Starring Shawn Lacy. Photo by @jasonmyersphoto

Chasing the Music City Dream

NASHVILLE SINCE 2009

For Shawn Lacy, music has always been the goal. Now, the Pennsylvania native is sharing his unique fusion of rock, Americana, and soul to the Music City scene and beyond.

Shawn grew up in Lockhaven, PA, in the north central part of the state. “I played in bands there for a while and then moved to Pittsburgh,” he says. He got a job at a country radio station in the city doing promotions. “I was the guy handing out bumper stickers and standing in a car lot for 12 hours spinning a birthday wheel and handing out t-shirts to people,” he laughs. “The cool thing about it was I got to work a bunch of concerts that were coming through.”

“He put together a band in Pittsburgh, called the Shawn & Hobby Band, and they put out a record. The group worked two or three jobs each, with touring in between. One such trip brought them to Nashville, and the city stuck with them. “We just decided one day, let’s just move to Nashville,” he says. They loaded up two moving trucks, had one of their girlfriends who had lived in Music City find two houses for them to rent, and hit the road. ”

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It immediately became not just a home but a creative launch-pad. “Behind one house there was this little garage and the landlord let us turn it into a studio,” Shawn says. “We poured concrete, put up walls, and built this studio, and cut another part of our record there.”

Meanwhile, they had a friend who was a drummer on Broadway, at Second Fiddle. “He was like, ‘Man, just come down and you guys just jump up on stage and sit in and play with the band … it’ll be a good way to see how it works down here,’” Shawn recalls. “We showed up with all our equipment and he’s like, ‘No dude, you’re just supposed to jump up and use our stuff.’” The bartender becomes concerned that the bands are double-booked, so she calls the manager, who rushes down, just as the guys are taking the stage. “We started playing a bunch of original tunes and he loved it and booked us for the next night on the spot,” Shawn says.

While it opened doors for the group, it didn’t mean the journey would be an easy one. “I don’t think I would ever completely stop playing music, but there’s been a couple times where you’re so close to something big happening and then outside forces and of sweep that away,” Shawn says of the tougher times. “We’ve had that happen a couple times with some record deal stuff, booking deal stuff, and then you get to a point, you’re just like, crap, now we have to start the whole process all over again.” Though it can be frustrating, it’s never completely dooming. “You learn a little bit out of each situation,” Shawn says.

Now, he’s continuing to turn heads and catch ears, this time under the moniker of a solo artist. “I guess the feedback I get a lot with original stuff is just fun, a feel good kind of fun vibe,” he says. Each week in town writing or weekend out on the road, those vibes and the fandom continue to grow.

Learn more on his website, and listen to his songs on Spotify.