WEBVTT - The hard way to an easy life 0:00:00.760 --> 0:00:04.359 What's up, guys. Welcome to the Granger Smith Podcast, Episode 0:00:04.680 --> 0:00:08.639 thirty three. Thank you for watching and thank you for listening. 0:00:08.800 --> 0:00:11.680 I'm grateful for this platform to be able to speak 0:00:12.240 --> 0:00:16.480 my mind, exercise the first Amendment right that I have 0:00:16.640 --> 0:00:20.239 here in America. And this is the first podcast in 0:00:20.320 --> 0:00:24.400 my new office. I'm at yeeee Farm in the headquarters 0:00:24.400 --> 0:00:28.000 of Yeee Apparel. I created this this space so that 0:00:28.080 --> 0:00:30.840 we could do these podcasts, and we could and we 0:00:31.680 --> 0:00:34.000 could do. Me and the band have talked about doing 0:00:34.040 --> 0:00:36.919 some live streaming in here, playing some music. So and 0:00:36.960 --> 0:00:38.839 that's an interesting thing we should talk about. Is that. 0:00:39.400 --> 0:00:42.640 Be looking on my social media coming up, be looking 0:00:42.760 --> 0:00:46.159 for us to be putting out one or two or 0:00:46.240 --> 0:00:49.360 three live streams a week. We're gonna do different sets, 0:00:49.400 --> 0:00:53.040 So comment below on this video with your set list request, 0:00:53.120 --> 0:00:55.040 with songs you want us to play it. It doesn't 0:00:55.080 --> 0:00:57.959 matter how old the song is of mine or how 0:00:58.000 --> 0:01:01.040 new the song is of mine. We would love to 0:01:01.080 --> 0:01:02.520 be able to read through that. And we're going to 0:01:02.560 --> 0:01:06.640 put together these set lists for you, guys, and man 0:01:06.920 --> 0:01:09.800 that I wish we could get to your city. I 0:01:09.840 --> 0:01:11.880 wish we could get to you right now. It's killing 0:01:11.920 --> 0:01:14.000 me to not be on the road, and this is 0:01:14.040 --> 0:01:17.280 the next best thing we could do is play these 0:01:17.319 --> 0:01:21.640 songs on a live stream and I just I wanted 0:01:21.680 --> 0:01:26.000 to be able to scratch that itch somehow. The second 0:01:26.040 --> 0:01:30.000 thing we're going to talk about Isyee Apparel summer launch 0:01:30.360 --> 0:01:33.440 June the twelfth, So this is really important. The reason 0:01:33.480 --> 0:01:37.080 I'm I'm gonna push this now is because the last 0:01:37.120 --> 0:01:40.600 several launches we've had have sold out really early. And 0:01:40.640 --> 0:01:43.440 when I say early, we launch at ten am, which 0:01:43.480 --> 0:01:45.840 we will on June twelfth. We launch at ten am, 0:01:46.280 --> 0:01:49.560 and we have we have sold out in minutes of 0:01:49.600 --> 0:01:51.600 some of our some of the more popular items, and 0:01:51.640 --> 0:01:55.840 so we are making more orders and we're we're increasing 0:01:55.880 --> 0:01:59.240 our inventory a little bit on these. But the balance 0:01:59.360 --> 0:02:01.480 is that we want to be able to sell out quickly, 0:02:02.400 --> 0:02:04.960 to push that product quick and then and then it 0:02:04.960 --> 0:02:07.040 gives us a good idea of what to reorder, et cetera, 0:02:07.160 --> 0:02:09.600 et cetera. All being said, and that none of that 0:02:09.639 --> 0:02:13.320 matters to you. What does matter is ten am June twelfth, 0:02:13.480 --> 0:02:15.919 Yee dot com or ye apparel dot com. Make sure 0:02:15.919 --> 0:02:19.680 you go and check it out and be ready, uh 0:02:19.200 --> 0:02:21.960 to get this new stuff. It's really good. I've been 0:02:22.000 --> 0:02:25.560 working my butt off this week doing videos and taking 0:02:25.600 --> 0:02:29.480 pictures and working with Parker and Tyler and Paul and 0:02:29.560 --> 0:02:33.919 Brian and ant Man and all these photographers and videographers 0:02:33.919 --> 0:02:38.120 that have come in and and really helped us to 0:02:38.320 --> 0:02:41.160 create what we are really proud of in the summer launch, 0:02:41.200 --> 0:02:45.800 So be looking for that. How are you guys doing. 0:02:46.040 --> 0:02:47.960 How's the state of the world. I know that there's 0:02:48.520 --> 0:02:50.880 we have now entered a time of the world where 0:02:51.200 --> 0:02:54.320 there's pockets of people that are doing pretty normal, pretty great. 0:02:54.800 --> 0:02:58.360 There's pockets of people that are really locked down, and 0:02:58.600 --> 0:03:01.720 uh it, it's amazing. You just cross a couple of 0:03:01.800 --> 0:03:05.000 state lines or a few international borders and you're in 0:03:05.040 --> 0:03:09.600 a completely different place as far as this shutdown is concerned. 0:03:09.639 --> 0:03:13.000 So how you doing? Comment below, let me know, let 0:03:13.000 --> 0:03:15.520 me know your pulse. Us here in Texas, we feel 0:03:15.600 --> 0:03:20.880 very lucky, We feel very blessed to continue to have 0:03:20.960 --> 0:03:25.840 low numbers and to also be opening up faster and faster, 0:03:26.160 --> 0:03:29.359 and we're seeing good results and it feels very normal. 0:03:30.440 --> 0:03:33.280 Touring as a Tory musician will probably be one of 0:03:33.280 --> 0:03:37.560 the last ones but to go back to work, which 0:03:37.600 --> 0:03:39.520 is why we're doing this live stream, and so we 0:03:39.560 --> 0:03:43.160 set up also this Venmo account at Granger Smith so 0:03:43.200 --> 0:03:45.160 that we could hopefully get some tips for the band 0:03:45.720 --> 0:03:48.440 during that. It's like passing around the virtual pickle jar. 0:03:48.560 --> 0:03:51.120 Back in the old days of playing bars every night, 0:03:51.160 --> 0:03:54.560 we would pass around a pickle jar that said band 0:03:54.600 --> 0:03:58.160 tips on it. So we'll be doing that virtually. You know, 0:03:58.200 --> 0:04:01.760 we've resorted to that these days with zero touring. All 0:04:01.800 --> 0:04:05.880 that being said, a lot of exciting things coming soon. 0:04:06.520 --> 0:04:09.120 Uh be watching the socials for the live stream, and 0:04:09.160 --> 0:04:13.600 be watching yee dot com for the summer launch. Today's 0:04:13.640 --> 0:04:17.840 guest my brother Tyler Smith, my middle brother. Last week 0:04:17.880 --> 0:04:22.120 we had Parker, the youngest brother. This week Tyler, and 0:04:22.640 --> 0:04:26.400 Tyler is a fascinating dude. And so I ran over 0:04:26.520 --> 0:04:30.520 my time on my interview with him today and uh 0:04:30.560 --> 0:04:33.120 so I apologize it's going to cut off a little abruptly, 0:04:33.160 --> 0:04:35.760 but he is such a fascinating dude. He has he 0:04:35.880 --> 0:04:40.000 just will spit out these these little moments of like 0:04:40.120 --> 0:04:42.600 genius wisdom. Its just to just come out and you'll 0:04:42.600 --> 0:04:45.640 hear him say it in a minute, and it always 0:04:45.640 --> 0:04:49.440 shocks me and and me and him that we butt 0:04:49.480 --> 0:04:53.680 heads a lot because I'm I'm he's very directive and 0:04:53.760 --> 0:04:58.200 passionate and I'm very loose and creative, and so it 0:04:58.320 --> 0:05:01.280 works really well in business, but it's times sometimes it clashes, 0:05:01.680 --> 0:05:04.320 and we'll get into that a little bit. You'll get 0:05:04.360 --> 0:05:06.920 to know Tyler a little bit. But we're also going 0:05:07.000 --> 0:05:09.480 to have to continue this interview and do another one. 0:05:09.520 --> 0:05:11.200 I don't know if it'll be next week, but it'll be. 0:05:11.400 --> 0:05:13.000 It'll be. We'll do a follow up once so you 0:05:13.000 --> 0:05:16.839 could hear more about him because we got to talking 0:05:17.000 --> 0:05:19.000 on this one. So I think you're gonna like it. 0:05:19.240 --> 0:05:21.800 You're in for a treat. He's he's It's not just 0:05:21.839 --> 0:05:23.920 saying that because he's my brother, but he's literally one 0:05:23.920 --> 0:05:25.760 of the most interesting people they over meet, and so 0:05:25.839 --> 0:05:28.279 it's Parker. I'm very proud of both of them. Without 0:05:28.360 --> 0:05:50.279 further ado, welcome to the podcast. Here's my guest. Okay, 0:05:50.640 --> 0:05:53.240 we were walking down the hall to bring you in here, 0:05:53.240 --> 0:05:57.159 and you're like, what are we talking about? And I 0:05:57.200 --> 0:06:01.000 admittedly said that I don't have a plan and that 0:06:01.080 --> 0:06:03.200 kind of scared you. You're like, well, you sure you 0:06:03.200 --> 0:06:05.240 want to do something without I'm sure you don't think 0:06:05.240 --> 0:06:09.680 about it. But usually on this podcast that's just what 0:06:09.760 --> 0:06:16.279 I do. Okay, don't plan anything. And you are one 0:06:16.320 --> 0:06:20.000 of the most, if not the most interesting humans I 0:06:20.080 --> 0:06:23.000 know in what way? And I feel like I've known 0:06:23.640 --> 0:06:27.040 I do know a lot of humans just from traveling 0:06:27.040 --> 0:06:30.600 with touring and what where music has taken us across 0:06:30.680 --> 0:06:34.160 the world. We've met some interesting people, Presidents of the 0:06:34.279 --> 0:06:41.120 United States, you know, foreign ambassadors, crazy rock stars. You 0:06:41.200 --> 0:06:43.560 were one of the most interesting people I know. It's 0:06:43.600 --> 0:06:46.039 that a good thing or a bad thing. It's a 0:06:46.040 --> 0:06:49.240 good thing. And that's why I wanted you on this podcast. 0:06:49.360 --> 0:06:51.680 Last week we did Parker, and so we didn't have 0:06:51.720 --> 0:06:53.720 a plan with Parker either. We just would y'all to 0:06:53.720 --> 0:06:55.600 talk about I didn't listen to it. You didn't listen, 0:06:56.240 --> 0:07:02.600 did you not? Really, it's good. We talked about basically 0:07:02.640 --> 0:07:07.599 his role here at EE Apparel and how he we 0:07:07.680 --> 0:07:11.080 brought me and you stole him away from another kind 0:07:11.120 --> 0:07:14.280 of career he would have had in real estate from 0:07:14.320 --> 0:07:17.840 A and M and then he's the CEO. Yeah, yeah, 0:07:18.160 --> 0:07:21.239 it was a quick rise. Yeah. I also talked about 0:07:21.240 --> 0:07:24.560 how I still missed that little boy that Parker was 0:07:25.120 --> 0:07:27.360 since there's thirteen years difference between me and him and 0:07:27.400 --> 0:07:30.320 ten years difference between you and him, and how we 0:07:30.640 --> 0:07:32.440 mom and dad took us to fud Rutgers and told 0:07:32.520 --> 0:07:37.080 him told us that they were pregnant, and then then 0:07:37.120 --> 0:07:42.360 we talked through his role here and how we've kind 0:07:42.400 --> 0:07:45.360 of changed the business plan. And so with you, just 0:07:45.440 --> 0:07:47.840 off the top of my head, I guess we can 0:07:47.920 --> 0:07:51.480 go and talk about us growing up as brothers. A 0:07:51.480 --> 0:07:53.680 lot of people in the comments to Parker's were like, 0:07:53.800 --> 0:07:58.000 put Tyler on there, put Tyler on there, which is understandable. 0:07:58.040 --> 0:08:01.040 And so where from where we sit right here, Tyler's 0:08:01.080 --> 0:08:03.560 office is on the other wall, on the other side 0:08:03.560 --> 0:08:08.120 of this wall, and Parker is over here. So I 0:08:08.160 --> 0:08:11.320 think it's a huge blessing that we get to work 0:08:11.360 --> 0:08:17.680 together three brothers. It's you know, it's not always easy. 0:08:17.840 --> 0:08:21.240 Me and you have a lot harder of a time 0:08:21.320 --> 0:08:24.760 than you and Parker, or me and Parker. And that's 0:08:24.800 --> 0:08:28.120 because park partly because Parker is so passive. You know 0:08:28.160 --> 0:08:30.080 what I just realized. I don't know if I'm telling 0:08:30.080 --> 0:08:32.800 you you should tell this from everybody. You can edit 0:08:32.840 --> 0:08:35.400 it not, but you don't edit these by the way. 0:08:35.400 --> 0:08:39.480 You know, what I realized today was exactly what you're saying. 0:08:40.200 --> 0:08:42.760 For whatever reason. Our personality is, like we obviously do 0:08:42.840 --> 0:08:48.080 really well together, but sometimes we have some issued minor 0:08:48.120 --> 0:08:52.240 issues brothers stuff, right, but and both of our relationships 0:08:52.320 --> 0:08:56.040 are different with me and you and me and Parker. 0:08:56.200 --> 0:08:59.600 Yeah okay, But what I'm getting to is, in my 0:08:59.640 --> 0:09:03.200 head to was like because London lately, she she has 0:09:03.280 --> 0:09:06.400 little tendencies of things that you do, and I find 0:09:06.440 --> 0:09:09.960 myself like thinking to myself, like like trying to like 0:09:10.040 --> 0:09:12.360 get get back at her a little bit, like we 0:09:12.520 --> 0:09:14.400 kind of like we don't bicker, like but you know 0:09:14.400 --> 0:09:16.480 what I mean, Like it's the same stuff you and 0:09:16.520 --> 0:09:18.240 me do, and like you and me go at each other, 0:09:18.600 --> 0:09:22.959 obviously I don't go after London. But then Lincoln and Parker, 0:09:23.600 --> 0:09:25.760 like I have the same relationship with Lincoln and Parker. 0:09:25.840 --> 0:09:28.480 Like Parker's, like you said, for ten years younger than me, 0:09:28.520 --> 0:09:30.280 so he was a little baby when we were kids, 0:09:31.160 --> 0:09:33.679 so there's still that little and so same with Lincoln. 0:09:33.760 --> 0:09:37.000 But with you and London are similar in that way. 0:09:37.000 --> 0:09:39.800 It's weird because London is so strong willed and I 0:09:39.880 --> 0:09:43.640 could independent. She's very passionate her way in no way, 0:09:43.640 --> 0:09:45.839 and I'm kind of the same way and a lot 0:09:45.840 --> 0:09:49.240 of times her way is also wrong. Yeah's is similar 0:09:49.280 --> 0:09:51.320 to me. You know, I'm very I get very passionate 0:09:51.360 --> 0:09:54.320 about a certain way. But she'll never admit that she's wrong. 0:09:55.120 --> 0:09:57.320 What do you trying to say? Well, so that's so, 0:09:57.360 --> 0:10:00.040 that's part of our story, is that you know, so 0:10:00.080 --> 0:10:03.080 here we are the brother Crew, the three brothers. But 0:10:03.240 --> 0:10:07.480 you and I go back much longer than Parker has 0:10:07.559 --> 0:10:11.000 been with EEE. Even though Parker was there the day 0:10:11.080 --> 0:10:18.800 EEE was said as earl and it is, it needs 0:10:18.840 --> 0:10:20.560 to be said that me and you go back way 0:10:20.600 --> 0:10:25.760 before Parker. We go back to two thousand and two 0:10:25.800 --> 0:10:30.839 thousand and eight. Well, these mics are really directional. It's 0:10:34.280 --> 0:10:39.000 like officially, but I remember being at Rice and I 0:10:39.120 --> 0:10:43.560 used to go to the spot on campus where nobody 0:10:43.559 --> 0:10:45.319 else was. I don't know what. It was, just one 0:10:45.400 --> 0:10:47.880 random building and I'd go down to Houston and the 0:10:48.200 --> 0:10:52.120 Rice University in Houston. And I graduated in two thousand 0:10:52.120 --> 0:10:57.120 and seven May, so I'll go down in that basement 0:10:57.200 --> 0:11:04.280 and book shows specifically, remember booking shows. I still got 0:11:04.280 --> 0:11:06.679 that green book. So it was before two thousand and eight. 0:11:06.679 --> 0:11:10.800 It wasn't full time until two thousand and seven. I graduated, 0:11:10.840 --> 0:11:13.920 and I went and worked at a bank, which I hated, 0:11:14.960 --> 0:11:18.679 gave them a I committed to it, though, so morally 0:11:18.720 --> 0:11:23.000 I wanted to give them a year, you know, do 0:11:23.080 --> 0:11:25.080 what I could. And so anyway, that so that was 0:11:25.280 --> 0:11:29.240 like literally to the day that I started, let's just 0:11:29.280 --> 0:11:32.280 say summer two thousand and seven, quit summer two thousand 0:11:32.280 --> 0:11:34.679 and eight, and then was full time like everything then. 0:11:35.200 --> 0:11:38.000 And basically you're what you usually say is you were 0:11:38.200 --> 0:11:42.199 mad that nothing was happening. I was putting out these 0:11:42.240 --> 0:11:46.160 records and no one was going to the shows, and 0:11:47.040 --> 0:11:49.160 I wasn't getting any more shows, and no one was 0:11:49.200 --> 0:11:51.800 really hearing the music, and you were mad. I was 0:11:51.840 --> 0:11:55.360 with a big management company out in Nashville, and I 0:11:55.400 --> 0:11:59.079 was living in College Station, Texas. So I was their 0:11:59.120 --> 0:12:01.960 only act that was in Texas. I was the only 0:12:02.000 --> 0:12:04.679 act that was in a small town really in Texas 0:12:04.720 --> 0:12:09.480 doing the van and trailer touring. And so understandably I 0:12:09.520 --> 0:12:12.920 was forgotten and I didn't think about it that much 0:12:12.960 --> 0:12:15.920 as much as you did. It really bothered you. And 0:12:16.000 --> 0:12:19.000 so I remember you getting so mad while you're working 0:12:19.000 --> 0:12:21.839 at that bank that that I wasn't getting shows booked, 0:12:21.840 --> 0:12:23.840 et cetera, et cetera, and so you said, screw it, 0:12:24.520 --> 0:12:26.960 I could book a hundred times the shows that you're getting. 0:12:28.120 --> 0:12:30.280 And so the first year that you came on was 0:12:30.320 --> 0:12:32.760 it eight when you when you first came on and 0:12:32.800 --> 0:12:36.080 we started playing all those shows. Yeah, we were playing 0:12:36.240 --> 0:12:40.520 like Wednesday through Saturday, and it was the crappiest show. 0:12:41.360 --> 0:12:43.760 So you came through it. You delivered under your promise. 0:12:44.640 --> 0:12:47.040 And so you really didn't start as manager. You didn't 0:12:47.040 --> 0:12:48.360 say I want to manage you. You You said I want 0:12:48.400 --> 0:12:52.200 to book you. So that's how you started. Well, I don't. Yeah, 0:12:52.720 --> 0:12:54.760 I did love booking, I really did. I had a 0:12:54.800 --> 0:12:57.600 passion for it. I loved working numbers. I guess I 0:12:57.640 --> 0:13:00.600 was fresh out of school Econ. I guess like Econ, 0:13:00.720 --> 0:13:05.000 But I just loved entrepreneurship and building brands and success 0:13:05.120 --> 0:13:11.720 and and and money and numbers. Yeah, so we started booking. 0:13:11.720 --> 0:13:16.520 But those shows, I remember that there was always just 0:13:16.600 --> 0:13:20.360 so many secrets and tricks, not really tricks, but just 0:13:20.440 --> 0:13:23.679 it was always about just being a good person and 0:13:23.720 --> 0:13:26.720 being honest and booking these shows and telling the promoters 0:13:28.040 --> 0:13:29.839 if I could ever get them on the phone, that's 0:13:29.880 --> 0:13:33.720 a whole other topic, but telling the promoters, look, I'm 0:13:33.720 --> 0:13:36.560 not guaranteeing that we're going to sell your place out, 0:13:36.640 --> 0:13:39.480 but we're going to put on a good show and 0:13:39.800 --> 0:13:42.720 we'll only take you know, X amount of the door 0:13:43.800 --> 0:13:46.880 five dollars ticket price. They're basically telling them to the 0:13:46.880 --> 0:13:48.920 people that are watching that there's gonna be no risk 0:13:49.000 --> 0:13:51.959 on your end. You know, we're not going to ask 0:13:52.000 --> 0:13:56.600 for a high money guarantee and all that stuff. So anyway, well, 0:13:56.640 --> 0:13:58.480 like you said, we go do those shows and like 0:13:58.559 --> 0:14:01.880 nobody would be there. Like when we say nobody would 0:14:01.880 --> 0:14:03.680 be there, we don't mean there was one hundred people there. 0:14:04.080 --> 0:14:08.480 It was just a waitress. So my job never ended. 0:14:08.640 --> 0:14:12.600 And my job at that point was to buddy up 0:14:12.640 --> 0:14:15.319 with the owner that I called and booked that show 0:14:15.400 --> 0:14:18.439 with and talk to him in his office for about 0:14:18.440 --> 0:14:21.000 whatever he wanted to talk about, and just be a 0:14:21.040 --> 0:14:25.560 chameleon and and win his trust and be his friend, 0:14:26.440 --> 0:14:29.360 get his number, text him and say and so basically 0:14:29.440 --> 0:14:31.600 when I'm getting it, as we built that trust and 0:14:31.680 --> 0:14:35.280 that friendship, where when I called this guy back and said, hey, 0:14:35.320 --> 0:14:37.280 can we get another date, first of all, I would 0:14:37.320 --> 0:14:39.440 try to get a date in that office as we're 0:14:39.480 --> 0:14:42.600 closing out, And a lot of times that was a 0:14:42.680 --> 0:14:44.800 big trick and a ticket, like we leave and we 0:14:44.880 --> 0:14:47.760 got another date. But I would call him back and 0:14:47.800 --> 0:14:50.640 he'd say, hey, Tyler man, look you're awesome. I love you, 0:14:50.680 --> 0:14:52.240 I love your brother. You guys got to get a 0:14:52.280 --> 0:14:55.240 great band. But we lost money last time. Nobody came. 0:14:56.000 --> 0:14:58.680 But I like you and your brother. I will give 0:14:58.680 --> 0:15:00.600 you another date. So that was kind of the trick, 0:15:00.760 --> 0:15:03.400 and then we would we just slowly built it that way. 0:15:03.920 --> 0:15:05.880 We got into a lot of places that we shouldn't 0:15:05.880 --> 0:15:08.840 have gotten into a lot earlier because of that. And 0:15:09.360 --> 0:15:12.240 we should say one of your you call it tricks. 0:15:13.600 --> 0:15:19.120 One of the techniques you used was on email on 0:15:19.200 --> 0:15:21.720 the subject line. Should even say it on this podcast. 0:15:21.800 --> 0:15:24.840 It's such a it's such a Tyler technique. Bring we 0:15:24.920 --> 0:15:26.600 still need to get in so that there needs to 0:15:26.640 --> 0:15:29.840 be many podcasts with Tyler, and so this is hopefully 0:15:29.920 --> 0:15:32.240 be the first of many because there's so many stories 0:15:32.320 --> 0:15:36.800 and if you're a beginning artist or a beginning musician, 0:15:37.680 --> 0:15:40.760 you could learn a lot from Tyler and the path 0:15:40.800 --> 0:15:45.000 that we took. In one one way you could look 0:15:45.000 --> 0:15:47.440 at it is you do not need to go get 0:15:47.480 --> 0:15:51.800 you a big Nashville manager or LA manager, or you 0:15:51.840 --> 0:15:55.200 just need somebody that believes in you with everything. Yeah, yeah, 0:15:55.600 --> 0:15:58.680 and and nothing is going to get done though. Nothing 0:15:58.760 --> 0:16:00.520 is going to get done unless you do it. That 0:16:00.880 --> 0:16:04.680 is the bottom line, and so on. One technique Tyler 0:16:04.800 --> 0:16:06.960 used when these people he would email them and say, hey, 0:16:07.000 --> 0:16:10.520 my name is Tyler Smith. I book a band, Granger Smith. 0:16:10.800 --> 0:16:13.280 And we would actually try not to play up the 0:16:13.280 --> 0:16:15.040 brother thing too much because we didn't want to sound 0:16:15.080 --> 0:16:20.760 too homegrown. So we would he would email and make 0:16:20.800 --> 0:16:22.560 the pitch and then not hear anything, and then not 0:16:22.600 --> 0:16:24.840 hear anything, and then not hear anything. So the technique 0:16:24.840 --> 0:16:28.880 Tyler would use is We'll say Bob at Silver Creek 0:16:28.960 --> 0:16:32.240 Saloon whatever, I'm just making, just making names up. He'd say, 0:16:33.280 --> 0:16:36.200 the subject line of the email would say no longer 0:16:36.280 --> 0:16:40.760 working at Silver Creek Saloon question mark, and then the 0:16:41.160 --> 0:16:44.800 body of the email would say, Hey, Bob Herd a 0:16:44.880 --> 0:16:47.680 rumor you're not with Silver Creek. I'm just going to 0:16:47.720 --> 0:16:51.880 say it. It was Don Don Don started BUCkies. For 0:16:51.920 --> 0:16:54.720 all of you guys that know BUCkies, absolutely love that place. 0:16:54.760 --> 0:16:56.880 It's a gas station in the South. We live in Texas. 0:16:56.920 --> 0:17:00.920 There everywhere and amazing food, clean a streams like they're 0:17:00.960 --> 0:17:03.960 just top, top notch, and so they're they're they're they're 0:17:04.000 --> 0:17:08.400 also very supportive of regional artists, musicians, that sort of thing. 0:17:08.920 --> 0:17:11.240 So we we had like T shirts already in there 0:17:11.359 --> 0:17:15.240 in that in their stores, and then we came out 0:17:15.240 --> 0:17:17.800 with our energy Drinky Energy, and so we were just 0:17:17.880 --> 0:17:19.920 calling everybody we could to try to get it in there. 0:17:19.920 --> 0:17:22.159 And we we already had our stuff in BUCkies. And 0:17:22.200 --> 0:17:26.359 so a mutual friend of ours, somebody that runs our 0:17:26.359 --> 0:17:29.920 website knew the owner, hooked me up with their email, 0:17:30.280 --> 0:17:32.720 connected us on an email, I should say, and he 0:17:32.800 --> 0:17:35.760 never responded to the email. Was you know, he's one 0:17:35.760 --> 0:17:38.840 of many? Though, yeah, Don's one of many. Oh yeah, 0:17:38.840 --> 0:17:41.320 I'm just this. We just still joke about that. That 0:17:41.440 --> 0:17:44.480 was just a big example. But but the the key 0:17:44.520 --> 0:17:46.359 thing to this whole thing is if you if no 0:17:46.400 --> 0:17:48.560 one's replying to you, if you put in the subject 0:17:48.600 --> 0:17:54.160 line Bob no longer working at Silver something. I emailed 0:17:54.160 --> 0:17:56.919 Donald two two times, three times. Nothing. I was like, 0:17:57.000 --> 0:17:59.600 screw it. So I said, I was pissed, and I said, 0:17:59.800 --> 0:18:01.800 are you know no longer working there? Like in the 0:18:02.240 --> 0:18:05.399 subject don no longer CEO of BUCkies or owner of 0:18:05.400 --> 0:18:09.120 Bucki's did you get fired? Like I was like jabbing 0:18:09.200 --> 0:18:11.199 at him, and I knew he was going to respond, 0:18:11.240 --> 0:18:15.560 and sure enough, literally like after weeks of no return emails, 0:18:15.640 --> 0:18:18.520 literally literally five minutes after I sent that email, he 0:18:18.880 --> 0:18:21.720 sent back a reply, really pissed in short yeah, like 0:18:22.000 --> 0:18:24.200 something like yeah, what are you talking about? Who told 0:18:24.240 --> 0:18:26.919 you that? And I was like, Hey, don now that 0:18:26.920 --> 0:18:29.120 I got your attention, thanks for a response. We got 0:18:29.160 --> 0:18:31.480 ee energy. We're looking to put it in your store. 0:18:31.680 --> 0:18:35.439 That is playing to someone's ego. They cannot stand to 0:18:35.520 --> 0:18:37.320 let an email go by that says that there's a 0:18:37.400 --> 0:18:39.360 rumor that they're not working at the company that they're 0:18:39.400 --> 0:18:41.960 actually the CEO or the bar owner for, or the 0:18:42.000 --> 0:18:45.359 booker for. And so Tyler's been doing that trick for 0:18:46.040 --> 0:18:49.879 twelve years or maybe more to these small town bar owners. 0:18:50.080 --> 0:18:53.280 We had so many problems, like sometimes I remember one specifically, 0:18:53.359 --> 0:18:56.520 was it Brownwood, Texas. You know, you would get the 0:18:56.560 --> 0:18:58.960 show booked, and this is once again no one knew 0:18:58.960 --> 0:19:01.000 who we were. So Tyler's just going on merit with 0:19:01.040 --> 0:19:04.919 these gequa Yeah. Yeah, so we were booking it based 0:19:04.960 --> 0:19:08.000 on hey, I know, I know they're not going to 0:19:08.080 --> 0:19:11.120 draw anybody to your club, but the people you do 0:19:11.200 --> 0:19:13.359 have there will love this band and they'll want to 0:19:13.359 --> 0:19:15.880 come back. And that was our goal, get them, get 0:19:15.920 --> 0:19:17.640 them one at a time where the people that were 0:19:17.640 --> 0:19:21.240 there would start to be fans, and so you would 0:19:21.280 --> 0:19:23.960 do it on merit and then we would we would 0:19:23.960 --> 0:19:27.320 send them a contract, you know, but then they hardly 0:19:27.400 --> 0:19:29.879 ever would sign it and send it back. They would 0:19:29.920 --> 0:19:33.000 prefer we just showed up. And so this happened a 0:19:33.000 --> 0:19:37.320 few times. One specifically Tequila Something in Brownwood, Texas. We 0:19:37.400 --> 0:19:42.320 showed up and they that guy that booked it with 0:19:42.359 --> 0:19:45.200 you was had been fired and they didn't know we 0:19:45.200 --> 0:19:46.840 were coming. And then no one knew we were coming. 0:19:46.840 --> 0:19:49.000 They were all locked and so here we go on 0:19:49.040 --> 0:19:50.840 a Friday night with the van and trailer and all 0:19:50.920 --> 0:19:52.480 the band. Who's going to get you know? I was 0:19:52.520 --> 0:19:55.520 paying them like a hundred bucks, I know, and no 0:19:55.560 --> 0:19:58.399 one was there, and I you know, that was just 0:19:58.440 --> 0:20:01.280 one of those days where were you with us? Or 0:20:01.400 --> 0:20:05.480 was I called selling merch? Yeah, you're selling merch. So 0:20:05.560 --> 0:20:08.560 we've come a long way, and that's why these conversations 0:20:08.600 --> 0:20:11.600 are so interesting, especially if you're if you're a beginning musician, 0:20:11.640 --> 0:20:15.600 you're listening to this podcast you're thinking about it. I 0:20:15.640 --> 0:20:18.320 can't stress enough that first of all, you don't have 0:20:18.359 --> 0:20:20.920 to leave your little hometown. You don't have to move 0:20:20.960 --> 0:20:23.639 to a big music city. You don't have to sign 0:20:23.720 --> 0:20:25.840 a big record label or big management or a big 0:20:25.840 --> 0:20:28.520 book an agency. You could do it with you and 0:20:28.560 --> 0:20:30.879 your brother. Now you've got to be passionate about it. 0:20:30.920 --> 0:20:32.320 And you got it. You gotta work. You can do 0:20:32.440 --> 0:20:37.160 yourself as long as you can hopefully find somebody that. 0:20:38.560 --> 0:20:45.240 Uh so, then fast forward things start going good. We 0:20:45.240 --> 0:20:48.359 we get to we get to a place, fast forward 0:20:48.480 --> 0:20:51.480 through a lot. Well, I'm fast forward, get good. Yeah, 0:20:51.840 --> 0:20:55.720 we had a lot of bad days. We we had 0:20:56.800 --> 0:20:58.920 We had some moments like me and you had some 0:20:59.040 --> 0:21:03.040 heated moments and empty parking lots and a lot of 0:21:03.080 --> 0:21:05.320 the frustration with no one coming to the shows and 0:21:05.359 --> 0:21:07.280 no one listened to the music that we were so 0:21:07.480 --> 0:21:12.000 passionate about. We worked so hard on building something. And 0:21:12.040 --> 0:21:15.560 when you would continually hit your head with a hammer 0:21:17.119 --> 0:21:22.159 every Friday night, when especially when you would build, we 0:21:22.200 --> 0:21:24.760 would build something a little bit like say we would 0:21:24.760 --> 0:21:29.080 have one hundred people at a place and commerce Texas 0:21:29.640 --> 0:21:34.160 thirsty mule, drunken mule. We would build something, and we'd 0:21:34.200 --> 0:21:37.920 have one hundred and twelve people at Drunken Mule Commerce, 0:21:37.920 --> 0:21:41.440 Texas on Friday night, and we'd think, Dad, gun, we're 0:21:41.560 --> 0:21:44.879 kind of kind of working here. This town's really coming around. 0:21:45.080 --> 0:21:48.879 And then we play there again a year later and 0:21:48.920 --> 0:21:51.720 there'd be eighty four people were like, well, we're going down. 0:21:52.000 --> 0:21:53.760 And so you remember the time you were selling merch 0:21:53.880 --> 0:21:58.439 and commerce and you looked up on the railing and 0:21:58.480 --> 0:22:01.240 you had put what a sticker, that Granger Smith sticker 0:22:01.280 --> 0:22:03.280 on the wail. It was the don't listen the radio, 0:22:03.320 --> 0:22:05.760 that white one. And you realized that we had been 0:22:05.760 --> 0:22:07.719 doing the same plane at the same place for years 0:22:07.760 --> 0:22:10.680 and nothing had changed. The numbers hadn't gone up. In fact, 0:22:10.720 --> 0:22:13.480 maybe they had gone down. And you lost your mind 0:22:13.760 --> 0:22:18.240 about that. And another time happened to me in Nacodochius 0:22:19.320 --> 0:22:25.879 or Tyler Texas, Tyler Tyler Texas Electric something. It was 0:22:25.920 --> 0:22:29.200 the we played it twice one with Robert ro'keeine and 0:22:29.440 --> 0:22:32.119