Bailey Hinkley Grogan

Making a Name

When did you first get into music? Please explain.

I first got into music before I was even born to be perfectly honest. My mom was a full- time musicians, playing piano at hotels, bars, in musicals, you name it! She played 6 nights a week at a hotel in downtown Denver when she was pregnant with me. When I was born, I was immediately immersed in the sounds of Motown, Elton John, Billy Joel, and other singer-songwriters.

Who or What inspired you to pursue a career in music?

My mother for sure. She has always been very supportive and given me a strong education as to what it means to be a musical artist. She knew how much I loved to sing and had me audition for children’s choirs across Denver when I was six. From then on, I was singing or playing some kind of instrument.

How has your music evolved since you first began creating music?

I began as a classical singer actually! I’ve was singing classically with a very strict and rigorous training since childhood. I was singing arias and classical masterworks through high school when I realized I LOVED jazz. I started jazz when I was 16 (which many consider “late”), and pursued gigs at places like Dazzle in Denver. Nina Simone played a huge role in my transition from classical to jazz after I heard her song “Feeling Good”. I did a lot of R&B and Motown stuff around then. When I got to college at Indiana University, there was a STRONG bebop educational influence. I started learning more Dexter Gordon, Charlie Parker, and John Coltrane stuff and dug more into the craft. As I grew with my music, I began to work through various Chick Corea formations. I LOVE his fusion stuff with Return to Forever—that’s where a lot of my music has been recently.

If you were forced to choose only one, which emotion, more than any other, drives you to stay in this tough industry? Is it joy, anger, desire, passion or pride and why?

This is a REALLY good question. I think my emotion would be joy. It’s HARD to be a woman in a male dominated field, you really have to love what you’re doing. Many people will try to beat you down (figuratively) and tell you what you’re doing isn’t enough. I find so much joy in singing and making music and try not to let those opinions ruin that. That being said, I work tirelessly to surround myself with people who do music for the same reason I do, because they love it. I don’t do it for any reason other than that. For a really long time, music was the only way I could express how I felt. I went through a really tough time in 2013 and music truly saved my life.

Which ingredient do you think makes you special and unique as a performing artist in an industry overflowing with new faces and ideas?

I think I’m relatable and honestly pretty funny as well. I enjoy the music making on stage and I think that shows, but above all else I’m not afraid to go out into the audience after a show and talk to people about their lives and their experiences. I want to hear about their time, if they enjoyed the show, what did they think, etc. I try to shake every person’s hand or tell them thank you for taking the time to be with me in the room to experience music. It’s so sacred and so innately human to experience music together as a group.

I am an open book when it comes to my life and often times, I draw inspiration from it! I tell stories, funny, sad, happy, and everything in between to help the audience understand what a song means to me. In turn, it helps them relate music to their own lives. I think I have a really good way of relating to people and making them feel more seen.

What has been your biggest challenge as a performing artist? Have you been able to overcome that challenge? If so, how?

My biggest challenge so far has been the competitive nature of my peers. I am THE LEAST competitive person especially when it comes to something as sacred as music. I try to steer clear of people who feel the need to “compete” with me. There’s no room for that in my book! There’s enough room and success for everyone.

A common phrase in the industry is, “you must suffer for your art.” Do you agree with this statement? If so, how have you suffered for your art?

In some ways I do. I don’t believe self-inflicted suffering is the right thing to do, but I do think suffering is a common thing all humans experience regardless of what that suffering might be. I think it’s important to take that suffering and translate it in a healthy way as well. I lost seven very close family members (including my father, godfather, and mentor) in a three-year span. In that time, I was a mess—but I channeled that messy grief through my music. I remember singing a song called “Where Do You Start?” at a recital right after my godfather died. The song is about moving on from a relationship (platonic or romantic) knowing the other person is no longer there. I escaped my pain when I was singing that song and when I finished, I looked up and the whole audience was crying. What suffering is is subjective, but we all experience it.

How do you feel the internet has impacted the music business?

I personally think the internet has globalized the music industry! It’s made it more accessible for artists to get off the ground with their own free will and ambition. It’s given a space to people who can’t leave their home to watch live music, especially in the pandemic. I think the internet keeps the music industry afloat and even helped rebrand what a modern musician looks like!

If you could change anything about the music industry, what would it be?

I wish there was more respect towards the craft of making music. Music has become so technologically based— which is fine, but I just think there needs to be more respect towards honing of the craft of playing an instrument or learning to sing. I’ve been singing, learning, and educating myself on being the best singer I can be, but auto tune can fix someone’s voice without any of that training.

What are the 5 albums that have helped make you the person you are today? And why?

Nancy Wilson and Cannonball Adderley – “Nancy Wilson and Cannonball Adderley”

Stevie Wonder – “Songs in the Key of Life”

Frank Ocean – “Channel Orange”

John Mayer – “Continuum”

Steffanie Hinkley Grogan – “Bless this Child”

The first one is my favorite jazz album of all time and helped me hone my craft of jazz singing. The next three played a huge role into my development as an artist, and the last one is an album of lullabies recorded by my mom. My sisters and I listened to that album every single night until we left for college (my sisters probably still listen)! It was a permanent fixture into my childhood.

What is the best advice you have received?

Be yourself and the rest will fall into place. It’s a Lucille Ball quote, so its technically not personal advice I’ve been given, but it’s something I say to myself every day. Plus, Lucille Ball is a MASSIVE hero of mine. It’s so hard to be your true, authentic self for some reason, but once I let myself just be who I am, I felt free.

What projects are you currently working on... that you can talk about?

I had a show on June 8th at Dazzle in Denver with my quartet, have a show on June 18th at Muse performance space in Lafayette CO, AND I’m recording my first album in July! Be on the lookout for some new music from me!

I’m also a model—I’m working on some self-portrait shoots. I’m no photographer, but hope to incapsulate more of what I look like on my own time. No one knows me better than me, and I think sometimes I put my best self forward for a camera. I want to be more honest and depict who I really am through a lens.

What’s next for you? Please explain.

I’ll be finishing up my doctorate in Musical Arts - Jazz Studies in 2023 at the University of Miami and hope to perform in Denver, Los Angeles (where I lived for a couple years) and across the US. I’m hoping to release an album every few years and tour! I guess we’ll see where the path takes us.

How can fans-to-be gain access to your music?

I’ll be releasing my album (hopefully) in September which can be bought at BaileyHG.com. Music can also be watched on my YouTube page (Bailey Hinkley Grogan)! You can subscribe to my website to see when and where I’ll be performing as well!