Meet Morgan Alexander | Songwriter and Troubadour
We had the good fortune of connecting with Morgan Alexander and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Morgan, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
I believe my success stems from my connection to the fan base. When I’m onstage, I like to get to know the audience. Who they are. Where they are from. What brings them to my show. Those conversations lead to impromptu original songs that they can enjoy, because they’re the focus. I think reading the room is so important. To remember, as a performer, breaking up a set with spontaneity can be positive. It’s engaging. It impacts the energy in the room.
I always try to cultivate each performance as its own, while connecting with the folks on the other side of the microphone. I want them to feel they’re included in the live creation process of a musical performance.
It’s something they can keep as a memory. It’s a way to grow your fan base organically.
Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My starting point really can be pinpointed to school choir. Originally, my plan was football. I’m a big guy. It’s what I wanted to do, but my mom; well, she had other opinions on that. She didn’t let me play football. So, I explored other interests and grew into a world that’s lead me here. Choir was my foundation. It led me to college, and in college, my focus was voice development. That became my future. Sports is still a big part of my life. I worked in sports radio at one point in my career, but music became the passion.
In college, I studied and performed under one of the greats, jazz and choral director, Kirk Marcy in Seattle. Kirk was an inspiration for me. He showed me how to be a leader. To be prepared. How to conduct myself in a professional setting.
After college, I returned to Albany, Oregon and began a career in radio as a DJ.
In radio, my passion for music theory and country began to intertwine. I always loved Jazz and Blues, but realized early on if I wanted to have a career in music, I would need to find a contemporary lane. At that point, I wasn’t performing. The only time you would have seen me behind a mic was at karaoke night.
Radio is the backbone of everything I am now as an entertainer. Listening to the voices and lyrics that came out of country music, that is what eventually led me to Nashville.
Radio gave me the ability to grow and connect with an audience. It developed my performance mentality. I think that’s what sets me apart from others. There are singers, there are instrumentalists, and there are entertainers.
But the road I’ve traveled down gave me the opportunity to be all three.
That’s what allows me to connect with a room and a crowd. It helped me better understand how to help an audience stay connected with the music. Since I began playing in Nashville, some of my favorite compliments have been “we planned to stay for one drink and then we stayed 4 hours,” or “I usually don’t like country music but you’ve made me like it.” Those comments let me know that all the years I spent working, learning, grinding, winning, and failing paid off and have given me the skills to run my business.
Always remember every move or action you make will continue to impact you and your career as you grow. When it comes to small business music, creating a consistency while still creating something evolving and organic, has to be all about you.
Your audience, your customers, will always be able to tell if you are being real and that can build the biggest bond between musician and listener.
Always be able to adapt and evolve while staying true to your roots.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
When my best friend visits I always like to show them the Nashville highlight reel. I take them to the honkytonks. I’ve been fortunate to play many of them and have had my pick of where and when I wanted to play. First stop on broadway is always Legends Corner on a Tuesday Night. Tuesday nights in music city are always a go to. There’s less chaos than on weekend nights. For a local, when friends come to town, you want to show them the neon, but we also know how to avoid the crazy (we all know there’s a level of crazy). Then comes the weekend, and that’s when I like to leave the bars and catch a show at the Grand Ole Opry or The Ryman. Maybe hit a rooftop. Go to Bourbon Street in Printers Alley. See Stacy Mitchhart. There’s so much talent here. I like to show people that.
Nashville is also growing into a foodie town. You have the classics on Broadway. I love going to Jacks. Daddy Dogs. Merchants. But 5th and Broadway has opened the door to a lot of cool options too. If they want to get out of town, we take a drive to Loveless Cafe; or if they want some local flavor outside of downtown, I take them to my suburb, Donelson. I love Donelson. It’s been good to me and my family and the food scene is growing everyday. Darfon’s, Nectar, Tennfold Brewery, McNamara’s Irish Pub, Sweetmilk, there are so many options.
Whether you wanna show someone live music, good food, or explore the art scene, there’s something here for everyone.
Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
If you’re a creative personality, you need a support system that gets first dibs to the process. Someone to analyze. See the big picture. Help handle all of the business that goes into the creative. I’m blessed to have a lot of people in my life that fill those roles and support me through it all. From my mom, to family and early childhood friends, band mates, new friends, and my kids. I have to shoutout my wife, Sarah. She not only supports me through all the long days and crazy schedules, but also has the capacity to be a sounding board and tell me the hard truths. She’s honest, and that growth and feedback help me to be my best each time I step on a stage or sing a note. She’s given me ideas and suggestions that helped even when the vision wasn’t easy to see. Her positivity and honesty mean the world to me.
A second shoutout has to go to all of the production crews and my band. We support each other, create together, and face each new opportunity and challenge together.
Teamwork makes the dream work. I would like to leave this on a thought from Michele Jennae, “If we don’t communicate, we certainly can’t get much done, and if we don’t communicate authentically, what we get done is less effective.” Be authentic. Trust yourself. Believe in something bigger than you.
Website: www.morganalexandermusic.com
Instagram: https://instagram.com/themorganalexander?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/morganalexandermusic?mibextid=LQQJ4d
Youtube: https://youtube.com/@THEMORGANALEXANDER?si=wZFamo4QaR8_chbn
Image Credits
Photo Credit to @ClaytonCorners Photographer Nate Boyd
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