Today we’d like to introduce you to Lance Allen.
Hi Lance, 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 backstories with our readers?
My dad played a major role in why I play guitar, as he also played. My stepfather was also influential by introducing me to other music that my dad never showed me. I took guitar lessons with one of my dad’s best friends, who was a very talented guitarist. In fact, we would go on a Saturday morning and occasionally pay him with a six-pack of Bud light for an hour’s worth of guitar lessons. I was only 12, so my dad bought the beer!
With him, I learned to play songs from Nirvana, Metallica, Led Zeppelin, and whatever cool music was happening in the 90’s that was perfect for playing on the guitar. I just wanted to impress my friends. In fact, I had a friend named Bart, who was also taking lessons, and he was pretty good at the beginning stages. He may not know this, but it put a competitive fire under my wing and I took off as fast as I could so that I could be better. I sucked up everything I could from my dad, my teacher, and guitar player magazines that I would buy at the local CD/record store. I eventually moved to Ohio and got lessons from a professional guitar teacher (Jimmy Felts) at the local music store.
He was influential in getting me to pick with my fingers, thus fingerstyle guitar. After a year or so of taking lessons with him, it was time to learn on my own and create what I could. I practiced guitar non-stop through high school and played in garage bands and church worship bands. When I graduated high school, I gifted myself my first “real” professional acoustic guitar! It was a beautiful Taylor 814CE that I bought from Melody Music in Somerset, Kentucky. This was the guitar that would get my creative juices flowing. My parents were a little upset that I was buying a $2,000 guitar when they knew I would have to pay for college books and other expenses related to college. I did it anyway because that is what 18-year-olds do! On this new guitar, I became very proficient at playing with my fingers.
I started out college at Eastern Kentucky University and then moved to Murfreesboro, TN to go to college and learn about recording music. I really wanted to be in the environment of music and a move near Nashville, TN was perfect. There I got my degree in Recording Industry Management (RIM) and a minor in small business. I also got a wife, to whom I’m still married! My first job out of college was at a local music store, selling guitars and accessories. It wasn’t long that I was asked to start teaching guitar there. I moved into a full-time teaching position at the store for more than 8 years!
I also managed a lot of day-to-day small business things and learned a great deal about how to run your own business. During that time of working, I also wrote a lot of music. In 2006, I put out my first album, “Sometimes in Life.” I had 16 songs on that album! Many of which I wrote in college and during my few years of teaching. I did really well with it because I was selling one to every customer that came to the music store I worked at. I earned enough and was able to make another CD not long after called, “Naturally.” Sometime after Naturally was released, I listened to a local radio station (Lightning 100 Nashville, TN) program called, Music Business Radio. They were interviewing the man that started Pandora radio.
It was very new and during the interview, he talked about how you could submit music to the station. I sent my two albums in and they were approved for streaming. I was grateful to have my music playing somewhere, not knowing if it would pay off or not. 2010 came along and I was devastated when I found out my dad, who introduced me to guitar, was diagnosed with terminal cancer. After he passed, I left the music store to pursue my own lesson studio. It was a difficult decision for me to make such a bold move leaving a place I had worked for so many years, yet it turned out to be one of the best decisions I ever made!
I was able to teach as much or as little and I got so much publicity for teaching guitar using the internet and one on one lessons using Skype. Every local news station did an interview with me as well as CNET, which was a big deal! I taught guitar lessons using Skype to people in every state and in over 20 different countries all while creating more original music. I found out after a few years that I needed to sign up for a performing rights organization called Sound Exchange so that I could collect the royalties that I was earning from Pandora Radio.
Hearing many negative things about streaming paying nothing, I figured my royalty would be enough to take my wife out to dinner. My first check came in and it was enough to pay off the 10-year anniversary trip we took to Costa Rica! It had been collecting money since the start and it accrued a nice amount. I really had no idea about what it would be. It was a big surprise for sure and it got me thinking I could keep going with making music, so I continued on with other albums. I had successful Kickstarter campaigns that were a huge help with releasing more music. My music eventually got discovered on Spotify by some editors who created a playlist of music called, “Acoustic Concentration,” and that helped out a great deal as well.
With some smart advertising and networking, I was able to get my music placed on thousands of user and editorial playlists on Spotify (41,000+ currently!).This all earned me a full-time income. In 2016, I hired a violinist (Avery Bright) to do some work on my String Poet album. I continued hiring him for a few other projects and we hit it off, forming the duo Allen & Bright. We’ve been very successful as a duo with beautiful instrumental covers and a full-length Christmas album, and another that will be coming out this Christmas 2021.
I continue to release many singles, and my music can now be heard on every streaming service, including SiriusXM, Calm app, and many others. Teaching guitar and ukulele remains a constant income stream for me.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It’s not been smooth. I believe that you have to struggle to succeed. One thing that keeps me motivated is understanding that I need to take action to succeed. Even if it’s a small task (action), it will take me one more step toward my goals.
Working in a niche music genre, it’s very difficult to find listeners, publicity, and collaborations that work well. The music business is competitive in its own secret way. The big labels are hard to compete with when it comes to streaming services. They sometimes offer royalty-free music, which gets featured more often in the major playlist and stations than independent artists.
It’s my goal to have “real” fans that enjoy my music and the content that I produce on socials.
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’m an acoustic guitar player that composes beautiful instrumental music for guitar. Currently, I just happen to be one of the top streaming guitarists in the world. Known as a fingerstyle guitarist, I play the guitar with my fingers and play somewhat complex music where the melody and harmonizing notes can be heard simultaneously.
The one thing that I’m most proud of is being able to earn an income without working endless hours. It allows me to spend time with my two boys and wife. I could be proud of all the contest wins, and accolades, but it all adds up to having the time to enjoy life.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
As an artist, I’m always open to opportunities to collaborate as long as it can be beneficial to both parties. For lesson inquiries, I can be reached at my website.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.guitarlancer.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/guitarlancer
- Facebook: faceobook.com/lanceallenguitar
- Twitter: twitter.com/guitarlancer
- Youtube: youtube.com/guitarlancer
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/lance-allen-2
Image Credits
Twila’s Photography and Jan Anderson
