Taylor Roberts: The Other 20 Hours
From stages soaked in jazz to rehab centers steeped in healing, Taylor Roberts lives the grind behind the glamour. He plays every note like it matters.
The Unseen Hours Behind the Music
There’s something magnetic about Taylor Roberts. Maybe it’s the lush chord voicings. Maybe it’s the way he can command a room without ever raising his voice. Or maybe, just maybe, Taylor lives with as much purpose in those 20 hours offstage. He applies the same dedication as the two he spends on stage.
In this candid episode of The Contrast Project Lounge Podcast, Taylor sat down with hosts Tracy Rigdon and Jim Alabiso. They unpacked not just the gigs and glamor. They also explored the grind. Taylor healed a debilitating finger injury. He mentored recovering addicts in a rehab center. Through these experiences, Taylor pulled back the curtain on what it really means to be a working artist in 2024.
Spoiler: it’s not all jazz chords and applause. It’s drug treatment shifts, teaching gigs, financial juggling, and a relentless drive to show up, with soul, not ego.
Finger Splinted, Spirit Intact
In the world of professional musicians, your hands are your livelihood. Taylor Roberts injured his finger. This injury was serious enough to sideline his guitar playing for weeks. The fallout wasn’t just physical. It was existential.
“My own journey is the most important part of my life.” He said this not in a self-help bumper sticker way. It was in the raw tone of someone who had to sit in stillness while his identity was momentarily stripped.
Instead of collapsing inward, Taylor leaned out. Taylor engaged in community work and teaching. They showed up at a local drug treatment facility on the weekends. It wasn’t a detour. It was part of the same path.
Most people see the injury as a setback. Taylor reframed it as perspective. He sees it as a chance to remember why he plays in the first place.
The Other 20 Hours; The Hustle No One Talks About
We glamorize the show. The crowd. The spotlight. But for most working musicians, that’s two hours out of twenty-four. The other twenty? They’re filled with grinding admin work, booking gigs, lesson planning, traveling, invoicing, and praying your gear doesn’t crap out mid-set.
Taylor’s brutally honest about it. He has been in the business for three decades. His resume includes private shows for the Rolling Stones. Despite this, he still hustles like he’s playing his first set at a dive bar in Riverside.
“Playing well is less than half of what’s required,” he admitted. Talent opens doors. Tenacity keeps them open.
His tenure as the in-house talent at the Ritz-Carlton in Amelia Island lasted from 2014 to 2023. This period gave him significant international exposure. He also gained a backstage pass to the mechanics of high-level performance. Additionally, he learned about the business behind it.
Diversity of Repertoire, Depth of Soul
Jazz may be Taylor’s heartbeat, but his musical bloodstream carries everything from R&B to rock to pop. He doesn’t just dabble—he adapts. It’s not uncommon to hear him reimagine a classic Stevie Wonder tune one night. The next night, he turns a Coldplay track into a jazz standard.
This versatility isn’t just aesthetic—it’s survival. Being a working musician today means playing the song the crowd needs, even if it wasn’t on your setlist.
“It’s gonna tear the roof off the place,” Taylor said. It was not about a flashy solo. It was about reading the room, feeling the vibe, and delivering on the moment.
This flexibility has made him a favorite for elite venues and events. He even performed at a private birthday dinner for Mick Jagger’s girlfriend, yeah, that Mick Jagger.
Mick Jagger, the Ritz, and a Moment to Remember
Let’s be real, most musicians have stories they trot out to impress. Taylor’s not that guy. But even he grins ear to ear when he talks. He was hired by the Rolling Stones to play a private event.
Imagine this: You’re working your usual slot at the Ritz, playing some atmospheric groove, when in walks the Mick Jagger. The next thing you know, you’re providing the soundtrack to one of the most surreal birthday dinners ever staged.
“Keith walks in with his wife and,” Taylor started, laughing mid-sentence, reliving the chaos and excitement.
It wasn’t about fandom. It was about craft. Delivering your best when the stakes are high and the audience is legendary.
The Music Scene in Jacksonville; Beauty, Grit, and Growing Pains
While Taylor’s sound travels well, he’s deeply rooted in Jacksonville. The city’s scene has gone through waves, some thrilling, some frustrating, but what remains constant is the grind.
Taylor isn’t just playing gigs, he’s cultivating community. Teaching. Mentoring. Showing up.
He sees Jacksonville not as a stepping stone, but as fertile ground. A place where the scene is still raw enough to be shaped and diverse enough to be exciting.
That dual identity, national player, local advocate, makes him a cultural asset to the city. One who elevates without ego.
Rehab, Recovery, and Music’s Role in Healing
While sidelined from his instrument, Taylor stepped into a different kind of performance space: a drug treatment facility.
Most would see that as a backup plan. Taylor saw it as purpose.
“Working at the drug rehab on weekends isn’t just something to do, it’s part of the music,” he said. “Because music is about healing. About connecting. About breaking through numbness.”
Whether it’s through structured sessions or casual conversations, Taylor brings the same emotional intensity to his work with patients. He approaches his playing with equal passion. It’s not charity. It’s community. It’s survival, shared, not observed.
Passion Is Non-Negotiable
Ask Taylor what sustains him, and the answer is never about money or acclaim.
“I’m really excited to be back to playing,” he said. His eyes lit up as he mentioned his return gig at River and Post.
After everything, the injury, the rehab shifts, the hustle, it all comes back to this. There is a love for the guitar that borders on obsession.
His playing, influenced by giants like Wes Montgomery, Russell Malone, and Tommy Emmanuel, is both technically masterful and emotionally unfiltered. He plays like someone who needs it. Because he does.
In a time when so many artists are jaded, Taylor remains lit up from the inside out. That’s rare. That’s magnetic.
Looking Ahead; Gigs, Growth, and the Grind that Doesn’t End
Taylor’s return to performing post-injury isn’t just symbolic, it’s pivotal. He’s got new gigs lined up, fresh arrangements in the works, and a deeper perspective than ever before.
But don’t mistake this next chapter as a comeback. He never left. He just re-routed. Refined. Recharged.
The truth is, artists like Taylor don’t retire. They evolve. And every setback becomes another verse in a song that’s still being written, chord by chord, night by night.
The Artist Who Never Stops Showing Up
Taylor Roberts is the kind of musician who reminds you what this life is really about. Not just playing well, but living well. Not just reading charts, but reading rooms. And not just collecting applause, but earning trust, in the room, in the community, and in the mirror.
He’s not out here trying to be famous. He’s out here trying to be honest. And that makes his music not just good, but necessary.
He is preparing for his next run of shows. One thing’s for sure: Jacksonville’s got a homegrown legend in its midst. And he’s just getting warmed up.
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