Jono, Ben & Megan - The Podcast - How Teddy Swims Blew Up Around The World!

Episode Date: August 28, 2023

We talk to musician Teddy Swims after his NZ show last night!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Teddy Swims, you would have seen him online. He has got the voice of an angel, a bearded guy, heavily tattooed as well. He's from America and he appears in a lot of other songs like this one. And he does amazing covers and that's how he became famous. He even does one of 660, Rivers. And he's with us in the studio now, Teddy Swims. How are you? Man, I'm terrific.

Hey, it's lovely to have you in the studio. Big fan of all your videos online, man. I mean, it must be pretty surreal to see how you've gone from, you know, creating these amazing covers and then just blowing up to all over the world. Now, who could believe you'd be sitting with Jono and in New Zealand you know what I mean I certainly could you wouldn't have imagined this in your wildest dreams I'm so happy to be here though man and I just uh it's just it's such it's such an amazing experience I get I get to do the best job in the world with my best friends in the world that I've had since I was a kid and we travel all over the place and

uh we just you know just get hammered together and do you did things really blow up for you on instagram your covers is that's that's when the momentum took off yeah it really was uh well on youtube first and then um that internet is such a powerful point in new zealand we we just discovered you in a way yeah that was the first people man because with new zealand we just started seeing that Keto aura everywhere, you know, and that really set everything off. Which is awesome. And then you asked, you know, if you should cover a New Zealand song,

what should it be? And obviously 660 Rivers came through, and we'll play a little bit of that now. Higher river, oh how did it flow so deep Which is incredible. It's such an amazing version that you've done of this song. Like they're huge in New Zealand 660. Yeah and I've actually gotten a chance to I started chatting with them over Instagram

and we exchanged numbers and you know hoping to eventually get together and you know write something and do something. Are you nervous when you do a cover of a song that the artist might go oh i'm just more excited that they would even like if it goes across their their life at all you know if they've heard of it at all i mean that's that's a that's the coolest thing it must have mean it was decent if they heard it you know because shania twain reached out to you didn't she yeah she had she had uh she had she had like Retweeted my cover at some point And was like wow what a great cover

Ain't nothing better We beat The odds together That's great Hey she's got a song about not being impressed So I mean mate Brad Pitt, Elvis, Rocket Scientist She's impressed by Teddy Swimzo.

Yeah, she is impressed. You know, like you said, you've blown up internationally. Do you get recognized in every country you go to now? Yeah, but, you know, I'm at the point where maybe at an airport or like a mall or something, there might be five to ten people that will come say something. I think there's a lot of times I see people kind of give me a look, but I don't know if it's because they know I'm Teddy Swims

or if I'm just crazy looking. If they're just like, that guy looks like he's been in some serious prison time. That guy looks like he killed somebody. He killed a man. I don't know if they think I'm Teddy Swims or they're just like, what a wild man. You're too nice to kill a man. Or maybe that makes him a good killer.

Teddy Swims with us. Now there'll be people listening, young kids listening, who want to blow up on Instagram, TikTok, with their singing talents. What's the one bit of advice you would give them? The one and most important thing you've learned from your journey? I would say just keep on doing it nobody's counting your failures failures should be your your best friend in a way you know uh if you get 10 views on something nobody's counting

on that one nobody's counting every time you suck or every song that you put out that sucks nobody knows about those they know about your successes to put that in contrast or in perspective like how many years were you grafting away until things really started to take off? I would say 12 years now, probably. I've really been cracking away at this and in a bunch of bands that nobody cared about and were frankly not very good. I absolutely was trash and I sucked really bad. So if you want to go listen to that and be like,

wow, man, Teddy Swift, you really got good, then it's not too late for you. There's hope for you to be good, you know what I mean? It's such an interesting thing, isn't it? Because many people will go, oh, you're an overnight sensation. But you've been plowing away for a dozen years. You know, I would say it takes 10 years to create an overnight success, you know? Yeah.

Teddy Swims, it's so nice to catch up with you. Me too. We're big fans of what you do. Before you go, just wanted to play you this, Teddy Swims. The start of the amazing cover that you do. Before you go, just wanted to play you this, Teddy Swims. The start of the amazing cover that you do of Rivers 660, you were talking to what I presume is the person

recording the song and we speak faster than New Zealand and quickly. I want you to play what you say and you tell me afterwards what exactly you said at the start of it. All right.

This is going to be that take, you know what I mean? So don't even really like... So there, we'll pause there. What are we saying there? It's going to be that take, so it what I mean? So I don't even really like... So there, we'll pause there. What are we saying there? It's going to be that take, so it doesn't really even matter.

So this is the same? This is the what? That was the take that I was going to... Okay, okay. Don't even matter if I messed it up last time. What's that one? Doesn't even matter if I messed it up last time. Okay, good, yep, yep.

That's all I'm saying. Where's that, Lee saying where's that lee what's that one this is all i'm saying and i don't know what that last i don't know what i was saying that last bit you're amazing talent and all the hard work is paying off so so great to have you in new zealand and performing last night yeah beautiful man