, like an hour away from the border, How hard was it to get across the border because you have just driven across, no problem. Yeah. Oh my mom used to take us um back to school shopping in my not, North Dakota. I know my Okay, so now I kind of know where you are if you're going into my not. But you just get across the border, no problem. Just let you come in and show. Yeah, you can go across for a day and go shopping and hang out. I give that song, prepare yourself, go ahead, mother. Oh yeah, you've had started from the start and planet nob one me. My good friend Marcy read it's closest to the song on Its a little fast and so hot and slightly colored gray. You can rub behind just being his planet to you say, it's not awesome. I appreciate you saying that, but I was just sitting there and I was like, I can't live Eddie's late again. Started right to this dumb little planet song and the way we went. So let me ask you this. If this is uncomfortable, let me know. But you and Tyler still still together? Yeah? Everything great, Everything's great, because the last time I talked to you, you guys were together, was a little new, little newer, very new. Yeah, and so what's what's the deal there? Um, yeah, we're together. We lived together. Um, he's in the music industry now too. When we met, he wasn't he was trying to get in. Um did he come with you the first time I've met him? Yeah, I'm sure you have. Um he does day to day management for Nico Moon, So if you've yeah, seen each other around. But he's yeah, he's in the industry. We're both very busy, very career driven, which is awesome. Has that made it harder that he's in the industry. No. I think what I always thought would be weird is if I was dating a songwriter, because I feel like they would be like very judgmental of like your music versus like he's almost he's very um, just business focused, so he'll always have good ideas. He's just like it's like free advice. It's great. I don't know free advice, man, I get too much to them. I had too much free advice. I want to play this clip of you singing blue in two thousand five. This is You as a Kid has almost four million views on TikTok. So how old are you in the clip? I don't know, Wow, when you had that vocal control at fourteen years old. That's crazy. Yeah. That was one of the first songs that I ever learned outside of classical music. I just remember my mom she was like, you should learn this song, and we just had a cassette tape of it, and I, being a little perfectionist, determined child that I was, I just like went into our laundry room and put that on repeat until I could do her a little flip thing and um. Yeah. And my grandparents actually came over a couple of days later, and my I just remember my grandpa saying that, like, is that the radio And my mom was like, no, it's Neil, and they couldn't believe it. So that was just like a cool moment. And that was my grandpa's favorite song. When you performed that at the opery? Did you perform that at the opry because you knew you could re viral it? Because that's cool? Right as a kid? Why why why that at the opera? Yeah? I mean I just honestly, I didn't even know we had some of those videos of me as a kid, and um, when I played it at the Opery, I just wanted to, you know, play a classic, awesome song and that was one that I had been singing my whole life, so it was also, um, you know, kind of a tribute to my grandpa as well. We were talking about TikTok earlier, and that video obviously has a bunch of a bunch of views on it. Uh. The other one that I saw they had a bunch of its was you in the guitar where you be dazzling a guitar. But he said the bedazzling a guitar U That one had millions of views it did. Why do you think things catch on TikTok? I have no clue. I think it's one of those situations where you just kind of have to like throw things at the wall and sticks, because there's never been even with all of the you know, guitar bedazzling stuff, Like I could probably post guitar bedazzling every day and it wouldn't still get that same amount of views. So it's like whatever catches on, it's just almost it's a natural growth. So yeah, you never know. I feel like you could post the same thing five times and every time you get a different result in views, and what the algorithm is gonna do that day. And we just had a meeting with my show, want to pull them all the office and we're talking about TikTok And I just had a big prior to that, had a big meeting with some of the people at TikTok. And you know, they're not going to share Algorithmic's secret recipe, but they do tell you, at least they told me. They said, hey, there'sn't post video like crazy. You know, with Instagram there's there's definitely a formula how many to post on your feed and once you hit a certain threshold, don't post this many. But TikTok, they were like, just post, post, post, And I was like, but how do we know? Because if I saithing really good and it doesn't catch on, what do I do? And they were like, keep posting. They didn't say posted again, but I feel like they were saying post it again, honestly. And so what I'm getting to with that is some people that I know, they will post a song and if it doesn't catch on on TikTok, they're like, oh, it must not be good. Let me move on. Where I feel like if you tried three or four times, even though it feels maybe a little cheesy, maybe a little cheating, that then that would be like the accurate barometer of if people like it. Yeah, I mean, you got to play that game. If everybody else is doing it, you have to, you know, find creative ways to share your music and but don't give up on it immediately and posted again if it doesn't exactly Yeah, I mean, and who knows, like another clip of that song might catch on more than the one that you posted. There's just so many opportunities there, and that's why I'm excited to start sharing. Jealous of myself and really like just trying out all of those different things. I can kind of just go rogue now. And so you didn't post stuff because you were still in the process of figuring out what you own, what you could own, what you might own. Yeah, we didn't have the master yet, like, we hadn't fully recorded it, and I just I didn't want to um really something that I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to put it out. So that whole time stressful for you. Yeah, I mean it was the last year and a half has just been very tough trying to figure out where I was going to go creatively. And when I found the song, it was actually on TikTok. This is one of the only songs that I haven't written that I'm releasing. What do you mean, I'm gonna pull up your TikTok? And yeah, I didn't just grab my phone to be really um. So yeah, I was scrolling through TikTok and at the time, I didn't follow Emily Wiseman, and I have no idea why this showed up. It was a god thing, a timing thing, and it was this song. And she's an incredible writer in town. She you know, has had a ton of success, and I've always been open to outside songs. I think best song always wins, and unfortunately I just like hadn't really been pitched a ton of incredible songs. So I was just not really even looking but scrolling through and her she came up singing this song called Jealousy and Myself, and she just sang verse chorus and at the end, you know, she did her little TikTok thing where she's like, what artist wants to sing this song or whatever? And I heard that hook and was like, dang, I wish I wrote that. So I just commented the little hand up emoji and was like, I'd like to see, and I reached out to my team. I I sent the the TikTok over and was like, I don't want this song. I think it's really great. I haven't even heard the whole thing. I've only heard a first of chorus, but um, I think this would be awesome. That's how I got it. That's a pretty cool story. Mostly it's so it puts out a song, it gets a bunch of a bunch of views, and you decide what to do with it. But you actually found a song for you to cut that way. Yeah, that's the first I think we've heard of that where you hesitate when you heard the fullest song, like, oh maybe I didn't want this whole thing. Oh no, that would be funny. But no, Honestly, when I heard the full version, it just like I had this incredible gut feeling of like, Okay, this is it, Like I need to fight to have this song, and um, you know it's stacked full of incredible writers, and um, you know, I just I think there's awesome songs being written every single day in this town. And I'm so open to those outside songs because I know people are going to outrighte me. You have a lot of followers, Yeah, a little bit. It's good you have more followers on tak talk to Instagram. I think it's about the same right now. That's awesome. You have to in ten thousand followers on TikTok. Let me do a little let me see what you're doing over here on TikTok. Okay, so what do you want to post on TikTok. I'm totally into TikTok mindset right next that is three meetings about it, And I was talking through TikTok and so like, I'm kind of reevaluating stuff my stuff, Like what is your goal? What do you want to put on TikTok? You're motivating me? Um, I just want to share who I am, which I also feel like some of the stuff that I'm sharing are like videos that my fans have made, like they are so awesome and they'll take things from you know, any time I talk about mental health or anything like that, they're always super um engaging and supportive of that. So I'm always trying to do that. I'm trying to be real. I'm just you know, trying to post my music. I'll go live doing my makeup before show because I do all of my own stuff, and um, I'll go live, but dazzling things or making one of a kind pieces that I'm going to give away to a fan or whatever it is, I just I kind of throw it all in there. It's a very creative space for me. One of the things they were telling me was, don't worry about producing stuff or editing stuff. Like the stuff that does the best is the stuff that is just like real deal, like post it raw as possible, like find that balance of raw and good, like you just want to want to post garbage, but like good raw stuff is the best because what people want to see. Now, I don't know if you have be real or if you use that at all. It's it's a new social media new ish has. I've been on it for seven or eight months or so, and that whole app was based on social media. And you can't edit anything. It's throughout the day. It will give you a little alert, all right, show what you're doing now, and it shows you and what you're doing. You can't edit anything. It's like a picture of video of right then well not TikTok. You started, Well they stole it, so TikTok has that to do you do you ever get the lightning bolts? And it's like, all right, TikTok, show you're what you're doing. Maybe I don't have the update. Maybe just you know, you have a lot of followers, like no, but now you know my whole point with that is, and I'm looking at some of yours. I mean, I think that's what you're doing, right, You're showing you it's just you, and like here's one that's thousand. I'm sure this is It's another be dazzle? Is it? People apparently like to Yeah, arts in every way. I like to bring arts into everything that I do. And it's so people always like, how is that your real last name? I'm like, well it is. And I also just like I didn't even think about that. I haven't think about that part of it. Do you make clothes? You ever tried that? I actually bought a sewing machine um and have been messing around with some things, but I'm not quite good enough yet. I just recently started embroidering, and obviously I paint and all that kind of stuff, But I make clothes. Scrapbook No, I can't scrap book. I dont even know what that is though, I'll be honest with you. I think it's like it's a like at least call him like a what do you year book? That's what I think. Scrapbook is like you just take different years and picture and buy a bunch of different colored paper. I don't know. You can still play your song, right, you're number one shows. There's nothing weird to buy that? No? No, actually, Um, with the DreamCatcher Artists deal, Um, they bought back all of my masters, so we have all of my music. How much that cost? I bought it? I have to talk to my managers. I had to buy because I had signed a deal to do a couple of comedy records with the label and they were great, and but inside of that deal, they also had part of my touring, part of my merch and I didn't need them to promote anything. I'm my own promotion. So I was like, guess I don't this is not cool. I don't doing this anymore. And I was, and so I had to buy it back and telling what it ain't cheap? Yeah, I mean it's hard once you're in a deal. Um, it's really hard to get out of and sometimes you outgrow it or whatever it is. And I've just seen so many of my friends recently, people that I know, people that have done radio shows with that um are involved in deals and then it goes great for a little while and then it doesn't and you're stuck there. And Mike, what, I don't know when we're gonna this is going up? Because her song goes up October? Are we after that? The day before? Okay? So this will be out the day so tomorrow or whenever. Jealous myself will be available for everybody. So am I hearing it before? Correct? Could? Okay, it's a time machine right now, we're in a time machine. And then you're planning to go to Coach Radio like January next year. Man, that's a long time. I know, but we've actually you know, I just think with the transition and everything going on, and this musical direction is a little bit different, and so I just wanted to give it some time to to grow. We're going through the holidays and all of that. I just didn't want to, you know, force it to radio too soon. Also, I'm an idiot because we're I mean, it always feels like it's April or to me mid October. By the time it's then it's thanks No, nothing happens after Thanksgiving, so you don't want to be doing crap after Thanksgiving. So that makes sense. Then, well, you had a number one during the pandemic. You know which, great right you get? You have a number one you worked hard for It took a long time to get there. You you hustled your butt off. I saw it, and that's the positive because you always have a number one, but during the pandemic. So it was definitely a weirder time for music, very weird. I had also just released an album and I really never even got to play those songs, you know. Um, I know a lot of artists went through that where they just released an album and then pandemic hit and you never even got to play those songs for fans be out there and actually see how they've connected. And that's how the number one was for me. Like I had heard it on the radio and I knew that people were connecting with it, but it wasn't until one of those first shows back where I actually saw that wow, this had an impact and that people were singing every word back. Yeah, but that's cool because you really don't know, no, And like that's the thing about social media and all that. It's like you can't tell what's real, Like you really don't know how much you've impacted people until you go and see them in person. So I want to talk about songwriting for just a second, and how sometimes you have to be uncomfortably vulnerable or it's just uncomfortable for people to hear you sharing your thoughts and emotions, many people that you know. So you and Tyler have been together three years, if I remember correctly, you had been with a previous boyfriend for many whatever was a long one for that, right, So are there still songs about that that you have to sing now that you're current partner? Here is and it's like I think he's confident enough that it doesn't think too much about it. I mean, there's what's really funny is that, like he was like, why are you so drawn to this jealous of myself song? You know, because it's like a breakup song, And um, there have been times where I've come home after writing a breakup song and he's just like, are we good? Like, yeah, we're good. I just still have some healing to do, apparently, you know, if that stuff comes up in a in a writing session it's like you just kind of have to lean into it and and know that. I also know now that I'm not only writing for myself. You know, I can draw of you know, my my siblings experiences, or my friends or you know, my fans. There's just a lot of people in my life that inspire me. So I like to write about everything. Any More. Shows still the end of the year. Yeah, we've got a few um here and they're doing a lot of um like radio stuff. We're getting back out there. Yeah. I just actually had my first writing session in like four months today today, No, um Friday, did you write anything good? Yeah? Do you ever write something You're like Dane, that song's good. Then you go back in liten to it. A month later You're like, Dane, that song is not good. Sometimes That's why I really like to sit on my things because I I really don't like too I feel like I'm a very good judge of my own music, and I have to let it sit for a minute. Like I can't just be super overhyped about it. I have to listen to it with fresh ears and be like, was that actually good or not? Mhmm. Yeah. I start if we're writing something funny, It's not funny anymore after about thirty minutes, and then I have to just convince myself that originally it was funny and then finish it. And then I have to wait two or three months sometimes to go back and go, oh, that was funny. Or sometimes I'm like, you're not funny, like that makes no sense at all. Yeah, sometimes I'm like, okay, we thought we were. Really. One time, I wrote a truck song and I went back home and played it for my boyfriend and he's like, you know that chuck that you just mentioned, Yeah, that doesn't exist, and like it would never have that amount of horsepower and like all these things, and I was super Yeah, I was like okay, Dann, because I wrote it with two other girls and we just really we thought we were doing our truck research, but we weren't. That's funny that it wasn't even a real truck, Like yeah, he was like, will I forget what it was? It was like a two tone Tacoma or something, and we looked it up and it was like somebody in their backyard like painted a two tone to come. You have this song? Are you working on a broader either like EP or album or is that the idea to for next year? Possibly, yeah, something for sure. I mean I really just got back into writing and have had this, you know, fun idea to kind of bring in some like eighties sounds which you'll hear and Jealous of Myself, like with the keys and stuff I just wanted to you know, brings a different sound to what I've been doing for a long time, but kind of mesh it all together. So well, if people are listening to this right now, this song is probably out this this is coming out the day before, but most of the consumption is done in the first few days of of this podcast, and so I encourage everybody to check out Jealous of Myself. It is up unless it's unless you're a super rabid fan of this podcast, and then you have to wait like probably like sixteen hours or stuff. Well, I'm excited that you kind of figured out where your seat is and now you're in it and you're moving forward, and I'm assuming you feel kind of reinvigorated, like something to prove you got a team that kind of have an awesome team that has worked hard and accomplished so much during a year that I felt like we were you know, we kind of had her hands tied a little bit. So I'm so excited to see what everybody can do. And we are still like just full steam ahead. Next time I see you, how's it going with your sister? Would be interesting? Yeah, maybe we'll bring her in her next time. It'll be interesting. You guys follow at tannil Arts, so i'll spell it for you just in case. T E n I L l e a r t s at Taniel Arts on TikTok and Instagram. She's got a new song out. She's a whole new person. She's like the range is taller, the older person. It's crazy. Um and I hope you guys check out Jealous of Myself that is out now'iel. Good to see you, Thanks so much, b