"Everything Happens for a Reason, That's Why It's Now" – Tyler Shaw on Touring Europe, His New Single, and 10 Years of His Debut Album

Tyler Shaw brought the Run to You Tour to Hamburg on Saturday, May 10th. While the city buzzed with the annual Hafengeburtstag just outside the venue doors, the Nochtwache was filled with guests to see the Canadian singer perform on his first-ever European tour. He kicked off the night energetically with "North Star," and the crowd was mesmerized from the moment he stepped on stage. The upbeat "Wicked" followed, with everyone clapping and dancing along. A promising sign of things to come. "This is a safe space. If you want to sing, you can sing; if you want to dance, you can dance," he declared, and the audience took him at his word.

After the opening, the singer took a moment to chat with the crowd, visibly blown away by the warm welcome: "It's so incredible in Germany! Much better crowd, but don't tell Canada." With a smaller venue than he's used to back home, the event was much more intimate.

He then shifted into an acoustic set featuring his second-ever single, “By My Side".

He closed the set with "Driving" and "Woman on the Moon", but the audience wasn't ready to let the night end. They chanted for an encore. "Wanna dance?" he asked, before singing "Remember". The crowd answered with an obvious yes. It felt like a warm summer evening at Sunset, where everyone dances into the night.

Tyler Shaw enchanted Hamburg with his upbeat songs and heartfelt lyrics. It took some time for him to come to Europe, but hopefully it won’t be his last time. You can find his upcoming tour dates here if you don’t want to miss his show.

THE UNSEEN also had the chance to sit down with Tyler before the show, where we chatted about the start of the tour, his new single "Run to You", and the ten-year anniversary of his debut album Yesterday.

READ THE FULL INTERVIEW HERE:

On Thursday, there was the tour kick-off of your first European Tour in Münster. How are you feeling? Was it a good start?

Tyler: It was awesome. It was so much fun.

Meggi: First time in Germany?

Tyler: I've been to Germany before. I did the Reeperbahn Festival. Probably like 10 years ago. A long time ago. It wasn't very good, so I'm happy to be back and do my own full show.

Were you nervous about playing a different crowd outside of Canada?

Tyler: I just didn't really know what to expect because I've been doing Canada for so long, like almost 12 years now. So it's a smaller show, which is good, but in the sense that this is where I've come for the first time playing to, I think Münster was over 100 people there. So that was very cool to be like, 100 people know me in Germany? In one city?

You tour Germany, Austria, the UK, and the Netherlands – is there anything you’re particularly excited for to try or see on the off days?

Tyler: I don't have an off day, really, in Vienna. I have a couple of days in London, but I've been to London many, many times before. I've written a lot of my music in London, actually. I love that city. And then, in Utrecht, we have a half day to spend there. So no big plans, no major plans really. We actually have 3 days off in Karlsruhe. So, not sure what you could recommend out there, not much. I was thinking about maybe going to see a football match.

Do you have a pre-show Ritual?

Tyler: We always do a little huddle before. We just say what we're thankful for and what we're gonna do during the show today. Yeah, which is basically, "let's go inspire people and just have fun with it". Yeah, we're all huddled together, and then we do a little cheer, like something random. If someone says something funny, we'll say that word, or half the time it ends up just being the city that we're in.

This is the 'Run To You' tour: you released "Run To You" back in March. Can you tell us a bit about the song? 

Tyler: I'll back up here, and you'll hear me talk about it tonight a bit. So when I was writing this new project, and "Run to You" is a song on the new album I'm gonna be dropping probably next year, I came up with a concept first, then started writing all the songs for it. So "Run to You" is just a piece, a puzzle piece in that whole story. And it takes you on this journey as you listen from the beginning to the end of the album. But the song itself tells a story about a person in a relationship who isn't sure about it, and in many cases, if he or she knew the other person was in it 100%, they would run right to that.

Why did you choose "Run to You" as the first single to come out?

Tyler: We actually haven't done the album. I'm doing it in a different way where the album's done, and now, I'm just focusing on the whole marketing of every song. We have everything we need. I think just nowadays, when you're trying to do too much at once, you can get lost in it all. So, the album's done. I chose "Run to You." Sonically, it sets the tone for the rest of the album. The messaging of it all, the storyline is there. It has the energy, it's catchy. So, it checked a lot of boxes for me in terms of what song are we gonna go for first?

You not only wrote it yourself but also produced it. Is there more pressure behind it? Or is it easier, as the “only” expectations you have to fulfill are yours?

Tyler: I think it's probably both of those. There was pressure in the sense of "are people gonna like it?" Because as an artist, you always have a little bit of self-doubt. So when I finished it, and I'm showing everybody, I'm excited about it, but then there's a little piece of me that's like, "Do they like it?" Are they gonna like it? Hopefully, they like it, because I can't lean on someone to be like, "Oh, I didn't do it, he did it." No, this was 100% me. So there's a bit of that. But at the same time, you mentioned how I can just do what I want and make sure that it's exactly how I want it. In that sense, there was zero expectation because it was just me. It was just me locked in on the session and just searching through sounds and whatever felt right, I went with it.

Meggi: Is that the whole way you did it for the album?

Tyler: Yeah, I've done that. I've produced or co-produced every song on the album.

Can you tell us something else about the album?

Tyler: Because it's so far away, I don't want to give away too much. The only thing I can tell you is that it's a story, it's a concept album. I don't know if I want to give away too much. I think I will say this. It was a period of my life when I was going through so much, which is why I decided to write this piece.

What has changed with you over the past 10 years?

Tyler: Lots, lots. 10 years ago, what was I, 23? I guess in the last 10 years I've gotten married, I moved cities, I have 2 kids. So all those things make you grow up really fast. And as you grow as a person, that really reflects in the way I write and think about things in perspective. And so it's been fun, but challenging to go through that growth and then implement it into the art.

How do you write music? Do you have a melody in mind, a lyric written down, wake up in the night, and have to write it down?

Tyler: The majority of the time, I would say, is that I'm sitting down, just playing chords. And seeing what clicks, seeing what kinda sparks an idea. And then I'll roll with it: "Hey, here's some." Create some kinda melody. Vocal melody on top. Or, other times, I like this way best: I'll come up with a concept first. Like, a title of the song. And then I'll start writing with that title in mind.

Meggi: It’s a good mix. The heavy rock surprised me; it’s not super evident in your music.

Tyler: No, I know, it still has a heavy influence. I came up with a bunch of songs. “Out of Sight” and “Back to Me” have those influences.

What advice would you give your younger self who just won the 'MuchMusic Coca-Cola Covers'?

Tyler: Don't be afraid to ask questions. Never assume anything. Trust your gut and be patient. I would tell them so much.

At THE UNSEEN Magazine, we have an “Artist's Favorites” Playlist with recommendations. Are there any songs you would like to add to them?

Tyler: I'm in love with Olivia Dean right now, and I might actually go see her in Berlin in a couple of days.

Meggi: This is a good coincidence that you're here.

Tyler: I know, I know, I know. I would say, "Man I Need". I'll probably say her other single "So Easy (To Fall In Love)" that one.

HERE ARE ALL THE PICTURES OF THE NIGHT:

CHECK OUT TYLER'S LATEST SINGLE HERE:

LISTEN TO OUR ARTIST RECOMMENDATION PLAYLIST HERE: