SPEAKER_05: 0:46

Today, we are diving into the world of an artist who's been quietly reshaping the sound of Modern Americana, and I met her several years ago at Alan Jackson's place in Nashville. Hey everyone, it's Randy Halsey with Backstage Pass Radio. With a voice that carries both grit and grace, my guest blends raw storytelling with melodies that linger long after the last note fades. Whether she's singing about heartbreak, hometowns, or the kind of hope that you only find after starting over, her music hits with honesty and intention. Join me as I explore the journey, the craft, and the stories behind the songs of my friend Avery Kern, and we'll do that right after this.

SPEAKER_03: 1:26

This is Backstage Pass Radio. Backstage Pass Radio, a podcast by an artist for the artist. Each week we take you behind the scenes of some of your favorite musicians and the music they created. From chart-topping hits to underground gems, we explore the sounds that move us and the people who make it all happen. Remember to please subscribe, rate, and leave reviews on your favorite podcast platform. So whether you're a casual listener or a die hard music fan, tune in and discover the magic behind the melodies. Here is your host of Backstage Pass Radio, Randy Holsey.

SPEAKER_05: 2:06

Avery, hello, welcome to the show. And it's great to see you again after a couple of years, I think. It's been a while.

SPEAKER_00: 2:13

I know. Hello, Randy. Thanks for having me. I think, yeah, whenever it was a while back. I think I was on the second floor AJ's when I met you.

SPEAKER_05: 2:20

You were. I was actually, I remember being in Nashville. I was doing two interviews at my hotel. One was with uh Dave Rowe, who was the bass player for Johnny Cash for 11 years. He did a lot of work with John Mellencamp and I think a long stint with Dwight Yoakum as well. And then I also did Quinn, who works there at uh AJ's with you, uh, I guess bartending, right?

SPEAKER_00: 2:44

So yeah, we that winter we worked a lot on the second floor together. So we spent a lot of time just yapping because we it was kind of slow that season, and so it was like kind of nice there talking to her all the time.

SPEAKER_05: 2:58

That that place is crazy because it's like what three three three levels and then a rooftop, if I remember correctly. So four different floors, and there's noise pollution coming out of every floor, right?

SPEAKER_00: 3:10

Yeah, yeah. On the second floor, you can hear the first floor. There's a karaoke floor on the third, and actually the only place you can't hear any other of the floors on our bar is on the roof, but that's kind of changed with new rooftops developing as our neighbors. So, you know, the the beauty of Nashville being built up and out is uh plays a big factor in that too.

SPEAKER_05: 3:34

You know, when I was there, I remember there were high rises going up everywhere in the city, and I talked to locals there, and they're like it was like kind of like Vegas, you know, everything people just are migrating there, and the infrastructure can't keep up with all of the knuckleheads moving into town, right? So traffic is horrible, like they're building the the buildings up instead of out, right? It's just crazy, right? Well, how Nashville and even Vegas have become over the years.

SPEAKER_00: 4:04

Yeah, no, it's it's definitely wild. And downtown, they're always there, there's a couple bars that didn't have rooftops before they've started putting rooftops on, um, which has been definitely a battle if you have an open rooftop like AJ's. So it's like it's crazy to see. But the the the driving to work is always a I don't need a GPS, but I need a GPS to make sure I'm gonna get to work on time.

SPEAKER_05: 4:30

I get it totally. What's your take on playing the rooftops uh from just I guess from an artist perspective? Um, I I would think being an artist myself here in in Cyprus, Texas, you know, you're all you always have to deal with possible weather conditions, right? And canceling of shows or it's too hot, it's too cold, like everything. What's your take on it? Have you played many shows on rooftops, or usually is it is it inside the establishments?

SPEAKER_00: 5:01

So I do AJ's is my main um main gig for sure. And I do a lot. Mostly all my shows are on the roof there. Um working on getting a band to do the first floor now, but up until this point, pretty much I spend most of the time on the roof. And um, in the winter we put up a big tent because we are an open roof, we're not closed like some of the other ones down there. Um, but we put up a big tent, it completely closes it off, and then there is heat coming in through there, which so that keeps us open in the winter. Um the first year I played there, they did not do that. I actually had to play until like the middle of November, and it was freezing on that roof. And I was playing the closing shift, so it's uh even colder, even colder, right?

SPEAKER_05: 5:50

Because the temperature drops, of course.

SPEAKER_00: 5:53

Yeah, and um, so you know, there's that in the winter. In the summer, the only time we get canceled is if it is raining because we don't have a like a tent or anything covering up everyone, just like the stage. Um, but mostly for heat, we have big portable ACs up there that we move around and stuff, so that keeps it nice, and they don't really cancel for heat or anything. But I like the roof actually, it's uh cool. Everybody loves to come up to a rooftop in Nashville, and AJ's view is super nice. We have a great visible street.

SPEAKER_05: 6:28

That's awesome, and you're right there on on Broadway too, right? So yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 6:33

I've seen a I was working at shift there one night and um looked up in the sky and there was like drones doing a light show up there. It was so cool. We everyone stopped playing and we just like watched that's crazy.

SPEAKER_05: 6:47

Well, I was I was trying to think, it's like, man, I know it's been a while since I was in Nashville and and Quinn introduced me to the night you were playing there. I remember sitting at the bar and watching you play, I think the whole show. And I said, Man, has it been two years? And then I said, Well, let me let me do a chat GPT of when I did the interview with Quinn, and it's been literally two and a half years since I was there. And it's like, where does time go? I mean, where does where does it go? You know what I mean? It's nuts. Well, how's life? And happy new year, by the way.

SPEAKER_00: 7:20

Yeah, thank you. You too. Um, it's good. I've been busy. I pretty much spend a lot of December back in Illinois, which is where I'm from, with my family. Um, I pretty much go home every December and gig mostly there and just take some time off because nobody's not not a lot of people are in town in Nashville at this time, so it's a good time.

SPEAKER_05: 7:44

And what and where did where did you call home in Illinois? Where was home?

SPEAKER_00: 7:47

Uh Pawnee, Illinois.

SPEAKER_05: 7:49

Okay, and that's where in relation to, of course, Chicago, right?

SPEAKER_00: 7:53

Uh yeah, like three and a half hours south of Chicago. We're right outside of the Capitol, which is Springfield.

SPEAKER_05: 7:59

Yeah. Well, uh a guest on my show, and one of my best friends, he was a fighter in the UFC, and I did a bonus episode with Johnny, and he lives in Chesterton, Indiana, which is right on the lake, like right on Lake Michigan. So when I go there, I'll fly into Midway, and then it's like a 45-minute drive down through Gary and then right to Chesterton. So it's kind of probably a little on the way to where you're from, you know, going to be south of Chicago.

SPEAKER_00: 8:27

So yeah, super cool. Oh, really?

SPEAKER_05: 8:32

Is it small town or is it big town or what?

SPEAKER_00: 8:34

Yeah, it's very small. I graduated with 35 people. Yeah. I always laugh because people are like, oh, I'm from a small town. And I'm like, did you graduate with 35 people? And then they're like, that's crazy.

SPEAKER_05: 8:48

And you know what? That it it reminded me a conver of a conversation that my dad had had years ago with a with a distant cousin who was from a small town in Louisiana, uh, called A Meet Louisiana. And her name was Jenny, and she was telling my dad that, hey, uh Uncle Walter, I you know, I made I'm the drum major. Like I made, you know, I'm the drum major for the class. And my dad was like, oh wow, that's pretty awesome. How many, how many people are in your senior class? She said, 11. It's like, wow, I didn't know they made schools that small. You know, I'm from Houston, and like, you know, you hear it all the time, everything's big in Texas, right? I mean, I think I had 480 in my graduating class, and we were considered small compared to some of the high school now. Some of the high schools around the area I live in are probably graduating six to seven hundred kids. It's just nuts.

SPEAKER_00: 9:43

Too many people imagine the school building that I grew up in, literally pre-K through 12. Like every grade is in there.

SPEAKER_05: 9:52

Wow.

SPEAKER_00: 9:53

Yeah. It's like 26 or 2700 is the population.

SPEAKER_05: 9:58

Did you guys have like actual electricity, or did you like light the room by candle, or what did you do?

SPEAKER_00: 10:05

Well, we did in fact have electricity. Um I can't remember in like grade school or junior high, our ACs were not great. So we spent a lot of time with the windows open in the summer and it was hot.

SPEAKER_02: 10:20

It was nothing.

SPEAKER_00: 10:21

Um yeah, we I don't know, it was we got pretty much did and participated in everything, which was fun and nice. Like I kind of didn't realize that not everybody gets to do that. So until I went to college and I talked to people that went to schools with, you know, tons of people. I had no idea. I'm like, you had to choose, so I didn't really have to choose. I was in a bunch of clubs and sports and sure.

SPEAKER_05: 10:44

Were were you would you consider yourself a sports kid growing up, or were you like were you just dabbling in it, or were you a hardcore sports nut, you know, as a kid?

SPEAKER_00: 10:54

Um that's the thing. I don't know. I did a lot, I did basketball and volleyball, um, and I spent a lot of time doing it, and I definitely poured a lot of energy into it and was very passionate about it. But I at the same time I was still doing the music thing. Like I'd get done at practice and then I'd go to a lesson, a guitar lesson, um then the weekends, like we might have a game on Saturday or a tournament, and that same night I'm going to play a show. So, you know, I spent a lot of my time gigging in high school. Um, so I don't know, it was kind of a I was definitely more passionate about the music thing, but that was definitely more of like a passionate hobby.

SPEAKER_05: 11:42

Well, it sounds like you were kind of burning the candle at both ends, right? Sports and then straight into music and then going to school all day.

SPEAKER_00: 11:50

Like I still wonder how I had that much energy, truly.

SPEAKER_05: 11:53

And you know what's funny is that people ask me that all the time because I I of course I podcast, I have a full-time job, and I'm a I'm a play out musician as well here. And they're like, when do you sleep? Like, because podcasting is not a 30-minute like this episode will take hours and hours to produce and all of that, right? And they're like, I just I'm not a good sitter arounder. I guess it's just I'm not wired that way. I don't I don't know how to just sit idle and maybe that's a blessing, maybe it's a curse, maybe I'll pay for it later in life. I don't know, but but nevertheless, we do what we do, right? Um well for the for the listeners hearing your name, Avery Kern, for the first time, how how would you describe yourself as an artist to the listeners? What do they need to know about Avery Kern as an artist?

SPEAKER_00: 12:46

Um I would say that as an artist, I really try to be creative with the sounds and the lyrics that I come up with, which is obviously standard, but I don't like to sit in one genre, so which is probably why I fit into the Americana category. Um well, I listen to all sorts of things and I draw from all of those. Um and I think it's very I try to keep it related to like human experience and not necessarily things that just are love. Um I try to write about a lot of things, and especially as I'm, you know, I'm not old quite yet, but it's like as I'm getting older, it's like things are starting to hit the frontal lobe a little bit differently, and I don't just want to write about superficial things. I try to keep it as authentic as possible. Um and the hardships of just growing up and just living. Um try to keep those lyrics like that, really. But I don't know. I I kind of struggle with that sometimes because I'm like, sometimes I'm like, who am I?

SPEAKER_05: 13:58

Well, it's I think it's probably it's probably not I don't know if there's really an answer for it, right? It's ever evolving, right? I'm sure it's ever evolving for you. Like one day you feel something, and the next day you feel something totally different. And you it's kind of like, am I a mutt? Like, am I am I one thing? I'm just like a bunch of different things, right? And that's the beauty, I think, of Americana. It's just uh it's it's a smorgasbord of stuff, right? And it's just which is what makes it so cool. And I was never, I was always a rock and roll guy, right? And it wasn't until 10 years or so ago I really started getting into the country thing as a play out musician covering things. You know, you have to you have to get out of your, you know, I'm just a rock guy, you gotta play some country, you gotta play this, that. And then I then I stumbled into this Americana thing and fell in love with people like Jason Isbull and the 400 unit. And and I'm like, damn, where's this been all my life? And and I believe that you're not anywhere near my age, but I believe that as we age, our music palettes change, much like our taste buds change and the things we loved as a kid, we no longer want to eat anymore, right? It's it's it's it's a real thing, it really is.

SPEAKER_00: 15:11

Yeah, I definitely think like the palette thing is so true. Um, I still enjoy a lot of the things that I like, but I'm no longer like, oh, that's what I want to make. I'm not saying that I wouldn't ever try to make something that I used to like, it's just more of would that even come out at this point?

SPEAKER_05: 15:29

Oh, totally. Well, do you remember the first time you realized that music was more than just a hobby to you? You you you know, you spoke of you know, you went from the volleyball court to a guitar lesson, right? What how old were you if you even remember that that bug bit you and you said, you know what, that this is it for me, right? Do you remember that at all?

SPEAKER_00: 15:56

Yes, actually. So I was in sixth grade and I finally got it to where um I could coordinate my hand, my hands with my mouth, playing guitar and singing at the same time. Which when you're when you start out, you're like, oh, it's gonna be easy, and then you really try to do it, and it's not so weird. Oh, it's funny to think about how hard that used to be. Um, but so I finally learned like my first full song to sing, and um I performed it at the school assembly, which was K through 12, or not K through 12, K through sixth grade. And we had him at the end of the month, and I performed the song Ho Hey by the Lumineers. Um, I was I was so nervous. The YouTube the video is actually up on my dad's YouTube, but um it's uh I was doing it, I'm really nervous. I was really nervous because it's in the morning, and as a singer, that's like nightmare fuel, but didn't know much better at the time, and I got done, and it was like, you know, the gym just erupted, it was really cool. Um, and I knew it was like I have to I have to do this more, I can't ever stop.

SPEAKER_05: 17:06

Like that was so that was the point in my life where I'm like, yeah, that's what I think I think you would agree that delivering a song and getting a reaction from somebody is probably one of the best feelings in the world, right? Yes.

SPEAKER_00: 17:21

Especially like your peers, like you know, you're I was an awkward sixth grader, everybody was struggling at that point. So it was like when it when people like accepted that, I was like, okay.

SPEAKER_05: 17:31

It's a whole identity thing at that point in your life, right? Like you're trying to figure out who you are and what you are and what you're gonna be and all of the things. Um, what what do you think it was that actually got you hooked on the music? Was it was it was there something leading up to that euphoria of the first time you performed, or was it just actually that first time of playing in that gym, the crowd going wild, and that's what that was like the hook right there for you?

SPEAKER_00: 18:00

That's hard. I don't know. Um, I started playing guitar when I was nine. I guess I had always sang, and my parents actually uh ran a DJ thing, so they would uh run karaoke and they set the karaoke up in our house, and I knew that I liked to do that. Um but then it was kind of just like what's my next step thing? Uh and so I that was just the next step I took, and I don't think it really clicked for me how cool that was until I did it, and I was like, it's like it is like an addiction that you're just chasing the next next thing after that. And so that's you know, I started doing open mics at the bar in my down every Sunday, and I've met some lifelong friends there. Um but I definitely think that was the turning point, but I'm not sure if it was that that motivated me to keep doing it, or if it was just like next steps, I'm not sure.

SPEAKER_05: 19:01

Yeah, for sure. And and I, you know, I wonder if did you ever think that singing those karaoke songs, and and I know that you were an American Idol contestant, and I don't want to go down the whole American Idol rabbit hole, but did you ever think that you would go from just singing on a little portable carry or a karaoke machine to being on a stage like American Idol, right? I mean, there's a huge difference in the two, right? As you well know.

SPEAKER_00: 19:30

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_05: 19:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 19:31

Um, absolutely not. No, I couldn't have imagined that. We I watched that show so much growing up as a kid, I always wanted to be on that. So actually, shows like American Idol and Hannah Montana really uh drove the desire to go perform for me. But yeah, no, I never could have actually imagined that I would have ended up doing American Idol at one point, which is crazy.

SPEAKER_05: 19:55

And you did fairly well in American Idol too, didn't you?

SPEAKER_00: 19:58

Yeah, actually, I made it to the last round of Hollywood week, and so there was like 60 people left at that point, which I I feel like you know, it doesn't really get shown all the time on camera how many actual people are there um competing. There are so so many hundreds and hundreds and hundreds. Like it's kind of hard to conceptualize because they don't they can't show everything. I mean there's so much going on, but it's baffling to me that I even made it to that point because there was insane singers there. It was insane.

SPEAKER_05: 20:30

I I could only imagine, and I like to think that I'm a pretty good singer, but you know, you get to that level, and it's just like these people I mean, they're all they're on a whole nother planet, right? And you know, I've had you're probably over 140 or 150 episodes, whatever I've done now. Um you might be maybe the fourth American idol or the voice person that I've had on my show. And I just I thought about this when I was talking to you that I never asked any of the previous people, but I'm just curious from like the Hollywood week where you really have to start mingling with and working with the other artist, was there a lot of attitude there? Were there a lot of egos that you remember or or was it not so much? Because I think I think musicians a lot of time, and I could say this because you know, because I am one, but I think there's this pre there can be this prima donna mindset of certain musicians. I'm certainly a humble musician, but did you stumble across a lot of attitude in the Hollywood week specifically?

SPEAKER_00: 21:41

I kind of got lucky with the groups that I got set in. Everyone was very kind um and just as nervous as the next person. So it was kind of like a bond of just pure fear of what was going to happen next. Um, but I don't know, I I met some really awesome, kind people there. I mean, I didn't interact with everyone. There were some people that definitely probably were like that, but overall I was very people were grounded. Yeah, pleased with all the people around. They were super nice.

SPEAKER_05: 22:14

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 22:14

Which that was something I was nervous about because you know, it's there's always one guy, but there's always one.

SPEAKER_05: 22:22

Who won your season uh that you were on? Do you remember?

SPEAKER_00: 22:26

Uh just Sam.

SPEAKER_05: 22:28

Okay. All right.

SPEAKER_00: 22:29

Yeah. That was their stage name. And but honestly, at that point I was kind of so nervous about the show I couldn't even watch a lot of it, actually. I I was an anxious mess at that time.

SPEAKER_05: 22:44

Well, you know, I found Out later on, uh, one of the guests I had on my show said, you know, there were auditions, like people just think you go in front of the three judges and you're either in or you're out. And there's so many pre, like, pre um auditions that you go through to even get to that level. I'm like, I had no, because they shield that from the public, right? They I mean they don't have time for all of that, you know, they want to get to the meat of the show, right? So I thought that that was pretty cool. That's something that we as the the civilian watcher of the show don't ever get to see. So you went through a lot of interviews before you even got to your three judges that we the the American Idol judges, right?

SPEAKER_00: 23:24

Yeah, oh yeah. It was crazy. We had to do producer rounds, executive producer rounds, then there was an interview afterwards, and like they'd call you for more information quite a bit, just trying to get to know you better. It was it was insane. Um, I didn't know that much, like I didn't know how it worked. I was sure there was something else that you know viewers wouldn't ever see, but it was kind of crazy how how it worked and how you know we went off verse and chorus, and sometimes they'd ask for just depends on what producers you're in front of, they would ask for a different song or not. It was it was very interesting.

SPEAKER_05: 24:05

Hindsight, you know, hindsight is always 2020. Looking in the rear view mirror now, you glad you did American Idol, or the could you care less?

SPEAKER_00: 24:16

I am glad that I did it. Um, because I kind of just know now what what it is, and I got to at least participate. And I was pretty anxious about the show. I mean, I was 19 when I did it. Yeah, 18 or 19. I was either 18 or 19 at that point. Um, I had no idea what was going on in my life at that point. So everything felt incredibly nerve-wracking all the time. I feel like if I did it now, I would have a little bit more perspective and not feel so anxious.

SPEAKER_05: 24:49

Uh yeah, you're mentally mature now, right? And I mean, 18 or 19 is still young, but think about some of these kids are 15 on the show and can sing the phone book, but they they've got to be just like not they don't have they can't have a clue what's going on around them, right? There's no way because the the mentality or the mind has not even developed or matured yet, right? You know what you know what I mean, right?

SPEAKER_00: 25:17

I know there were they had they keep the uh miners separated from the adults, yeah. Um and I cannot imagine what was going through their minds during it, because it's it's crazy. I mean, it it is nonstop. Like you sit down, they're calling you for more producer interviews. It was cool uh in the sense that I got to meet like Ryan Seacrest, Bobby Bones, yeah, Katie Lionel, Luke. Um, Ryan Seacrest is a very very kind guy.

SPEAKER_04: 25:52

Bobby Bones is cool, he's got a cool show.

SPEAKER_00: 25:55

Yeah, he is very cool. He actually talked to me quite a bit. Um, there was just a few of us that he kept just yucking up with us. Yeah, he was very cool. Super cool. Yeah, glad I got to meet him too.

SPEAKER_05: 26:07

Well, were your parents? You know, you mentioned karaoke, of course, but were your parents a musical family, or did you kind of find music on your own?

SPEAKER_00: 26:16

Yeah, they are musical family. My dad is classically trained vocally, actually. Um, I am not vocally trained whatsoever. I only learned guitar. My mom can also sing. Um, she grew up playing piano. And um, when I started, when we started taking guitar lessons, I say we, when I did, my parents also started taking guitar lessons too. My dad dropped it before my mom did. Um, but yeah, I would say that there's always been music. They've always, you know, they did the DJing thing like every weekend uh when I was growing up. And so yeah, I guess I've always been around it.

SPEAKER_05: 26:57

It's never been a a foreign thing, huh?

SPEAKER_00: 27:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05: 27:01

Yeah. Who who was shaping you from a musical perspective in your in those formidable years, uh young teenager, you know, 13, 14, 15 years old. What were you listening to that just got got into the bones for you?

SPEAKER_00: 27:19

Uh Casey Musgraves was my big one. There were quite a few others. Uh Chris Sableton, uh Marin Morris, her early albums I really loved. Um those ones definitely I drew from those a lot. I I really though Casey Musgraves was my main one and like offshoots of her. I would listen to stuff that inspired her too.

SPEAKER_05: 27:42

But um, so so so country so country influenced that. Yeah. Right. Okay, all right.

SPEAKER_00: 27:48

Yeah, lots of country influence. Um, I grew up around a lot of that. I grew up around a big variety of music, actually, but that's just what I gravitated towards at that time in my life. And I would say that uh Casey Musgraves easily hands down, still my number one. Like I love her lyricism, her cleverness, just her insights and ideas around topics that we all have thought about. She just has a nice way of really tying a bow at the end of those. So she's really what inspired me in songwriting, too.

SPEAKER_05: 28:29

You you know what, Avery? I I remember, I don't think it was the time that I met you, but I've I've been to Nashville quite a few times and I I did the whole you know um country music, you know, hall of fame thing. And God, they got a shrine in that place for Casey. Like I had I'm like, God damn, is she that is she that big? I mean, because it seemed like she had like one of the big like some of the most stuff in the whole place. Like it was crazy.

SPEAKER_00: 28:58

No, she's an icon, and especially here, like she before, like I would say before she got her Grammy, like she was very well known here. Um, but and she should have been known everywhere, I truly believe that before the Grammy. But um, I mean, she just she really has done a number, it's insane. I aspire to that.

SPEAKER_05: 29:24

Is she a native Tennessean? Like, is she no?

SPEAKER_00: 29:27

She's from Texas, actually.

SPEAKER_05: 29:28

She was like, Why do I not know that? Right? That's crazy. Yeah, okay. Well, you educated me. I'm gonna have to go dig her up a little bit, but yeah, man, like I'm gonna be. I love hearing these stories because I I've never given her a listen, to be honest with you. I mean, I could lie to you and tell you, oh, I know all of Casey stuff, but I I've never I've never paid attention. And I that's what I love about this show because you speak highly of somebody, or somebody else on my show says, Oh, you got to hear this or that. I'm like, okay, I'm very open-minded about music. So I go and listen to it. It's like, why haven't I been listening to this all along? Like, it's like it it opens the mind, and it this show has allowed me to listen to things that I would have never even thought about listening to before, right? Like different music. So I I love that about the show. Well, you spoke of guitar, of course. Um, so I know you play, um, but are there other instruments that you play as well, or is it really just the guitar that that you work with?

SPEAKER_00: 30:38

Um, now it's mostly guitar. I did do piano growing up, and I dropped that probably when I got to high school. Uh, I played the tenor saxophone from fifth grade to my senior year. Um, but I would say that guitar is really my main focus at this point. I haven't quite I could still play the piano and the saxophone if I picked it up or if it was in front of me. Uh, but it's not not my go-to. I really actually do miss the saxophone. I had lots of fun times playing that.

SPEAKER_05: 31:11

Well, if you played that in school, then it's safe to say that you read music too, right? Because you don't just sight read. Now, maybe you're not a good sight reader anymore, but at some point in time you learned to read music, did you not?

SPEAKER_00: 31:24

Yes, but I was not good at it.

SPEAKER_05: 31:26

Okay, fair enough.

SPEAKER_00: 31:28

No, okay. Uh I actually was never really good at it. The only music I can read for is for the saxophone. And even that, I was not very good at it. I can read some piano, but I'd have to really remember or refresh my memory on that.

SPEAKER_02: 31:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 31:43

But the saxophone, I think that I can still pick it up today and just muscle memory it. But actually, I sometimes I I can't read note values well. And so piecing those together and creating the melody, I was bad. I could tell you what note I need to play, but I could not do that. Have to get like the band teacher to just run through it really fast on the piano. Once I read it once, I was like, okay, I can do it now.

SPEAKER_05: 32:09

So if I gave you the trivia question of how how many beats is a quarter note, can you tell me that?

SPEAKER_00: 32:15

Um, one. Very good.

SPEAKER_05: 32:17

Yeah, yeah, you pass. I won't ask you any more questions. See, you're not as bad as you're giving yourself credit for, right?

SPEAKER_00: 32:24

See, and that's the thing is I can read it, but I cannot string them together. I cannot create a melody with it.

SPEAKER_05: 32:30

It's you know, there's I I was a great reader. Uh, I was a classical pianist for the first 13 years of my whole musical journey. And I learned to read really, really well. And I can still read, but I'm just really, really slow at reading now. It's like because I don't do it enough. It's like a muscle thing, right? If you don't use the muscle, you it's use it or lose it. And if you're not sight reading or or working on those pieces, you I mean, you know that uh that you know, a whole note or you know, you know all the values, but it's like, okay, I gotta I gotta think about this for a second, right? It's just not instantaneous like it used to be. But um why the guitar though? Like what why not why do you think you gravitated to that and didn't stick with the piano? What was it about the guitar?

SPEAKER_00: 33:22

I I don't know why the piano never really spoke to me. It spoke to my sister, she really loved the piano. I I don't know, I just think I always had a thing for the guitar. That was my main focus. Like I was begging for one before I got one. It just kind of felt natural for me.

SPEAKER_05: 33:43

Yeah. You know what I think my story was? I say this kind of tongue in cheek now, but I I really think there was some truth to it. But you know, I I grew up with a classical piano teacher, and you get to this age, like you're uh you're getting into your late teens, and it's like I I don't want to play classical music, and I want to learn rock and roll, and I want to play the guitar. You can't you can't take a piano to a party as a teenager and pick up girls, but with you know, you gotta take the guitar to the party, right? Like, so maybe it was the selfish mindset that I had of impressing the girls. I don't know, but that was my story, and I I've always stuck to that. But I think there was a lot of truth in that. Like the classical stuff is great in and of itself, but it didn't move me like I I was just, you know, I was getting into sticks and all of the, you know, the classic rock stuff. And it again, it goes back to the whole palette conversation, right? Our palettes change over time, and what we loved as a 10-year-old, we don't necessarily love as a 20-year-old, right?

SPEAKER_00: 34:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05: 34:50

Um, if you had your choice, right? If I said Avery, you can be great at any instrument that you want. What what instrument do you think you would just put everything else down and pick up and just be great at that one instrument?

SPEAKER_00: 35:07

That's tough. I think my inkling would be guitar. I would love to just be an aficionado on that, truly. Uh, but I would really love to be good at a banjo. Really?

unknown: 35:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 35:21

I see people picking those things. I'm like, dude, I wish I could do that.

SPEAKER_01: 35:24

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 35:25

Wish I could do that. I've actually thought about buying a banjo recently and just trying to learn actually, or a steel guitar, like a pedal steel, would love, would love to be able to do that. I did one kind of lesson at the country music hall of fame. I did a songwriting camp there when I was in high school. And uh there was a guy there who actually played steel with Casey, uh, her first and second album, I think. And so he kind of did a lesson one day and they brought in pedal steel, and I loved it. I really did. So I'm kind of like that one's a little more expensive to get into.

SPEAKER_05: 36:03

So yeah, and I think you're either a great pedal steel player or you're really horrible. I don't know if there's a a way to be kind of good at that, but you know what's interesting? I'll I'll have to share a video clip with you. But I I normally play in a duo here in Cyprus, so it's myself and a lead guitarist, right? And it and it works great. We I love playing with Chris, and there were a there's been a few times that we've either added a steel or Chris hasn't been available, and I just picked up a friend of mine who plays steel, and we recorded it's just a you know a phone camera, but we were playing a show, and I did an old Pink Floyd song called uh Brain Damage, and he was playing the pedal steel, and it's just so cool. It like it it takes that it gives that song a whole different meaning with that pedal steel play. And I'll send it to you, I think you'll think it's cool. I I love I love the instrument and it sounds so amazing. Like I would love to be able to play it too, but I know that would be a whole nother rabbit hole that I would get into that I don't have the time for.

SPEAKER_00: 37:07

I know like I've I've really thought about trying to figure out how to get you know, really get into it um and be successful at it. Sure. Uh I would hate to buy all the equipment and just suck.

SPEAKER_04: 37:19

But yeah, don't suck.

SPEAKER_00: 37:21

It can just add, it can add such a I don't I don't know, a beautiful floaty element.

SPEAKER_05: 37:30

Oh, it it it can make a song pop, there's no doubt. There's no doubt about that. Well, you just speaking of songs, you uh released a single. You correct me where I'm wrong. I'm going by memory a little bit, but you released a song, was it December? Just so last month, December, a song called Cowboy Crazy. And would you mind if I share a short clip of the song with the listeners and then we'll come back and chat about it?

SPEAKER_00: 37:58

Absolutely, yeah.

SPEAKER_05: 37:59

Yeah, great, hold on.

SPEAKER_01: 38:02

Then he showed up like a dream in the neck, tipped his hand, dried the tears from my crying eyes that cowboy baby crazy cowboy this wants for you. Hey, cowboy, this wants for you.

SPEAKER_05: 39:04

I love your voice. I love the song, Avery. Nice work. You're muted.

SPEAKER_00: 39:15

Thank you very much. Yeah, you're welcome.

SPEAKER_05: 39:16

You're welcome. Uh when I I think when I heard the song for the first time, I thought this song feels radio, it just feels like a radio ready single to me. It was it was very it sounded very polished and very hook forward. Talk to the listeners a little bit about the song, how it took shape, where it came from.

SPEAKER_00: 39:41

So that one is actually about my dog Cowboy. Uh I was just thinking about people that I've written songs about for who didn't deserve them, but you know, emotions drive that instead of logic, but which is okay. But cowboy, he had came into my life beginning of 2021 or middle of 2021. Um he was just this sweet little rescue pup. And I was kind of not doing the best of the time uh mentally, and he really I mean, he was just he was there for me through everything. He brightened my day. He was wide get out of bed and go do anything sometimes. Um and he deserved that song. Um, and so he's a sweet guy. I wanted it to be a very sweet, just sentimental song. And I kind of wrote it so that it didn't sound like it was just for a dog uh for whoever the cowboy in anyone's life is, really. But um my whole goal through that was just keeping it sweet and light, because that's just how how he made me feel.

SPEAKER_05: 41:00

So I I love I love the canvas you've painted as an artist, and and when I say that, it's it's so cool that you can write about a dog, which I had no idea about until I just asked you about that, because we all use songs how we interpret them, and I think that's the beauty of music. Um, a lot a lot of artists don't like to be asked, tell me about your song, because they just want to leave it to the imagination, use it how you want. Um but I ask because I am a music junkie, I'm I'm a I'm a I'm a musical savant. I was the kid that opened up a new record and read the liner notes before I even listened to the music because I cared about things like where the record was recorded, who played bass guitar, who produced, like all the things that most people don't care about. Yeah, but me and you, and maybe real musicians, right? But I always love that. And it it it's it's cool to hear that the song is not always about what you think it's about. And I had a guest on my show who's uh who's recorded with a guy named Radney Foster uh here in Houston. He has a great podcast. Um, his name is Kyle Hutton, and I had him here in my in my studio that you see behind me. And he wrote a song. I think he wrote it with Radney. It's been a few years since I've had that discussion, but regardless of who he wrote it with, it was called um Three Bottles and She's Gone, right? And and on the surface, you think about that title even, and you're like, oh boy, another country song of drinking whiskey, or you know, like you know, you judge you judge the song and you listen to it, and you you think that it's about something. And when you listen to the interview that I do with him, him and his wife are foster parents, and he wrote the song about a baby that they had at the time, and they had made three bottles and put them in the fridge because they knew when those three bottles were gone, the mother was gonna come and pick up the kid and take them away, right? So three more bottles and she's gone, right? And it it kind of I I my mind completely went to Kyle's song when you told me Cowboy Crazy was about your dog because I would have never thought that, right? And so now I go back and I'll listen to that song completely different, knowing what you were going through at the time and how the dog helped you. Because, first of all, we don't deserve dogs, I think they're the most wonderful things in the world. So thanks for sharing that. Um, and again, I I just believe that a lot of artists they don't want to you to really dissect the song like that, but thank you for sharing that. It it means a lot to me anyway, right?

SPEAKER_00: 43:57

Right. I love sharing, especially about that one, but I do love to share where I was coming from on songs because I I too like the perspective of you know knowing why why something is titled in a way, the three bottles and she's gone title.

SPEAKER_05: 44:13

That's pretty brilliant, right?

SPEAKER_00: 44:15

Yeah, that is brilliant.

SPEAKER_05: 44:17

Um but it you know what it makes you it makes you it makes you listen to the song differently, right? It's cool to interpret it the way you want. You you don't take that away from the listener, but it's cool to really know where the artist was at the time. Like we're all human, right? We all go through hard times, trials, tribulations, right? And again, I'll go back to the song and I'll listen and try to, you know, just I know how my brain thinks, I'll say. Well, gee, what was Avery going through? Like, I get the song now. Like, so you you just I don't know, you overthink it. I'm an overthinker, maybe, but it it's cool to know the stories behind the songs, I guess is what I'm trying to say.

SPEAKER_00: 44:56

I totally agree.

SPEAKER_05: 44:58

How would you describe your sound to someone who's never heard Avery Kern play live or a recorded version of anything that you've written? How would you describe your sound?

SPEAKER_00: 45:12

That's tough because I have actually the songs that I have out, um, they were recorded a couple years ago, even Cowboy Crazy. And so I've really evolved since then. Um, and I would say now I really kind of lean into like a country rock blues type type thing. Um but for the stuff that I have out, I was definitely more into indie music and country music at the time. A lot of singer-songwriter stuff at that point, um, which I still am, but it has definitely changed as I've gone on. I'm going to be recording couple EPs coming up here in the next couple months, which I'm very excited about because it's so different than what I have out.

SPEAKER_02: 46:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 46:04

Um, but as for like Kurt Avery and not just the stuff that I have released, definitely um I don't know how to put it. It's tough. It's hard to talk about yourself.

SPEAKER_05: 46:20

Uh that's what an interview's about, Avery.

SPEAKER_04: 46:23

You're supposed to talk about yourself. Did you not get the memo? Come on.

SPEAKER_00: 46:29

It's like I I do things, but I don't think about fair enough.

SPEAKER_05: 46:34

And I and I always I always make kind of the tongue-in-cheek joke. You know, I I didn't say the questions would always be easy, right? Because you're right. It's like some of these things you really don't ever think about, right? It never you never think or contemplate what would my answer be if somebody asked me blah, blah, blah. But the idea is to paint a story uh behind you and the music, right? To to entice somebody to go out and and and listen to that art. Do you do you feel like that your sound uh came naturally, or is or is the sound for Avery Kern something that's just organically developed over time?

SPEAKER_00: 47:15

Um definitely more of an organically developed situation. Uh, like I said, I was doing a lot of singer-songwriter stuff when I recorded a lot of these songs that I have out. And again, now I still, I mean, I still obviously write the songs, uh, but I'm just not necessarily in that vein anymore. Um I write about intense stuff and sad stuff, and I like to put a weird spin on it sometimes. Um, but definitely now I would say that I know how to use my voice and utilize it to its fullest extent. I would say when I was writing stuff a few years ago, I was just writing, trying to write a good song, and I wasn't thinking about how my vocal delivery is going to come through on this and how can it make this song better?

SPEAKER_02: 48:06

Sure.

SPEAKER_00: 48:06

Which which is hard, actually. It's very hard to write to your voice when you're trying to play to your own tricks. It's something that I like most people think would be easy, I suppose. Um, you know, you're not trying to overstretch yourself, but you're trying to do enough that like I can show you what I can do, but I'm not trying to show you everything that I can do in one singular moment. Um and kind of do just you can do too much.

SPEAKER_05: 48:34

So it's doing enough just enough, yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 48:38

Yeah, yeah, and really showcasing. And I I really think that vocal delivery puts an emphasis on the lyrics of a song and shows you, you know, thematically what it's supposed to mean. So, you know, that has been something that's I've grown into. Now it's not so tough to write to my voice. I know what I can do, yeah.

SPEAKER_05: 49:00

How to do it, but do you feel like you write more from personal experience or from the imagination? Or is it a combination of both, or speak to that?

SPEAKER_00: 49:15

Like I would say a combo of both. Uh a lot of my songs are personal experiences that I've had, and some of them are about other people's experiences. And actually, I wrote a song once that was completely came from the idea that came from the Federalist Papers. Uh James Madison said something of like if men were angels, and me and somebody from Belmont wrote that song. Uh kind of and it was fictional, like it wasn't anything that I had experienced, but I just I knew that was a good title.

SPEAKER_02: 49:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 49:52

Um, but I would say that even the songs that are personal experiences, like my personal experiences aren't always that interesting, so you kind of you you add some fluff, of course, add some flavor that you weren't tasting before.

SPEAKER_05: 50:05

Of course, of course. Well, is is there a song that you've ever written that was especially difficult or maybe too emotional to even finish?

SPEAKER_00: 50:22

Okay, so I have this song that is not out yet. There is a full YouTube video band performance up of it. It's called Failure to Failure to Launch. Um, and I had the idea for failure to launch as a title and a couple lines written down in my notes. A couple years before I even finished it. Uh, that one was one that was just I wasn't quite ready to say what I needed to say. I knew how I felt. I didn't know how to articulate it. And then finally, when I finished it, it was like the most cathartic thing I've ever written. Um it is hands down my favorite song that I've ever done. Um, that one and one other one that I just actually wrote not too long ago. But that was like one of those that was a very emotional process for me. Um, there's some songs you run through the emotions before you even get to it, and then by the time you get to it, it's like I can think now. But that one definitely was a very lived experience. And then as I was doing it, it didn't take me long. Once I a couple years later, once I revisited it, I was like, I am ready to write this.

SPEAKER_05: 51:38

It's time. The timing had to be right for it, right?

SPEAKER_00: 51:41

Yeah, yeah. It was definitely a cathartic moment finishing that. And it's still like every time I sing that song, it I don't know. I can't I believe that it came from my brain, but I can't believe that it came from my brain.

SPEAKER_05: 51:53

Uh is it hard to sing? Is it hard to perform for you because it's emotional?

SPEAKER_00: 51:58

No, it's actually like the easiest song for me to perform because of that. Uh I the song really speaks to my experience just as a person growing, and it is I think it will probably always be one of my favorite songs for that reason, but I really think it just drives my performance even more because it just means that much to me.

SPEAKER_05: 52:30

Did you say it was called failure to launch?

SPEAKER_00: 52:33

Yes.

SPEAKER_05: 52:35

And it's on YouTube?

SPEAKER_00: 52:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05: 52:38

Okay, I'll have to go dig it up. Um do you write alone or do you enjoy co-writes or collaborating? Talk talk to me a little bit about that.

SPEAKER_00: 52:51

I mostly enjoy writing alone. Um, I do a lot of my writing. I actually wrote a Christmas song with my friend Miss Maddox, and she released that this December, which was super fun. Uh, we've been trying to write together some more, but I mostly write by myself or with my bass player Josh. Um we I've written with other people and all great writers, but you have to find people you have chemistry with, and necessarily, not necessarily like your best friend, you could have the best chemistry with this person, and you guys can write a terrible song, no matter how much you tried, how many times we sat down together. I sit down with Josh, and for some reason it works. We're just on.

SPEAKER_05: 53:34

Yeah, that's great.

SPEAKER_00: 53:35

We have the same wavelength that we're riding when we do it, yeah, and there's no pressure. Like sometimes we'll go do a right, and literally nothing happened except for us laughing, and then the next right, we'd do something.

SPEAKER_05: 53:47

Yeah, yeah, yeah. What is your ratio of solo shows versus band shows?

SPEAKER_00: 53:55

Oh my gosh. Huge. I don't even know.

SPEAKER_05: 53:58

Band shows don't hardly exist or what? Probably a lot of solo stuff for sure.

SPEAKER_00: 54:02

Oh, yeah, so many solos. I do hundreds of solo stuff. Uh band things, they can they vary. It's like once a month, sometimes twice, sometimes three. I would like to do more. It just kind of depends, especially because you know, everybody's got full-time jobs and you gotta make your money, and sometimes it's not in a band situation. Because this is mostly what we do is mostly original stuff. So it's like we're trying to book shows that are showcasing that. So, which I actually did. We shared a bill with Quinn uh for her show that she puts on at the basement called Hot Girl Shit.

SPEAKER_05: 54:47

I think I saw you guys post something about that.

SPEAKER_00: 54:49

Yeah, yeah, we did that together. That was cool. But we we do a lot of the original shows. We played at Leapers Fork at Fox and Lock. That was if you when you come back here, you should definitely go to Fox and Lock if you've never been. It great venue, great sound, great bands.

SPEAKER_01: 55:06

Yeah, wow.

SPEAKER_00: 55:07

But we did the Illinois State Fair this year, too. So we're gonna, I think we're trying to hit more fairs this summer. Uh I would love to play a tour here soon.

SPEAKER_05: 55:17

Yeah, you know, I've only played one spot in Nashville, and it was, I think it was a long time ago. Belmont Taps, I believe, is uh Oh, Belcourt Taps. Belcourt Taps, yeah, there you go. Yeah. You said Belmont earlier, and I had Belmont University on my brain somehow. Yeah, Belcourt Taps.

SPEAKER_00: 55:34

That place, man. I played a f quite a few rounds where now it's gone. Oh, really?

SPEAKER_05: 55:39

What happened to that?

SPEAKER_00: 55:40

Uh, I think the lease just went up and they never never renewed, huh? Never renewed.

SPEAKER_05: 55:46

Interesting.

SPEAKER_00: 55:47

But yeah, that was a place to be there for a while. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05: 55:52

Yeah, wow. How does your music change when you perform it live versus what you might hear on Spotify or Apple Music or whatever, whatever the streams are. How would you say it changes when you play it live?

SPEAKER_00: 56:09

Definitely a more raw and gritty experience. Sometimes it turns like we don't really keep anything true to how I recorded it because I did not record any of those songs with this band. I recorded those long before I met anyone that I play with now. And some of the songs, it kind of drastically changes the vibe. Uh, we still keep it true to what it's supposed to mean, but kind of just adds a different flair, which I enjoy. I like the creative freedom, and it doesn't always sound the same. Like every show, something is different about one of the songs we've done like a bunch. It just changes, and it's just all about the energy in the room and the energy the band's putting off, which that's what I love about playing with the band. Um, I love just playing off each other.

SPEAKER_05: 57:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 57:06

Nothing better than a good jam.

SPEAKER_05: 57:07

So do you um when you go play a show like at AJ's, do you have in mind do you create a set list or are you just totally off the off the cuff when you play?

SPEAKER_00: 57:22

Oh yeah, it's straight off the dome. I really don't. I have my warm-up song is These Boots Are Made for Walking into Boot Scoot Boogie, and then that's it.

SPEAKER_05: 57:33

Then everything else is a free-for-all after that, uh, really.

SPEAKER_00: 57:36

I get those two to kind of warm up my voice, kind of read the vibe in the room, see what's see what's happening, but other than that, it's just lots of energy reading.

SPEAKER_02: 57:48

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 57:49

Which is something that I've actually I'm really happy that I got good at. Because at this point, people walk up and just by the energy they bring into the room, like, you guys are gonna like this one. And then like, how'd you know? I don't know. I run into a lot of people down there, so it it makes it easy once you can kind of get a sense after watching people for so long, what you think they're gonna vibe to.

SPEAKER_05: 58:16

But sometimes I completely miss like well, I was I was wondering too, like from one musician to another, like it and it's the dynamic is is different playing a show here in you know the greater Houston area versus that of Nashville. I think when you go into a place in Nashville, there's a lot of people, it's it's kind of people are there on vacation, it's kind of a vacation destination, people are there at a party and they're throwing requests at you, right? Not not so much in Houston. It's like they come into the establishment, whether it's a microbrewery or a restaurant, and they just they just listen, right? There's not all these requests and people yelling out request or anything. Um I totally lost my train of thought on what I was gonna ask you about that, but um like oh, I I remember what I was gonna ask now. Um, if somebody throws out a request, you kind of know the song, but you kind of really don't. Do you as an artist try to play through that, or do you just gracefully say, Yeah, I'm not gonna do that one any justice for you? Like how how do you as an artist handle that request? Because I and I want to tell you before you answer it that I would rather not play it than to butcher it, right? I if I can't serve the song, then I don't want to play it. But I preface that by saying the Houston market is much different than the Nashville market. Those people might be seven drinks in when they throw a request out, and you could butcher the hell out of it, and they're gonna be, oh my god, Avery, that was the best rendition of that song I've ever heard. And you're like, I missed like four verses of the song, right? And they'll never know, right? But speak to that if you don't mind.

SPEAKER_00: 1:00:13

I would a lot of times if I kind of know it and I know that it's in my vocal abilities, yes, I will do it.

SPEAKER_02: 1:00:22

Okay.

SPEAKER_00: 1:00:23

If there is a bridge that I think is going to ruin it, I will not do the bridge, but I will do the rest of the song.

SPEAKER_02: 1:00:29

Okay.

SPEAKER_00: 1:00:30

Because most of the time, if you just skip over something, like people are not necessarily gonna notice. That's critical, yeah. Yeah, and but if it's like if the bridge is what makes the song and that's what's going to ruin the song, I don't do the song. Yeah. Um, but like people are really asking for Chapel Rowan right now, and I can't vocally get there, I will not do it. I that is one I will say no to. I know, I know what I can do. If I know that vocally, I'm not gonna get there, and like you said, butcher it, absolutely not. If I pretty much think that I can get through it, um vocally, I will I will go for it.

SPEAKER_05: 1:01:12

You know what's funny is I it maybe bless their hearts, maybe, maybe non-musicians just don't get it. But I I get requests too, and some will say, Hey, do you play anything by Rush or by Queen? And I'm like, we're sitting up here with acoustic guitars, and I'm thinking, Real, really? Really, like two of the hardest singers on the planet earth to ever try to pull off with a band and with you know, and we're sitting up here raw with acoustic, like I don't think they get it. You can't you can't transpose ACDC to the acoustic guitar, it just doesn't resonate the same, right? There's certain songs you can cover, certain songs that you can't, but I think you know, I've had people say, Hey, can you play Margaritaville by Jimmy Buffett? Of course, everybody knows that. I'll usually say no, but I can play Come Monday by Buffett. Like I'll deter to something that maybe I can serve better than the other one, right?

SPEAKER_00: 1:02:16

Well, that's pretty much what I do. If it's like if I'm on the edge about something, like I will offer something else, or I'm just like, hey, come back when you think of something else. We'll land on something eventually.

SPEAKER_02: 1:02:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 1:02:28

And sometimes we don't, but you know, I'm not a jukebox, so I don't know, I don't know everything, even though I wish that I could.

SPEAKER_02: 1:02:36

Right.

SPEAKER_00: 1:02:36

Uh some people do think that we do know everything, and it's kind of baffling, but for the most part, I can fake my way through a song. And that's something that playing Broadway has definitely made me better at. Like, even I can listen, like, I will sit down there if it's not a busy room, if even if there are there will be people in there, but it's not like rowdy, people are kind of chilling. It is a rooftop energy up there, so it's a bit different, but I will listen to like a verse and chorus and roll with it just to get that melody tight before I go, um, which is something that I was not good at before, and now it's like it takes me nothing to learn a song.

SPEAKER_02: 1:03:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 1:03:22

At this point, and there are some songs that are definitely I just have to sit down. We've given me TikTok lives, and people are really asking for some great songs, and I'm like, I'm not gonna do it for you today, but I will be learning this for you in the future because I want to do it justice, because great songs, absolutely great songs.

SPEAKER_05: 1:03:41

Um I'll have to remember that you're on TikTok. I'm on TikTok too. I don't do a whole lot with TikTok, but yeah, I I'll I'll have to look you up on there and and friend you because I would I would love to uh watch the uh the TikTok lives. Uh, you know, I have people come up to me and say, Hey, what songs do you play? And I always respond, I'm you'd have to know me, but I always say, mostly the ones I know, right? That's my that's my comeback, right? But you you never know, you never know what you're gonna get uh from night to night.

SPEAKER_00: 1:04:16

People ask me, what do I plan? I'm like, do I need to go down like the 500 song list?

SPEAKER_05: 1:04:21

I I will give you some professional advice, and this worked for me one time, and I've only tried it one time, and it was I'm I'm kidding. But there was a lady that came up to me at a at a beer garden I was playing, and she was probably early 60s, maybe 65, somewhere in there, and she's like, Tonight is my husband's birthday, we're here celebrating. Could you play A Pirate Looks at 40 by um Jimmy Buffett? And I said, You know, I can, but it's a hundred dollar song. And she's like, Oh, okay. And I said, I'm just kidding, I'll play it for you. At the end of the night, there was literally a hundred dollar bill in the tip jar. So I I try that sometimes.

SPEAKER_03: 1:05:09

Like, I don't know.

SPEAKER_05: 1:05:11

I did it one time and it works. I'm I'm like one for one with that. It's like if I could do like 10 requests a night, I think I might could quit my day job and and start playing, but you know, it was probably a fluke. But anyway, um, what do you want people to feel when they walk away from an Avery Kern show? Is there is there anything that you want them to take with you to remember, you know, to remember, like, you know, I would just say joy.

SPEAKER_00: 1:05:48

Like, I don't I make music just to have people feel, I mean feel a lot of things, but I like to have a show that just makes people feel uh beat uh when they leave. I don't uh strive to get people so in their feels that I send them away sad. That's not me. I just like to have a positive energy throughout the show. I don't uh when I play, it's just kind of just I like to feed off the energy in the room. You know, people listen to music for a lot of reasons, and everyone's just looking for a place to relax and unwind and have a good time. And I'm happy to be that person to create that and help foster that. So I just hope that they leave, you know. Just

SPEAKER_05: 1:06:47

Well I think I think that they probably well, I can't speak for people, Avery, but I I think that they probably would because I think back and I would tell the listeners of Backstage Pass Radio if you're ever in Nashville, look up Avery Kern and go see her play. And I I can tell you that I enjoyed you playing and to the point where I asked you to be on my show. So there must have been some it must have been impactful in some kind of way, right? Right. So so kudos to you. Do you have a pre-show ritual or maybe a superstition? I I spent 17 years as an official in professional hockey and hockey players have they're they're superstition freaks, right? There's a there's a superstition for everything in hockey. Uh do you have one as a musician before you play? Like you have to do a pre-show thing or whatever.

SPEAKER_00: 1:07:45

Um, I don't scramble around my house, get out the door. That's about it.

SPEAKER_04: 1:07:51

I that's what every musician does, though, Avery. So you're no different than anybody else, right?

SPEAKER_00: 1:07:57

Oh god. Yeah, I don't necessarily believe in superstition, like at all. And uh I believe in a lot of funk things, but superstition never bought into it because I'm not, I think it's like a jinx. So okay, all right, which maybe is a superstition in itself, but it I do not I don't have any specific habits. I would say I drink a lot of water, but that's as far as weird things, no.

SPEAKER_05: 1:08:29

Okay. What can the listeners look forward to as it relates to more new material coming out in 2026? I know you mentioned uh uh an EP or two. Uh share with the listeners what's on the horizon. I I guess anything that you can speak of, of course, right? I'm not trying to pry, but share with the listeners what you would like to share about new content coming out from Avery Kern.

SPEAKER_00: 1:08:56

I'm excited. Uh so I have one that's gonna be kind of more of an older country and with some blues sprinkled in there uh theme. And those songs I am super excited about. I have one that's called Left Him in Georgia. That one gives the whole function going. It is a just a fun energy. Uh, I'm really excited about that one. And like we'll get up, we'll go play it. We have one bar that we really play at quite a bit, and people always want that song because that's fun. But uh my second one is more of a space theme. I really like themes. I also really like the moon, so I write a lot. That kind of seeps its way into my writing more than it should, maybe, but it does. Uh, and so this whole space thing is fun, it's not not floating in space, but it is like the metaphors go back to a lot of that. And I'm excited about the space one because it'll have failure to launch. Uh, there's a couple more that are more about the growing pains of existence, but I don't know. I I'm excited to have those out. Those will be more of like a raw, unfiltered energy when they hit the platforms. What I have now is very polished, but we'll be doing this kind of DIY, which I'm very excited about. Still have the budget to go sit in a Nashville studio and cut stuff, so but that's okay. I uh I'm actually looking forward to DIYing it.

SPEAKER_05: 1:10:43

So you know, you can get them pretty polished DIY these days, you know. If you're working, if you have the right equipment and the the people that know how to work it, they can do amazing things with home studios these days, right? You don't have to have a big production to get the point across, I don't think. So do do what you do. Are there plans to tour or play shows outside of Nashville? And when I say outside of Nashville, I'm I'm talking about I should rephrase that and say outside of Tennessee, or do you do you try to just stick with your your area there? Speak to me about that.

SPEAKER_00: 1:11:23

I would love to be on a tour. Um, actually, since I started doing, I keep mentioning TikTok live. It's a recent development in my life. Met a lot of cool people in there, reaching a lot of uh different audiences and stuff, and uh people are sending me venues that they would they have in their areas in their states, which is making it really easy to kind of plan that out and reach out and know that that people would show up in these spots. So I would love to go on a tour. That's my next big thing that I'm working on. I would say once I get these EPs out, that's when the tour seems more of like a that's gonna make a difference.

SPEAKER_05: 1:12:08

Realistic, yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 1:12:09

Yeah, and be more realistic.

SPEAKER_05: 1:12:10

So where can the listeners uh backstage pass radio find you if they happen to be in your neck of the woods in Nashville? What all places I know AJ's, we missed we mentioned that. What uh what other places are you so floating around at?

SPEAKER_00: 1:12:29

Uh you can find me at AJ's Freebird, which is a boot store and a bar. So if you're got a shopping itch and you're trying to find yourself a new pair of boots, um go check me out there. And then I play at Teddy's Tavern, usually with my friend Miss Maddox. We do a duo and we have a phenomenal time together. We kind of stumbled across each other and passing in a gig, and she needed somebody to fill in, and we realized that our voice is like really just kind of like it's a sibling harmony. It's kind of crazy. People are people ask us if we're siblings all the time because we just do have that sibling harmony, which is so crazy.

SPEAKER_05: 1:13:08

But and there's no better harmony, is there? And people said that about the about the BGs, right? You know, a lot of people are not into the whole disco thing, but if you listen to the brothers Gibbs sing, I mean, those guys harmonize like nobody's business, right? Yeah, so yeah, sibling harmony is a real thing.

SPEAKER_00: 1:13:27

And what's interesting is our textures are very different, and we didn't know even like we listen to each other, we didn't think that that would like mesh at all. Of course, for some reason, it freaking works, and it That's super cool. I'm not even good at harmonizing. She's made me immensely better at it. Playing with her has been so much fun because we've really learned a lot from each other, but I've really learned harmonies off of her. And I'm so glad I love doing harmonies now, and especially with her, we just I'll go do a soul gig and I'm like, dude, I wish I was playing singing this one with her because we just it just works. It is so fun when stuff like that just works.

SPEAKER_05: 1:14:07

Well, you know, Avery, you you know the old saying if you want to be a better musician, you have to get out and play with better musicians, right? Just to kind of elevate your game. And you could say the same for volleyball, softball, basketball, whatever. If you want to be mediocre, just play with mediocre people, right? If you want to be better, you play with better people, and then you step your game up to to be on that level, right? And uh I I always tell the story that my my oldest son Brandon is 50 times the guitarist that I am, a phenomenal player, but has no desire to be on a stage. And wow, it's like you know, that's fine, that's fine, whatever. But you know, if you just had if you just collaborate with people, just sit down and just play it around, you would just become even better than you are if that's possible. I mean, I mean, I think it's possible to be better, uh, regardless of how good you are, but I I think that it makes you better, whether you're singing with better people or playing guitar or piano or whatever, whatever you're playing hopscotch, right? You know, if you're playing hopscotch with better people, you're gonna you're gonna get better at that too. So would you would you tend to agree with that?

SPEAKER_00: 1:15:19

Oh yeah. Honestly, like when I met my the people in my band, um, I met a whole bunch of other people, just by the nature of it, who are all musicians, and sometimes after a show, there's like a jam somewhere, and you just have to know, like, I didn't know how to vibe before, and you learn how to vibe quickly, but it's like you just gotta you gotta do it. And some days I don't jump in, but um, it's just like it's cool watching people musicians like after a show just sit down and feed off of each other and also just be a part of that, yeah.

SPEAKER_05: 1:15:59

That's always because some of them are so good they can just do that, right? It's it's a it's a treat to watch a great musician play just off the cuff with somebody else. It's so cool. Yeah, it's a treat for sure.

SPEAKER_00: 1:16:12

And I'm like, that's something that nobody at a show would ever get to watch. And I'm like, I wish the people that were just at that show could come watch the after party because it's like so much better, so much more fun. So good. Yeah, people don't it, you know, you really care at a show, and then you get hello when you're like inhibitions are on. Yeah, and that's when some cool stuff comes out, but it's just you know, it helps a lot. That has helped me be able to jam with other people, and I'm not the best at jamming, I'm not saying I'm awesome, but sure you definitely learn how to catch a vibe and keep the vibe, yeah.

SPEAKER_05: 1:16:49

Totally. Well, where can the listeners find you on social media platforms?

SPEAKER_00: 1:16:55

Um, you can find me on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and my website, all at Avery Kern Music.

SPEAKER_05: 1:17:04

Okay. Did we miss anything here, Avery? Is there anything that you wanted to talk about that maybe I didn't ask you about? I always like to ask my guest that because it's this is for you, right? Um, not for me. So I don't know if we missed anything that you wanted to share with the listeners.

SPEAKER_00: 1:17:25

I don't know. You really asked a lot of good questions. Some of which I did not have great answers to, but you asked a lot of good questions. Um no, I that was awesome.

SPEAKER_05: 1:17:35

Yeah, well, thanks for being here. Um, I'm I'm glad that we finally got a chance to chat. I'm glad that we finally got it on the calendar and make it happen made it happen. You know, I think we, if my old memory serves me correctly, I think we might have tried to schedule once before and we had to reschedule and which which happens all the time. So I think this was probably our second swag at it. But um I I'm glad that you were here.

SPEAKER_00: 1:18:00

Yeah, me too. Thank you so much for having me.

SPEAKER_05: 1:18:02

Yeah, and thanks for sharing your story with myself and the listeners. And I wish you nothing but the best in 2026 and beyond. And if uh if I find myself in Nashville, I'll definitely text you and find out where you're playing and come out and support you. How about that?

SPEAKER_00: 1:18:19

Yeah, that'd be great.

SPEAKER_05: 1:18:21

Well, you guys make sure to follow Avery on all of her social media platforms as well as um on her website at Averykernmusic.com. I asked the listeners of the show to like, share, and subscribe to the show on Facebook at Backstage Pass Radio Podcast, on Instagram at BackstagePass Radio, and on the website at BackstagePassradio.com. You guys remember to take care of yourselves and each other, and we'll see you right back here on the next episode of Backstage Pass Radio.

SPEAKER_03: 1:18:57

Thank you for tuning into this episode of Backstage Pass Radio. Backstage Pass Radio. We hope you enjoyed this episode and gained some new insights into the world of music. Backstage Pass Radio is heard in over 80 countries, and the streams continue to grow each week. If you loved what you heard, don't forget to subscribe, rate, and leave reviews on your favorite podcast platform. Your feedback means the world to us and helps us bring you even more amazing content. So join us next time for another deep dive into the stories and sounds that shape our musical landscape. Until then, keep listening, keep exploring, and keep the passion of music alive.