the Laney Barnett Band

I met Laney in the wake of Hurricane Helene. My good friend Zaq Suarez was putting on an art sharing community event to bring people together after the devastation of the storm. It was my first time playing music since the hurricane. Laney and I played on a jam together and talked casually about getting together and playing music sometime. A few months later, Laney was looking for a guitar player, and the rest is history! I played my first show in her band in February of 2025, and since then I have played lots of shows with the band as well as spent time in the studio working on Laney’s upcoming new EP. 

Laney writes incredible songs, it has been an honor and privilege to help her fully realize her vision. In this band, I have really been able to lean into the development of my lead guitar style, as well as work on my skills as a harmony singer. Unlike other projects I have been involved with, Laney offers the players in her band a lot of latitude and creative liberty with their playing. This freedom is exhilarating, but also challenging! It requires a high degree of listening and personal restraint, the songs are so good I don’t want to muck them up with overplaying, but I also want to elevate the music and imbue it with my own personal style. I’ve been learning lots playing in this band, which is what it is all about for me!

And on a more personal note, through this band I have made some really amazing friends, met and played with some top notch musicians, and performed at lots of local venues for the first time. Working with Laney brings me a lot of joy on this level as well and I hope to continue collaborating far into the future!