For Atlanta-based singer/songwriter Taryn Antrobus, an accepting creative environment is all she’s ever known.

Her parents opened a jewelry store the same year she was born, showing her and her two older sisters that putting faith into a creative talent can pay off. She fondly recalls theater camps, guitar practices, choir and classical lessons during her adolescence that turned into a serious songwriting endeavor once she entered college.

The first song she released as TARYN was merely testing the waters, and from that release on she kept a focus on what she was trying to say, what she wanted the sound to be and how she wanted to express who she was.

“I think I still have a lot to learn and there's a lot of space to grow, but I do like that I started at such a young age,” she said. “I can feel that growth in myself, even if it's not displayed online. I still think I've gotten pretty far personally, so that's cool to see.”

She saw much of that growth while living in Nashville and pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Entertainment Industry Studies and Music Business. Not only was she constantly surrounded by other music-oriented people, but she had the opportunity to hear and play live music on any given day.

”Getting out there and seeing what other people were doing and seeing how they responded to what I was doing, there was a lot of encouragement around me that I think just kept me going and pushed me forward,” she said. “I was not confident when I started writing. I was very, very self-conscious about the things I was trying to say and it took some convincing myself to keep going to get where I am today.”

Naturally, the global pandemic paused any sort of momentum she had going. On hold was any kind of recording session and the EP she was planning to release. It was a challenging time to be creative, but she did what she could and ultimately decided to focus on one particular song, “Brand New”.

The song was first written and tracked in 2019, and the memory of its creation is quite vivid. Antrobus remembers driving to her producer’s house and found herself repeating the same line over and over. They had no real plans other than to hang out, so once she arrived she immediately shared her idea. Everything else immediately fell into place.

“I remember listening to the scratch mix that we did on the way back from his house that night and rolled my windows down all the way, blasting the song,” she said. “This is exactly what I was trying to convey, this feeling of wind slapping you in the face while you're on the freeway and being able to silence noise and silence the constant running thoughts around you and just be in that moment with yourself.”

Throughout this journey, her family has been right by her side. They offer praise, criticism and undying support as they watch her and her sisters pursue their individual creative fields. They are lucky to have one another, and it has become one of the most important parts of TARYN’s foundation.