Meet Jon Worthy

We recently connected with Jon Worthy and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Jon with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?
Everyone in my family works super hard at what they do. Observing that work ethic has taught me that you need to outwork people in order to get what you are after. I also think that starting out, I wasn’t the most naturally gifted musician so putting in the hours to hone in on the craft was key to getting me to a level where I felt I could compete at a high level.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
First and foremost I am an artist. I love creating music based on my emotions and life experiences. I have been in Nashville for 10 years now touring, playing shows, releasing music, and continuing to grow as a songwriter and artist. I have had some amazing opportunities to play festivals across the country as well as tour around the world playing shows in France, Spain, Israel, Portugal, and Canada. I currently have 2 projects including my solo project Jon Worthy which I have released 3 full length albums, 3 EP’s and over 20 singles. I have had my music played on Netflix shows, Major League Baseball, national radio, and more. I love performing live and typically have a 3-4 piece band that is super high energy. In 2019 I played over 120 shows touring across the Southeast, Northeast, and Midwest. I also have a project called KJ Wild with my partner Kiki Halliday in which Kiki is the lead vocalist and we write the songs together. KJ Wild is a more pop filled sound and we perform quite a bit as a duo as well as a full band.

Prior to the pandemic I had over 70 shows booked through the summer of 2020. Like everyone my plans were thwarted and I was left with a big void in my life. My partner Kiki had been recording vocals for producers and various projects for a few years and she had gotten proficient at recording her own vocals so she suggested that I start doing my own recording. So with all the free time due to the pandemic I dove in to recording and producing. And now that avenue of music has become central to my career. Thanks to opportunities from recording and producing I was able to make the leap in April 2022 of becoming a full time musician. I have written and produced songs that have been featured on The Kardashians, Married at First Sight, Love Island, A Billion Dollar Idea, and more. I also work with artists around Nashville and online helping them make their songs come to life. Being a producer certainly was never my goal, but it is still a great creative outlet for me and helps pay the bills in a way touring never has.

I am still able to play quite a few shows between my two projects, but I don’t have the capacity to play as many shows with the risk of losing money with touring so I have had to cut back since the pandemic. I also collaborate with quite a few artists and producers. I wrote the lyrics and sang on a song for the Spanish DJ group Wisemen Project and the song “1963” was released this year. They play some pretty big festivals in Europe and seeing videos of my voice being played to tens of thousands of people is pretty cool. I had the amazing opportunity to meet and perform with The Wisemen Project in May of this year when Kiki and I traveled to Spain for some shows and I ended up performing at a Spanish Night Club with them at 4 in the morning. It was an experience I will never forget.

I collaborated with a DC based hip hop artist OFC Russel we released a 4 song hip hop collaboration in June of this year that also features Kiki on a few songs. I produced all the songs along with OFC Russel.

And one of my favorite people to collaborate with is Nashville based artist Stelle Amor. We have started a new project called Of a Generation and we are writing and producing a ton of new music.

2023 has seen me start the release of my 4th full length album Barely Here. I have released 3 songs so far and will be releasing my first ever vinyl album in 2024.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
For me being resolute in continuing the grind and never giving up is number one. In an industry like music your chances of success are so miniscule already that you pretty much have no chance of achieving your dreams. But if you give up then you absolutely will not achieve anything. Staying positive and not giving up has become harder and harder with each year, but it’s the people that never give up and learn and grow that ultimately become most successful.

In today’s music world I think you need to be a jack of all trades. I have become very self sufficient in that I can write, perform, produce, mix/master my own songs. I have outlets of making money other than just playing shows and touring. Having multiple revenue streams is key and I have achieved that with becoming a jack of all trades.

Knowing when to say no is a big skill. You won’t have the skill set to do everything. Knowing when to say no is key so you don’t waste your time. Do what you do best. Learn and get better and focus on the areas where you can be most impactful. If someone asks me to produce a song that I don’t think I could provide the best results then I’m better off saying no and spending time doing something I can provide the best results for.

My biggest advice would be create a community. Become friends with people who are pursuing the same thing as you. Be happy for them when they succeed. Help them grow. I am a loner by nature and I’ve never been part of a community in Nashville and I think that has probably held me back more than anything. The people that I see with the most success have created community and have genuine friends that are happy for them and want to spread the word about what they are doing.

All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?
Gaining a fanbase has always seemed like an insurmountable obstacle for me. I have fans and people reach out to me all the time telling me how much they love my music, but building an actual fanbase has been extremely difficult. The amount of talent in Nashville is incredible and breaking through that mold is tough. There’s so many outlets such as TikTok, Instagram, Youtube to express yourself that it is tough to know where to spend the most time. I have actually taken a less is more approach and stopped trying as hard. I am just trying to make the best music possible with people that I want to work with and share my journey along the way which includes music videos, tik tok videos, Instagram stories and all the usual avenues.

Contact Info:

Image Credits
Photos by Brent Mcquillin and Kelsey Runge

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