Life & Work with Baylor Baugh of Hendersonville

Today we’d like to introduce you to Baylor Baugh.

Hi Baylor, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I was born in Nashville, TN and raised just outside in a town called Hendersonville, TN. Growing up around Nashville, it was pretty common to go to church or school or extracurriculars with people who had a family member in the music industry. It was nothing crazy and I wouldn’t necessarily say that’s what led me to wanting to get in to the music industry. My first real memories of music becoming a key part of my life and something that I fell in love with were the nights that my dad would come home from work and pull the guitar out from under their bed and play us one of his signature songs, which was typically either “Check Yes or No” by George Strait or “Much Too Young (To Feel This Damn Old)” by Garth Brooks. Those nights were always my favorite. As I got older, another key memory came along which were the days where we’d go listen to my grandfather play at his bluegrass jams that he and his friends put on around their neighborhoods. These eventually became something we’d do at family gatherings where my grandfather, my dad, my brother and sister and I and whoever else was around would grab an instrument and we’d go around in a circle taking turns at who would lead a song. I also grew up in the church, so in addition to the 90’s country that we were raised on, Christian music was a staple in our house. I grew up going to church on Sundays and Wednesdays and my first introduction to singing in front of people was at our annual Christmas program where I sang a short solo. From then on, I took any chance I could get to try to sing in front of people. I sang at school talent shows, chorus concerts for school, church choir, and eventually the worship band at church. While I always loved singing, I never thought of myself as much of a songwriter which is funny because I decided this in elementary school. To this day, I still have cassette tapes that I recorded on my karaoke machine of me singing the little worship songs I wrote with no instrumental backing… just acapella. Those janky little songs, that were basically a few lines that I sang over and over, were the songs that made me decide songwriting wasn’t my forte. LOL. So for the next nearly 10+ years, I didn’t really even give songwriting a shot.

So fast forward to college, I decided that since I didn’t write my own songs and I didn’t have pipes like Carrie Underwood, I probably needed to figure out another career choice. I knew I still wanted to be around the music industry and I knew I was good with money and numbers so I landed on Accounting and decided that I was going to be an accountant for Music Artists. So I went to The University of Tennessee at Knoxville and got a degree in Accounting and any time I mentioned my plan of working specifically in the music industry, the response was something to the effect of “good luck…”. No one really knew about any jobs that were specifically what I was looking for, but I was determined and the Lord opened a door via one of my mom’s former students. She happened to run in to my mom one day while I was still in college and mentioned that she worked for a company that specifically handled the finances for people in sports and entertainment. Throughout my last couple of years in college I interned for this business management company learning the ins and outs of the business side of music and after graduating I began working full time for them in business management for touring musicians specifically.

To try to keep a long story short, I ended up getting an opportunity to move to Los Angeles with that company to help grow their LA office and after about a year or so I made a switch and began working for the company I work for now which is in Music Publishing. While I loved working in business management and helping developing artists build budgets for tours, I didn’t love working in an office no where near the creatives or the creative process and was ready to get a little closer to the reason I got into the music industry in the first place: the creativity. By God’s grace, I switched companies (and career paths to some degree) in January of 2020. My new job was fully remote which I was excited about after a year+ of driving an hour or more each way in LA traffic on the way to my job that was only 13 miles from my little studio apartment. I was pumped for the remote aspect and when the entire world shut down not even 3 months later, I was even more thankful that I was no longer working on the finances for artist tours especially since the entire department I had previously worked in was either dissolved or repurposed since the touring industry was completely shut down.

It was in that time where I was largely alone, since Los Angeles was almost completely shut down, that I started to dabble in writing songs again. It started as just a way to get some things I was feeling off of my chest. I needed a way to process my emotions and music was the only way I could think of to do that. So I began writing what was essentially journal entries to the few chords that I really know how to play and I started to come away with something that resembled a song. There are some that will never see the light of day because they were truly just a way to process–almost a form of therapy–but slowly I started to write songs that I thought were worth sharing. The thought of actually sharing something so personal was terrifying though. It was like handing over your personal journal with all your innermost thoughts and feelings and letting anyone and everyone read and pick them apart and judge you. I had no interest in any of that, but as I sat in my studio apartment in Marina Del Rey, completely alone and with no intention or really any ability to see another human face to face, I figured, if there’s ever a time to share it, it’s now. My thought was that if someone wanted to tell me they hated it, they would have to go out of their way to reach out to me to let me know since I wouldn’t be running in to anyone anytime soon. So one day in April I posted a little snippet of an original song for the first time. And let me tell you.. I was terrified. But then the likes and the comments slowly began to trickle in and while it wasn’t some crazy amount (nor would I suggest anyone looking for validation in likes and comments), it did begin to give me a little confidence that I wasn’t so bad after all and maybe 10 year old me was wrong and I could try to write my own songs.

Now I mentioned that my new job was a little closer to the creatives and this is where that becomes important. One of my bosses happened to see that little instagram post that I made and he mentioned that we should record it. I figured he was probably just being nice, but I also knew he had a home studio so I said to just let me know when.. fully thinking that it would never actually happen. Well turns out he wasn’t just being nice and we started the process of recording vocals and producing the song not long after and in 2021 I released my first ever original song. This may not seem like some incredible feat since pretty much anyone can release a song these days, but 10 year old me wouldn’t even know what to think if she knew that I would have a song that was produced let alone one that was out in the world for anyone and everyone to hear and that I wrote it myself. Not a shot. I’m not going to sit here and say that it’s the best song ever, but it means something to me and came from a genuine place and is something that I think many people can relate to which is all I really care about. I want to create music that is real and genuine and relatable. I want to create music that makes someone feel less alone in whatever they’re going through and they are loved.

I know I’ve come a lot further as a songwriter since those first “real” songs that I wrote in 2020 and while I don’t have any new music out to prove it (…yet), I’m excited for what’s to come. I recently made the move back to Nashville after living in Los Angeles for the last nearly 6 years. I loved LA, but I was ready to come back to my roots, be close to family and come back to the city that is filled with incredible songwriters and storytellers that I wanted to learn from. To be the best, they say you have to surround yourself with the best, so I wanted to go to the place where I knew I’d be surrounded by the best. That’s not to say there aren’t great songwriters in LA, because there most definitely are, but I know for the type of music that I want to create, Nashville is the best place for me.

Thankfully, the company I work for has been extremely supportive of this decision to move to Nashville since it would allow us to have “boots-on-the-ground” so to speak in another major music market. Since moving to Nashville, I have taken on the role of Chief Financial Officer (which would have blown my 19-year-old self’s mind–and honestly blows my mind now as a 28-year-old sometimes) which has been exciting and challenging. I feel so blessed to work for incredible people that not only support me in growing my career on the business side of music, but also that inspire and encourage me to create and grow as a songwriter as they are creatives themselves.

To me, every piece of my story (which surprisingly enough, this is the truncated version of that) has had the Lord’s hand on it. The way each part led to the next and how every step I have taken has slowly led me back to the dream that I had as a little girl. The dream that I would tell every time someone asked me what I wanted to be when I grow up and I’d answer “a country music singer”. While I may not be releasing new music every month (…yet) and haven’t sold out arenas (…yet), I have been able to do things that I never really thought would happen. I’ve written countless original songs, been a writer in the room with incredible writers and producers that I look up to, sang at the infamous Hotel Cafe, played writers rounds and showcases alongside amazing musicians and writers, and have continued to fall in love with the process of creating and sharing music all while getting to work in the industry that I dreamed of working in as a little girl. The Lord has blessed me beyond anything I can imagine, and I feel like I’m only getting started. I can’t wait to see what this season back in my hometown of Nashville has in store. The best is yet to come.

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?
I’ve had plenty of challenges along the way. I didn’t even think I could write songs when I was little and since I didn’t have the voice of Kelly Clarkson or Carrie Underwood, I figured there was no shot I’d ever get to chase my dream. Growing up in Nashville, it seems like everyone wants to be a singer, so it feels like something that’s impossible. Because of this, I counted myself out completely. It took a cross-country move, a career change and a pandemic to even get me to start taking a shot at my dream again. You also aren’t limited to one dream. You can chase multiple dreams. My dream changed a little in college. I started to want to be this boss business woman. I dreamt of working in the music industry and growing on the business side of the industry and the beautiful thing is that you can do just that. Your dreams can change and they probably will change. They will grow and morph with who you become as you get older. But it’s also never too late to chase a dream. While my dream changed in college, my childhood dream never went away and now I get to not only grow as a business women in the music industry, but I also get to challenge myself to grow as a songwriter. It’s honestly probably been significantly more fruitful on the creative side of things for me because of the path I took on the business side of things. It’s placed me in rooms and around people that I can learn from both in business and in music.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
In addition to my job as a CFO, I am also a creative. I have an artist project by the name of Baylor Lane. I’m still very much so in the developing stage of my career. I’m learning and growing every day.

I write largely country music. I love to write music that is relatable and genuine. I want to create music that connects with people (as I’m sure we all do) and that helps people feel less alone in whatever they’re going through. Music is the way that I process my thoughts, feelings and emotions, so I hope to create music that gives others that song that they can listen to and feel seen and heard. Everyone has a different perspective. We all have different life stories and life experiences, and no two perspectives are the same, so I think that alone is something that makes what I create different from someone else. I write from a very real and raw place in hopes that it connects and resonates with even just one other person.

While I haven’t had any incredible accomplishments by the world’s standards, I am very proud of the fact that I even get a chance to write music and create something meaningful with the community that I’ve started to build. The fact that I got to do something that seemed like an impossible feat when I was younger and release an original song out in to the world is amazing to me. The thing that I think I’ve been most excited about over the past couple years is being asked to participate in songwriter showcases. I had the pleasure of getting to play at the infamous Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles as well as Dreamland Aviator Nation in Malibu. The fact that I got to play either of these venues was insane let alone the fact that I played my own original songs… truly a dream come true. Now my dreams just have to get bigger. It’s only the beginning.

What’s next?
The biggest change I’ve had lately is moving back to Nashville after living in Los Angeles for almost 6 years. This was partially a decision for personal reasons, but it was also so I could continue to grow as a songwriter. I have a lot of dreams and plans for the future, but the main thing I’m focused on as I get settled back in to Nashville is to connect with other writers and start working on getting my next song ready for release. I don’t have any real timeline at the moment unfortunately, but I’m trusting the Lord’s timing and just working on growing as a songwriter and artist in the meantime.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/baylorlane
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/baylorbaugh/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@baylorlane
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5jPZZCvzaWWe8A5WsN2Tx4?si=cxULQH0xQJifKCPUASA0TA