Daily Inspiration: Meet Raelyn Nelson

Today we’d like to introduce you to Raelyn Nelson.

Hi Raelyn, 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?
I hooked up with an independent producer and veteran of the rock/punk scene, Jonathan Bright, we wrote some songs that are part ‪Loretta Lynn‬, part Cheap Trick, and formed the Raelyn Nelson Band.

I have been singing since I can remember. Having been raised on a steady diet of traditional country and gospel music, a gift from my grandpa in the form of a guitar during my teenage years was the inspiration I needed to begin writing her own country and folk songs.

Looking for a place to record these songs, a mutual friend suggested JB (Jonathan Bright). After recording some of these early songs, we decided to try to write some things together and see what happened. The result? A completely fresh and original sound, a true hybrid referred to by some critics as “Country/Garage Rock.”

When we aren’t recording our songs or making music videos, we are on the road (pre-pandemic) taking our high energy live show to the people. We have been lucky to have shared the stage with such diverse musical acts as country superstar Tim McGraw, indie rock icons Drivin’ n Cryin’, jam band supergroup Hard Working Americans, and legendary punk band Decendents.

I don’t really have any desire to be a ‘solo-artist’. Everyone in my family who plays music has always placed a lot of importance on band chemistry, on stage, off stage and in the studio. Our band can almost read each other’s minds. Why would I mess with that? We try to keep it simple: Write songs we like, record them, make a video, then go out and play them for people.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Being an independent band, the struggles are obvious, not having promotion to reach larger markets and limited tools at our disposal to help widen our reach. However, we decided to get out “grass roots style” when we could make it happen and play for crowds in small towns in the south east of the US. I don’t regret our decision. We’ve made a lot of friends and memories along the way that I would never trade for an immediate success story and we’ve truly done it all ourselves, which makes me extremely proud.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
We are a band! We write songs, record them, and go play them for people.

We also started a comedy podcast over the pandemic. It’s called Music is Funny and it’s musicians (us) talking to comedians about music and comedy. We’ve had some A-list comedians on the podcast. It’s helped us reach ”our people,” those who love music and comedy.

I’m most proud of being an independent band and doing it all ourselves.

What’s next?
We are planning to put out singles this year! I love giving each song a long of life. We are also planning to tour all over the US and the UK this year (pandemic permitting).

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: http://www.RaelynNelsonBand.com
• Instagram: @RaelynNelsonBand
• Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/RaelynNelsonBand
• Twitter: @RaelynNelson
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/c/RaelynNelsonBand

Image Credits:
Eaphoto