Today we’d like to introduce you to Austin Sweeney.
Hi Austin, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I grew up on a family farm in Dayton, OR. I played music in different bands growing up and near the end of my college tenure, I moved to Nashville to give it a go. It didn’t work out. I was naive and broke and Nashville can make broke folks broke-er. It was a great experience though of how competitive the music business is. I moved back to Oregon for another 3 or 4 years and on a whim, moved with my two buddies down to Arizona to give music another go. It was the greatest decision I’ve made. I made so many music friends that I’ll have for life. I also met the woman who would become my wife when she came with a friend out to a show I was playing in Chandler. So I owe so much to Arizona and the music scene within it. I’ve since done a few tours and just moved to Oregon to start a family. The music still very much continues and builds. I plan to stay very connected to Arizona and to spend a couple months down there per year playing music with all my friends down there. The future looks bright.
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?
Definitely not. Like any road there are smooth moments where the wind is at your back and driving is easy, but as soon as you settle in, you run into potholes, construction, traffic, and accidents. I’ve got a line in a new song of mine that says “The road of life is always under construction”, which is true. Technically we’re all moving forward, but never as quickly or as smoothly as we’d like. I’ve had some tremendous highs in music playing some really special shows, but just as often, I’ve had some brutal lows. They say if you haven’t considered quitting at least a few times, you haven’t been in music long enough. Though I’ll never quit, I can’t. This is who I am and it’s what I do. But that doesn’t mean the thoughts don’t pop into my head on the rough nights. As they say, ‘The horrors persist, but so do I.’
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I think one of the things that sets me apart from others is my dedication to my own art’s unique-ness. Fame, money, and accolades are great, but they’ve never been my main goal. My goal has always been to write “MY” songs. Every creative person has a unique connection to the divine, ethereal space that provides all good art. Each person is their own antennae that tunes into their unique frequency, and our job is to always be tuning so we can receive the art that we are supposed to bring into this world. We’re just conduits. When I was younger, I just wanted to be on country radio and be the next Kenny Chesney (or more accurately, Jimmy Buffett). As I got further into the business and of creation itself, I recognized that I’m not here for the external validation nearly as I much as I was when I was young. Now, I get fired up by artists who bring forth their unique take on the universe and the minutiae within it. So, while I was chasing a reputation when I was younger, now I’m just chasing a song.
What are your plans for the future?
I moved! My wife is due with our first baby, a son, in a few weeks. So we moved back to Oregon to be closer to family. The music is only ramping up, however. So my next great adventure is fatherhood while trying to balance a growing music career. There’s a story from the movie “Holes”, where a boy has to carry a pig up a hill. When the boy begins, the pig is very small and the boy can carry it up the hill. As time goes on, the pig grows, but so does the boy’s ability to carry it. That’s the same thing I see with fatherhood and career. I will develop my ability to carry those responsibilities in tandem with them arising, and while I don’t know what the future looks like, I know I will figure it out. There’s a great E.L. Doctorow quote that says, “It’s like driving at night. You can never see further than your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.” This is how I’ll figure out music and touring. This is how I’ll figure out fatherhood.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://austinbsweeney.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/austinbsweeneymusic/
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/austinbsweeney/
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/@austinbsweeneymusic/
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/433eTr5V5LEv1VtP1ejbkt?si=Jlzl5oz8RvulN-ocxrGqyg
