Superfan Angela Scott-Sharr
When it comes to music superfans, they are what musical artists dream of. Being lucky enough to have a superfan proves to an artist that they have reached their audience and been successful in forming a deep, real connection with their fans. By resonating with a specific song, a lyric, melody, or even just a song title a superfan can make a personal connection with a singer songwriter through their music. For Cheley Tackett superfan Angela Scott-Sharr, her love for Tackett was more than just her music. Sharr finally found a country musician that she connected with whom she could truly relate to on many levels. Tackett sings about things that Angela could relate to which she had never found in a musician before. One night by chance, seemingly by fate, Angela met Tackett at a house concert, spawning her status as a superfan of hers since.
Meet Angela Scott-Sharr, the kind of superfan every artist should have in their front row. She is from a small town in Indiana called New Palestine. In Angelas’s words, she deemed herself a “band geek” as a kid and has been strongly interested in music her whole life. She works in training and development for one of the largest security companies in the world. She gives Tackett all the credit for her new hobby of concert photography. Angela has been lucky enough to photograph Ashley McBryde, Terri Clark, and Tackett to name a few. Angela posts the photos on her Instagram and Facebook page as well as different fan club sights and gives copies away for free to anyone who asks for a print. For Tackett’s birthday bash Angela put together a special collage of performers that night who were Ashley McBryde, Erin Enderlin, and Tackett. Angella figures she gave away about 30-40 of the birthday bash photo collages.
CN: What was your first introduction to Tackett musically?
AS: It’s kind of an interesting story, it started with finding Ashley (McBryde). I am a huge Terri Clark fan, and have loved Terri Clark since she came out. It was around 2018, Ashley was at Terri’s fan club party. I was like wow, this girl has chops. I started checking her out and well, of course, she was overseas. Cheley was opening for her. I remember watching a video on youtube. I was like OMG, this girl has chops. I started looking at Tackett’s music. I went to her website and she was playing about 30 mins from me. I called my concert buddy and told her that I really want to go check her out… she’s just got chops. We got tickets, it was a house concert, I had never heard of a house concert. We walked into this house and Tackett is standing there and to say I was a little star-struck is a little understatement. My only experience being around artists was through meet & greets. Here is this chick who is famous to me… I mean common, she’s opening for Ashley McBryde. She walked right up and said “Hi I am Cherely Tackett” and I said “hey I’m Angela Scott-Sharr how are you?” and the legend was born that night. I have been following her ever since. That night she signed one of my CDs, I have it up on a whole door in my office that is all Cheley Tackett stuff. It says “I want on the sleeve” because I have Ashley and Terri Clark tattoos on my arm. She signed my arm that night. I am the first and only Cherley Tackett fan that has her autograph now tattooed on their arm. The cool thing is that she’s from Ohio, she’s kind of a local girl. When she played there, I took my wife and my camera, that’s what got me into concert photography. I took some shots and one thing led to another and I have just been dedicated to her music ever since.
CN: Is there a favorite song or lyric from her collection?
AS: So “Magic Still Happens”, that was the hook, she wrote that with Lisa Carver and Steph Mahan. That was the one where the first time I heard it I literally sat there and balled. That was really what made me think that I had to follow this person. That’s actually what she wrote on my arm was “magic still happens’ and then she put her autograph below it. That was the hook and then I have a tattoo for “Penny Wishes”, I have a tattoo for “Fried Chicken”, “The Healer” and the list goes on and on. She has so many songs that inspire me and remind me to be better and that’s why I have so many tattoos of her songs.
CN: How many tattoos total do you have?
AS: Ok so I have 7. The first one was her autograph and “Magic Still Happens” and then probably “Penny Wishes” is my biggest one. It is literally a big penny.
CN: That tattoo is nuts by the way, I love it (see photo)
AS: That meant a lot to her, I didn’t realize that that was one of the first songs that she wrote by herself. That was pretty cool for her. One of the things I do for people is take handwritten lyrics and put them over a photo of an artist. Like Erin Enderlin. Erin will give out handwritten lyrics. I have a couple of people who have sent me those and I will put the handwritten lyrics over the artist. I have one that Cheley did for me of “The Healer ”. There is no way of capturing “The Healer ” as a tattoo, so I put the last verse as my tattoo on my arm.
CN: Do you have a favorite tattoo?
AS: Yeah I would say “The Healer” of all of them because it’s in Chely’s handwriting. the one I get the most compliments on is I have an old ‘80’s – ‘90-s style boombox and I have “play the one I like” above it. … I LOVE that song!! That’s the one I have to crank up and I have to play it three or four times before I can go on to the next one.
CN: Are all of your friends and family fans or are they fans because of you or do you get a lot of eye rolls with your friends saying here we go… because I get a lot of eye rolls myself.
AS: (laughs) you know it’s funny, my Mom took me to my first concert which was Sandi Patty, don’t hold that against me, it was not by choice. My Mom and Dad have always been into music. Dad has been to shows with me to see Cheley and now my Dad follows her. With my friends, I am like you got to check this girl out. Just finding all these independent artists, it all goes back to finding Ashley and then finding Cheley and now I have all these independent artists that I support and follow like Nicole Whitt and Sunny Sweeney the list goes on and on.
CN: Who else are your go-to music people?
AS: Erin Enderlin, lover her…Steff Mahan, Sunny Sweeney, Jessi Alexander, Hannah Dasher, Karleen Watt, and Terri Clark got it started. I love all these independent artists. Artists that people really don’t know, that’s all I listen to now. Every time Cheley is like check this person out. It’s nice for me to find a new artist, being a gay woman to find an artist that I can connect with. That’s been so hard as a gay country music fan, I don’t want to hear some guy sing about some chick in his truck.
CN: I interviewed Ally Colleen earlier this summer and we had this same conversation about the changing face of country music. Ashley McBryde came up and how her look and music and sound and how everyone is embracing it. Now you have tattooed women in t-shirts rocking the stage and being taken seriously.
AS: the people are focusing more on the independent artist. Brandy Clark, I adore her too. I had never heard of Brandy, once you get into that independent circle the flood gates open and you’re like “wow, what have I been missing”? I canceled all of my subscriptions and I only listen to independent artists. That’s all I listen to now.
CN: What happens if your independent artist goes big. Let’s say they end up on “The Highway ” on SIRIUS, are you disappointed or excited.
AS: I support them 100%. It’s like my buddy, Noah Smith, I have done a lot with him, he has a very interesting fan club, he has a meeting every month, he calls it the board room. He treats us like a board of directors. He was trying to do the whole Nashville thing, we told him Look man that’s great if that’s really where you want to go, but your fan base is here. Your fan base is in Cincinnati, Ohio, Indiana, you don’t have to have that big record label to make it. That’s the changing times, I don’t see that Ashley has to do stadiums to make it… she has already made it. My biggest thing is that I would love to see Cheley play the Opry. I had Dana Elliot make a guitar strap for Cheley to use the night if she ever gets the chance to play the Opry.
CN: She has that guitar strap now?
AS: Yeah, I gave it to her at her birthday bash.
CN: Do you see her regularly or out at shows and events? Are you friends?
AS: Pretty much if Cheley is doing a show I am there. What I respect about her is that she has her personal life and her professional life. I would call her a friend. Before the New Year’s Eve show, we had dinner and we all talked and hung out. That is what I love about independent artists, they treat you like a friend and it’s not a cattle call meet and greet. You can actually sit down and talk to them and get to know them on a personal level. I was starstruck the first time I met Cheley because I had never experienced that before. That and I didn’t realize how short she was. (laughs)
CN: …how short is she?
AS: I want to say she’s like 5’2”. I have a really funny picture that I took of her and I put it on her fan club page. I made it look like a mug shot. I used to be a police officer.. so I made this mug shot and a funny comment about her being about 5”4’ The first time I met her I was like “wow, you’re so short” and the first time I met Ashely same thing.
CN: We refer to that as “fun size” in my family, I am only 5”4’ myself.
AS: (laughs) yeah absolutely! It was funny we were somewhere and she was being interviewed and she was telling the story of the fan that told her she was short and I was like, hey that was me you punk!
CN: (laughs) that’s a way to make an impact and be memorable when you first meet someone. You achieved greatness at that moment.
AS: (laughs) yeah, I think I even patted her on the head and said wow you’re so short.
CN” what is your favorite type of venue to see live music, a dirty old school bar, with a cigarette machine, an outdoor amphitheater, a festival…?
AS: I have fallen in love with smaller venues. Something I really had not been exposed to until I had started following these independent artists. I am not a drinker so I don’t really go to bars. My favorite venue is one I can take my camera into, to be honest. I am not a professional photographer so I can’t take my camera in every venue. We have a couple of little places here in Indiana that just have that vibe…that little dive bar vibe.
CN: I get that, sticky dank smelly place and the restrooms are skanky you can’t wait to go back.
AS: Yeah, you can get close to the stage. The only other venues I had been to were big amphitheater and I’m sitting on the lawn. Then you go to these little bars and there is just a vibe. You can’t get it anywhere else.
CN: It becomes part of the music itself the moment with the stickers on the wall and it’s a scene. And you love every second of it.
AS: You’re wearing your jeans and cowboy boots even though it’s 110’ it’s raw and sweaty.
CN: What music did you listen to growing up, who was your favorite performer or band?
AS: My favorite musician growing up was Barry Manilow.
CN: Oh, I was not expecting that.
AS: Yeah, I was a huge fan, it got me out of a ticket. I got pulled over by a State Trooper who had been following me apparently for a while, I had my music cranked up real loud. When he came up he said, “I have to know what you’re listening to”. I am 19, in college, I turned my radio up and it was “Copacabana” by Barry Manilow that was playing. It got me out of a speeding ticket. My Dad raised me on Journey and Styx, my Mom it was Michael Bolton, Barry Manilow, Lionel Richie, Ann Murray…love her! I have a very eclectic music taste.
CN: Do you have any tickets for upcoming shows, who are you going to see?
AS: my friend Heather who is my best friend and compadre when it comes to going to concerts, we had like 10 or 12 concerts lined up. We are going to see the Black Crowes, We’re going to see the Doobie Brothers, Cheley for her birthday bash, and then going over to the Ryman that same night to see Ashley. I finally got to see Hannah Dasher. I finally get to see Reba for the first time this year. I never went to concerts until I saw Terri Clark live in 2017. It’s weird I have been a huge fan of hers, I have a signed guitar and a hat of hers but I have never seen her in concert until much later in life- I am making up for lost time.
CN: It sure sounds like it.
AS: Steph Mahan called me and asked me to take photos. I was like well duh, yah, Who wouldn’t be psyched with that crew.
CN: The whole night you would be walking around saying “I wish I had my camera”
AS: There have been a couple of times that I didn’t bring my camera and I was like yeah, this really sucks because that’s a really great shot and that’s a great shot.
CN: Do you write or play an instrument?
AS; I played clarinet as a kid. It did not come naturally to me. I think that’s why I love talking and being around these artists because I envy that. I would give anything to be able to do what they do. I remember the first night I met Cheley I asked her what it was like to stand on that stage and hear the roar of the ground? Cheley said, “It’s intoxicating”. I would love to know what that feels like, but I also know that I would be too chicken to stand up there and do it. (laughs) I am also that girl who if you get in my car I have to turn down the volume on the radio and I am also that girl who is at the stoplight singing at the top of my lungs to a song and I don’t care if you see me. I’m good with it and I’m really good at drum solos.
CN: I have something that you need to buy if you don’t already own it. Don’t tell your friends that I told you to get it because it sounds like they will hate me. It’s called Song Pop and it’s a portable and rechargeable microphone with a speaker.
AS: (laughs) does it amplify your voice?
CN: it has a box with a speaker on it
AS: (laughs) oh my God…that’s awesome… This is awesome. I will make sure I have that for my next road trip. What’s it called again?
CN: For my wrap-up question here it is, it’s called “One Grab”. The scenario is you are running out of your house, everyone is safe and your pets are safe. You can run into your house to grab one thing, what do you grab?
AS: Oh that has me thinking… I first thought about my camera but I can replace it. I have to go with my Terri Clark hat. It is a hat Terri owned, it has her lipstick on it and can’t be replaced.
CN: This has been fun, thank you for giving me your time to do this!
AS: Thank you, it’s been fun. I have to get that microphone.
From the CD release party from left ot right Heather Davis(Angela’s best friend), Tackett, Crystal Scott-Sharr (Angela’s wife), Angela Scott- Sharr
