Who Is Taryn Papa? The Story Behind Her Journey to Country Music

Today our spotlight shines on east coast native, Taryn Papa. The budding star is a natural born singer from as long as she can remember, always fixating on entertaining and making the audience feel something. We chatted with the rising artist about her journey thus far.

“I was born and raised in Connecticut,” began Papa. “I was introduced to country music at a young age. It was something my mom played in the car when we would run errands or take road trips.” Despite an early introduction to country music, it was not until age thirteen, where the singer became mesmerized by Martina McBride. “I didn’t truly dive in to a lot of the artists and a lot of the stories behind country music, until I was thirteen years old, until a Martina McBride CD.”

From then on, music became a fixture in Papa’s life. She recalls both performing in a band with her uncle and singing and playing piano with her grandfather. “My family did music as hobbies. My grandfather played piano, and when he got Alzheimer’s it was something I would play for him and he would remember songs,” she shared. “It was something that let me know the impact or how important a melody can be and how it can have a time and place and it can transport you.”

During her college years, Papa had another ‘aha moment,’ when she was volunteering at Connecticut Children’s Medical Center. “There was a room with this girl, her name was Jocelyn and she had [cancer],” started the singer, adding later, “I went home and the only way I could kind of pour out what I saw, I wrote a song. It was the first one I ever wrote.”

The Turning Point:

Taking her love for music and inspiring others with songs, Papa made the move to Nashville at just 23 years old. She started a band and became one of the few female-fronted bands on Broadway. “It was really cool to know how powerful music is, and from there on I decided I wanted to create other experiences for other people.”

Papa took her love for strong, female women in music to become the artist she is today.” My mom loved to listen to Pat Benatar, so naturally she became one that I needed to know every song on every record.” The songstress also professed her love for Kelly Clarkson, Martina McBride, and Shania Twain, as well as, The Eagles.“I love the stories that they share. I love how honest and genuine and raw and real it all was.”

“They are singing about truth and experiences and hoping others can jump on board with their story and that’s always been so inspiring to me. That’s where I formed a foundation for my music. I want it to be 1000% authentic.”

Eventually, Papa signed on with Red Light Management, which has led her to finally begin releasing her own music and create her own experiences for her fanbase.

Today:

Papa is currently releasing new songs every six weeks in preparation for her EP. “I wrote this whole EP pretty much about my experiences with finding love for the first time and what it feels like to feel totally changed,” shared the singer. Most recently, the singer-songwriter dropped her songs “Changed” and “AWAKE.”

The latter was inspired by meeting a man, who positively changed her perspective on love and relationships.“I met a guy last year and he helped me see things in a totally different way. That’s what ‘Awake’ is about.”

Similarly, “Changed” is about realizing how much of life is actually romantic in a beautiful way. “I was so afraid of falling in love before because I didn’t want to break their heart or break my heart. […] Finding the wrong heart that wasn’t meant for you, I was so afraid of that, I kind of avoided that at all costs.”

Fans can look forward to more singles coming out soon, as well as, music videos to go with the incredible songs. Keep an eye out on Papa’s new music, and make sure to head to her website to snag tickets to her scheduled shows!

“Once you touch one, there’s a million you can empower or inspire, and that’s the goal to get people to feel something from what you’re doing.”

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