Today we’d like to introduce you to Carley Kleban.
Hi Carley, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
I’ve always loved music, but I guess you could say my journey really began at the age of 4 when I started stringing words together on paper. I loved writing poems. They started simple but ended up leading me to my deep love for songwriting and music. At 7 I started playing the guitar. I had one that I banged on for a while before that, but eventually, my mom got tired of hearing my off-key version of “Smelly Cat” with no clue what I was doing, so she started me in some lessons at a local music store. From there I learned the basic chords, a few songs, and after that, there was no looking back. My next real turning point came after my grandma passed away. My grandpa was really upset and not want any visitors, but my mom said we were going to drive 9 hours to Florida anyway. When we got to the door unannounced my mom said Carley grab your guitar and go in there first, he can’t be mad at you singing him your song. That was when I sang (very off-key I might add) the very first song I ever wrote. It was called “You’re Gonna Be Alright”. Before writing it, I thought of what could make my grandpa feel better and knew my poems seemed to make people smile, and playing guitar (as bad as it may have sounded then) somehow made people smile so I put the two together for the first time and it changed my life forever. It reassured my mission in life and defined it in music too. I wanted to help people and hopefully make people’s lives better. I wanted to make a difference. It has been my life’s purpose ever since. I pray that I can make peoples’ days just a little better or just a little brighter with my voice and my guitar. Some days are better than others, but overall, I am so honored for every opportunity I have to get up and play for people and am grateful to be let into their world for a few minutes, a few seconds, or a few hours. After that, I was hooked on songwriting and it slowly became as much part of me as breathing. Most were for others, but I did have some one-offs that were just to get stuff off my chest. “Wish I had a Boyfriend” was a middle school crowd favorite that came back to bite me in the rear end when my friends from college dug it out of the archives and wouldn’t let me live it down. Haha Once I got the hang of singing and playing, I started performing more for my church services and events. I even joined the band when I was old enough and played from middle school through college for church every Sunday night. If there was anywhere to learn and grow, it was church right? (They would forgive me for sounding bad.) As I got older, I played for different services, events, programs, retreats, and church festivals. So much so that after I graduated, I was hired as the music minister for our church. For two years I held rehearsals, taught middle and high schoolers music, and directed and performed with them for various church services and events. Man did I grow here, in so many ways. I also during that same time was playing for family parties, open mic nights, showcases, and eventually had my first bar gig at 14. It was a Pittsburgh Steelers Pub in downtown Roswell, GA. After school and soccer practice I would have my parents drop me off at the pub and I would play songs I had accumulated over the years, and bartenders would go around passing a bucket of “Tips for Carley” On some special days it was “Shots for Carley— give a dollar get a shot”. Haha, I still look back and can’t believe I did that, or better yet that my parents let me do that. Haha Anyway, I kept playing open mics, showcases, and family events, and one day at one of them a friend of the family said he wanted me to come into these music offices and talk to one of their representatives. I was ecstatic, to say the least. My mom and I met with some representatives in downtown Atlanta. After singing them Peter, Paul, and Mary’s version of “Blowin in The Wind” by Bob Dylan and a few originals they talked and connected me with Mama Jan Smith a famous vocal coach in Atlanta who coached Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty, The Band Perry, Justin Bieber, and Usher to name a few. I was so nervous and excited to grow my skill. I worked with Jan and her in-house guitar teacher Pete for around 5 years till I went to college. During that time, I started getting more substantial gigs at venues like the Vinyl in downtown Atlanta, I also started building my own nonprofit called Feed-Back Music which gives young musicians an opportunity to get experience performing a set (more than the 2-song max at open mics) while also raising money and awareness for a good cause. With it, I held and performed 2 benefit concerts. The first one raised a little over $1000 and the second a little more than that. It was a win win win all around and I loved encouraging other artists to shine and share their gifts too. From there I gigged all through college playing at bars, breweries, coffee shops, public, and private events. I also studied music for a few years in school where I got to play with a full band for the 1st time and felt like I lived a dream and was like a real deal rockstar. After graduating I got a job with Live Nation Entertainment to watch and learn from the pros. It was incredible and inspired me every day, but also made me realize all the truth behind a lot of the glitter and gold. Once covid hit, my job stopped. During the hiatus I went on a cross country road trip for 3 months hiking and seeing 27 states and 25 national parks. On my way back to Atlanta I drove through South Carolina and fell in love with Shem Creek in Mt.Pleasant. Something told me to stay so I found an air BnB in a garage apartment and have been living here ever since. I handed my card out to a bunch of places to get gigs thinking I could pay rent and groceries with it, but surprisingly it became more and more successful. I had a few regular spots at first and grew out from there. I have even had some parents ask me to teach their children guitar. So now I have students that I teach during the week and gig bars, breweries, restaurants, shops, and private events on the weekends. I am even in the process of putting together another Benefit Concert under my concept of Feedback to allow some of my students an opportunity to perform and raise money for people who need access to clean drinking water. It’s coming up and April and we couldn’t be more excited! All that to be said, music has been in my blood for as long as I can remember and it really is a part of me. I can’t imagine my life without it. It’s a feeling like no other when I play or when people truly relate to my songs. It’s my passion and I think my purpose too. I love music and will always do it whether I am helping one person or many. I am just grateful for the opportunity, thankful for my journey here, and pray that I can continue to learn and grow in what I love and get better every day.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I wish I could sing you one of my songs to answer this question haha as any journey does, mine has had some roadblocks, some speed bumps, and of course rejection along the way, but overall, the challenges helped me grow to be the musician I am today. I, of course, have had some gigs that went bad, people who didn’t like my music, showcases I never won, people who told me to get a day job, or that I shouldn’t waste my time with music, but they pushed me to learn more, made me challenge myself more, and helped me grow into the musician I am today.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I am a singer-songwriter and I play guitar (a little piano too). My current job is as a working musician. I get hired to play live music for private events, bars, wine shops, restaurants, breweries, weddings, anniversaries, oyster roasts, fundraisers, etc. I would say that some of my proudest moments are putting together an unofficial nonprofit called Feed-Back Music and hosting 2 benefit concerts under it that helped young musicians get experience performing while also raising money and awareness for important causes. (www.carleykmusic.com/feed-back-music) For the second concert, I was actually able to hand-deliver medical kits and care packages that were made from the proceeds to people in need in Haiti. It was an eye-opening and amazing experience that I’ll never forget. I would also say that one of my proud moments was teaching music to a band of middle and high schoolers and leading them to perform for over 300 people for Christmas and Easter services multiple years in a row. Also, seeing them grow as musicians individually was really amazing. Also, it is unbelievably fulfilling to me when I perform my original songs for people and they are moved and are encouraged by my music. That means the world to me and if I can help them through something with my songs, I feel like nothing else can make me feel. I’m on cloud 9.
What sets me apart from others I think, is that I am an old soul and I like to write and sing authentic music that actually means something. I don’t perform or create just to sell. It’s not about money, or fame, or the name to me. It’s about sharing expressing, and helping other people. I sing in nursing homes, churches, and bars and breweries alike. I just want to help people through music.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
I am currently living in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. I love so much about this place. That’s the reason I stopped my cross-country road trip and got this tiny garage apartment and have been living here ever since. It might sound weird to say, but I think the best way to put it, is that this place is a dream. From the sunsets to the old pharmacy to the beaches and the live oak trees hanging with Spanish moss. When the light hits it just right during the golden hour, you can’t tell if you’re in a dream or reality. I even feel like I’m in a movie sometimes. I’ll ride my old rusty blue bike down to my older neighbors’ home across from the pharmacy, grab some flowers and cookies that I baked from the basket in the front and enjoy a dinner with them just because. I love the sunsets, sunrises, the marshland, tall grass, the character, and charm, and I love watching birds beg at old shrimp boats while I bike past on the boardwalks. I love all the boats, the small-town feel, the activity, the short drives to everywhere you want to go. It’s an awesome place. What do I like least? That there isn’t more! I guess I miss the mountains sometimes because I love to hike, but that doesn’t take away anything from this amazing place.
Contact Info:
- Email: AuthentiCKmusic@gmail.com
- Website: www.carleykmusic.com
- Instagram: @CarleyKMusic
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authentiCKmusic
Image Credits
Charlotte Zacharkiw
Nick Pappas
