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| Mickey Guyton |
During the early part of a normal week, I face a kind of
creative crossroad. This is the time when one post has published and the early
planning begins for the next post. Someone once told me that at this rate I don’t
really have any time to enjoy my work. In some ways that is true, possibly
because I really write each post for the Weekly Music Commentary for all of
you; the readers. I’m not saying that I don’t enjoy reading what I write, but
in the rush of the normal workflow everything moves quite fast, and I have
learned to make it happen in timely fashion.
The title of this weeks’ post is an actual quotation from a
young up and coming Country music star named Mickey Guyton. The 32 year old
artist was born in Arlington, Texas and moved around the Lone Star state as her
father’s engineering job took them to Waco, Tyler, Dallas and Fort Worth. She
began singing gospel in church when she was only five and grew up listening to
a variety of artists, including Dolly Parton, LeAnn Rimes, Whitney Houston and
gospel innovators BeBe and CeCe Winans. Much like so many successful singers,
Mickey knew what she wanted to do with her life, and although she possesses the
kind of strong, evocative voice that could succeed in any genre, Country music
is her passion. “Of all the music out there, Country is the most honest, the
most genuine and speaks to my heart” she says. Along with all of the hard work and
persistence necessary to develop a music career comes that moment when someone
else must also believe you possess talent. Therefore, the quote found in this
weeks’ title are words most likely uttered by all successful artists at some
point. There is a significance to Mickey Guyton making the statement though; an
interesting footnote to her rise in the music industry.
After finishing high school, Candace Mycale “Mickey” Guyton
moved to Los Angeles to attend Santa Monica College. She worked long hours at
two jobs, struggling to make ends meet, but held on to her dream of becoming a
Country singer. A friend introduced her to producer Julian Raymond who was
immediately impressed with Mickey. He connected her to Gary Borman and his
partner Steve Moir, both music marketing and management specialists. Moir
Borman Entertainment is the company that built the careers of country music
stars Faith Hill, Keith Urban and Lady Antebellum from day one. Mickey moved to
Nashville in 2011 to pursue her dream and has embedded herself in the town’s
songwriter community ever since.
Also in 2011, Mickey signed to Capitol Records Nashville and
made her first national television appearance on stage at the White House
during an all-star concert that included James Taylor, Dierks Bentley, Kris
Kristofferson, The Band Perry, Darius Rucker and Lyle Lovett. The show was
captured by PBS and broadcast as part of their “In Performance at the White
House” series. Mickey’s riveting rendition of Patsy Cline’s classic “Crazy” was
one of the highlights of the night.
It was after reflecting upon all of her newfound success
that Mickey Guyton uttered the words used for the title of this post. “When I
sang for Gary and Steve, they saw potential in me,” explains Mickey. “Now I have a record deal with Capitol
Records, I’ve sung at the White House and I’m making an album. It’s very, very
humbling because if you would have asked me a few years ago if I would have
pictured myself being at this point, I probably would of laughed and said,
‘Yeah right!’ I’m very appreciative of it because I understand how hard it is
for artists to get to this point. I feel extremely blessed.”
Another reason that Mickey Guyton might be especially
grateful to Gary Borman and Steve Moir can be traced back to earlier years of her struggle
for recognition. My research led me to uncover the fact that Guyton was a
contestant on the season 7 edition of American Idol. Obviously she did not win,
and also did not make it into the top 24 contestants. She was unceremoniously dumped
from the reality music competition before the Hollywood show phase. Of course,
I have written before that although I found the show interesting in the early
years, it lived a little too long on television in my opinion. I made the
public statement many times that as soon as several competition castoffs
started to break through successfully, it would mark the end of the usefulness of
the show. It has been happening for some time now, and of course it happened in
the case of Mickey Guyton. Looking back at the list of season 7 finalists, I
could arguably second guess the judges and say that Mickey Guyton should have
at least been in the finals. However, it might be a fact that Guyton just was
not ready for the limelight at that point. She also was signed to an unsuccessful
developmental recording contract with Motown Records in 2005 that ultimately resulted
in her release. Nevertheless, today Mickey Guyton is doing fine and enjoying
the success of her new EP Mickey Guyton, and working on her album to be
released down the road.
There are several compelling qualities that are readily on
display as Mickey Guyton performs. As you listen to her EP I’m sure you also
will be able to hear and enjoy some quality songwriting and a singer quickly
on the rise. Just like Gary Borman and Steve Moir, you will see the potential
in Mickey Guyton and so much more.