Meet Jordan Tyler Haynes | Musician, Songwriter, and Producer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jordan Tyler Haynes and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jordan, why did you pursue a creative career?
My mother’s side of the family is made up almost entirely of musicians, from bluegrass flat pickers to long haired rock and rollers, so I was always surrounded by music and sound. When I first picked up playing the guitar, right around the time I started junior high school, it made me feel like my life had some kind of bigger purpose, and like there was something that I could finally do just a little bit different than anyone else. Playing, singing, and songwriting soon grew into an absolute obsession. A few years later, after getting an associate’s degree in auto mechanics, I sent out resumes all over Abilene, Texas, and didn’t receive a single call back. I needed money, and had a short contact list of some venues I had played in my teenage years, and have been making music full time ever since. Now I’ve expanded into the world of recording and producing, and haven’t looked back once.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
For music creators, I feel like the most important thing is to find ways of connecting to other people. That’s really what the whole thing is about. As a musician, I love to come of stage knowing that I gave everything I had to the people in front of me, whether there were three or three hundred of them. Each and every night I try to push the limits of what I’m physically and musically capable of, and I really believe that the audience gets that, or at least can sense that in some way. As I songwriter, I’ve found that one of the best ways to connect with people, or at least my favorite way, is to tell a story that is so specific that the listener has no choice but to put themselves in my shoes, or in the place of the protagonist. To me, it seems vagueness has a tendency to build a wall between the listener and the story that they truly need to hear in the moment. As a producer, it is my job to simply deliver that idea from the artist to the audience, in a way that keeps the songs and stories from getting lost amongst the endless sea of content, but without perverting the artists intentions and ideas. That balance is what keeps it interesting for me, and just about everyone else I know in the music industry.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
As far as food goes, I could probably eat at Wishbone & Flynt every single day. Maybe even a couple of times a day. There is not a single thing on their menu that disappoints. Another spot that I have to hit whenever I go through is Cowboy Chicken. A lot of time on the road has taught me the importance of a delicious meal that makes you feel like you made at least a somewhat healthy choice, and that place definitely checks that box.

I love a good cigar now and then, and I really appreciate the selection and atmosphere of West Jax Cigars & Spirits. Many cigar shops can come off as a little pretentious, but everyone there is incredibly inviting, and do a great job of making it a fun experience. The have live music some days, and as an artist, they have always gone out of the way to make me feel right at home.

Most of my time in Fort Worth is spent after dark in music venues, so I feel like that’s really the only thing I’m truly qualified to comment on. The Rusty Nickel and The Post at River East have both been doing absolutely astounding things for with songwriters and musicians. Every time I look, they have somebody that I really respect or whose work I admire on their lineups. You’d be hard pressed to walk into Magnolia Motor Lounge and not see an awesome show. That place has a decades long history of providing artists with a space to give an audience everything they have to offer. Twilite Lounge and Red Goose Saloon both have a listening room feel that gives you a chance to really appreciate the work of some world class songwriters.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I owe a lot to an english teacher and coach from my time at Clyde High School named Dustin Morphis. Rather than using the entirety of classroom time to just prepare us for standardized testing season and regurgitate the same grammatical specifics we had learned in years before, he focused on diving deep into what made great pieces of writing stand the test of time. He taught me about evoking emotion through words and literary elements, the importance of a well thought out storyline, and how impactful well developed characters can be. His teaching methods extended beyond the prescribed curriculum, and included breaking down the writing in popular movies, screenplays, and songs. I can say without a doubt that I learned more about effective use of the English language from him than anyone else.

I also owe immense gratitude to Manny Martinez and Scott Hetrick, the director of bands and automotive instructor at Cisco College. Aside from all the knowledge I gained in their classes, those two men went above and beyond to teach me how to hold whatever I do in a high regard, brush off disrespect from people who will inevitably doubt me, to maintain self discipline even in hard times, and most importantly, how to find joy while in the depths of hard work.

Website: https://jordantylerhaynes.com/

Instagram: https://instagram.com/jordantylerhaynes

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JTMFHaynes

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jordantylerhaynes

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jordantylerhaynes

Other: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5P52Lmfx7yJneLnGas3Cvh Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/jordan-tyler-haynes/1602013132

Image Credits
Headshots by Carley du Menil On Stage Action Shots by Gaje Garrett