Sarah Taylor Young

About Sarah Taylor Young

Sarah Taylor Young sings boldy from the five tracks that comprise her debut release, “Victory.” Supported by a strong cast of Music Row veterans, and produced by the highly in-demand team of Eddie Gore and Justyna Kelley, it is adorned by a production that is at once earthy and clean. “Victory” combines the raw bite of banjo with the steely softness of dobro and guitar that swings effortlessly between mighty and sweet.
Young came of age surrounded by music and the people who make it. Her father is Grammy-nominated songwriter, Bobby Taylor, who penned hits for Montgomery Gentry, Diamond Rio and scores of others. Young remembers being the first to hear her father’s songs in demo form at the age of 6, months before the rest of the world would hear them on the radio. She was writing her own songs by the time she was 12. Her father worried, as fathers will, about the pitfalls that await a young artist in the entertainment business. So as pervasive as music was at home, she was never pushed toward the music business by her parents, but was encouraged to follow her own path in life, whatever that might be. In light of all this, it’s no wonder Sarah Taylor Young is an independent young woman who sings about things like truth and victory.
In her autobiographical song, “In The Music,” with backing vocals by award winning singer/songwriter and cowriter, Irene Kelley, Young sings, “Daddy gave me a guitar, I learned to play. Just three chords, a pen, a pad, now every day I thank God for the music. It made me who I am and changed my life.” Indeed, each song on “Victory” reads like a prayer of gratitude. Young is clearly grateful to be on this path. And as she perseveres, continuing to write about the signs of grace wherever she finds them, she hopes others’ lives will be touched by the music she makes.
This kind of “outreach” is important to Young, and when asked if she feels “called” to music, she says, “I wouldn't say the calling was as much for songwriting as it was to be a vessel and share my story of finding my way to the Lord through some dark times. I do love singing and writing, but most of all I love sharing my story and inspiring others.”
“I was very much the prodigal daughter in a previous life,” recalls Young, “I ran away from my parents and married a man who told me he’d make all my dreams come true.” It wasn’t long before she knew she had made a mistake.
“I wanted to reconcile with my parents, but I didn’t know how.” By this time however, she did know how to sing and make music, and she used her talents to help mend a bridge, first to her parents, and then back to God. The completion of “Love Song” opened a vein, and she began to write as if her hands had been tied. The songs “Invitation” and “For Good” followed, and we can hear her pulling herself from the confusion of that difficult time to find her current, happier place of contentment.
In her title song, Victory, cowritten with Justyna Kelley, Young soars to the chorus, “shouting victory as loud as my lungs can sing out, I’m shouting victory over the shadow and the doubt.”
“So many wonderful artists have helped me complete this project,” says Young, “Irene Kelley is a wonderful singer and songwriter, and I am lucky to have her as a guide to help me though all this. She guided me to Eddie and Justyna, and she believes so strongly in me. I hope and pray to someday be the kind of mentor to others that she has been to me.”
“I have always looked up to legends like Reba and Dolly,” says Young, “They were women who weren't afraid to be themselves while wearing their hearts on their sleeves. They took risks. That takes guts. Today I look up to Carrie and Miranda for those same reasons. Carrie for her faith and simply telling about life and Miranda for her attitude mixed with a pure heart.”
Young reveals her unapologetic Christian roots in many of these songs, citing the difficult process of growth on the path to redemption, saying in “Love Song,” that her “broken wings still need a little time.” Resignation follows as she admits “beginning to rejoice in the truth,” and the listener can feel Young’s empathy as she sings the words.
This deeply soulful collection of songs are musical diary entries of a young yet strong artist at the beginning of a long, fruitful journey. The morning sun is in her eyes, and her feet are steady as she stands at the foothills of untold adventure. And her listeners will hear the conviction of her voice, healed of the thorns and speaking of grace. These wonderful recordings are the first of many by Sarah Taylor Young.
Credits for Victory by Sarah Taylor Young:
Lead Vocal: Sarah Taylor Young
Guitars: Nathan Dugger
Dobro: Matt Menefee
Bass: Rich Brinsfield
Drums: William Ellis
Keyboards: Walt Scott
Background vocals: Sarah Taylor Young, Matt Koziol, Irene Kelley, Justyna Kelley
Mixed and produced by Eddie Gore and Justyna Kelley
Mastered by: Michael Flemming


Written By Antsy Mcclain
Edited By Justyna Kelley