Meet Erin Cosgrove

Today we’d like to introduce you to Erin Cosgrove.

Hi Erin, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Ever since I can remember, I wanted to be in the entertainment industry! At the age of five, I was walking around the house singing and making up songs. I performed in my local musical and school plays and always knew I wanted to be “famous”. Fast forward to high school and I was performing in a national show choir that toured France, England and competed all over the US including the Grand Ole Opry stage in Nashville. After high school, I attended the University of South Florida where I received a bachelor’s degree in vocal performance (Opera) with a minor in Theatre. Over the course of my high school and college, I was constantly acting in short films and commercials, doing photoshoots and working as a performer at Busch Gardens Tampa Bay theme park. After graduation, I realized I wanted to do more acting and took the terrifying leap and moved to Los Angeles by myself with only a few acquaintances.

Since my move, I’ve acted in a few co-star roles on network TV, written music for TV shows, written and produced music with Grammy Award-winning producer Mikal Blue and opened for some of the biggest musical stars of the decade! On top of performing, I’ve shot four music videos directed by Emmy Award-winning director Evan Zissimopulos, who is phenomenal to work with! I’m so thrilled to say that 2 of the 4 videos have received placement on channels such as The Country Network and VEVO. Now, as I move further into my career of music, I do a lot more songwriting and performing and just recently made the move to Nashville, Tennessee. However, I plan to go back to LA every few months for auditions, shoots and festival shows! I’m not going to say it was easy; a lot of long hours and tears shed to get to where I am today, but it was all worth it! I’m super excited to see where the next chapter in my life takes me here in Nashville and will be sure to keep you posted!

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 don’t think any artist has had a smooth road, lol at least not one that has any good music! I feel like all good songs and music come from struggle, heartache and a rollercoaster of emotions! I would say the struggles started in high school, dealing with all the drama from being in a show choir, and hormones at their peak! Needless to say, girls are not nice! From there, I got into college where I dealt with a series of issues with juggling school, maintaining a social life, staying in shape, auditioning and acting, as well as working part-time as a performer at a theme park. I was also the president and founder of the school’s brand new triathlon team. On top of it all, I was also writing music, making youtube videos and then my senior year, studying abroad. College was a stress mess to say the least. The real stress of course didn’t come until I decided to move to LA. A few months after graduation, I packed up my car and moved across the country where I then sublet an apartment with a crazy roommate. Once in LA, the goal was to get an agent, work part-time doing promotions and audition audition audition! I would say the first year was the hardest. So many ups and downs; networking, being promised things that would never happen, fake and flaky people, asshole guys, creepy photographers, tinder, making ends meet, being homesick, working for free and essentially “paying my dues”. I have to say though, some REALLY great songs came out of it all, but it was no walk in the park. My creative juices were flowing!

The struggles continued though even after getting into a stable relationship. They just changed form. Instead of searching for an agent, it was more like dealing with the agent’s drama and trying to please everyone in the audition room, or knowing what certain casting directors want opposed to the crazy wardrobe lady who yelled at you for no reason because you untied the tie on your dress to offending someone because you said something sarcastic they didn’t find funny. When it came to music, it was even worse; booking shows was like pulling teeth with constantly nagging venues to look at your press kit or “prove” that you were good enough because you were a female in a male-dominated industry. It all sucked. But honestly, in the end it made me so much stronger and allowed me to see my self-worth. Even though I’ve been through a lot, I feel like the struggles never really stop as an artist and creative person. There is always something that causes a bit of grief, but in reality, that’s where some of the best work as an entertainer stems from. So even though I’ve been through heartache, pain, misery and struggle, in the end it was all worth it for the sake of my craft!

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I define myself as an entertainer. Why? Because I don’t feel like I fit into any one box. I enjoy it all, Acting, music, dance, voice-over, modeling, marketing, etc. Some may argue and say you need to choose one to be successful, I disagree as I feel I’ve been successful in many of the creatives listed above. I’ve acted in National TV shows and commercials, I’ve written music for national TV shows, I’ve performed with some of the most successful artists in music and I’ve written and shot music (videos) with Grammy and Emmy award-winning directors and producers for my OWN music! Although, I’m nowhere near done yet! I plan to write with some of the top songwriters in country and perform on some of the largest stages in the world! I’m an actress, I’m a musician, I’m a songwriter, I’m a model and I’m me.

Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
I think the first credit goes out to my mom. She’s always inspired me to do whatever I wanted and try new things. She’s also supported me no matter what and always tells everyone, I mean everyone (including the entire plane) what I’m doing and about all of my new endeavors! Next would be my dad – he’s always taught me to work hard and even after that work even harder because nothing is free and you have to be better than everyone to succeed in this industry.

Third I would say my husband- He’s always supported me in everything I do and has only missed one of my shows because he had a migraine. I think we’ll give him a pass for that one!

My sister has also been a huge supporter. She always tells me how proud she is of all I’ve accomplished and constantly posts to social media about what I’m up to!

Lastly, I’d say would be my friends and business associates! All of my fans, agents, managers, photographers, publicists and everyone who’s been by my side since day one! I couldn’t have accomplished any of this without you guys!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.erincosgroveofficial.com
• Instagram: www.Instagram.com/erincosgroveofficial
• Facebook: www.Facebook.com/erincosgroveofficial
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/erincosgrove
• Youtube: www.YouTube.com/erincosgrove
• SoundCloud: www.soundcloud.com/erincosgrove

Image Credits:
Michael Chu