TI Exclusive: Colin Huntley On Balancing His Music With Teenage Life!

During our teenage years, we all have dreams that reach far into adulthood.  We want to be Doctors, Lawyers, Rockstars, Astronauts, Models, and on and on the list goes.  For some of us, our dreams become reality sooner than we ever expected and that is what is happening to Colin Huntley.

Colin Huntley is a singer/songwriter living in Austin, Texas who began his pursuit of music in 2011 at an AMTC showcase in Orlando, FL.  Now, Colin has two EP’s that you can get, “ECLECTIC” and “Best I Never Had.”  Now, the title song for his second EP, “Best I Never Had” has a great music video and is up for its first award!

Below you can read interview questions answered by Colin himself!

“Best I Never Had” is up for the 2014 Music and Media Award; what was your reaction to the news of the nomination?
I was really thrilled to hear the news about Best I Never Had. Any kind of recognition you get for your music means a lot, especially so early in my career. I always put all of myself into my music, so the music, in essence is me, or at least who I was in that moment that I wrote it. So for people to recognize and reward it, makes it feel like they’re recognizing and rewarding a part of me. It’s a cool feeling.
What was your favorite part of shooting the “Best I Never Had” music video? Least favorite?
My favorite part of the shoot was the people. I flew to LA to do that shoot, and was there for about a week, doing various things. The video shoot was 2 days, and I made several life long friends along the way. Nayip Ramos, the director was an incredible guy. He made the whole shoot fun! He would yell really random things to try to get smiles and laughs out of us on camera. Him and the whole cast and crew were seriously great people. My least favorite part of the shoot was honestly just the early mornings. I’m definitely not a morning person, and we shot this before I discovered coffee.
 How is balancing your music and finishing up high school, any challenges? 

Balancing music and school is very difficult for me. Not because of the work load, but because of the motivation… I’m very motivated to be a musician, and I’ve known that for a while now. I understand why school is important, but sometimes I can get to feeling like it’s holding me back from running towards music 100%. Luckily, I do go to a performing arts school, so I am able to spend at least more of my day on music than most kids in high school can.

What are your short term and long term goals?

Goals are always a really interesting thing to me, because I’ve learned that so much can change so fast, and I change so fast. So my goals aren’t as specific as I think some people would tell you they should be. My number one short term goal is to graduate high school. Once that happens, I’ll have time to focus completely on music, which will be great.

As far as my number one, long term goal, I would have to say that it is simply to play music for a lot of people. I just want to make people feel understood… All of my favorite artists ever write and perform songs that make me feel understood, and I want to be that for a whole lot of people.

Where does your passion lie: singing/acting?
My passion is in expression. I know that’s a very artsy answer, but that’s where it is. I think my gift is music, so usually my expression comes out through music, but I’m a very emotional person. I have a lot of thoughts, ideas, and stories running through my head all the time, and I’m passionate about making those things heard.
What is the easiest part of song writing for you?  Hardest part?

The easiest part of songwriting for me has always been melody. Every songwriter I’ve ever met has one strength that rises above all, and mine is chorus melody. I’ve just always had a knack for that. The most difficult thing for me is lyrics. I’ve always got so many ideas. Some of them are literal, and some of them are poetic, and sometimes I can’t decide which direction I want to go.

Who is your dream duet/collaboration with?

I have two answers to this one. As far as musical collaboration goes, without a doubt, my dream collaboration is with John Mayer. I just want to play blues guitar with the man, and sing some harmonies! He’s my all time musical hero.

And as far as songwriting collaboration goes, I would definitely want to write with Ryan Tedder. He’s written countless hit pop songs, but that’s not what makes him special to me. All of these amazingly successful songs he’s written are also so emotional and so soulful. I love how he’s mastered taking real emotion and making it so universal.

What is one piece of advice you could give to anyone that wants to be a singer?

There are a few things I’ve learned about pursuing a music career that I wish I had known before. One is that it’s incredibly competitive. It doesn’t matter how bad you want it or if you’re doing it for the right reasons or the wrong reasons. The only people who have succeeded long term are those who have talent, but more importantly, work ethic. You have to work very hard.
On top of that, you have to have thick skin. Because even the most talented, most hard working people may never make it, and you have to know that, and be okay with it. You’re gonna run into some discouraging situations in pursuing a career in music. Those moments are what define who will and won’t make it.



  1. […] 18, 2014 – Check out the interview just posted on TeenInfoNet.com. Click HERE for the direct link to the featured interview. TeenInfonet was created in 2007 by Lee Winston to […]

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