Savannah Philyaw during a live performance. She recently released the album “A Whisper in the Wind.†(photo by Justin Higuchi)
A dream come true
Savannah Philyaw finds success with her first full length album.
Savannah Philyaw, local Scripps Ranch resident and recording artist, followed her gut instinct to pursue her dream of making music full time, and it’s paying off. Philyaw recently released her debut full length album “A Whisper in the Wind.” It has gained more than 64,000 streams on the music sharing platform Spotify.
The album can best be described as easy listening, nostalgic and uplifting indie-folk music. Philyaw said she draws inspiration from her environment right here in Scripps Ranch and San Diego: the collaborative music environment and consistent sunshine provide her the ability to write happy, upbeat music.
“The title comes from a lyric from the song ‘Go Alone’ that is the first track on the album. That song is all about following your intuition and your inner truth in order to live the life that you came here to live,” she said. “The line a whisper in the wind is all about noticing the subtle signs and nudges that are around us that are pointing us in the direction of where we really want to go. Those are the same signs that are easy to ignore. A whisper in the wind is about paying attention to those feelings and those signs.”
Born and raised in Scripps Ranch, Philyaw said she started writing songs when she was in eighth grade after looking up to her older brother who played acoustic guitar. She said she kept her songs to herself for a couple of years, eventually playing some of her music for her family. While away at college in Virginia, she focused her studies on education. However, she said she felt like her passion and heart were telling her to pursue music. Philyaw transferred to Berklee College of Music online and graduated with her degree in music business. In addition to her music business courses, she also enrolled in songwriting and other music classes.
“When I was 16, I started recording songs, but I had only released a single or little EPs of three to five songs. I had never done a full length album. I had gotten to the point that I was writing so much and writing with other songwriters that I decided I would love to put these into a project. This album is a little snapshot of time of how I write and what’s going on in my world and the world of those around me,” Philyaw said.
Philyaw has collaborated with notable songwriters on her debut album including the Eagles’ songwriter Jack Tempchin. Philyaw and Tempchin co-wrote the song “Somehow You Were There for Me.” Philyaw said she is extremely proud of this album and all of the work that she and her collaborators put into the music.
“I’d say my highlight on this album and a great introduction to my music is ‘Running to You.’ It’s the most freeing and joyful and falling in love type of song,” Philyaw said.
For more information about Savannah Philyaw and to listen to samples of “A Whisper in the Wind,” visit savannahphilyaw.com.