Today we’d like to introduce you to Eddie Esler. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Eddie Esler is a singer/songwriter based out of Fort Worth, Tx. He began playing mandolin in Bluegrass bands in the hills of Colorado while attending college in Denver. He then moved back home to Amarillo, Tx, to help form an Americana group called Turbine Toolshed. In 2014 Eddie and The Eat began, an Americana/Texas Rock band that toured extensively through Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Colorado.
Recently he has been touring throughout the region playing more intimate settings, and songwriter festivals, such as the acclaimed Dripping Springs Songwriter Festival this past October. He was a finalist in the 2019 Blue Light Live (Dallas) Songwriter Competition, and participated in the Larry Joe Taylor Songwriting Competition (2019), but was most recently was honored as a recipient into the Edward P. Bass “Sounds of Resilience” program.
Most of his songs are personal stories, while others are tall tales and flat-out lies about the people, he grew up around in the Texas Panhandle. Nonetheless, he intends to put on a high-energy show, with peaks and valleys, that take the listeners on a ride throughout the stories in his songs.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It definitely has not been a smooth road, but the trials and tribulations of the music industry is what keeps me coming back. When I was younger, and somewhat of an adrenaline junkie, I wanted to do something adventurous with my life. While in college that meant backcountry skiing and mountain biking, that was until the injuries caught up with me and I couldn’t do it at the level I aspired to anymore. So, while I was laid up with a broken ankle, I decided to start playing my guitar, which would soon turn into ordering my first online purchase, a mandolin. From that point on I was hooked, I would come home from class and immediately finish my schoolwork so that I could play music until I fell asleep. Shortly after college, I played on stage for the first time and received my first adrenaline rush from performing. The old feeling was back, and I knew this is what I had to do with my life.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Aside from striving to be a better technical musician, I have always focused on the craft of writing songs. It has been my muse for the better part of 10 years now, and I like to think it sets me apart from the others. If you come see me play, you might hear a familiar cover or two, but I will also be playing original music and telling the stories behind the songs. I try to put the listener in my boots as best as I can. When it all works out right, you know a piece of my story, which makes for a common bond between us. (i.e., We’re friends, we just didn’t know it yet)
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
I almost threw in the towel during Covid, almost moved back home to Amarillo, and almost took a dead-end job back in construction. It took everything I had to get back down here to DFW and continue the work I had already started three years prior. While it hasn’t been all roses, Covid taught me perseverance and to believe in myself and my dreams.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.eddieesler.com
- Instagram: @edesler
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EddieEslerMusic
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/EddieEsler
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbPNq43fKGnS3DHbmPca5rg
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@eddieesler
Image Credits
Eddie Esler
