Today we’d like to introduce you to Suitcase Souls.
Hello Suitcase Souls, 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 backstories with our readers?
Marci and I started Suitcase Souls as an idea, honestly on our very first date. But let me back up.
The best place to start our band story is with our own love story.
I was a pretty shy kid growing up, and even in college, it wasn’t for two years of having a few classes with Marci that I finally summoned the courage to ask her out. And… she said no. And then a few months later, she said no again. It wasn’t until we had joined the same band (it was one that was sponsored by the music college we attended together) and started touring together that we really got to know each other.
We never dated while in the band, but we became great friends. After that things just kind of happened naturally, and literally at a Subway sandwich shop I finally said, “Hey, I really like you and I want to see where this can go.” And I don’t know what possessed her but she said yes that time.
Within a few weeks, I told her, “just want to let you know, you’re the woman I’m going to marry.” She’ll tell you that this was pretty different for her as she’d never had a boyfriend who was that certain or direct about his intentions! I don’t know why I knew so quickly but I did–she just totally stole my whole heart.
That brings us to our first date walking around downtown Memphis, TN along the Mississippi River. I asked her what she wanted to do with her life, and she said, “raise a family, write music, travel, and tour.” And I told her the exact same thing in response.
We started playing small events and wedding receptions under the name “Suitcase Souls”, but it wasn’t until years later that we released our first single, “Sky Meets the Ocean”, as a duo. I had a couple of bands that I was traveling with and Marci does her own contemporary Christian music under her maiden name, “Marci Coleman,” so it took us a while to realize that Suitcase was actually going to be our main gig together.
Fast forward to today, and we’ve been living in Nashville writing and working since 2019. We both write and perform as close to full-time as we can, and have also recently started our own live events series called Good Life Nashville, named after a single that we’ll be dropping later in 2022, that aims to bring artists together to encourage collaboration over competition.
We hope to allow people a space to meet new friends and enjoy the simple things in life. We’ll be going from small house shows to a full outdoor festival for the first time this September, and are excited to announce details next month.
Our mission as Suitcase Souls is to speak life and hope into people through our music, encourage couples through the difficult parts of relationships, and remind our listeners to appreciate the beauty of the season they’re in.
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?
There’s one challenge our artist and songwriter friends always talk about, and we’re no exception–finances. We, like a lot of artist friends we have, had to figure out creative ways to fund the dream.
We’ve done a lot over the years, including working multiple side-hustles, busking on the street, driving Lyft, doing full-on 9-to-5 day jobs in hopes of putting off the dream just long enough to pay off some debt, and have come full-circle to doing only music and making it work.
I do contract work for a few companies writing custom songs for people and producing music for tv/sync, and finding ways to allow music to pay the bills has been a Godsend. It hasn’t been easy and we’ve gone through some months where we weren’t sure how we were going to make ends meet.
This is pretty fresh for us honestly, but we’ve recently both decided to step away from the primary income sources we had to pursue music full-time. This has been one of the scariest decisions we’ve made but we have absolute peace about it. It’s kind of strange how when you say “yes” completely to something you know you’re supposed to do, the doors–almost by magic–start to fly open.
That’s how it’s been for us even the last few weeks and we’re so thankful that God has surrounded us with amazing friends over the last three years of being in Nashville.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
A couple of years ago we were contestants on American Idol, and we got all the way through to the live celebrity judges. In fact, Katy Perry invited us up to the judges’ table to show us photos of her grandma and her grandma’s new boyfriend!
They ended up cutting Marci and putting me through to Hollywood, which was a tough moment for us–we had a feeling going into it that they were going to try to create that dramatic moment they were after. That experience helped me realize that Marci and I were supposed to find success together. If I had to choose, I’d always choose her.
What Marci and I love to do most is write about love.
We’ve written hundreds of songs together about all kinds of topics, and of the handful we’ve recorded, the songs having to do with the beauty and difficulty of relationships always seem to be the ones that people resonate most with and the ones that end up being our favorites to perform live as well.
A close second is our absolute love for playing live. We’re not the soft-picking, introspective types of performers (although we adore the Enneagram 4, ultra-detailed writers that create so well in that style); what we love is the high-energy, rock-n-roll feeling of loud drums and hot electric guitar amps blaring, and creating a space where we and the audience can’t help but smile and move.
Our most recent song, “Nashville October,” which we released last fall is a tribute to changing seasons and enjoying where you are in life instead of always chasing the future. That really embodies where we are professional as a band.
Personally, I’ve known since I was twelve years old that I wanted to write songs professionally. I’d sit in my room with my mom’s old Ovation plastic-backed guitar and teach myself chords from old church songs, and then immediately use those chords to write my own lyrics, and perform them on Wednesdays in the youth band.
It’s been a lot of years since doing that, then playing in bars in Memphis, then playing original pop/rock music touring through the US and Europe, and I’ve realized that what I love doing most is connecting with an audience and creating moments.
Marci has known from a young age as well that she’s wanted to sing her own Christian music and perform songs that give people freedom and joy. From being worship leaders on staff at churches to volunteering at halfway houses teaching music lessons, we’ve had a lot of opportunities to put our calling to use, even if it hasn’t been in the ways that we’ve expected.
This year has a lot in store for us as a band, as festival owners, and as songwriters, and we’re excited to partner with new management later this year and have a couple of tours in the works. Excited about what’s ahead!
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
Free advice for our married folks out there–
Don’t stop having fun together. Schedule a date night once a week. Write each other cute notes. Don’t just say I love you, but say the reasons why and be specific.
Guys, bring your wife flowers, for no reason at all not just when you’re in trouble.
Pricing:
- A custom song was written by us for your special occasion: $199
- Ask about partnering with Good Life Nashville to host a concert in your living room!
Contact Info:
- Email: suitcasesouls@gmail.com
- Website: suitcasesouls.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/suitcasesouls/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/suitcasesouls
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClsNgZddPqleBG2BlaiorpQ
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/suitcase-souls
Image Credits
Alaina Broyles and Rob Gonzalez
