Today we’d like to introduce you to Morgan Nagler.
Hi Morgan, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Born in Oregon, I grew up in the South Bay and started acting when I was five, landing my first role as a “fantasy child” on Days of Our Lives”. Work was fairly steady into my early twenties … I helped Punky escape from the orphanage in Punky Brewster, was in love with Carlton on The Fresh Prince of Bel Air and was sleeping with my teacher on E.R. etc.
I was playing half of a teenage couple embodying an old Jewish couple on Home Improvement when I met a psychic in the bleachers, where the live studio audience would later sit. When he gave me my reading he knew so much about my past, I was shocked. And when he moved to the future, systematically touching on various subjects, he stopped when he got to career. He said my career would change, and although I had success as an Actress, I would change course. (Which I definitely did not believe until looking back years later). He also said I wouldn’t see my “real success” until I was in my early forties. (Which as an eighteen years old sounded like pure trash, haha). Anyhow, a few years later I was a regular on a sitcom for a season and had a lot of time alone in my dressing room during rehearsals, so I taught myself to play guitar. When I wrote my first song, I experienced a feeling I had never felt before. Like I had actually contributed to the Universe in a pure way. And I’ve been writing and performing, riding the roller coaster, ever since.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I definitely would not say the road has been smooth. I started a band, Whispertown 2000, and we made a record (self-released) and went on our first tour opening up for Jenny Lewis supporting her first solo record, Rabbit Fur Coat in 2006. Lewis is a dear friend and I credit her support for me having a voice at all. I’ve spent the last 15 years plus making various records with various projects and touring all over the globe. Sounds beautiful on paper- and it is beautiful -but in sometimes unconventional ways. For example, our very next tour after playing gorgeous sold-out theaters was a 30 day US tour of playing all house parties (and crashing on living room floors) booked through MySpace. We did everything DIY style, hand screen printing onto thrift store finds, etc. I have spent most of my life basically just getting by but preserving the space needed to create- as it felt and still feels, much more important than prioritizing making money. Over the last few years, I have shifted my focus to songwriting- not only for myself but for other artists as well. It is challenging to maintain the psychic energy needed to be inspired while also hustling and struggling financially. Classic story. My motto is “You can’t fail if you never give up”.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am a songwriter. My current personal project is called Whispertown and our most recent album “I’m A Man” is out now on Graveface Records out of Savannah, Georgia. My partner (the incomparable Jake Bellows) and I have a new project called Supermoon and we released our first record during the pandemic on Majestic Litter Records out of Portland. It’s produced by Nik Freitas and titled “Half Country”. Country style duets! I guess I would say my specialty is my unique perspective and also the gift of empathy. I have learned so much from writing with some of the best writers on the planet in my opinion. I consider my time spent with Gillian Welch and David Rawlings my songwriting school. I spent about six Months writing with them in Nashville and it changed my life and cracked open my writing style. Kim Deal (Hero)! and I also spent notable time writing together and again my world started turning in different directions. And recently, somehow the Universe has conspired and I am now a Grammy nominee for my contribution to a beautiful song “Kyoto” by the magnetic Phoebe Bridgers. (Written by Phoebe Bridgers, Marshall Vore and myself).
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
I’m pretty strong for a wimpy shorty.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: http://hyperurl.co/whsprtwn2017
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/inwhispertown/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/morgan.m.nagler
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/inwhispertown?lang=en
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/user/inWhispertown
- Other: http://majesticlitter.bandcamp.com/album/half-country
Image Credits
Jake Bellows Nik Freitas Megan Memmott Heather Porcaro
