Following the music: Local artist Zack Scott to seek new opportunities on Nashville trip

CASPER, Wyo. — Over the years, Casper area artist Zack Scott has become a beloved and popular member of the local music scene. Now, he’s heading east to find new opportunities in Nashville, Tennessee.

Scott said he plans to spend the entire month of May in Nashville, colloquially known as Music City for its central role in the the music industry. While down there, he plans to audition at local venues and gigs, perform at as many open mic nights as he can find, record new music and network to build connections within the industry.

“It’s kind of a cliche, but Nashville really is a hub for the music world,” he said. “The idea for the trip has honestly been in the back of my mind, and I finally decided now was the time.”

Scott said he doesn’t yet have many definite plans, but has already identified a number of popular locations that he hopes to audition for, including Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge on Broadway.

Ultimately, he said his goal is to simply build connections in the industry to hopefully allow for return trips in the future.

“I think my goal mainly to network and get my foot in the door so that I can go back,” he said. “I’d love to get some repeat gigs.”

The local artist is also working on a new, still-untitled project to follow up his 2023 debut album “Heathens.” Scott said he hopes to record and release some of the songs on that project as an EP while in Tennessee too.

“This new project will be a bit poppier than ‘Heathens,’ where I was going for an outlaw country sound,” he said. “A lot of the songs on [the new project] are songs that I was actually writing at the same time as I was writing ‘Heathens,’ but that just didn’t fit on that one.”

Scott’s musical roots stem from his youth, when his brother and neighbors were both guitarists. Scott eventually decided to learn how to play, and he said it was love at first strum. He eventually began writing his own songs and performing throughout the Casper community, where he’s lived for most of his life.

As he continued to learn and grow as a musician, Scott developed his own sound, which he describes as a bluesy style of southern rock. He points to a number of inspirations, both contemporary and of yesteryear, including The Lumineers, The Revivalists and The Black Keys.

Over the years, Scott became entrenched in the local music scene, regularly playing at events and venues and garnering a following in the area.

“A lot of the songs I write stem from personal experiences,” he said. “Some are a little more abstract, from a third perspective, from the outside looking in.”

Before his trip in May, the Casper community will send him off with a concert at Oil City Beer Co. Funds raised will go to help support him on his trip. The concert is scheduled for Feb. 28, with doors set to open at 5 p.m. and music kicking off at 6 p.m. Artists will include Chad Lore, Aquile and Scott himself.

Scott said he’s most looking forward to testing himself on a bigger stage than he’s used to.

“I’ve never done anything like this, and I’m a little bit nervous but mostly excited,” he said with a smile. “I’m excited to step out of my comfort zone.”

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