Today we’d like to introduce you to Ally Burgess.
Ally, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I grew up in a small, conservative town in Alabama. I was in high school when I started playing piano. I thought I was pretty good at it… by that, I mean I knew it was more natural for me than the average kid. Shortly after I started singing, really low-key, only covers, like Alicia Keys and Hillsong songs and my mom said to me “Ally you actually sound good.” Now don’t get me wrong- my mom’s approval meant everything to me but I was still so nervous and insecure about singing in front of people that it took several years of singing “Mary Did You Know” and “Our God” for me to grow the guts to start owning my voice.
The year I learned to do that was the year I decided to go to Middle Tennessee State University to study songwriting. Looking back, I don’t know what the hell I was thinking. I had never written a song in my life. That being said, once I embraced this new territory of artsy kids and college music building practice rooms, I started singing from my soul. It literally felt like it happened overnight. I started listening to D’Angelo, Daniel Caesar, Frank Ocean, that Kirk Franklin kinda gospel music (the stuff they didn’t play in the white people church I grew up in) and I felt like I had stepped into this new world that had been hidden from me my whole life.
And I thought to myself, “this IS my voice.” Shortly after finding my voice, I started writing for it. I had always loved to write, but mostly short stories and poetry. I kept working on it and I realized that finishing a song gave me this adrenaline that I had never felt before. It was this hidden talent that I kept a secret from not just people around me, but my own damn self. I just couldn’t believe that I had gone my whole life without ever tapping into this side of myself.
I put my first song out in June of 2018. It was called “Lil Mama” and instantly became my title around Nashville… and I was okay with it. The song truly took off, reaching over 200k streams organically. After that, I grew the balls to drop out of MT and have been pursuing my dreams heavily. Long story short, music has helped me understand myself, as well as giving people the chance to understand me.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Most of my struggles have been internal. I’ll admit I spent most of 2019 overthinking every career move, staying in my head about whether I was actually good enough or if people actually liked my voice and my music. I believe I spent more time critiquing myself than stepping back and being grateful for all the successes I’ve had along the way.
Can you give our readers some background on your music?
I go by “ALLY”- I wanna be on a first-name basis with the world, and I want my music to come to mind whenever you hear the name, no matter the context. I make RnB music, but I think what sets it apart is that it is colorful, the way the melodies weave through the chords with these conversational lyrics that make it easy to relate. I’m proud that my music really has no boundaries, culturally, emotionally, spiritually… I like that I can put whatever is weighing me down in a song. I like that I can bring different groups of people together.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
Just next week I’ll be taking off on a DIY tour through east TN, to Alabama, Atlanta and up to St. Louis. Playing my music live will always be my favorite part, so I’m really looking forward to getting to sound to some different cities. After that, I plan to put out a project in the Spring (my first one ever) since I’ve only put out singles in the past. This project is going to be based around individuality, womanhood, and true self.
Contact Info:
- Email: allygburgess@gmail.com
- Instagram: @allyburgess
- Facebook: @ALLYburgessmusic
Image Credit:
Joey Wasilewski
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