Daily Inspiration: Meet Kacee Clanton

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kacee Clanton

Hi Kacee, 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?
After studying at a classical conservatory in Northern California, I moved to Los Angeles and began modeling, acting, and doing commercial work as a singer and songwriter. Over the years, as an indie artist, I’ve written, produced and released 3 albums, a handful of singles, and I’m weeks away from releasing my first Nashville born and bred album (stay tuned!). I’ve also contributed to many other artists’ records as a co-writer, producer and singer. I toured extensively with both Joe Cocker and Luis Miguel as a background singer, and with Big Brother and the Holding Company as their lead vocalist, and I’ve recorded and/or performed with many top tier artists, both domestic and international.

I’ve been very involved in the theater world and played the lead role in the Broadway production of “A Night With Janis Joplin” at The Lyceum Theatre in NYC. My regional and other theatre credits include: “Breaking Through” (Pasadena Playhouse), “A Night With Janis Joplin” (McCarter Theatre, A.C.T., Alley Theatre, The 5th Avenue Theatre, Pasadena Playhouse, ZACH Theatre, San Jose Repertory), “Love, Janis” (San Diego Repertory, Kansas City Repertory, Downstairs Cabaret Theatre), “Your Town Follies, a Cirque Comique” (El Portal Theatre), and in 2019 I made my directorial debut while co-starring in “A Falling Star at Buzzard’s Roost” at McCadden Theatre for the Hollywood Fringe Festival, later released as an old time radio play in 4 podcast episodes.

I was a member of the LA College of Music faculty 2008-2015 as a vocal and performance instructor and was instrumental in designing the physical performance program, rock history curriculum, performance classes, and the mentor program. I continue to work as a private coach and producer for independent and signed artists, theater casts (coaching productions of “Spring Awakening,” “The Last 5 Years,” “Dogfight”), actors, and voiceover talent.

I have appeared as a singer/actor in multiple film and TV productions, and I’ve also been a writer/singer/voiceover artist on numerous productions in the film, TV, commercial, and video game industries.

In 2021, I relocated to Music City… Nashville, Tennessee, and eventually settled in beautiful Franklin. I am currently in the final mixing stages for my new album release, “Ashes to Eden,” which pays homage to my exodus from California to Tennessee, after my childhood home town was reduced to ash in the tragic Camp Fire in Paradise, CA. The new album is rootsy, bluesy, and full of stories from the heart. When I’m not working on my new album, I am a studio singer, producer, and a vocal and performance coach. It takes time to build a business in a new city, but I know this is the right place for me. Check out kaceeclanton.com and/or vocalperformancecoach.com for further info.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No career is without its struggles, but being an artist and independent contractor presents layer upon layer of very unique challenges. My path reads like a 3-D, topographical map, complete with low lying meadows and jagged-peaked mountains. I’ve been incredibly blessed – beyond what I feel I deserve – but it has not been smooth going at all times. I’ve been able to coast along, enjoying the view and my success, for periods of time. (And believe me when I say, I’ve never taken those times for granted.) But eventually, it’s inevitable that I run face first into insurmountable odds again and again. That’s when the voice in any artist’s head starts raging like a 4-alarm fire and the incessant chain of questions is like static.

There’s the obvious struggle – FINANCIAL – which is a running theme throughout an artist’s life. But there are no obvious or simple answers to lessen our financial fear. They are complicated questions. How do I reach and engage my audience so they will invest their hard-earned dollars in my work? What if I never have a stable financial life? What if I never make enough to do it full-time and I spend my life doing work that doesn’t fulfill me? I may be making money now, but how will I keep the lights on once this gig ends? Will I ever find another gig? And of course, in the modern day music business model, we ask ourselves daily, how can I possibly pay my bills or save enough money to do another album when streaming is stealing it right out of my pocket? What will my value be now that companies, contractors and producers can simply use AI to write songs? When did the number of followers on social media become THE most important element of an artist’s intrinsic value?

The second most common obstacle for us has to with our creative endurance. For me, creativity is as much a muscle as a bicep or deltoid. And just as physical exercise strengthens our physical muscles, creative exercise stimulates our creative muscles. I may not feel like writing or recording or performing, but if I cease to do these things, if I don’t pay attention to these parts of who I am as an artist, if I lose focus, my creative muscles will atrophy and getting back in shape will be a daunting task indeed. Creative exercises are the building blocks of improvisational strength and artistic integrity.

Of course I’ve struggled with the ever changing trends and technologies. I’ve been doing this a very long time and when I spend an entire day dealing with the tech aspects of my career, my brain has no interest in making art. My creative eye glazes over and I start to lose sight of the goal. I feel like a content creator and not an artist, which absolutely exhausts and sometimes infuriates me. The challenge for me is accepting and embracing this modern music business. Logically, I understand I can’t change it – I just need to dive in and swim. But the artistic part of my heart and brain can’t bear the thought of being technology’s prisoner. It’s just not in my nature.

For me personally, I would say there are two struggles that have taken me to the edge and back, over and over. The first is maintaining my vocal health. I’ve done a lot of very difficult vocal work that has caused a lot of wear and tear on my vocal cords and the discipline it has taken to survive and thrive has been all consuming. I’ve had to maintain a hyper focus on my cords and have spent what seems like half my career not speaking at all. There’s steam and salt water gargling and sprays and nasal lavage and trips to the ENT for scopes and warming up and warming down and a hundred other things. It can feel like a full time job.

The second major struggle has been my debilitating stage fright. Most people who have seen me do my thing on stage would never believe what it took to get me up there. It has been the single hardest thing I’ve ever faced. There is no stopping it. There is no explanation for it. There is no treatment for it. There is only one solution for it: I have to believe and jump. I call it my “jumping off place.” Where the monster of fear meets the faith warrior. Even though my body tells me I’m going to have a heart attack and die in front of thousands of people, I have to listen to both my brain telling me that is statistically unlikely (ha) and my heart telling me to leap into the fire. Because truthfully, that’s where I am more me than anywhere else. It’s where I thrive. It’s where I’m the most authentic version of me. In the fire.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Above all else, I am a woman who wears many hats. I’m really proud of the patchwork living I’ve seamed together and how I’ve found success in so many different areas of the industry.

In the background singing world, I’m most known for my work with Joe Cocker and Luis Miguel. In the teaching world, I’m most known for my unique approach to vocal technique and my hands on approach to physical performance technique, having worked with many well known artists and bands. In the theatre world – that’s an easy one – I’m known for my role in regional theatre and on Broadway, as Janis Joplin. That was the most challenging and rewarding thing I’ve ever done. It took me far beyond anything I was convinced I was capable of.

I think the thing I’m most proud of and the thing that sets me apart is my character growth. I’ve made many mistakes along the way, but I’ve focused a lot of energy on not just being a great performer, but a great human. I’ve mentored many young artists and tried to pass down as much wisdom as I can. I’ve nurtured relationships, managed to rise above and stay professional when there were sharks swimming all around me, and I’ve formed lifelong friendships with my peers; friendships based on mutual respect. I’ve worked hard to become a woman I can be proud of. I’m still working on it!

Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
1. DO THE WORK. It doesn’t matter how good you are at your craft or how much money you have or how successful you are or how much you’re struggling. Do the work. Practice, learn, challenge yourself, break things down and then break them down even further. Build them again. Whether it seems too easy or too difficult, don’t complain. Just do the work. It matters.

2. BE RESPONSIBLE. Be on time. Learn the material before you show up. Carry your own bags. Know who will be in the room. Do what is asked of you, then do a bit more. Rest, eat right, hydrate, exercise and stay healthy so you can offer them the best version of you.

3. DON’T READ YOUR REVIEWS. Reviews are the opinions of others that have little to do with you doing the work. If the opinions of other guide you, you’ll be on their path and not yours. If you do choose to read your reviews, remember this: You are never as bad as they say you are AND, more importantly, you are never as good as they say you are. Just keep doing the work.

4. BE HONEST. The most important and influential thing an artist can be is honest. In a world full of manufactured art and artificial intelligence and content overload, being authentic will be like drawing flies to honey. If you are a songwriter, singer, actor, voiceover artist, musician, or producer, your main job is to tell a story. So tell an honest one. Let truth guide you. Not the obvious truth, but the subtle truth that travels just below the surface and pulses in the deepest parts of you. Trust me… Authentic is sexy. Honesty is intoxicating. Tell the truth.

5. GRATITUDE. At all times, count your blessings. Taking the time for gratitude is like adding fuel to your creative fire. One of my favorite anonymous quotes is this: “Hem your blessings with gratitude lest they unravel.”

Contact Info:

• Website: https://kaceeclanton.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kaceeclanton/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OfficialKacee/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/KaceeClantonOfficial
• Other: https://www.vocalperformancecoach.com