Zack Scott - County One

Q: First, tell us a little about yourself! Where are you from, how did you get your start in music, and what does your musical journey look like today? Is this just a hobby? Do you play professionally? If so, where at?

A: I am from Wyoming, born and raised. There were many pathways that had led me into music throughout my childhood, but to make a long story short, I was basically influenced by friends and family to get into music and creating. I started playing bass when I was about 15 and soon after gravitated towards an acoustic 6 string my dad had lying around the house. We always had a piano in the house as well, so I dabbled in that quite a bit. After seeing some acoustic shows in Casper at Metro Coffee shop and The Nicolaysen, I really wanted to be able to sing and play like those I had watched. I have now been performing around Casper and the state full-time as a gigging musician, playing bars, clubs, and breweries, as well as weddings and private parties.

Q: What's your connection to Casper, Wyoming? Are you a local or a previous visitor? Tell us a little about your relationship with the community and what makes this place special to you.

A: I was born in Gillette, but my family moved to Casper in 2001 so I’ve spent the majority of my life in Casper. Over the years, music has connected me with the community here through countless local events and special occasions like weddings, grad parties, BBQs, and more. I feel deeply connected to the people of Casper, and have gotten to personally know people through performing as a musician. Casper folks have been some of the most friendly and supportive people, and I attribute a lot of my success in furthering my career in music to them.

Q: What inspired your Casper Anthem submission? What stories, places, people, experiences, or personal memories helped shape the song? Was there a particular moment or aspect of Casper that sparked the idea?

A: When I initially started writing the song for the contest, I wanted to be able to encapsulate the spirit of Casper in a simple, yet meaningful way. To be honest, I feel like we are all fairly humble folk, and it’s really the little things that matter most to us. We’re not exactly a big city, but we’re not exactly a small town either. It’s a perfect balance in my opinion. I really wanted to showcase the rodeo, the outdoors, the music scene, and the other seemingly “typical” things as well, like karaoke or a simple night out on the town.

Q: Take us behind the music. What did your creative process look like from writing the lyrics to creating the sound? How did you approach writing and producing it? Were there any particular musical influences, sounds, lyrics, or creative decisions that helped capture the feeling and personality of Casper?

A: I went back and forth on a couple different ideas, but eventually landed on “County One” as the title. I had a couple verses started for a while and was stuck on the chorus, but when it finally came to me, it was a sort of an “Aha” moment. It was a simple hook that summarized the idea I was going for. Casper and Wyoming as a whole are very country and rodeo, so I definitely wanted the song to be an upbeat country type song. Kind of reminiscent of older country tunes from the 90’s but with a more modern folk type sound. I’ve been producing music for some time now, and I always enjoy experimenting in the studio. I almost always write with an acoustic guitar and then I’ll hop in my studio and start building some drums to play to and kind of just jam it out and build as I go.

Q: When someone hears your song, what do you hope they take away from it? What do you hope a listener who has never visited Casper learns, feels, or experiences through your music? And for those who already know and love Casper, what do you hope the song reminds them of?

A: I really hope for the listener of the song to feel a sense of nostalgia, hope, and love for their community here in Casper. I know that to some, Casper can be hard to love, and I hope the song can give a sense of seeing all of the beautiful things Casper has to offer, especially for those who may be thinking of moving here or just haven’t yet experienced these sides of Natrona County.