Shawn Day is a renaissance man. He’s aquired a multitude of talents and a thirst for mastering new crafts, one of which has been making music in Sheridan for over 20 years now. He loves it.
Beginning with piano lessons at eight years old, you could say Shawn wasn’t thrilled with what he found there.
“I hated it. I couldn’t stand it, but I was disciplined about it. The thought of sitting down and doing anything for an hour when I was eight years old was pretty much the worst thing. It was just high pressure for a small kid, I remember doing recitals as a kid and I was competitive.
I had a pretty competitive nature at that age, but I never liked the feeling of sitting in a room with a bunch of adults and kids and going off with “all eyes and ears on me” for eight minutes. That pressure at such a young age was traumatizing.”
Later on, Shawn picked up a bass guitar, and at that point, he knew he had found what he missed on the keys.
“I started when I was fourteen, and I was obsessive about it.”
He had discovered a new culture, in Sheridan and elsewhere, that he identified with, and was accepted with open arms. Ever since then, Shawn has been passionate not only about his own artistry but about doing whatever he can to lend a hand to others pursuing their passions.
“I’m so connected to this community because I’ve grown up in it, I went to high school here… I’ve been a part of some great community-based bands with some amazing musicians.”
We asked Shawn why he does what he does in Sheridan, why he DJs, why he produces others’ work, why he writes his own, why he plays around town. He response,
“For me, it’s definitely connected to service and giving back to the community that has supported me for so many years. It’s my way of taking everything I’ve learned and created something good that I’m skilled at and bringing life to that side of the community that doesn’t get recognized.”
We also asked Shawn what he does. We knew that he’s a member of several music endeavors, he’s involved with the production of many others, he’s also a DJ, and a writer. So, rightly so, Day wasn’t quite sure how to answer this question at first, but he found an answer.
“First and foremost, I’m an artist. I DJ to keep my ear to the ground, and more recently I’ve gotten heavily into producing music. I feel like artists have a real sense of how they want their life to be sculpted, and every dimension of their life is connected to the art.”
Shawn has an immeasurable future that will no doubt reflect his past. He went to the University of Wyoming as a piano performance major, but he didn’t like that much more than he liked his
childhood experiences. Upon graduating, he moved to London, where he “started playing piano out of love” and “reshaped my [Day’s] perspective on the instrument.” Though he’s grateful for the classical knowledge, Shawn now knows that he loves creating and facilitating organic creation more than anything else.
The power of music is one that most have felt, many have wielded (successfully or not), but one that few have truly understood. Shawn Day is one of those few. He is an artist who has fallen in love with the pursuit of mastery, not to keep to himself, but to impart over everyone.
He wants to connect with artists to amplify their efforts and bring their work and their creation to all willing to listen.
“I feel like the whole evolution of all of this is leading to a record label. I’m in the process of creating that right now, I’m thinking about calling it I AM SOL RECORDS. There’s all this music, this unknown music in Wyoming that no one ever gets to hear.
If there was a way to put an umbrella over all of it and brand it and let people know that we’re making a sound out of Wyoming, I want to be a part of that.”
Shawn Day represents the band WYOMING, LUKA SOL, and SOL STUDIO, which is Day’s “refuge where I want local artists to be able to come and we can try to shed light on their music.”
“I’m an artist, DJ, producer, hopefully soon to be record label owner,” and if there’s one man who could do all and do it well – and represent himself and his community – it’s Shawn Day.
Listen in here on his SoundCloud. Shawn can be reached via Facebook.
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