William Nesmith
October 2024
William is a Carolina native, MBA grad and classically trained pianist. His music comes from a real place, full of true experiences and raw feelings. He seems to evoke an enduring optimism—even in his darkest songs while taking listeners on a ride they’ll never want to get off.
Since 2018, Nesmith has played hundreds of shows with an acoustic set of popular covers and fun original tunes (while wearing party sunglasses). He’s the 2018 Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) Songwriter’s Standoff winner and the 2020 Doodad Farm 60-second songwriting contest winner. He also placed 2nd in four categories in Yes Weekly’s “The Triad’s Best 2020” (Best Musician in the Triad, Best Songwriter, Best Vocalist, Best Piano Player).
Set List
0:10 – “Brown, Green or Blue?”
4:11 – “Different”
7:32 – “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus
11:10 – “Musician’s Lament”
Follow William Nesmith
BEHIND THE SCENES
Let’s Talk, William!
William and I had a great time bonding over our #nowplaying music lists. I mean, I could trade music with people all day—it’s my love language.
William has a lot of knowledge about the business of music making and shared how he got involved playing music for an Amazon Prime tv show I recently binged called Them. I’m gonna warn you that it’s so well done but excessively creepy. So, if you don’t like horror, this isn’t for you.
And even though I blanked on Luke James’ name, that’s a testament to my poor recall skills, not how memorable this guy is as a singer/actor. So, make sure you watch his live performance of “I Want You” and/or start on season 2 of Them. He’s excellent in both.
Back to William, we discussed how passion has to be the ultimate guide when it comes to songwriting, otherwise the process is entirely too overwhelming. We also chatted about songwriters who have a unique signature to their songwriting process such that they leave their “stank” on everything they touch. How cool is it for your talent to be that recognizable? One day William, one day.
We may or may not have said some things about Tay Swift but we promise we’re not looking for trouble Swifties! Just skip that part and don’t cancel us!
You can see how varied Willliam’s musical style is by the vastly different songs he performed. I think it’s so impressive to be able to compartmentalize your skills like that. But at the end of the day good music is good music, right?
You’ll more often find William in Greensboro, so keep an eye out for his colorful performance “sunglasses” and for the love of all that is good, don’t request any obscure music, just let him do his thing.
Full Soul Session with William Nesmith
SPOTIFY PLAYLIST
One way or another, these songs were inspired by this month’s featured artist. Enjoy!