It’s safe to say that many folks have either been introduced to or come to associate Morgan Myles with Season 22 of NBC’s The Voice. But, what may come as a surprise is that the powerhouse singer’s journey from her hometown of Williamsport, PA, to the blind auditions to coming in third place on the show has been a long one filled with many challenges, successes, heartbreak, and wins.
To give some perspective, the 36-year-old singer/songwriter has been pursuing her passion for music in Music City for over 17 years. And, although they call Nashville, Tenn., a 10-year town, Myles can argue that it takes more than a decade to get anywhere in the music business.
A Call From Sony Music Nashville Changed Her Life
Myles’ first break came when she attended Berkeley College of Music in Boston, Mass. As a freshman, she tells Music Mayhem that “I got an odd call to do some work in New York with the head of A&R at Sony Nashville.”
After playing an original song for the label, Myles was presented with the opportunity to collaborate with some of Nashville’s most notable songwriters.
“[I spent my Spring Break] in Nashville writing with different writers that he had set me up with,” Myles recalls. “They gave me a Hillary Lindsay song and stuff like that. I was so green [and] I had no idea what I was doing [and honestly] I didn’t even know what publishing was, but I was figuring it out. So he was like, well, to continue working with you, I really feel like you should move to Nashville and transfer to Belmont.”
Moved To Nashville To Pursue Music Business
Myles took the advice, made Nashville her permanent residence, and switched her major to the music business.
“I felt like I just really needed to learn all the ins and outs of this business because it is confusing at times, and you have to navigate all of this independently for a very long time to protect yourself,” she explained. “I interned at Big Machine for over a year when Taylor [Swift] was getting started and interned at different labels and publishers. As soon as I graduated, I ended up being a utility player and background singer for a girl named an RCA artist who was on tour for several months.”
Up until that point, it seemed like smooth sailing for Myles. However, she quickly learned the darker sides of the music and entertainment business as she recalls, “My RCA artist, she was not a very kind person.”
Took A Break From Music To Become A Caretaker For A Friend
Myles decided to take a break from music and made a switch to becoming a caretaker for a woman diagnosed with ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), and two kids. But, her love of music never waned, and she learned how to balance her craft while helping raise three kids after the woman who had ALS passed away.
Myles slowly but surely began putting 100% back into her music, and as things progressed, she shares that “I ended up in a bad management deal, and that was tough. I mean, I almost was like, ‘Okay. I’m done. And my masters for Therapy, my debut album, got tied up. Cory Crowder produced it, and it was just really, really tough. Somehow, my name got flagged to the union. Bills weren’t being paid from this manager who was stealing money. It was a really hard time for me because I felt completely stuck.”
But that wasn’t the worst of it. Myles would soon find out that her whole world would come crumbling down on her, and she’d be left fighting her way out of the rubble.
“My cousin, who I was closest to, got brain cancer – and who was my age,” she shared. “So, I’m trying to balance just feeling like the loss of my career and everything I worked for, and I’m losing my best friend…”
Fate turned another corner in 2020 when artists were being pulled from their tours and forced to shelter in place. For Myles, however, that was just the tip of the iceberg.
She explains that, although she retrieved her masters and released new music, “I had a tour, a booking agent that was booking me non-exclusively, and then she started committing fraud and stealing money from actual fans and all this kind of thing.”
She Earned A Four Chair Turn On The Voice & Support From the Country Music Community
Finally, Myles was handed the news of a lifetime when she received a call to audition for The Voice. Her time on the reality TV competition series paid off immensely as she received a rare four-chair turn for her blind audition performance of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” Myles, who competed on Team Camila Cabello, would prove her star worth week-after-week by putting her impressive vocals on songs like Little Big Town’s “Girl Crush” and Chris Stapleton’s “Tennessee Whiskey.” Other artists also took notice and shared their support for Myles while she competed on The Voice.
And that’s something she doesn’t take lightly.
“From a community so overly saturated with talent, I needed to feel that I belonged here, and that people were proud of me – from this community in particular. So it was just really, really, encouraging, and I felt just so much love from so many years of just pushing through fighting the Good fight,” Myles said. “And they did all come to my encouragement and support. I mean, we had everybody from Little Big Town to Trisha Yearwood to, I mean, Zac Brown Band. It’s pretty insane to say – Lainey Wilson. And I’m just like, I love you guys so much because the bottom line is, they don’t have to do that. So to go out of your way to support me, I mean, I’m like, ‘How do I repay you?’”
Now that Myles, who says that she draws inspiration from artists like Stapleton, Carole King, and Reba [McEntire] (who she toured with in the past), has completed The Voice, she is strategic about the people who she works with, as she knows exactly how to weed through those who she deems not “the right fit.”
“We’re going to find the right people,” she says, building the team following The Voice. “I love what I do enough that those kinds of people aren’t going to win. So at least I’m aware enough now of the red flags… one bad egg brings everybody down.”
Myles recently made her Grand Ole Opry debut at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium, where she performed two tracks – “Sanctuary” and “Woman Of My Word.”
Myles also had the opportunity to walk the red carpet at the 2023 GRAMMY Awards.
Myles Is Now A Spokeswoman For The Glioblastoma Foundation
Her latest endeavor finds her using her platform for a good cause as she hopes to raise awareness and funds in support of research and a cure for Glioblastoma, which according to a press release, is the most common and most deadly form of brain cancer, with an overall five-year survival rate of just 5 percent. The cause is close to Myles’ heart as she previously lost her cousin and grandfather to the aggressive form of brain cancer.
Myles announced her new role as the New National spokeswoman for the Glioblastoma Foundation in a post on Instagram dated Thursday (Feb. 23).
“Here’s the NEWS!!! I am delighted to announce that I am the New National spokeswoman for the @glioblastoma_foundation 💜 For those of you who followed my journey on @nbcthevoice, you know just how personal this cause is to me. Having lost my grandfather and cousin Mac to this aggressive form of brain cancer, I consider it a great privilege to be able to utilize my voice to raise awareness for this organization and shed light on their efforts to fund the development of new drugs and groundbreaking treatments for Glioblastoma patients,” Myles writes alongside an image of her dressed in a purple gown. “Using my platform to support the Glioblastoma Foundation, which is at the forefront of the quest to find a cure for this disease, fills me with immense hope for the future.”
For more information about Myles’ ambassadorship with the Glioblastoma Foundation, click HERE.
Myles is currently working on new music and preparing to release a duet with The Voice winner, Bryce Leatherwood.
