Born and raised in Colorado with a lifetime of musical background, Fort Collins’ Taylor Shae is on the road to becoming a quintessential Americana artist. With the combination of her Coloradan nativity and lifelong musical journey working towards constantly evolving her person and her music, Shae has been building stepping stones to carry her to a rapidly forming career. This summer, with a couple of albums and an impressive slew of singles already clocked into her catalog, Shae is undoubtedly set to become a one-woman force, humbly igniting within the Front Range and powerfully manifesting as far as her sound will reach.
Photography by Grayson Reed @grayborders
Growing up in a musical family, Shae grew accustomed to the stage from a young age. She was in the throes of piano lessons, music summer camps, and church singing before her preteen years when she and her older brother joined their first rock band. Throughout middle school and high school, Shae competed in “Longmont Idol” all while playing the alto-saxophone and “being deep into the choir and jazz band scene.” Learning the guitar at 16 launched Shae into songwriting, whereupon she released her first original album. “This is when I really started gigging and hopping around at open mics to try out my new songs for anyone who’d listen,” Shae said. “From there, I’ve only improved my craft and found my vibe and groove even more.”
On May 3, Shae released her latest single “Smoke & Lead,” which features her strong vocals and some incendiary guitar riffs that are archetypal of the Americana songbook. The single, in Shae’s own words, is a “dark country anthem telling the tale of scorned lovers in small towns where secrets are left to lie in the dirt.” This “outlaw, darker style” is reflected within the single that is both graceful and grating in its sound. With a demo that she had begun a long time ago, Shae took the song-in-progress to RD Sandal at Zeen Studios, who co-produced and helped “Smoke & Lead” become the formidable single that resulted.
Without Colorado, Shae’s music career may have followed a different trajectory. About her home state, Shae said that she’s “always felt a strong connection and inspiration from nature and being outside, and Colorado also has a sense of adventure which I think comes through in [the] songs.” With towns like Fort Collins and Longmont consistently granting up-and-coming artists the chance to play, Shae holds immense gratitude for the local music scene. “I think the Front Range scene also fosters collaboration,” Shae continued. “It’s been a blast recently singing on songs by Kayla Katz and Jenny Shawhan, singing harmonies with Kate Farmer, and sharing a bill with Sasha Stone Band — just to name a few.”
Shae has undoubtedly found her musical footing and voice, with another single already in the works and set to debut in the fall. “American Dream” is a special song to Shae, “about giving everything you have to make what you believe in happen.” Moving forward, she will continue to foster both her band sound and her recorded sound and is looking forward to attending Song School in Lyons this August, which will be “an amazing chance to focus in on creativity and songwriting.” Opening for bigger artists and eventually playing the Red Rocks stage are long-term goals for Shae while she releases more music and hones a craft that is sincerely too good to miss out on.
Listen to “Smoke & Lead” on Spotify here.
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