Exclusive Interview: Taryn Manning

This week in the Artist spotlight we have a very special interview with TARYN MANNING.  Taryn is most commonly known for her acting career and current role in the popular Netflix original series “Orange is the New Black”.  Outside of that show, Taryn has also had roles in “8 Mile”, “Hustle & Flow”, “Sons of Anarchy” and more.  In this interview, we decided to take a step away from film and dig deeper into Taryn’s musical history, which led to some amazing and fun facts that surely make the interview below a must read!  This Friday, November 14th at H.O.M.E Bar in Arlington Heights, Taryn will be performing a Live DJ/Vocal set alongside her boyfriend and Chicago Native BDRE, formerly known as DJ Chris B.  Only a limited number of tickets are still available, so be sure to grab them here: http://www.housemusicsavedmylife.com/shop

 

BDRE:  For those of you who are unfamiliar with Chris, here are some fast facts!  With a career spanning more than a decade, Chris has been a resident DJ at almost every top Chicago nightclub at some point in time, including legendary venues such as Rive Gauche’, Level, Crobar and more.  He was also involved in DJ/Production duo “The Skinny Kidz” and has released numerous tracks on various respectable record labels.

 

 

TARYN MANNING:

 

What came first, the acting or singing?
Singing. Actually what came very first was dancing. I was a ballerina and jazz dancer in my childhood and teenage years. I did a ton of musicals and plays and discovered I loved to sing too. I would always sing for my family but I realized I was passionate about music. Then my brother started playing tons of instruments and writing songs so we formed a band slowly but surely and turned into what would become BOOMKAT.

All throughout my band and dancing journey I found the love for acting. I do all of them now. They all serve different purposes for me at different times. I’m happy that my mom listened to me and paved the way for me to do what I do. It’s because of her really.

 

Do you enjoy acting in films or working on music more? Why?
I enjoy for for different reasons. One reason starts with $$$. Guess which one!
seriously I do enjoy both they allow me to express my artistic creativeness in different forms!

 

What was your favorite role that you played?
I would have to say the role of NOLA in ‘Hustle and Flow’
I enjoyed it because I never had played a character with a full arc before and found it very rewarding. Also the movie was a small indie film that took 3 years to get funded so the morale on set was just triumphant and upbeat and I feel that energy was also burned on film too.

 

How did you get into djing?
Just a love for music and loving nightlife but not wanting to just be an attendee but contribute to the sound and the fun with my own hands 🙂

 

What are your goals as a dj? Do you plan on producing your own music (on top of singing) and do you ever plan on doing a dj tour?
I don’t have any plans really. I think that’s why I am where I am. It’s a hobby, I don’t put a ton of pressure on it. I know my place and I love what I do. It’s a fun job, and the minute it’s not fun anymore it’s not for me. I bought my turntables for my house, for me and before I knew it I was getting jobs and it’s been amazing.
I do produce my own music, I have for years. I write my own lyrics and melodies also known as ‘Topline’ in this fancy new world full of new terms such as EDM. Lol. I call it dance music. Forever

 

What upcoming releases/shows do you have that you would like everyone to keep an eye out for?
I have a single called All The Way dropping mid Dec. I’m super excited about it. It’s a collab with Richard Beynon aka BYNON. We did it a while ago and it’s a real feel good jam

 

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