Today we’d like to introduce you to Blue Foley.
Hi Blue, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
Music has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. As an only child growing up in Ogden, Utah, I used to sit and sing songs to my puppy dog, Hobo. Looking back, that’s really where my love of songwriting began. I was making up songs almost as soon as I learned how to talk… probably around four years old. Even then, I was fascinated by how a simple song could tell a story, make you feel something, and create a connection.
That love for music stayed with me throughout my childhood and eventually became something I couldn’t ignore. In 2002, after going through a season of significant personal loss and change, I made the decision to leave Utah and move to Nashville to pursue songwriting full-time. Like most people who come to Music City, I arrived with a dream, a lot of determination, and absolutely no guarantee that any of it would work out.
Over the years, I’ve been fortunate to build a career as a songwriter, producer, artist developer, and entrepreneur. I’ve had more than 200 songs recorded by artists around the world, earned two Grammy nominations, and had the opportunity to work with some incredibly talented artists, songwriters, producers, and industry professionals across multiple genres.
Today, I’m the Founder of Nashville Nights, an entertainment company that creates songwriter experiences, live events, and music-centered programs throughout the United States and Europe. I also continue to write, perform, and produce through my artist brand, Blue Foley & The Truth.
When I look back on the journey… from singing songs to my dog Hobo as a little kid to building a life and career around music… I’ve realized the common thread has always been connection. Whether it’s a song, a writer’s round, a live performance, a collaboration, or an event, my goal has always been to bring people together through the power of music.
It’s pretty amazing when I stop and think about it. A few words on a piece of paper and three guitar chords have taken me places I never imagined. They’ve carried me across oceans, introduced me to thousands of people, created lifelong friendships, and allowed me to build a community through Nashville Nights that means more to me than I can put into words.
At the end of the day, I’ve never really been in the music business… I’ve been in the people business. Music has simply been the vehicle that’s allowed me to connect with others, share stories, and hopefully leave the world a little better than I found it.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Has it been a smooth road? Absolutely not.
Everybody who moves to Nashville has a story, and I was definitely no different.
Before I moved to Nashville, I had experienced some significant personal loss that caused me to take a hard look at my life. At 30 years old, I made the decision to stop doing what everybody else expected me to do and start doing what I wanted to do. I decided to bet on myself and pursue songwriting professionally.
Family has always been incredibly important to me, so before making the move, I spent an entire summer with my grandparents, knowing that once I left, I would probably be broke for a while and wouldn’t be traveling back and forth to Utah very often. Then I spent the fall with my mother and planned to spend the winter with my father. But life had other plans.
An opportunity for a roommate situation opened up in Nashville that would allow me to bring my dogs, and that changed everything. On December 15, 2002, I loaded everything I owned into my pickup truck, put my two dogs, Milo and Chevy, in the cab beside me, and started the drive to Nashville. Like so many people who come to Music City, I arrived with a dream, very little money, and no guarantee that any of it would work out.
The struggles didn’t stop once I got here. One of the realities of being a professional songwriter is that your career often gets divided into publishing deals. Every few years, a deal ends, relationships change, companies merge, or priorities shift, and you’re forced to start over again. No matter how many cuts you’ve had or how much success you’ve achieved, there are times when you find yourself having to rebuild your network, prove yourself all over again, and fight for the next opportunity.
That cycle of reinvention has probably been one of the biggest challenges of my career. Songwriting is a relationship business, and there are very few guarantees. You learn resilience because you have to.
That’s one of the reasons I’m so grateful for my relationship with Jim Kaufman. Jim and I have been working together for more than five years now, and for the first time in my career, I truly feel like I have a home. Together, we built a publishing company that we share, and that stability has allowed me to focus more energy on creating, developing artists, and building Nashville Nights rather than constantly worrying about where the next chapter begins.
Looking back, every challenge taught me something valuable. The personal losses, the move to Nashville, the financial struggles, the uncertainty between publishing deals, and the constant need to reinvent myself all helped shape who I am today. They taught me perseverance, gratitude, and the importance of surrounding yourself with great people. I don’t think I would trade any of it, because every obstacle ultimately became part of the story.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
At my core, I’m a songwriter. Everything else in my life grew out of that passion.
Music has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. As an only child growing up in Ogden, Utah, I was making up songs almost as soon as I learned how to talk. I would sit and sing songs to my puppy dog, Hobo, and looking back, that’s really where my love of songwriting began. Even then, I was fascinated by how music could tell a story, create an emotion, and connect people.
Over the years, that passion evolved into a career that has allowed me to wear many hats. I’ve spent more than two decades writing songs, developing artists, producing music, creating live events, and building businesses within the entertainment industry. I’ve been fortunate to have more than 200 songs recorded by artists around the world, earn two Grammy nominations, and work alongside some incredible artists, songwriters, producers, and industry professionals throughout my career.
While songwriting remains at the center of everything I do, I’ve built my career around three areas that I love most… songwriting, artist development, and creating meaningful experiences. As a songwriter, I’ve always been drawn to songs that connect emotionally and tell authentic stories. As a producer and artist developer, I enjoy helping artists discover what makes them unique rather than trying to fit them into a mold. And as the Founder of Nashville Nights, I have the opportunity to create experiences where artists, songwriters, fans, and industry professionals can come together around a shared love of music.
If there’s one thing I’m known for beyond songwriting, it’s being a connector. Throughout my career, I’ve always enjoyed bringing people together. Whether it’s introducing a songwriter to an artist, helping an emerging performer find a stage, creating opportunities through Nashville Nights, or connecting people who might never have crossed paths otherwise, I’ve always believed that success grows faster when it’s shared. Relationships have been one of the most important parts of my journey, and many of the opportunities I’ve experienced have come from simply helping good people connect with one another.
What I’m most proud of isn’t necessarily the awards, the chart success, or the business accomplishments… although I’m certainly grateful for all of those. What I’m most proud of is the community that has been built along the way. Nashville Nights has become much more than a company. It’s become a family for many artists, songwriters, industry professionals, and music lovers. Watching careers develop, friendships form, collaborations happen, and lives change because people were brought together through music is one of the most rewarding aspects of everything I’ve been fortunate enough to build.
I think what sets me apart is that I’ve never viewed songs, artists, businesses, and events as separate things. Most people spend their careers operating in one lane of the music industry. I’ve spent mine building bridges between them. I’m a songwriter who understands business. I’m a business owner who still writes songs. I’m a producer who understands live events. I’m an entrepreneur who still believes relationships matter more than transactions. Because of that, I’ve always been able to see opportunities where different worlds intersect.
At the end of the day, everything I’ve done… from writing songs to building Nashville Nights… has been rooted in one simple belief: music creates connection. A song can change a life. A writer’s round can create a friendship. A conversation can open a door. A single introduction can alter someone’s future.
While the music industry continues to evolve, that truth has remained constant throughout my career, and it’s the reason I still love what I do today as much as I did when I was a little boy singing songs to my dog, Hobo.
What does success mean to you?
For a long time, I measured success the way a lot of people in the music industry do… externally.
Success was chart positions, awards, publishing deals, cuts, recognition, industry validation, and whatever milestone happened to be next. The problem is that there’s always a next milestone. There’s always another chart. There’s always another award. There’s always another level of success that someone else has reached. It’s a game with no finish line.
The music industry creates a very black-and-white scorecard that makes it easy to compare yourself to everyone around you. If you’re not careful, you can spend your entire life chasing validation that never actually arrives. Even when you achieve something you’ve worked years for, the feeling doesn’t last very long because your attention immediately shifts to the next thing you haven’t accomplished yet.
I’ve learned that if your definition of success depends entirely on external validation, you’ll never feel successful. There’s always someone with more awards, more hits, more money, more followers, or more recognition. It’s a difficult way to live, and for a lot of years I found myself caught in that mindset.
As I’ve gotten older, my definition of success has changed dramatically.
Today, success for me is impact.
It’s looking back and knowing that something I created made a difference in someone’s life. It’s knowing that a song I wrote helped someone through a difficult season, celebrated a special moment, or simply made them feel understood. It’s knowing that the words I put on paper and a few simple chords on a guitar created a connection between people who may have never met otherwise.
As I’ve gotten older, I’ve also spent more time thinking about legacy. I don’t have children, and at this stage of my life it’s unlikely that I ever will. Because of that, I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting on what I hope to leave behind when my time here is done.
What I’ve come to realize is that Nashville Nights has become that legacy.
What started as an idea has grown into something far bigger than I ever imagined. Over the past five years, it has been one of the greatest joys of my life to watch Nashville Nights grow from a vision into a thriving community that spans multiple countries and connects artists, songwriters, and music lovers around the world.
It’s honestly humbling to think that the words I’ve written on paper and a few G, C, and D chords have carried me back and forth across oceans. Those songs have introduced me to thousands of people I never would have met otherwise. They’ve opened doors, built friendships, created opportunities, and allowed me to experience places and cultures that once felt worlds away from where I started.
Perhaps even more meaningful is the opportunity I’ve had to bring others along on the journey. Through Nashville Nights, I’ve been able to help create opportunities for nearly 200 songwriters to share their music, tell their stories, build their careers, and perform on stages they may never have reached on their own. Watching those moments happen for other people has often been more rewarding than any success I’ve experienced personally.
When I think about legacy, I don’t think about buildings, titles, awards, or accomplishments. I think about people. I think about relationships. I think about communities. I think about the opportunities we create for others and the lives we touch along the way.
If someone remembers me years from now, I hope they remember that I loved songs, I loved people, and I spent my life trying to bring the two together.
If Nashville Nights continues creating opportunities, building friendships, launching careers, and connecting people long after I’m gone, then I’ll consider that a life well lived and a legacy worth leaving behind.
To me… that’s success.
Pricing:
- Pricing is customized based on each event’s scope, artist lineup, venue, and production requirements. Nashville Nights offers everything from intimate songwriter rounds to large-scale festivals, private events, corporate experiences, and international programming. Please contact us directly for a customized quote.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://BlueFoley.com
- Instagram: @BlueFoley
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bluefoleysongwriter
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bluefoleymusic
- Other: https://linktr.ee/bluefoley
