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Will Baxter plays seven nights a week along the Wasatch Front. What keeps him going isn’t where it all ends. It’s the work itself.
When talking with local musician Will Baxter, it became abundantly clear that there’s more to this than merely having skin in the game in order to make and play songs on a consistent basis across the state and beyond; there’s more to the music and what’s behind it. Will’s passion for a dream reminds us of this, pushing us to chase dreams for ourselves and to find joy in the littlest, most insignificant parts of our pursuit. Whether art or a sport, a hobby or way of life, and especially in music, there is purpose to be found in the process.
Will has always engaged with music the way most of us do: through listening to it. When he was younger he found himself being shaped by what was played around the house and by his parents, exposing him to new sounds and ideas. But as he began to grow, he’d develop a taste for himself, digging through records and learning of the greatness behind artists like Led Zeppelin and Bob Dylan, and behind genres such as blues, jazz and reggae. This sort of exploration began to expand his taste and, furthermore, what he expected from himself as a musician. In many senses, it seems his process started here: finding music he liked and playing it, understanding it, and attempting to replicate the feelings it inspired within him.
Kitchens, a Daughter and a Choice
While loving and playing music, Will faced that same dilemma so many artists do of wanting to do something so deeply, yet realizing that, at least for now, it won’t pay the bills. But can’t career and passion coexist as needed? Must one be selected over the other all the time? Beginning at age 15, he worked in kitchens and did so for 10 years. It was what funded his life. Still, he played.
In his mid-twenties, his daughter was born and he was ultimately faced with a decision to make. What is so impressive about Will is his awareness of the consequences of either choice. The choice to go after something stable and leave music aside to provide ease is, in the eyes of many, the safe option. But what does that teach his daughter? That dreams and rationality cannot live amongst one another? When he chose to continue to pursue music, he knew what it meant for him as a role model. He knew he was telling her that dreams absolutely are worth going after.
Seven Nights a Week
Today, the decision he made works, but it works differently than what the fantasy may have looked like to his younger self and what it usually looks like to striving artists around the world. At the time of our interview, Will had been playing music full-time for 14 years. Because virtually all of his income comes from playing gigs, performances are incredibly frequent (seven nights a week, sometimes up to three times a day) and incredibly necessary. What comes from streaming, merch and album sales is comparatively tiny. Yet he finds a way to love it, and to love it all.
Every moment is cherished: the rush of dopamine and excitement when a crowd, no matter how big or small, feels that mysterious it right along with him; the pride and surprise that accompany the melody that appears from apparent nothingness; the freedom to shape that nothingness into something real and tangible and emotional. While career milestones are something he thinks about, these are the things that keep him going. They are his why, the purpose in his process and the reason he inspires us.
For Will, there is no finish line. He merely creates.
Bringing the Audience In
Later in the interview, we asked Will why he does this. Is it a selfish pursuit? Does he do it for somebody else, for an audience? Where’s the balance? Will tells us that he begins personally, but does not stay there. He remembers to bring the audience in. He seems to start small, within himself, then broaden to gather his listener, and eventually reach the moment he desires, when everything is unified and one: the almost social moment between his music and his listener when he performs, and suddenly the crafting of the song or album makes complete sense.
Maybe the most important part of Will’s process is that he hasn’t arrived yet, and there doesn’t appear to be a clear destination. Maybe more than finding purpose in the process, the purpose is his process, and he will continue to grow as an artist and allow this thing he loves so much to take him wherever it takes him. Hopefully, from his story, we can do the same: find beauty in our development and process rather than getting so caught up in where it all ends. The pursuit of anything implies the existence of a finish line, but for Will, there is no finish line. He merely creates.
Will plays somewhere along the Wasatch Front most nights, solo, with the Will Baxter Band, and often alongside singer-songwriter Mary Tebbs. For other live music this season, see our concert listings in The Main Event.
Hear the Will Baxter Band’s albums and live videos, and follow along for new music and show dates.
This article was prepared with the help of AI tools and reviewed by Mountain & Main editors.
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Will Baxter finds his purpose in the work, one night and one room at a time. That’s the Wasatch Front we write about. Mountain & Main is a free magazine, delivered to driveways across the Front, and a website for the people, places and events that make this place home. Meet your neighbors, find the best things to do this week, and discover the local businesses that keep the magazine free. Where community meets commerce.