Meet Taylor Cohen: Musician, Photographer, Artist, Engineer and Skateboarder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Taylor Cohen and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Taylor, what matters most to you?
I think what I value most is being your truest self no matter the environment, circumstances, or people you are around. When you are genuine you make strong connections with people that can last lifetime. In business this also shows that a real person is running it, there isn’t any facade or falseness. 

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I think what makes me unique is that I am multi-faceted. I am a part of a lot of types of art including: photography, painting, drawing, music, and anything creative I can get my hands on! Due to that being a huge part of who I am, it makes me very proud and passionate to be different. I got to where I am today by working so incredibly hard on my education, career, and skills in all forms of art including music. Nothing is ever easy when it comes to fighting to do what you love for a living. You have to work 24 hours a day even after working two different jobs. I have apprenticed under some incredible people that have made me who I am and have helped me be deemed “professional” in certain fields. I just love connecting with people over art and music, it’s always given me such deep friendships in life and I am so grateful that the things I love have brought me these wonderful people. I think what I want to represent for my “brand” is that I am a genuine person, I am here to make all of this stuff because it is in my DNA to be creative and express myself and I want to be an example to everyone out there to find a way to create and express their true selves.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Hands down anyone whoever comes into town, I take them to Jerome first. I absolutely LOVE the town and it has some amazing history around each corner. A lot of Arizona is the true wild west and we are blessed to be able to visit some incredible spots. My favorite places in Jerome are the Spirit Room, this old school barbecue place that makes their own amazing sauce, any shop, and any wine tasting they have is THE BEST. I also love going to Old Tucson (where they filmed all of the incredible old western movies), Tombstone, Bisbee, and Sedona! Arizona is full of incredible art districts, music venues, and communities. Go ANYWHERE and you will find an amazing restaurant, nature reserve, or historical site.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Well, there are a LOT of people I owe to where I am today with what I have been doing in each category. For music: I owe so much to my parents for first off listening to rock n’ roll. Then secondly giving me my first guitar at seven years old and lessons with some incredible people. They also have taught me to have fun and have given me the space to create. I also need to thank my friends and family for being so devoted and coming to EVERY. SINGLE. SHOW. Without that support, we would not be where we are and working on a second album. The band is beyond grateful. For Art: I owe everything to my grandma and my mom for showing me how to paint and doing crafts all the time to let my creative mind soar! They gave me the tools to express myself. For Photography: I have always taken photos in my life with my old Kodak camera and was always so excited when I got the pictures developed. Since then, my parents had a nice camera and I just went around town taking pictures of friends, buildings, and animals. While in the peak of me shooting a camera on auto, I met the wonderful and adventurous Heather Bybee. I ended up going to a lot of photoshoots with Heather or took some pictures of her with her settings and she just taught me how to compose a photograph, some nifty tricks to get the camera to do what you want, and overall to have fun! After Heather showed me all of that I decided to take classes at ASU that taught you how to do analog photography. I fell in love with it thanks to my professor Buzzy. All of this made me the photographer I am today. For Engineering: I owe everything to my professor Lauren Hayes. She taught me true perseverance, how to create something from multiple ideas, and how to make mature ideas. From her teaching I have made some of the BEST and my favorite projects. I also owe everything to my community that my degree has given me, we support each other still. Recently though, I owe a lot to a few people who have helped out: Ninabah, Loren, Conner, Xavier, Todd Engalls, my parents, and my boyfriend. For Skateboarding: I definitely owe a thanks to my board being in the way when I got home from my trip to Israel. I tripped over it, bought a new board, and haven’t stopped going to the park since. The skate community in Arizona is incredible, they’re so supportive and fun. I have progressed so much because of Jimmy, Pablo, Rice, Sabree, Matt, Tyler, Cooper, and so many others. I just also want to thank anyone who was not specifically named for supporting the multiple facets of my life.

Website: https://tayloracohen.portfoliobox.net
Instagram: instagram.com/soleiletlalune instagram.com/@bbreakingbbones instagram.com/@tcohphotos

Image Credits
Nathan Grebe – Jumping Band Picture Amanda Murphy -Photographer Picture Heather Fleckenstein – Show Picture