{"id":5227,"date":"2020-02-12T16:53:26","date_gmt":"2020-02-12T22:53:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/olered.com\/nashville\/?p=5227"},"modified":"2020-02-12T16:53:27","modified_gmt":"2020-02-12T22:53:27","slug":"qa-with-ole-red-artist-tim-cote","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/olered.com\/nashville\/articles\/2020\/qa-with-ole-red-artist-tim-cote\/","title":{"rendered":"Q&A with Ole Red Artist Tim Cote"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you\u2019ve been to Ole Red Nashville, chances are you\u2019ve seen Tim Cote. When he\u2019s not performing on stage, he’s working as a security guard for the venue. Get to know this familiar face and see <\/a>him<\/a> perform<\/a> the next time you\u2019re in Nashville. <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity. <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How\u2019d you get into country music? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve been singing all my life and I never really thought of\nmyself being a musician, but I would always go to my local casino, and they\nwould have a bunch of country concerts. My first concert was Brad Paisley, so\nonce I saw his concert, I was like Oh, I really like this. This is pretty\ncool<\/em>. My dad always used to listen to the old school country, and I never\nreally liked it at first, but then it started growing on me. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who are your biggest influences? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Right now, my big influences are guys like Dustin Lynch, Florida\nGeorgia Line \u2014 that\u2019s kind of where my style lies, in between them. I do some Jake\nOwen, Luke Bryan every once and a while. It changes with the times, like right\nnow, Morgan Wallen is coming around the corner. It sparks different interests and\nmakes me want to pursue different styles in my writing and whatnot. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You got your start touring with a couple of different bands in New England. How\u2019d you make the move from your home state of Connecticut down to Nashville? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

After that, I [realized] I need to do something bigger with\nmy career. I know I want to get into the business, and I\u2019ve got to make the\nmove, so I picked a date on my calendar and told my girlfriend \u2014 now my fianc\u00e9e\n\u2014 and said, \u201cWe got to go. Let\u2019s pick a date and we\u2019re going to just go.\u201d We\npicked a date and we moved down to Nashville in October of 2017. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I started playing shows right around then doing acoustic\nsolos and got in at Nashville Underground, which was just opening at the time.\nThe guy who produced my EP was actually working down there [and invited me to\ncome play acoustics] so I started doing that. When Ole Red opened, I got hired\ndoing security. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

They weren\u2019t hiring employees to perform at first, but\neventually I sent them my stuff. They gave me chance to start doing acoustics\ndown there and I finally made my way up to doing the late night with a full\nband, and ever since they\u2019ve loved it. I\u2019m playing almost every weekend now,\nwhich is pretty cool and the greatest opportunity because Ole Red is awesome\nfor the music scene, just in the way the portray the artists and they want to\nput you first. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s just been a blessing. It was less than a year since I\nmoved to actually get that opportunity to do that, and now I\u2019m doing it strong\nfor almost two years now. Definitely the opportunities that building gave me\nnot only as a security guard but also as a musician have been so humbling to\nme. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2015, you got the opportunity to do a blind audition for The Voice<\/em> in front of Blake Shelton and the rest of the show\u2019s judges. What is it like to now be a regular performer at Blake Shelton\u2019s own entertainment venue, Ole Red? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s pretty cool to think about it. I didn\u2019t get further in\nthe competition and was 22 at the time, so it was a little heartbreaking, but I\ndefinitely went home and tried my best to get better. Once I moved to\nNashville, just being able to play Ole Red is a blessing. To think that Blake\nShelton was the key behind that bar, it brings the whole circle of my story\nback around. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When you\u2019re not performing on the Ole Red Nashville stage, you\u2019re working as a security guard for the venue. What\u2019s that like? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes I\u2019m at the door. Sometimes I\u2019m just floating\naround. It\u2019s definitely a different experience because when I\u2019m doing security,\nI\u2019m mostly wearing my glasses. It\u2019s pretty cool because it\u2019s like I\u2019m going\nundercover from performing. Some people come in and they notice me and say,\n\u201cHey, weren\u2019t you performing here on Friday night?\u201d I kind of joke with them\nand say, \u201cNo, you\u2019ve got the wrong person.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s cool how people are coming into Ole Red days later and\nthey\u2019re remembering my face and my performance \u2026 I\u2019m just a boy trying to make\nit in this town. I think I\u2019m just as good as anybody else, but there\u2019s so much\ntalent here on Broadway. People are coming up to me after a show saying, \u201cHey,\nyou\u2019ve killed it and you\u2019re by far the best artist on Broadway that I\u2019ve heard\nthis weekend.\u201d I\u2019m so humbled to hear that. I just came down here to do my\nthing, and I\u2019m seeing now that it\u2019s paying off \u2026 That one venue has created\ntons of blessings for me, and I\u2019ve got to thank God for that. It\u2019s crazy to\nthink that it\u2019s possible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s been the coolest moment of your career so far? <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Getting the opportunity on The Voice<\/em> and just being\nable to learn from that experience. Even though I didn\u2019t go too far with it, I\nwas able to work harder to get better and finally make the move to Nashville.\nNow I\u2019m playing consistently in front of people that are coming into town, new\nfaces every day. I get to say that\u2019s my new steppingstone, and I\u2019m just excited\nto see where the next level takes me. Hopefully I\u2019ll get to travel a little\nmore this year and see the people out where they live. Now that I\u2019ve hit this\nmark, what can I do next? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Follow Tim Cote on Facebook<\/a>, Twitter<\/a>, and Instagram<\/a>, and listen to his music on your favorite streaming service. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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