Your Iconic Image : When Women Rock : The Rock Star in Red Boots

My name is Payton Rose Velligan, but I go by Payton Rose on stage and on social media/website

(From my website) Payton Rose Velligan is a 21-year-old multi-instrumentalist and performer born and raised just outside of Charlotte, NC. Specializing in vocals, piano, keyboards, guitar, bass guitar, and occasionally a bit of tambourine, she is versatile and happy to fill any position on stage. Recognized at the national level as a high schooler by associations such as the GRAMMY foundation and Honors Performance Series, Payton has had many opportunities to perform on stages across the country, from small town bars to Carnegie Hall. 

A public performer since the age of five, Payton took her first professional steps at the age of fifteen as a founding member of the band Irrashional, an original group out of Charlotte which sought to revive the sonic glory of 70s rock-n-roll. The band released two original EPs, Closer Than You Think (2018) and Beyond (2019), which feature Payton on vocals and bass guitar. In 2019, during her first month of college, Payton joined forces with Tommy DeCarlo, the singer of the legendary rock band Boston (since 2007). She has been thrilled to be the keyboardist/guitarist/vocalist of DECARLO for three years. 

Payton is currently on tour with Tommy DeCarlo, performing the Music of Boston, and with Rudy Cardenas of American Idol, performing the Music of Journey. She is excited to be sharing some of her favorite music with audiences all over the globe! 

Payton is currently a student at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, majoring in Music (surprise!) and minoring in Arts Administration. She is expanding her study of piano in college and spends her weekends traveling and playing shows. 

When not practicing or performing, Payton enjoys spending her time reading anything - from classical literature to sci-fi novels to biographies to Shakespeare’s dramas. She also loves spending time with her family, her dog Cookie, and all the wonderful people she has befriended through music.

paytonrosemusic.com

@paytonrosemusic on Instagram and Facebook

www.marlanasemenza.com

Audio : Ariza Music Productions

Transcription : Vision In Word

Marlana  

I just met a star. That's what I thought when I first met Payton Rose Velligan and saw her perform. She sings, plays piano, keyboards, guitar, bass and occasionally a bit of tampering and kills the stage in her red boots of public performance since the age of five, she took her first professional steps at the age of 15. And at 21 is currently on tour with Tommy DeCarlo and Rudy Cardenas while still finishing up her music major at UNC. Believe me when I tell you this girl is the total package and I'm honored to know her. Welcome, Peyton.

Payton  

I relate to thank you so much for that. That was so kind.

Marlana  

Well, so tell us how did you get into music in the first place?

Payton  

Like any little kid, I mean, I love to mess around with the piano. And my parents were very musical. There was always music playing in our house on the stereo. My mom played piano, I mean, just singing, dancing. I had a very musical upbringing. So, I love music since an early age. You know, I started taking piano lessons when I was five or six. And I never wanted to live my life without music in it. So that's kind of how it all started. And it just grew and grew from there. Definitely.

Marlana  

So, you play a lot of different instruments. Was that just out of curiosity that you kept picking them up? Or at a necessity? Or what?

Payton  

A little bit of both? I guess definitely curiosity is a good way to put it and just in love and wanting to emulate some of my heroes, probably because like I said, I started out with piano. And then I picked up the guitar when I was 13. Because my dad, he played, and I thought that was the coolest thing ever. And you know, I wanted to be like Jimmy Page or John Lennon. And I wanted to play, and I did pick up the bass as a necessity. Ironically, it might be my favorite instrument now. But I was in a four-piece band in high school. And our bass player went off to college. We were all sad. And we needed a bass player. So, I thought I try it. And I ended up absolutely loving it. 

So, we became a trio. And singing. I mean, I've just always loved to sing. And I had to find my competence in singing, especially in front of other people. That was not something that came naturally it was playing in front of other people, but I always love to do it. It'd be nice when nobody was listening.

Marlana  

So how did you find your confidence? Because believe me when you get on stage now, you own it. 

Payton  

Oh, thank you! 

Marlana

So, where'd that come from?

Payton  

It took a while. I actually owe a lot to my amazing, amazing teachers that I've had throughout the years. I would not be on stage, especially if it weren't for my guitar teacher. His name is Carl Gunther. And I started taking lessons from him when I was probably 14 or 15. And he really gave me the push that I needed to go out of my comfort zone. And that was something I struggled with, stepping out of that, my little tiny box that I felt comfortable in. I think I was taking lessons from him for about two weeks only. And he had taught me the guitar solo to purple haze by Jimi Hendrix, which I never even thought I could play guitar solo at that point. And he said, Hey, we're having a little concert at this pizza place nearby and I want you to come out and play and I didn't even know the whole song and you know, he just got me up on stage. And he played drums behind me, and we had a friend jump up on bass and I just did it and I was terrified. 

There's a video of me out there somewhere my hair is just completely covering my face intentionally that way. And I did not like it the crowd the whole time. I was so embarrassed. But afterwards, the song ended, and I just felt this amazing. I just felt so good. I loved it. It was like I definitely noticed at that moment that it wasn't as scary as I thought it was. And you know people, I mean I made mistakes; people didn't care. You know, everybody was just there to have fun and it's really that simple. Every time I go up on stage, I think to myself, I'm here to have fun. I always have fun. And the crowd is here to have fun. They don't come to a rock concert, expecting perfection, they just want to have a good time. And that's what we do. We have a good time. And it's always fun, and it's never perfect. And that is totally okay.

Marlana  

So now when you get on stage, what does it feel like?

Payton  

It feels energizing. And it's always a thrill. Seeing the crowd for the first time, you know, we go out in the soundcheck, and all the seats are empty. You know, there's a lot of reverberation, and nobody's soaking up that sound yet. And then we don't go on stage again until the place is full. And that is always I think I'm immediately struck with just so much gratitude that people are coming to hear us and I maybe a little bit of surprise, sometimes that, you know, people are there to see us and are so excited about it. 

But yeah, I'm always very thankful to see a crowd so excited when we walk out on stage, but definitely energizing some days. You know, I can't wait to go out there and I'm just bouncing off the walls and some days. I'm like, I could really use a nap. But as soon as I go out there, it always feels the same. I mean, I feel amazing. 

Marlana  

You did something that not a lot of people have done. You've actually played at Carnegie Hall. Tell us about that.

Payton  

Oh, my goodness. Yeah, I have. I've sang at Carnegie Hall. And that was just one of the amazing experiences I've had. I had as a high schooler actually. I audition for something called The Honors Performance Series. A program for students, and singers to take the trip up to New York and be an acquirer with people from literally around the globe, all across the US. And yeah, other countries as well. And we all came together in New York and rehearsed for a few days. And then we had the big show at Carnegie Hall. And that was one of the most beautiful spaces I have ever been in. I have dreams in Carnegie Hall to this day, like where I'm just walking around. It is so dreamlike. I mean, it's an ethereal, it's really amazing. So yeah, so I keep saying the word amazing a lot because that's kind of how I feel like everything is looking back at it, it's almost hard to believe that it happened and that I was actually there. And it was a great memory, I met a lot of I was in the women's choir. So, a lot of ladies who were just amazing singers and pushed me to be better. 

I learned a lot about harmonizing with others. And I was an alto. And you know, that's it's, it was hard for me to be in the middle of all these voices. And definitely helped me train my ear a little bit. And you know, Carnegie Hall is built to be perfect acoustics. So going in there, you know, when you start singing, I tried to soak up every second of hearing, you know, the choir that I was a part of just hearing that sound. It's like nothing you've ever heard until you actually go there. It was really cool.

Marlana  

And you know, that's one thing that always strikes me about watching you in any performance I've either seen on tape or live is you soak everything up, which is such a good thing because there's so many people that just aren't present in their life. And to see that you just want to take it all in and love every moment of it. And that's so nice to see. Now, you're only in your first month of college when you joined forces with Tommy DeCarlo. So how did that happen?

Payton  

Yeah, that was a crazy time in my life. 

Marlana  

And also, for anybody who has, you know, kind of been under a rock, tell us who Tommy DeCarlo is.

Payton  

Yes, Tommy DeCarlo is the current lead singer of the band Boston. So more than a feeling peace of mind. All those hits came from Boston and yeah, he's, he's currently singing with them. So, I've had the absolute honor of sharing the stage with him for about three years now. And yeah, as you said, I did join the band. Right after I started my freshman year. I met them over the summer after I graduated high school. And, you know, we're all Charlotte. Well, current Charlotte residents. And so of course through the music scene, you know, you meet people, and I always knew Okay, the singer of Boston is here, but like, I've never been able to catch a show. And I've been a huge fan Boston, you know, all throughout high school and everything. 

So, I finally got to go to show. And to my surprise, they are looking for a keyboardist and a guitarist. And is the first time I got to talk to Tommy, senior, we call him because there's a Tommy Junior. He pulled me aside at one of their shows, and he was like, how are you on the keyboard? And this was out of the blue, like, he had actually invited me to sing a song with them. I think I did a journey song separate way with them. And so, I was like, Oh, that was so fun. And what a cool experience to sing with them. And, you know, they'll remember this forever, you know, whatever. But I will. The he pulled me aside and carried on keyboards. I mean, I've played for a long time, and I'm studying in college. But in that moment, I had like, no cough. I was like, I don't know, because he's really good on the keyboards anyways. So, they invited me to play, sit in a couple more shows with them. And then I got the big invitation to join their band. And I actually play guitar as well. So, they needed a second guitarist. So, I was able to kind of fill both those roles. And learning all the Boston songs was so much fun. It is such great music. So well written in very genius composer, and all the guitar harmonies and keyboard organ parts are brilliant. So that was a fun project to take on, but a little bit stressful going into college as well as a bunch of new things all at once.,

Marlana  

So, what's the road like been like for you at 21 years old?

Payton  

It's so much fun. I love it. I love it. I mean, a year ago, two years ago, if you asked me, you know, do you think you'd be on the road? You know, with whoever I would say, You kidding me? Like, that would be amazing. But I mean, I never expected to be here. It's definitely the time of my life. I love it. We have an amazing band and amazing crew. And so, everybody being on the road together is just fun. It is really cool. It's really fulfilling to be able to go out to different cities and see, you know, we're in the a few new places for the first time. And we see crowds coming out and loving the show. And it's just really cool to be able to share this music with so many people and new faces and make new friends.

 I try my best to be able to go out and talk to some people after the show and make new friends and I love that part of it so much. And now I have friends across the country and that is definitely the coolest thing to take away from all this, is just meeting new people and, and definitely all the great memories I love. You know, on our days off, we try to go out and see the cities. We're in Dallas right now. So, we did a few historical things yesterday and had some barbecue, which was fantastic. And you know, we just tried to explore it and take it all in. There's so many cool things to see. And all the places we've been, and I love to explore so it's definitely a dream come true for me. And I'm just so insanely grateful to be here definitely.

Marlana  

So how do you then juggle Rockstar Peyton and student Peyton?

Payton  

Well, I don't know if I think of myself as Rockstar Peyton. I guess I'm just Payton . I think it is. Realistically, it's definitely taking a little bit of hard work and discipline and you know, doing some reading and homework at soundcheck and stuff like that, and, you know, on the bus or van going back and forth on the plane. I mean, it really is just a matter of doing it. But, you know, I'm studying music and school and arts administration. And so, it really kind of ties into exactly what I'm doing right now. And so, you know, I'm grateful to be receiving that education and being able to put it into practice right now with my work. And so, it's, it's not easy, but it's 100% 110% worth it. And so, like on the job training, yeah, I have to give a shout out to my professors to at UNCG I've had so many really great professors and who have been really understanding and supportive of me being in in music and doing this, and I'll tell them the beginning of the semester, hey, I might be missing class sometimes. And I'll do whatever I can to make up the work or whatever. And you know, can you record your lecture or whatever, and they have been so accommodating and just really supportive. So, I owe a lot of them as well.

Marlana  

So, you play primarily with an all-male band. But recently, you and I met when you got to play with an all-female band at Rock and Roll fantasy camp. So how was it different playing with all men versus all women?

Payton  

I love my guys, I love them. I've played with so many fantastic guys. Throughout my career, so far, I'm playing at the Women's camp, but with our band, hello, cleavage. We were, we had so much fun, it was definitely different. I think, well, first of all, we had all just met each other. So, you know, that was one thing too. And I feel like we kind of created a bond really quickly. And maybe that was because we were all women, and we were all sharing this experience. And I think we just had never had that opportunity we'd all been in bands, but never with women. So, the fact that we were all there, and we could share our experiences and kind of relate over certain things. And we find, you know, somebody would be telling a story, and we don't be like, Oh my gosh, I guess like, you get it, I get it, you know, like, we feel the same way about this. 

And it was really cool. You know, we were it was a very supportive environment, everybody was there to kind of lift each other up it, there wasn't a sense of real competition between anybody, it was just, you know, we want to help each other. And we were all there to share this, you know, once in a lifetime experience. And so, you know, everybody was just grateful to be there. So it was great. 

Marlana  

What do you take away from that experience?

Payton  

Wow! Definitely! Well, a lot of things. I feel empowered. I definitely. I mean, I don't know if this sounds cheesy, but like, I feel like I can do anything. And I really do. It was really cool to see women of all ages there at the camp. I'm 21 and there was, I think some ladies in their 70s there who were still totally rocking out and just killing it. Seeing Nancy Wilson, seeing you know, Kathy Valentine, all these women who have been doing it for so long, really gave me competence and empowered me that I feel like I'm on the right path. 

Sometimes I feel like, I feel anxious, or I feel this pressure. Because, you know, you got to do everything while you're still young, or oh, now, you know, before you're a certain age, you know, you have to have made it or else it's not going to happen for you. And usually that happens when you're, you know, in your 20s People are kind of, nudging you to make it or find something else to do. Because once you've hit a certain age is if I don't know,