Audrey Callahan was born in Long Beach, CA to a musical family. Because her family was military, she never stayed in one place for too long, having lived in several countries by the time she was a teenager. One thing that was a staple during all this travel was her love for music. Although this was her number one passion, she had reservations about pursuing it as a career because of the perceived difficulty and competitive nature of the music industry. As she grew older and more aware of her own personal power, she began to dive head first into making music her full-time career. Since then she has released several singles, an EP entitled ‘The Awakening’, has attended a Grammy Awards Ceremony, and more importantly has finally stepped into living a life of true authenticity and purpose.
More than ever, Audrey has realized that whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve. And no matter where her life takes her, one thing remains the same; she is inspired by producing meaningful content, making deep connections and helping others achieve their own level of personal greatness. She aspires to live a life based on love and compassion and share that message of positivity and growth with her audience far and wide.
With all that said, The Crafty Musician Blog is very proud to feature Audrey Callahan in this month’s edition of Artist Spotlight…
So first off, I want to talk briefly about your upbringing because I think it’s really important. I know you come from a military family that traveled a lot and that you even spent some time as a child overseas. Can you tell us a little about that and how that might have impacted you?
I feel like all of the moving around helped me to become adaptable from a young age. Pursuing a life in the arts comes with a certain amount of unpredictability and change; things I had grown to love. Seeing the world through different cultures, foods and experiences helped me to be more empathetic in life and through my lyrics.
That makes sense. It sounds like at one point you were on your way to having a career in the military yourself. What happened there?
That was a close one! My parents and family are all quite accomplished. They all have degrees and all in or were in the Military at one point. I really loved the military life in terms of travel, comradery and benefits, but I never really saw myself enlisting. I just didn’t yet have the know-how or the courage to pursue music full-time so my plan was to join the military after highschool.
I talked with a recruiter and went through all my testing, but the closer my departure date got, the more I knew it wasn’t what I wanted. I was a few short weeks from being shipped off when I pulled the plug on that path. I knew in my heart I wanted to do music, but it just wasn’t “practical” so I signed up for community college and started taking all my basic prerequisite courses while I figured it all out.
That’s good that you had the guts to put the breaks on it since in your heart you knew it wasn’t for you. Often times people feel like they have to follow through on something like that but I think it’s never too late to change your mind, even if you don’t have a Plan B completely figured out… So I understand that once you started college with the hopes of having a career in music, that you discovered another passion which actually took you on a little bit of a detour. Can you tell us more about that?
Life has such a funny way of working out in your favor if you just steadily move forward towards your dreams. Shaky legs and all. I did indeed discover another passion while I was in college trying to figure everything out. I had joined my first band and we needed some promo so I hopped on Photoshop and started messing around with creating our flyers. This was also the era that MySpace popped up and so I’d spend countless hours messing around with HTML and CSS on my MySpace profile. At this stage I didn’t really put two and two together, that these skills could eventually help me launch my own career. I just truly loved coding and design and thought that I could make a nice career out of it. A nice plan B. If I was going to be stuck in a 9-5 my whole life, I might as well enjoy it right?
Well it turns out I would never use my web design skills in a traditional 9-5. I was in school during the recession that happened in 2009. My husband and I both lost our jobs within a week of each other and were faced with some of the most difficult times we have experienced to date. Our house was in foreclosure, job market in the toilet, no money to our names; we had to get creative. No pun intended. It was at that time that we started trying to sell my novice design skills to make ends meet. My hubby was always great at sales, so he was a natural. He landed us a $3,000 deal within two weeks and the rest was history. Our little web business hit 6 figures in year 2 and grew nearly every year after which allowed me to never go back to corporate America.
In seeing the success of this web business it had me thinking, wait a minute… If I can create a successful business on my “back up skill”, why on earth can’t I do this with my TRUE love, singing?! From the time of that realization until the day my music business was sustainable enough for me to go full-time was about 4 years. Now that I’m full-time music, I use my coding, design and business skills nearly daily. I can build my own click-funnels, design my own site, create my own music videos, record my own songs, the whole nine. I’m quite grateful for my detour in life. It’s landed me exactly where I need to be.
That’s an awesome story! I love how doing your own thing as a web designer gave you the confidence to ultimately do it with music too. Speaking of which, how long have you been a full-time artist now and how long would you say it took you to get there?
I’ve been a full-time artist for 1 year and 4 months. From the day that I made the decision to no longer live in fear and make this music thing of mine a reality to the day we sold our web business was about 4 years. I still took on a bit of freelance web work to fill the gaps as I transitioned, but we’re talking 5-10 hours worth of design work a week as opposed to the 40+ hours I was doing before.
Yeah, having other things besides music to help fill in the gaps is very common for independent artists and something we do ourselves. So tell us more about your music. Are there certain subjects you tend to write about and is there something in particular you hope to give others through your craft?
I love me a good booty-shakin, party all night, “fluffy” lyriced dance song, but it’s not the type of song I create when I sit down to write. At this stage in my life, what comes out of me is everything I’ve personally experienced or am going through. What comes to me are messages I need to tell myself or that I feel passionately about and want to share with others who may be going through the same thing. It is my hope that my music lands in the ears of those who need to hear it. There is nothing more magical than receiving messages from listeners who have resonated deeply with something that I’ve said and hearing how my music or story has helped them. That connection is what I live for.
Nice! Okay, so you guys found success with your web design business, then you realized you could do the same thing with your music and you start to seriously pursue that. Then at some point I understand you and your husband decided to sell everything, buy an RV, and hit the road full time. What led you to do that and did you get any resistance from friends or family?
My husband also grew up in a military family. He was born in Sicily while his Dad was stationed there and grew up all over the country and the world. When we met (at 21), we clicked instantly on this nomadic way of living. Neither of us had ever lived anywhere longer than 4 years at that stage in our lives. We were together 12 or so years before we hit the road in an RV. All that time, pre-RV, we moved ALOT together; California, Las Vegas, Arizona, Maryland, Texas, Costa Rica, the list goes on….
We were renting a house in Austin, TX and our lease was about to be up. We were kind of tired of Texas at that point, but we weren’t sure exactly where we wanted to go. We were also not looking forward to packing up and moving our entire house for the umpteenth time. It was in that time-frame that I had seen an ad about a company that helps you work and travel abroad for a year. I loved the idea, but we had a beloved cat so it wouldn’t work. This traveling while working thing made me think about RV life. We had worked from home since we were 25, loved to travel and had never thought about RV living. How could this be?!
+Taking Care of Your Instrument While on the Road
Long story short, from the moment we decided we wanted to RV, to actually having one and preparing to leave was a matter of months. Like 3 maybe. Our time on the road was exhilarating. I couldn’t believe that when I woke up for work, nothing on my inside world had changed, it was my same computer, same desk, same cat, but I’d pull up my window shade and I’d be in the Grand Canyon, or on the beach, or at a lake, or at the base of a mountain. It was seriously nutty. It never got old. It’s one of my favorite ways of living and although we’ve since bought some property and stopped for a bit, we ABSOLUTELY want to do that again. Likely on and off our whole lives.
As far as resistance from friends and family, at the very beginning, absolutely. But once they started seeing our travel photos and lifestyle, MANY of them were hitting us up asking how we did it and what they can do in order to do the same!
Wow, that sounds amazing! We’ve found that pursuing an alternative lifestyle can sometimes be very jolting to those around us, but once they see it working and begin to better understand why you’re going against the grain, they usually come around… So how long were you guys on the road before you bought the land and settled down?
We were on the road for a year and a half and have been stopped for about 6 months now. It’s been a long time dream of my husband’s to have land that he could turn into a self-sustaining property with solar and veggies and well water and the whole nine, so we co-purchased a 10 acre property in San Diego county with my Mom.
I also really enjoy this rural home-base and being near my family as I missed them dearly while on the road. I do really miss the RV lifestyle and we’ll certainly incorporate it again one day. It is our goal to have the land work for us and provide us even more freedom to travel.
That is so cool! That’s actually one of our next goals, to buy some acreage and have a self-sustainable homestead. Congrats to you guys for doing it! At this point, how often do you perform live? What types of shows do you typically do and how do you go about getting booked?
Funny you ask this, because for the last 5 years I haven’t performed live much at all. Maybe 2 – 3 times a year. I got my musical start in gigging multiple times a week. All the gigs were booked by my band leaders so it was pretty easy. Just show up, have fun, sing and get paid. As easy and fun as it was, after a while, with all the long nights of singing someone else’s songs, sometimes in smokey clubs until 2 am, I was ready for a change. I longed to be able to sing my own songs. And to people who would remember it the next day.
I still needed to make money though. I knew making money through my own music would take a while (especially since I didn’t have any at the time), so I took to the internet to figure out how I could make money singing without gigging. This is when I stumbled upon session singing and my whole world changed. Fast forward to today and I make nearly my full-time income from my home studio. No more hauling gear or singing the same songs over and over again. Yay!
+How to Make Money As A Musician Without Touring
As much as I love this type of work, and now that I have my own original music, my ultimate goal is still to have my own personal music make up a larger part of my career. So as of like, last week, I decided I’m going to start gigging again. Except this time, I’m not going to be hitting the club scene, I’m going to sing for events and causes that are in alignment with my music. Personal development seminars, cause focused music festivals, women’s retreats, etc. At these types of events, my original music would be a perfect fit.
Nice, those types of shows sound perfect for you when it comes to your message and what you’re about. So at this point, what does your income breakdown look like?
Currently about 85% of my income is session singing. The rest is made up of a mix of Patreon and digital sales. I currently only perform live maybe 2 – 3 times a year so that doesn’t make up much. Moving forward, my goal is to make around 50% from performing live at key events and the other 50% be a mix of digital & physical sales of my original music and merch, streaming income, placements, Patreon and session singing.
So tell us more about session work. How do you go about getting those gigs?
Yes, indeed! I just adore session work. I got my start on a site called AirGigs.com. There are a ton of those types of sites online now, but they were among the first if not one of the first. They’ve always treated me really well and out of all the sites I’ve tried, they are my absolute favorite for many reasons.
Once I gained my confidence on that site, I began searching for work outside of the platform via Facebook connections, LinkedIn, word of mouth etc. and my session work business just grew and grew. I get a lot of work through my website now as well, as I come up on the first page of google for a few of the related terms.
For anyone looking to break into the biz, I’d say just hop on those session singing sites to start. I’ve made a few videos to show you how to get started and how to get more work in the field:
How to Make Money Singing From Home:
https://youtu.be/7lX9s6m5RG8
How To Get More Work Session Singing:
https://youtu.be/5tHX363s4C4
Online Session Singing 101:
https://youtu.be/H1SDN51Q6zo
Great! Thanks for sharing the videos and links. When you where on the road did you do all of your recording in the RV? Also, what equipment and software do you use?
I did indeed! You can see my gear list here: https://www.amazon.com/shop/audreymusic
In short, I use Adobe Audition as my DAW, a BlueBird Mic, USB Pre Audio Interface and Mogami cables.
I understand you’ve had some really cool achievements in your career like having your music and voice used in a movie, attending the Grammys, and starting your own clothing line. Can you tell us more about those things?
I’m what you might call a “multi-passionate entrepreneur” so I tend to dabble in a few things.
As far as being cast in a movie, that came about due to our RV travels. We were about 1 month out from hitting the road and per usual I was googling around for opportunities for me once we were fully mobile. I joined a ton of RV groups and searched and searched until I came across this ad for a movie that was being made and that they were in search of RVers at all stages of RV life. I submitted myself for the opportunity, went through an interview with my hubby and the director and the rest is history! I got to perform at the sold out premiere and narrate the whole film as well as be in it and sing in it, what an adventure!
As far as my clothing line, that was born many moons ago (2012) and has gone through many transformations. For anyone interested they can visit www.spiritwarriorshop.com. I don’t focus on it as much as I’d like, but it is a big part of my heart and I know will become an even bigger part of my life at some point. I use the items you’ll see in that shop as Patreon gifts and sometimes as merch at shows. If you’re into crystals (gathered from our year and a half on the road) and high vibe merch, you just might love the shop so head on over!
When it comes to the Grammys, man, what an experience! I plan to go to the upcoming one as well in Jan/2020. The manager I had at the time was actually the impetus for me joining the Recording Academy. I had just released my debut EP and wanted to dive into the music industry and marketing as much as humanly possible. Joining the Academy was the logical next step. After being accepted you begin to get the invites to all the events. I’ve made some great connections through their events and learned a ton via the seminars they put on. Not to mention the awards show. I had chills the entire time and I’m pretty sure I cried a few times too. You can just feel the buzz in the air. It’s all so exhilarating.
What are some marketing tips that you have?
With everything that I’ve tried, the best marketing advice that I could give is to just be you 100% and highlight those unique aspects of yourself as much as possible. There are a ton of great singers out there and a ton of listeners wanting to hear great singers. We just need to create a reason why WE are the great singer that our particular audience gravitates towards beyond just having a great voice.
Consistency is a big one. I started to see my numbers grow the more I was just present online. Whether it be with a cover video, a travel music video, an acapella video of me singing into my phone, a talking video, a post or picture, SOMETHING to give your audience.
Another one is to always be prepared with business cards when you’re out. I was at Guitar Center the other day testing PA speakers. I was singing through the various ones and really pushing it with big belty songs so I could see how they sound. Before I knew it, I had a crowd of people around me asking who I was and what I do. LOL! I had business cards on me and made sure to hand them to everyone so they could check me out when they got home.
Same happened when I was on a cruise one year. I took part in a karaoke contest and there happened to be 3 very popular YouTubers in the audience. They ended up loving me and filmed themselves looking me up (off of the card that I gave them) when they went back to their room. Once they posted these videos on their channel of them listening to my music and gushing, their audience of millions all activated and BOOM. My numbers started to go crazy, sales went crazy, everything went crazy for nearly a year after that incident. You just never know. Always be prepared.
Wow, those are some great stories and tips! A recurring theme that we’re noticing with the full-time artists we interview is that a lot of them seemed to have had a moment where they had to redefine what being a successful musician was. Did you experience something like that, and if so, what did it look like for you?
I definitely did. Growing up seeing the industry, it’s hard not to attach yourself to the typical version of “success” that you see. Coming up, I thought if I wasn’t signed to a major label and didn’t have a single out with Lady Gaga or some other A Lister then I failed as a singer and I might as well go to my plan B. I didn’t realize that there were hundreds of thousands of singers making beautiful livings from music and the masses may never know their names and that’s ok. I thought the options were only MEGA fame or NOTHING.
There are beautiful versions of success lying in-between. For me, success is no longer the glitz and glamour like I thought it was in my teens and 20’s. Now, I feel most successful when I’ve made a difference. Whether it’s from a session client who is over the moon with how their song that means so much to them came out because of my contribution, or a girl who writes me telling me how much a song I’ve written helped her through a difficult time, or an event coordinator who feels my performance helped make their event a huge success.
This connection and exchange of positive energy is what really fuels my fire. If I can make a great living while doing what I love and leaving a positive impact on the world then I consider myself a huge success.
+Invoke Happiness From Your Music by Making Values a Priority
That’s beautiful! So where do you see your career going next and do you have any exciting projects coming up you can tell us about?
I’m most excited about my new ventures into the live gigging world, but with a more “focused for me” route. I’ve been in the studio for so long that I’ll need to dust off these live singing chops, but I love me a good challenge.
I’m also very excited about attempting a Christmas album this year! Well, an EP with a few covers on it and 2 originals. I’ve written the originals and have sent them off for production while I work on the covers. I just love the Holidays and have always wanted some Christmas jammy jams of my own.
Very cool and we can’t wait to hear how the live gigging goes with your new focus. What advice do you have for artists looking to take the plunge into being full-time musicians?
- There will never be a “perfect” time. Even if you can only take a baby step. Take that step. Even if it’s just watching a video on how to take the first step, watch that video and keep watching videos like it until you can muster the courage to DO the first step. Don’t sleep on your dream.
- Not everything you do has to be amazing or even seen. Start out just having fun and doing what you’re called to do. You can formulate a plan as you go.
- Set goals. Even if they seem crazy. Write it down. Put it on your wall where you can see it every day.
- Keep going. Even when you’re sad, even when it seems hopeless, even when you think you suck, it gets better. Even if it doesn’t get better (which is unlikely), if you’re a singer, you should sing. Regardless of the outcome. Often times when you surrender and just “be” is when the magic happens anyway. So take the pressure off and just sing.
- Nothing happens overnight. It will likely be a long bumpy road, but oh so worth it! Just make a song out of your troubles.
More great advice. So where can our readers find you online?
My website is https://audreymusic.com/.
For Social Media…
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/AudreyMusic/
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/audreymusic/
Youtube https://www.youtube.com/user/beachangel83/featured
Soundcloud https://soundcloud.com/audreycallahan
Spotify bit.ly/audreyspotify
Very nice! Well thank you so much Audrey for your time and for sharing your story with us. It was truly inspiring and we wish you the best as you start this season in your career.
TheCraftyMusician.com is looking for independent artists to feature. If you’re interested in being featured on TheCraftyMusician.com, please fill out this questionnaire.
If you enjoyed reading this post, join our mailing list! We’ll send weekly tips and tricks you can use to advance your music career without the help of a label. Click here to subscribe.
Some of the links in this post could be “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, we’ll will receive an affiliate commission (with no additional cost to you). Regardless, we only recommend products or services we use personally and believe will add value to our readers. Also, if you use our links, you will help keep this website going! Win-Win!!!
See more Artist Spotlight Articles below…
+Artist Spotlight: Cliffs + Caves: On Defying the Boundaries of Cool
+Artist Spotlight Joe the Bluesman: Construction Manager Retires for Second Career as a Musicia
+Artist Spotlight: Ashley Feller: On overcoming disasters as a musician
+Artist Spotlight: Erin McAndrew: On turning a band’s rejection into a solo career
+Artist Spotlight: Sincerely, Iris: On his long journey as an accomplished Singer/Songwriter
+Artist Spotlight: Ty Scott King: on going against the grain as a positive Rapper/Poet
