Today we’d like to introduce you to Drew Lafferty.
Hi Drew, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My musical journey really began with my Dad. He was a music educator so I was immersed in music from a young age. Sadly, he passed away when I was 3 and it broke my family’s heart. My Mom put me in grief counseling and also put me in children’s musical therapy. She would also take me to our local park for their jazz series, which is where I think my love for this specific music came from. I was enamored by how the musicians played. I also developed a love for musicals during my childhood as I spent many nights watching Gene Kelly and Disney productions. Having those moments of using music to process losing my Dad really shaped me, but I didn’t know just how much influence it would have on my future.
Singing didn’t become a professional thing for me until college. I spent the weekends of my first year performing at restaurants to help pay for college expenses. Even though I had chosen to major in film production, when I found that my school had a jazz ensemble, I auditioned as a vocalist. I was the sole male performer and got to sing with them for my first two years of school. When I wasn’t on set making films, I was performing around campus any chance I could. On three separate occasions, I put together a big band for my college’s talent show and performed in front of 14,000+ people.
After graduating and getting married, my wife and I moved to Atlanta to pursue work in the Georgia film industry. Instead of working on sets, I found God opening more doors for me into the world of music. I got to meet some really awesome musicians by going to Joe Gransden’s jazz jams and developed a following there. In 2023, I put on my first sold-out Christmas show, and that launched me into professional performances here in Atlanta. Each year, I’ve grown a bigger following and throughout 2025 I’ve had more and more shows each month. I’ve performed at private clubs, weddings, the Callanwolde Fine Arts Center, and with the Dukes of Swing big band.
All it took was me trusting in God, walking through that door and pushing forward to get to where I am today!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Nothing worth doing is rarely a smooth road. The road to success has obstacles to overcome and learning on the fly is required. No entertainer’s success story is the same and for good reason: we’re all different! However, there are lessons from each story that you can take and apply to your own journey to help you succeed.
After the success of my first sold-out show I thought it would be easy to keep a crowd, but that was not the case. No one showed up for one of my first shows in 2024. You have to surround yourself with supportive friends and colleagues that have been there before to weather difficult seasons of life. Joe Gransden was one of those people at the start who encouraged/mentored me on how to put a band together, what I should watch out for, and how to temper my expectations for my first few years of performances. One of his biggest encouragements was to stick to it. My encouragement for anyone regardless of their profession would be to “keep moving forward!”
Two other big struggles are relevance and originality. Jazz music is always popular around Christmas time, but for the rest of the year I have had to find a way to make it my own. I get grouped into the same category as Sinatra and Michael Bublé, but that’s not all that I want to do. I want to be fresh and try new things while keeping the influence of the greats that came before me. In order to do that, I have to get out of my comfort zone and listen to artists adjacent to my comfy place. Some notable musicians inspiring me recently have been Lawrence, Sam Greenfield, and Raye.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a singer/songwriter and bandleader first and foremost, but the genre is tricky. It’s technically jazz, but not exactly. I mostly sing music from the Great American Songbook, but also dive into other genres like r’n’b/funk, bossas, and some pop. I’m mostly known for the sounds of the Rat Pack age, but I love to sing newer tunes as well and put my own spin on them.
I am most proud of my original music. My goal is to blend the musicality of the big band era with modern flare. The best way to be fresh and stay true to your own sound is to write your own music!
Do you any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
One of my favorite childhood memories is watching just about any musical with my Mom in our living room and then dancing around and singing whenever the tunes started. For example, one of my favorite musicals to watch together is “Mary Poppins.” When the rooftop scene with the musical number, “Step In Time” starts with Mary, Bert, the Banks children, I would not only sing each part, but also dance using a broom and the entire living room to mimic the choreography of the elaborate dance number of the chimney sweeps! The Sherman Brothers really knew how to write a catchy tune.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.drewlaffertymusic.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drewlaffertymusic/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drewlaffertyofficial/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@DrewLafferty/featured
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5cVORn49A32rMmuWiKRLoj?si=5qRofcnKTTuG0BLOpdIEng
Image Credits
Jack Strong Photography
Roger Payne Visuals
Erik Voss Photography
Hannah Payton Photos
