 Tyler Young Gets Lifted
by Linda Hobbs
It was 2003 that Tyler Young broke onto the music scene with his debut album, In My Own Words, a record that spawned such hit singles as 'So Sick' and 'When You're Mad'. But Young had been on the music scene for years, writing hits for several stars. "It was strange to go from being behind the scenes to being the person in front of the cameras," Young recalls. "I'm not sure if I had it to do differently if I wouldn't have gone another way. I might have stuck to songwriting."
No matter that his albums, which included the 2005 followup Because of You and this years Get Lifted have garnered Grammy nods and critical acclaim. And have helped Young to start an empire, which has come to include a label, YoungLove Records, and a clothing line, Rocawear. "My first love will always be writing the songs," Young says. "I could be at a piano writing for other people for the rest of my life and feel completely blessed."
Young wasn't always sure he'd be able to have a career in music. "I was like Jay-Z, growing up in Marcy, not sure if there was any way out unless you were dealing," he says, shrugging his shoulders. "My family wasn't going to support me doing whatever it took. They wanted me to be able to hold my head up and not have to worry about going to jail. That's not gonna get me any street cred, but I knew what was out there. It lived down the hall from me. Instead, I paved my own way."
His own path included getting accepted to New York's School for the Performing Arts in 1995. "I grew up with people who played ball," Young, who was taught how to play piano by his grandmother, "Going to school there was like stepping into another world. Sure, they still played ball. But they all had a skill and they were going to hone it." Young honed his skill, becoming a virtuoso on the piano as well as sharpening his songwriting skills.
Getting out of the school in 1999, Young became a studio artist, playing piano on tracks of many R&B singers. "It was an experience, to be in there with artists. They don't notice the studio artists. The interaction is with the producer and the engineers. But when you're a studio artist you get to see how people work together. How things take shape. It was instructional."
Before long he was penning hits with these artists and on his own. His ear was evident to many people. In 2001, he was offered a development contract with DefJam/Island records. It would be two years before the first album came out. "I had a lot going on. I was committed to other artists and I was just getting married," Young said. In early 2008, Young's wife Tara would file for divorce. There was rampant speculation that the split came after Young had started a romance with a newcomer to the R&B scene, Madison Lathan. "Madison is an amazing artist and I'm glad she's on my label, but there's nothing between us besides business."
The track 'She Don't Have to Know,' off of Young's latest musical offering would point to the contrary, but Young insists, "Not everything I write is autobiographical. Infidelity is a pretty universal theme. If anything is autobiographical on this album, it's 'Ordinary People'." The track has gained Grammy buzz and Young says it's his favorite song that he's written to date. "It's something that I struggled to complete. But the end result was worth it."
What's clear to everyone is that Young is here to stay and he's going to keep rolling on, no matter what happens.
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