Hello and welcome to today’s artist spotlight on Ian Kocourek, a Texas native who’s becoming one of my favorite up and coming artists out of the state! I was put onto Ian’s music by Kyler from The Buzz with Katie B, and I’ve been a huge fan since. Go check out Ian’s newest EP Wrong or Right after this, you won’t be disappointed. But for right now, who is Ian Kocourek?
Ian (E-N) Kocourek (cuh-sir-ick) lives in San Marcos now but is originally from Texas City, Texas. Ian started playing guitar when he was 16, but said, “I didn’t start writing and playing for real until after I graduated high school in 2019.”
Ian said he “started playing guitar because my dad always wanted me to, and one random day I just wanted to pick it up and haven’t stopped. I started writing songs because in high school we had to write this Christmas poem for the children’s hospital in September. I remember telling my teacher, ‘How am I going to write a Christmas poem before Halloween? I don’t have the Christmas spirit.’ She told me that I needed to figure it out, so I channeled something to write a quick poem and I got like 3rd place in the votes of best poem. It made me think about starting to write creatively. I paired it up with guitar and then I started writing songs.”
Ian would describe his sound as “Texas music. It might not be traditional country sounding, folk, singer-songwriter, or bluesy, but it has all of it in there. I have a lot of influences outside of Texas that I feel like my songs could sound like a Texan version of them. I grew up listening to Hayes Carll a lot, and his music sounds like home, Southeast Texas. I guess that’s what I would say my sound is. It sounds like a Southeast Texas version of everything I like.”
When asked who inspired him to start making music, Ian said, “My dad inspired me to pick up the guitar and he put me onto a lot of the music I like.” Some of the artists that have influenced him the most are Hayes Carll, Stevie Ray Vaughan, John Mayer, Tom Petty, Randy Rogers Band, Jackson Browne, Parker McCollum, and Bob Seger.
When asked what his favorite show he’s played has been, Ian said, “My favorite show I’ve ever played is a tie between my full band debut at Cheatham Street Warehouse in San Marcos, Texas, or High Horse Saloon in Texas City, Texas. Cheatham is a home to me, I owe it almost everything musically, and High Horse was really cool because it was my first show I’ve played back in the hometown since I moved off to college and started releasing music.”
Now, when it comes to Ian’s dream venue to play at, he said, “I have a few dream venues to play. Number one has to be Gruene Hall. It’s such a legendary place and I would love to be a part of its history. Luckenbach would be another one for the same reason. Red Rocks looks like an insane venue, I love the vibe and I feel like my music would fit there. I would also love to play the ACL Live stage where Stevie Ray and everyone else played back in the day.”
When it comes to turning points in a career, everyone’s is different. When I asked Ian about his, he said, “I can’t say there’s been a major turning point in the sense of success, but a major turning point in my career as a creative, songwriter, and musician was moving to San Marcos. I’ve learned so much about music, production, playing live, and myself by moving there and being a part of the great scene and community there.”
What is something we wouldn’t expect from Ian and his band? He said, “I think something that people won’t expect is the variety of influences that we wear on our sleeve. We don’t sound like the very typical Texas Country Band. We have a wavering sound, but it still sounds like us and Texas throughout all the slight changes.”
When asked what he hopes people feel when they hear his music, he said, “I hope that people feel authenticity when they hear my music. I want them to be able to connect to the music, feel the music, and have it be a part of their lives. I want them to feel like it can be their companion. I want them to feel like it’s there for them when they need it.”
What does success look like for Ian? He said, “It depends on what kind of success you’re talking about. Success in the art form is for me to be able to make something that I think is good and would want to listen to, something that I think sounds cool and catches my ear. Financial success looks like me being able to go around from town to town and play songs with my friends, and to be able to support them and myself without having to worry too much about when, where, or how we’re going to eat. I would like to achieve more success than that, but after that point it’s just an added bonus. Of course, I would like everyone to know me and hear the songs and to be on the red carpet with some celebrity. If it happens, awesome, but it’s not what I’m striving for with the music.”
How does he balance life with music? Ian said, “It’s hard to balance music with the rest of my life because I put so much into it that other parts of my life don’t get as much attention anymore. It’s give and take, but it’s a sacrifice and risk I chose to take in wanting to be a songwriter and musician.”
Now it’s everyone’s favorite time of the spotlights: what’s a piece of advice Ian would give to someone just starting out as an artist? He said, “A piece of advice is to keep the music first, that should always come first. Go to shows, meet people, and become friends with other people in the community. Last piece of advice: don’t compare yourself to others. Every story is different. Comparison is the thief of joy.”
Which, I love this answer especially, because if you know anything about the musicians out of San Marcos, they are a tight group. Ian’s answer here, specifically the part on becoming friends with people in the community, is something I think that group does well.
When it comes to new music, Ian had an EP come out July 17th called Wrong or Right. Ian said, “I am really proud of the songs and I hope everyone that hears them likes them as much as I’m proud of them. I recorded 3 of the songs with Jack Pirtle at Melody Mountain Studios in Stephenville, Texas. It was his first time producing and he killed it. I’m so honored and proud to have worked with him on this project. I was very fortunate to work with amazing people who brought the songs to life how I envisioned and honestly, they made them even better than I could’ve even imagined.”
Y’all can find Ian on Spotify, Apple Music, Instagram, TikTok, Amazon, and YouTube. Also, y’all can check out his linktree.
Ian Kocourek may be one of my favorite artists I’ve been put onto this year, so I loved getting the opportunity to do a spotlight on him. If you haven’t yet, make sure to check out his new EP Wrong or Right, streaming now on all platforms! As always, be good to yourself, stay western, and stay tuned.
Get Western 
Leave a comment