Country artist Tebey is performing in Ottawa on Feb. 14 for the second leg of his Shotgun Rider Tour. He grew up in Peterborough Ont., before moving to Nashville and signing with BNA Records Nashville in 2002. Over the past two decades, Tebey has found success as a singer, songwriter and music producer.
Throughout his career, Tebey has written songs for artists including One Direction, Flo Rida and Cher. As an artist, he has released three albums: The Wait (2012), Two (2014) and The Good Ones (2021). He is set to release his fourth album, Tulum, later this year.
The Charlatan sat down with Tebey to discuss his journey in the music industry, his fourth album and his upcoming stop in Ottawa.
The Charlatan (TC): What drew you to music?
Tebey (T): I was always drawn to it. I think I recognized pretty early on that this is the path that I want to take in my life. It’s always been what I’ve wanted to do. I grew up playing guitar and piano, so my parents were instrumental in helping to stoke that fire for me to make a living making music.
TC: Tell me about your progression from songwriter to singer.
T: I was 16 when I moved to Nashville, and I had a record deal so my focus was more on being an artist. By the time I was 20, I ended up losing my record deal, so I transitioned into writing songs for other people. And then I came full circle—10 years ago, I started recording my own music.
TC: What is it like to go on tour?
T: Playing shows is one thing, but being able to keep it up for an entire tour, you learn how to take care of yourself, how to take care of your voice. The hardest thing about being on the road or doing a tour is just missing my family—my wife and my kids. This tour runs only two weeks, which is the perfect amount of time. I get to go out there and play the shows and then come home and hang out with my family.
TC: Do you ever plan to deviate from the country music genre?
T: No, not really. I mean, this is what I do best—I work best in this genre. I mean, the only thing that I’ve considered doing in the future is doing an alternate version of a song for [BBC] Radio 2 in the U.K., because we’ve been growing our fan base there. I just write the best songs that I can. I don’t want to try and say okay, this is the new record, it needs to sound like this, or this single needs to fit in this type of check these boxes. The single that’s coming up in two months or so is the most country thing I’ve ever done by a longshot, but it just kind of happened that way. I wrote the song and I loved it.
TC: Your fourth album, Tulum, is set to be released later this year. Have you explored any other genres, styles or techniques for it?
T: Just being outside of Nashville to write a bunch of the songs for the album was different. It’s kind of nice to get out of the city for a little bit and change it up. I enjoyed going down to Tulum [Mexico] to work on the record because it gave me a different perspective.
TC: Do you often draw inspiration for your songs from places around you?
T: I think it’s more about me being more creative when I’m traveling. It’s always been that way with me. I worked with One Direction a while ago and did a couple of songs on one of their albums and that was done in the U.K. I just feel more creative when I travel. It gets the creative juices flowing for me.
TC: What is your creative process like?
T: I have a really hard time writing a song if I don’t know what the title is going to be, because that’s something for me to write towards. I have a goal and I’m trying to get there. I’m not going to pick up the guitar and just start singing the melody and try to figure out what the words are going to be. Everybody has a different process, and for me, I just have to have that title, or at the very least, that very specific concept that we’re trying to go after.
TC: Is there something you find yourself constantly drawing inspiration from when you’re writing or thinking of song titles?
T: I try to compete with the best and always to try and improve what I’m doing. In Nashville, you’re constantly surrounded by the best songwriters in the world. So I just try to compare myself to them and try to write songs that are just as good as some of the top writers.
TC: What are you most excited about in the upcoming album?
T: Just getting it out. By the time the fans hear the music, I’ve already lived with it for probably close to a year. It’s just nice to finally get the music out there and to get a second opinion from the fans for good or for bad.
TC: What are you planning in the next five or 10 years?
T: To still be making music, hopefully, to still enjoy it. It’s all about enjoying it. I’ve been doing this for 20 years now, and I still enjoy it every day. When the day comes that I don’t love making music anymore or I don’t love touring, I’ll stop doing it.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Featured image by Emma Lee.
