Today we’d like to introduce you to Tag Wilson.
Hi Tag, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
So I started playing music in high school for a grunge rock band called The Sirens. We played a couple of shows here and there, and it was super fun– but I never thought of it as something that I would want to pursue long-term. I moved to Utah to actually play soccer for BYU. I played as a goalkeeper for 3 years at BYU, won 2 National Club Titles, and even played semi-pro soccer for a few years.
During that time, my main focus was that I wanted to become a professional soccer player. I went to different tryouts at different professional teams and even had the chance to play in the 2018 World University Collegiate Games in Taiwan. But after a while, I started to get really burnt out. Then, my good friend who was currently working in music introduced me to a producer named Bad Heather. I had recorded some demos over the years, and I started working on writing music. It was a brand new process for me; I had never recorded before in a studio. In February of 2021, I released my first song titled “Any Last Words” under the artist name “TAG!” My friends were so supportive and so I decided to keep going! I then released a song named “Diet Coke” a few months later. I went through a bit of a break for about a year with music.
Then starting again in 2023, I decided to make the “TAG!” solo project into a band, where now we are all writing, creating, and performing under that name. It has been a blast playing alongside bassist Iain Lumsden and drummer Bowen Davis. They are some of the best people I’ve ever worked with, and it doesn’t ever get old playing with your friends for your friends. We just released a new song this month! It’s called “Dirt” and it actually features another artist from Utah named CMTEN, who is popular in the hyper-pop genre. It’s an aggressive and punky song for sure!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It hasn’t been a smooth road, it never is. It was really difficult to manage to play soccer, go to school, and pursue music at the same time during the first couple of years. I decided to eventually retire from my soccer career in 2022, and it was a very difficult decision for me. I just kind of realized that I felt more like myself on stage rather than on the field, so I eventually had to choose between the two and I chose music.
I’ve also struggled a lot with self-doubt and depression throughout parts of my life, and it is definitely apparent if you listen to some of our music haha. It has been so helpful for me to have music as an outlet for those negative thoughts and emotions I’ve had to learn to understand and live with.
I don’t like shying away from writing how I feel in our lyrics because I hope that our words can be relatable to a lot of people. There are a lot of feelings that people experience that are uncomfortable to talk about, so addressing those things to help people know that they can get better is a big motivator for us.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am Tag Wilson, and I am the lead singer and guitarist for the band called “TAG!” We are a mix between pop and punk. We love to write catchy and aggressive tunes similar to artists like Glaive and Jean Dawson. We really love to have a lot of fun at our shows. For myself, I love to jump around and yell all sorts of noises and jokes into the mic. I feel like myself on stage and I love letting that side of me out of its shell.
I am so proud of how far we have come as a band. We have almost accumulated over 100,000 streams across streaming platforms and have played so many fun shows at impressive venues with promising artists. I think what sets us apart is that we try to spread joy through being ourselves. Each member of the band comes from a completely different walk of life, but we all come together to form this weird fun energetic band. We also try to create music that is fun, and interesting, but also very different and very much a reflection of ourselves as well. It’s a blast and I think people like it!
I’m also so proud of the friendships I’ve been able to share with so many fun and talented people that I have been able to meet throughout my life. Of course, my biggest accomplishment is getting married to my lovely wife in November 2022. She is the sweetest and has been the greatest supporter that I could ever ask for. She is there for every show I play and is always front row. Love you, Sid!
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up.
My favorite childhood memory was actually something that was surprising to me. One thing I remember specifically is going with my dad and my mom to the soccer fields near my house early in the mornings before school to practice. It was so hard getting up on some of those mornings, but both of my parents taught me to love to try to improve myself by 1% each day. The only way to do that was to be doing what everyone else wasn’t doing, and at that time, it was getting up early rather than sleeping in late.
So we would get up early in the morning throughout the week to work out, practice goalkeeper drills, or go for runs.
It developed me in a way that helped me as a soccer player, but also as a person, and I believe it translates into our music as well. I try to spend as much time as I can thinking, practicing, and trying different ideas because I want to be the best that I can be. I feel accomplished when I can look back in time and see how far that we have come with our music. This does come with a lot of overthinking and stress haha, but I believe it makes our music very genuine. I mean, we put our absolute all into every song that we make, but it’s worth it!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.tagyogurt.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tag.theband/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@tag.theband
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/12bm2oHmiQbnjtVlQZ4K7e?si=6pkgdHAyRB-SLHegSgkmwg
Image Credits
Kizzy Kalu, Sidney Wilson, and Iain Lumsden
