Life & Work with Sean Rivers

Today, we’d like to introduce you to Sean Rivers.

Hi Sean, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I remember writing song lyrics as a teenager but keeping to myself. I sang a little in church. When I was 19, in college in Alabama, I taught myself guitar and continued writing song lyrics but adding music. I learned a good deal of covers and wrote many songs, and by age 21, my buddy Jeremiah Jones gave me a recurring gig at “Jupiter” on the Strip in Tuscaloosa. I would take a break from college to focus on music and playing shows. 

We became a full band playing a mix of my songs and covers at every frat party and college bar that would have us. In April of 2011, a Tornado hit Tuscaloosa and other surrounding areas in Alabama. One of our friends lost her life, as did many others. I wrote a song to cope with the situation and put it on YouTube. It was “viral” overnight and led to a regional radio/television tour, playing regional festivals with my original music and opening for acts such as Sam Hunt, Cole Swindell, Jerrod Niemann, Chase Rice, Drivin’ N Cryin’, and others. It also led to a move to Nashville in late 2011. I remember this being a weird and sad/bittersweet time because of the attention I was getting over the loss of our friend. Something felt wrong about it, and I did not respond well. 

After continuing to play the regional frat party/college bar scene, including the “Tin Roof Circuit,” for several years, I eventually chose to get off the road and play shows in town, mostly at Tin Roof and multiple downtown bars. I had met the girl who would become my wife and did not want to travel anymore. Although I was always writing, I let the show take over and did not pursue the original music as much as I would have liked. Once my wife and I married and had a baby, I left the gig scene and started a booking/artist development business. This led to a job as an entertainment director, success in the booking side of that led to a partnership that went sour, which led to me going BACK on the road as a Tour Rep for a record label and a Tour Manager for a country music artist. 

Now that my daughter is five years old, my wife and I have agreed that I will stay in town and dedicate my time to my career as a full-time independent artist/songwriter. I have landed a recurring acoustic show in town where I am playing 3 hours of my original songs and telling the stories behind them. I have released (2) new songs in the last three months and plan to release a new song every month until… 

Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Sheesh. No. I feel like I could name a million struggles. Finding yourself and figuring out how to navigate the waters of life vs. the waters of life as an artist and how to balance the two would be a big overall struggle. 

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?
I am a singer/songwriter. I specialize in writing songs and performing them the best way know how. I hope that I am known for being a friend and asset to the Nashville and Alabama music scene in my time and for being good to people. 

I am most proud of myself for not stopping. I would like to see us all succeed. 

Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
Jeremiah Jones gave me my first recurring gigs and allowed me to start making a living from playing music. My wife, who has been my biggest fan and who was the saddest of anyone when I stopped playing. 

My mom, though did not love the idea when I was in college, is now one of my biggest advocates. My daughter inspires me. My friends inspire me. The artist I TM’d for showing me so much about the industry. There are so many club owners and bookers along the way as well as other artists. 

I couldn’t have done any of the cool things we did without my band mates for so long, Terrence Williams, Daryl Aldridge, Andrew Paul, Jon Dodd Stephenson, Judson Murphy, Andy Jefferson and a special shout out to Josh Waters and Justin Johnson for encouraging and giving us a platform to release our creativity and be our originals selves.

Contact Info:

• Website: theseanrivers.com
• Instagram: @seanriversmusic
• Facebook: @seanriversmusic
• Linkedin: @theseanrivers
• Youtube: @theseanrivers
• SoundCloud: @seanrivers

Image Credits
Molly Rivers