Daily Inspiration: Meet Tim Angsten

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tim Angsten.

Hi Tim, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I was born on June 17th, 1986 to Henry Angsten, a steel industry entrepreneur, and Beth Angsten, an obstetrician. I started my pursuit of music at a young age. Growing up in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin I took piano lessons in the second grade but it wasn’t until I was ten years old that I found my true passion for music. It was after watching the movie “That Thing You Do”, written and produced by Tom Hanks, that I knew I found my true musical calling. Motivated by a whole new outlook on music, I taught himself how to play drums and soon asked my father to teach me to play guitar. After learning a few chords and listening to records my father recommended, which included The Beach Boys, Buddy Holly and Jerry Lee Lewis, I immersed myself in songwriting.

Alone in my room, I would write and record music on a four-track digital recorder hours on end. By the time I was 14, I was performing with my brother, sister and father in our family band American Pie…named after the plane Buddy Holly died in, not the movie. Throughout my high school and college years, I formed numerous bands and made many achievements including performing at Milwaukee, Wisconsin’s Summer Fest, one of the Midwest’s major music festivals. I also played bass for singer/songwriter Jon Troast where I got the opportunity to open for the band America in Whitewater, Wisconsin.

After graduating from college, I worked as a recording/production teacher at a local music conservatory but knew I wouldn’t be satisfied if I gave up on my personal pursuit of music. So in 2011, I left home to chase my dreams in Austin, Texas. For five years, I worked on honing my skills. I had the honor of working with many amazing Texas artists, including Sonny Burgess, Jolie Holiday and the now Nashville-based pop/country singer, songwriter Abby Anderson.

In late 2015 I moved to Tennessee and now live just outside of Nashville with my wife, three children and dog, working hard to establish myself in Music City. I perform weekly on Lower Broadway and play short tours nationally year round. I have also performed at The Bluebird Cafe, The Listening Room and Whiskey Jam with some of Nashville’s hottest up and coming songwriters. Aside from performing live, I run my own audio/video production studio and I always look for opportunities to co-write with singer-songwriters from all over the world.

Music is my true calling in life. I look forward to seeing where this journey leads me. With all the ups and downs, nothing will ever put out the musical flame inside my heart.

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?
Life for all individuals is a journey of ups and downs. For me, it has been no different. Luckily, I have been very fortunate when it comes to major setbacks in my life. I had very supportive parents through my childhood and they gave me a wonderful life growing up. Fast forward and I am now a proud father of three healthy and amazing children with a loving and caring wife and a dog who probably cares more about food than us…but we love him. With that said, music has always been a system of highs and lows. But I’ve come to realize that without darkness, light would have no meaning. As cliche as that statement may seem, nothing is more true. It is not just the highs but also the lows that make life so amazing.

I’ve gone through all the typical struggles most artists go through. I’ve had people heckle me at shows, I’ve had numerous bands and duos break up after putting a lot of time and effort into the projects. Many of my personal relationships have been tested due to the profession I chose to chase. And I, like so many other musicians, have sat alone and asked why I’m not on the radio or charts while others I believe are not deserving of it are. But truly, the biggest struggle I find myself battling is within.

I’ve always been an artist that is pretty hard on myself. I’ve never been able to establish the mindset that I’m the greatest thing on Earth. My father, in a good way, is the one who really instilled that mindset in me. He raised me to believe you can always learn more and be better at what you do. So, I’ve always personally battled with never feeling like my art is good enough to compete with others. But really, it’s because I’m always striving to deepen my understanding and creativeness in my music.

Whether it’s writing, performing or producing, I’ll always find myself being inspired by someone or some sound that makes me reassess my entire musical approach and question whether I have the ability to achieve it or not. It’s something I battle with understanding and conquering everyday, but I’m learning to embrace every failure I run into and not to let the struggles within my own mind defeat my goal of creating music that truly speaks to people around me.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I would label myself as a singer/songwriter and audio/video producer. I’ve been lucky to find a way to make music my primary income for most of my life. These days I perform on Lower Broadway in Nashville, TN about five times a week and I play short tours nationally for festivals, venues, private and corporate events. When I’m not performing live I write music for my own solo project and co-write for other artist projects. I also produce tracks and shoot music videos for local Nashville artists. It can be very hard balancing so many aspects of a career, but it’s what I’ve had to do in order to make music my full-time job. And I wouldn’t change it for the world.

When I moved to Nashville, TN with my wife, we were lucky to find a wonderful house in the Goodlettsville area that had a second building on the property that was perfect for becoming a recording studio. So we put in the effort to convert it from a grungy man cave into a full-blown home studio. During 2020, when COVID-19 completely shut down Lower Broadway, I was able to produce a live stream a couple of days a week that allowed us to financially survive through the months we were not allowed to perform live. So, the studio really became a lifesaver during that time period. And Goodlettsville has been a wonderful community to raise our children in. We love it here if any readers might be moving to the Nashville area.

What I’m most proud of when it comes to my professional life is the feeling I get being able to help other independent artists like myself achieve something they’ve been striving for. Whether it’s recording an album or single, shooting a music video or just sitting in a room and finishing a co-write, it’s such an amazing thing music brings to people’s lives. It truly, to me, is a form of magic.

Alright, so to wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
I’d like to thank Nashville Voyager for allowing individuals like myself to have a media outlet that focuses on everyday people and the hard work they put into and the positivity they bring to society. As the Nashville Voyager mission statement states, nobody is as perfect as what most of us see day after day in mainstream media and that’s ok. It’s the imperfections of the human race that make us so amazing. Keep up the good fight and never stop chasing your dreams, no matter how hard it seems!

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.timangsten.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/timangsten/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/timangsten