Evan Savage is a singer, songwriter, recording artist and classically trained pianist. From competing on The Voice to releasing a solo EP, Evan has come a long way from growing up in a small Central Illinois town.
Originally from Normal, a couple hours south of Chicago, Evan was the son of a pastor, spending a majority of his time at church, which is where his love for music began. After high school, Evan moved to Nashville to attend Belmont University, yet after two years realized his passion for music wasn’t found in the classroom and decided to drop out to fully concentrate on songwriting. He quickly moved back to Illinois and began writing songs with a few close friends. It wasn’t long before a band, Emerson, was formed and Evan relocated to Chicago to record their debut album with local producers, John Ovnik and Zak Jablow. Emerson’s release, It Starts With a Heartbeat, was released in November of 2011. The album is one of Evan’s favorite pieces of work and remains one of Chicago’s best-kept musical secrets, as the band parted ways prior to their 2011 release date.
In 2012, Evan competed on the reality TV show The Voice, which was an experience that ultimately pushed him to a place where he realized he could be a competitive vocal artist. Although he didn’t make a team to fully compete on the show, Evan wasn’t ready to give up on his dream and returned to Chicago with fervor to write better music than he had before.
What followed for Evan was a season of writing, refining his craft, and growing up: both personally and musically. Later that year, he quietly began recording a new collection of songs with friends/producers, Stephen Shirk (Shirk Studios) and Shelby Pollard (Minor Characters). They both understood his vision and sound, continually challenging him to go places with his songs he wouldn’t have normally gone to on his own.
In 2013, while in the process of demoing and recording new material, Evan decided to release his first single, “Break More Hearts,” so those who had been following his career with his former band could hear the evolution in his writing and sound, and begin to understand him as a solo artist. The song was co-written by his youngest brother, Austin Savage. It became the starting point for what would soon be considered his EP, as well as additional songs to be released in the future.