The Story
Stephen Sylvester grew up in the shadow of his father, Todd, who was a church musician from the time Stephen was very young. He picked up the guitar at age 16 and has only briefly put it down since. Stephen discovered, through his time playing with his dad's church band, that he had a unique and quite soulful voice, and his father encouraged him to hone this talent as he got older.
Several years later Stephen was working as a teacher and playing as a solo musician at bars and coffee shops in and around Mobile, AL, where he grew up. Through the connections made with other local musicians during this time, Stephen found a particular playing and singing style and constantly worked to make it better. He was playing only covers at this time, and was frustrated by how hard it was for him to write good original songs.
Time moved along, and Stephen met the girl of his dreams and married her, giving up his lifestyle of playing music for a while and working as a youth minister. Not long after their wedding, Stephen's wife was diagnosed with leukemia, which devastated both of their families. Recovery took a long time, but eventually his wife did get better, finding ways to deal with the pain and learning to live with her disease. Stephen turned to songwriting as a release from the pressures of life, and he found to his surprise that he could write songs that connected with his audience!
Soon Stephen began inviting his musician friends over to jam in his garage, and the musical chemistry began to flow. His old friend Clay was the first to suggest they start a band, and the two of them began looking for other musicians to connect with. Eventually a five-person lineup was solidified, and the members started toying with the idea of doing a kickstarter campaign to fund an album of original songs. What started as a joke turned into a real fundraiser, and to the great surprise of the band enough money was raised for them to record at the University of Mobile's prestigious recording studio. The resulting EP, called "Down To The Jordan", was released in March of 2016 to resounding praise and acclaim.
Stephen released a full length album of original music in August of 2019 titled "Home to Alabama" as a solo artist, with a renewed focus on songwriting and honing his craft as a performer. This led to him being featured on season 18 of American Idol on ABC, and although he received a golden ticket from the judges, Stephen did not make it further than Hollywood Week on the show. The resulting disappointment only fueled Stephen's creative fire, and he began working with Chris Keaton in Nashville to pitch his original songs to labels and publishing companies. Today, Stephen is writing the next generation of country music hits while continuing to play shows and find time to raise his children. He is the up-and-coming singer/songwriter on the gulf coast - go listen to him sing and you will understand why.
Several years later Stephen was working as a teacher and playing as a solo musician at bars and coffee shops in and around Mobile, AL, where he grew up. Through the connections made with other local musicians during this time, Stephen found a particular playing and singing style and constantly worked to make it better. He was playing only covers at this time, and was frustrated by how hard it was for him to write good original songs.
Time moved along, and Stephen met the girl of his dreams and married her, giving up his lifestyle of playing music for a while and working as a youth minister. Not long after their wedding, Stephen's wife was diagnosed with leukemia, which devastated both of their families. Recovery took a long time, but eventually his wife did get better, finding ways to deal with the pain and learning to live with her disease. Stephen turned to songwriting as a release from the pressures of life, and he found to his surprise that he could write songs that connected with his audience!
Soon Stephen began inviting his musician friends over to jam in his garage, and the musical chemistry began to flow. His old friend Clay was the first to suggest they start a band, and the two of them began looking for other musicians to connect with. Eventually a five-person lineup was solidified, and the members started toying with the idea of doing a kickstarter campaign to fund an album of original songs. What started as a joke turned into a real fundraiser, and to the great surprise of the band enough money was raised for them to record at the University of Mobile's prestigious recording studio. The resulting EP, called "Down To The Jordan", was released in March of 2016 to resounding praise and acclaim.
Stephen released a full length album of original music in August of 2019 titled "Home to Alabama" as a solo artist, with a renewed focus on songwriting and honing his craft as a performer. This led to him being featured on season 18 of American Idol on ABC, and although he received a golden ticket from the judges, Stephen did not make it further than Hollywood Week on the show. The resulting disappointment only fueled Stephen's creative fire, and he began working with Chris Keaton in Nashville to pitch his original songs to labels and publishing companies. Today, Stephen is writing the next generation of country music hits while continuing to play shows and find time to raise his children. He is the up-and-coming singer/songwriter on the gulf coast - go listen to him sing and you will understand why.
