Many people have felt the pain and grief that can remain from an old relationship. However, many of them ignore their emotions and tend to reject their pain. Nashville/LA/Artist/Songwriter TROY turned everything upside down and created his latest song Foolish by showing his vulnerability. It makes us feel our heartbreaks, and at the same time, embrace our flaws, and realize that it is natural to suffer. TROY’s music is like a medicine for healing heartache. TROY got his start in New York City musical theatre at age 12, and he continued his acting career in many shows like Victorious, The Last Ship, This Is Us, and New Girl. While he wrote music for himself, one day he decided to pursue music with more purpose and wrote Foolish, which is produced by Marti Frederiksen. We talked to TROY about his acting, music career, future of music, and voluntary works. Please read our exclusive interview below to learn more about TROY.

Where are you based?
I’m based out of Nashville, TN, right now, but I grew up in New Jersey and spent a lot of time in Los Angeles before relocating to Nashville.

How did you get interested in music?
I’ve been singing for as long as I can remember. My parents tell me I use to hop on tabletops and sing Lou Bega’s Mambo Number 5 when I was a kid. I got professionally involved in music initially through musical theatre and started writing music when I was 14.

You started your career in New York City musical theatre at age 12. Tell us a bit of your journey.
Yeah, the journey’s been amazing. I love musical theatre. It was such an important part of my journey early on. I learned so much about voice and show preparation, developing stage presence, and feeding off the energy of a live audience. Then my voice started to chain during that awkward puberty phase. Instead of waiting for it to develop fully, I shifted gears and moved to LA and pursued film acting. I was blessed to land several amazing acting roles while in LA. I was the Hambone King on Nickelodeon’s Victorious, I was Clayton Swain on TNT’s The Last Ship, and I played John Smiley on NBC’s This is Us. I also had roles on Criminal Mınds, Mike and Molley, New Girl, and a few other shows. But even though I was busy and loving acting, I kept writing and playing music in my spare time. I mostly wrote and played for myself. Then one day, I was playing one of my songs to a good friend of mine. She said you have got to let the rest of the world hear your music. It was at that moment I decided to pursue my music calling with more purpose. I got the opportunity to share my music with renowned songwriter and producer Marti Frederiksen. He liked what he heard and invited me to Nashville. I got on a plane, and within a few days, I was in Sienna Studios recording my music. Fast forward two years, and I’ve recorded and released three singles and have an EP set to release in June 2021. Crazy!!

You can be seen portraying 1980s Pitcher John Smiley on NBC TV series This Is Us. How was this experience?
It was fantastic! Working with the cast of This is Us was awesome, and doing a scene with Mandy Moore made the experience even better. She’s such a great actress and even better person. The production team made a baseball card of me as John Smiley and gave it to me. It was so lovely of them and such a cool gift for me to have.

Are you planning to continue your acting career or do you want to focus more on your music?
Haha. I get asked that question a lot by people. The answer is, I intend to do both. One of my goals is to win an EGOT, haha, eventually. In order for that to happen, they go hand-in-hand.

Jejune also loves Foolish. It is written by you, and I think it is more than just a breakup song because it is a brave thing to say having feelings for your ex. The lyrics are so powerful and honest. We felt pain and grief that is remaining from an old relationship but also we understand that when a relationship ends, it is natural to suffer and still have feelings and that’s where Foolish become a kind of medicine for healing heartache. What does it mean to you and what message do you want to convey?
I think you hit the nail on the head, haha. It’s hard to break up with someone and think you won’t continue to have feelings for them. Foolish hits you right in the feels.

What is your process when creating a song?
It can vary based on so many things, but generally, it comes from a feeling or an idea. Some of my best ideas come at the most unexpected times and in the most unlikely places. My phone is my ‘go-to’ for capturing ideas that pop into my head. If the idea comes at a convenient time for me to write fully, I’ll bang out the song right then and there. Other times I’ll come back to those thoughts, lyrics, or melodies in the quiet of my room or a writing session.

What do you think about the future of music?
I’m pretty optimistic about the future of music. I can already see that live music is coming back strong. Venues around the country are starting to open up. In fact, I have two shows already booked for May. One is a private event in Florida, and the other is Whiskey Jam in Nashville on May 3rd. But seriously, music will bounce back strong as people seem to be starving for live performances and letting off some energy with their favorite artists.

Where is it today for you?
A lot of it’s in my bedroom. And I find a lot of people are that way. After quarantine, TikTok and other social platforms became mainstream for artists and musicians. It’s a great place to express yourself. But nothing is as energizing as playing live.

We learned that you are a volunteer for Middle School in Franklin as a mentor. Can you tell us a little bit about it and how you got involved in this?
Yeah, one of my neighbors has become a big fan and good friend. She’s a teacher in the local school district. She was also a regular at the Cul-de-Sac Concerts I started in my neighborhood during Covid. She asked if I’d be interested in volunteering some time to talk to her students about music. I was honored to do it, and it was GREAT!! We talked about my song Unbreakable and how I wrote it, and what it meant to me. I performed it for them over Zoom, and we had some excellent fun connecting. I love those kids. I’m pretty sure I got a lot more joy from it than they did. Haha. There’s now a group chat where we all play Among Us!

Jejune loves that you have also worked with Imagine An Answer, performing at one of their concerts in Washington DC. Can you tell us a little bit about this experience and why it was important to you?
Imagine an Answer is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to fund research to find a cure for pediatric brain cancers. It’s horrible to see kids suffer from brain cancer. I’ve seen it first hand with my younger cousin. I was invited to perform at one of their fundraising events in DC before Covid. It was such a great event and so moving and inspiring to hear the courageous stories of the young kids who are suffering. I admire them so much.

On top of that concert you put on a cul-de-sac concert in your neighborhood every Thursday during lockdown, March- October and all the proceeds also went to Imagine An Answer. This is such a beautiful way to give back and still connect with your community during these times. Can you tell us a little bit about this experience? Do you ever do any more of these concerts?
The Cul-de-Sac concerts were amazing!! What started as me playing with my guitar and amp to my Instagram Live in an empty Cul-de-Sac turned into a weekly event that lasted months and brought neighbors together during a time we were all feeling apart. We played something like 25 live shows during Covid to hundreds of people in the Cul-de-Sac and online. These concerts were so impactful to me and my neighbors I had to name my upcoming EP after the Cul-de-Sac name. It’s called Calvin Court.

How are you staying positive during a shelter in place?
I’m one who constantly works on maintaining a positive outlook on life. During quarantine, I meditated a lot, prayed, worked out, wrote a lot of music, and performed weekly in the Cul-de-Sac to keep me going. It was a great time of growth for me.

What is your motto in life?
We’re doing it!

To learn more about TROY, please follow him via the below platforms:
www.troydoherty.com
Instagram: @troydoherty
TikTok: @troydoherty
Facebook: @troydohertyofficial
www.youtube.com/troydoherty

Photography by Sarah Olson

TROY: Transforming Pain Into Music