We’re looking forward to introducing you to Liam Slater. Check out our conversation below.
Liam, so good to connect and we’re excited to share your story and insights with our audience. There’s a ton to learn from your story, but let’s start with a warm up before we get into the heart of the interview. What are you most proud of building — that nobody sees?
I’m most proud of finding my voice in music. For a long time I wrote songs that I THOUGHT people wanted to hear, but not what I wanted to say. Now I write songs I want to say and hope people want to hear them. It’s a freeing feeling. It also makes me feel proud because it takes a lot of work to be vulnerable. It takes courage. And I hope people listen to my music and want to be vulnerable too, because I think the world needs more of it.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Liam Slater, I am a musician and songwriter based in Nashville, but originally from Minneapolis. I tell people I make “Y’allternative” music and that my sound is “Weezer with a twang”. My goal is to bring the truth back to country music. I think country music specifically has gotten to a point where the songs aren’t real anymore. Country music used to be about the truth. Real issues that songwriters were uses music to talk about. Now country is just the same topics recycled over and over again in a mass produced sound. It’s bland, and not the genre I fell in love with. I write music that is outside the normal scope of modern country music. I push the needle in an effort to change country music for the better.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
My mother passed away when I was 20. While that was tragic, it helped me in a lot of ways. My mom spent every day of her life doing what she loved. She was a pastry chef, and then a mom, and she loved being both of those things. That’s how I want to live my life, and that’s why I moved to Nashville to be a professional musician. Life is too short. Do what you love, be who you want to be. Be happy because we don’t get to be here for very long.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
During the COVID lockdowns I ran flat out of money. I literally had zero dollars in my bank account. I called my landlord and told him that I couldn’t afford rent and that I needed to break lease and move back home. He told me to stay. He said he thought I was too talented to move away from Nashville. He offered to let me live where I was for free until I could find a job and pay rent. It took me 3 months to find a job and save up for rent. But I did, and I got back on my feet and I’m still here 5 years later. My landlord kept me here, he’s one of the good ones.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. Is the public version of you the real you?
Absolutely. It’s too much work being fake. If someone doesn’t like what I’m saying or what I’m doing (and trust me there are A LOT of people who don’t) that’s fine. Being authentically myself is what makes me happy. I didn’t move to Nashville to be an actor. To play some character on stage. I moved to be a songwriter, an artist, and that means being yourself on stage and off. It’s scary doing sometimes though. Because when you’re playing a character there’s this sort of shield that protects you from criticism. If someone doesn’t like the character, that’s okay, I’M not being rejected, the character is. Whereas, when you’re being yourself there is no shield. If someone doesn’t like me when I am being authentic, I AM being rejected. It’s taken me a long time to get comfortable with that, but I finally am. And it feels really good.
Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
Yes. I tell people it’s the world’s best curse. People who have it will know what I’m talking about. I don’t WANT to be a musician, I HAVE to be a musician. I cannot describe it other than it feels like a fish in water. You can take a fish out of water for a period of time and they’ll be fine. But eventually the fish needs to go back in the water otherwise they will die. That’s how I feel about music. I can not do music for a while and be fine, but eventually I NEED to do music or I will die. And I’m being serious, it’s a need. I wish that I could just get a “normal” job, wear a tie, have a 401K. But I can’t. I have to be a musician. I will be playing on stages until I can’t anymore. When I am 80, I will be playing a stage somewhere. I don’t know how many people will be listening, but I’ll be there I promise you.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://liamslater.bandzoogle.com/home
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/liamslatermusic
- Linkedin: https://tiktok.com/@liamslatermusic
