My Taylor Swift Story

I’m not a Taylor Swift fan, nor do I have any strong opinions about her either way, but whenever I meet a Swiftie, I share my Taylor Swift story—and it’s always a crowd-pleaser. I’m telling it to you now because it reflects our company’s history and the influence our hometown, Franklin, TN, has had on who we’ve become.

Back in the day, before Springtree became a manufacturer, we had two divisions:

1. Online retail and installation
2. A small, local AV rental department that provided lighting and sound for events in the Nashville area (Franklin is a suburb of Nashville)

😂 Now, this is NOT a child-abuse horror story, but I (Brandon) was forced to work in Springtree’s rental division starting at the ripe old age of 12 to instill in me “a good work ethic.” I was well compensated and all, but I absolutely did NOT want to spend my Saturdays as a middle-schooler hauling speakers and road cases. Many weekends you’d find me setting up local concerts or outdoor movie nights while my friends were living their best lives. I hated it.

It’s probably important to mention I’m the oldest son of the founders and owners, so Springtree wasn’t being run on some random kid’s forced labor. 😂 And guess what? Their scheme worked. I actually turned into a hard-working adult and even had enough money to buy my own car at 16.

Growing up in Franklin, Tennessee, you get numb to just how ridiculous the musical talent is around here. This town is crawling with country mega-stars and Christian music heavyweights. We also produced our fair share of future pop stars—Miley Cyrus is from here, and Ke$ha grew up one town over in Brentwood. One of my neighbors was Lee Greenwood. And my best friend’s dad? A full-on 90s rockstar whose house looked like Hard Rock Cafe exploded—walls of platinum and gold records, another wall entirely covered in guitars. That was just Franklin for you.

Even though we were a small AV rental company, being in Franklin meant we were constantly running sound for some of the biggest names in music – Brad Paisley, Little River Band, and my all-time favorite, Alison Krauss. But we also did just as many (if not more) concerts for totally unknown local artists. That contrast was everyday life for us.

It was a Friday night and I had the rare night off. Then I get the dreaded call from my dad. Mom hands me the phone: “Dad wants to speak with you.” “What’s up?” I asked, hoping this wasn’t a recruitment call. “You should come work the show tonight. This singer is the real deal!” my dad said. I asked if they needed my help. He said they didn’t, so I politely declined. I had a very full evening of lazy TV watching planned and didn’t need my night ruined by some wannabe musician.

The next morning my dad was still raving about this girl. “She’s the real deal. You should of seen the way she connected with the crowd. She’s going to be famous.” “Sure, Dad,” I said. Everyone’s trying to make it in Nashville. I didn’t think I’d missed much. He shows us a picture: her giving him a big side hug, huge smile on her face. Ten months later some girl at school won’t stop talking about Taylor Swift. “Who’s Taylor Swift?” I think. I look her up: same smiling blonde from the photo hugging my dad. Turns out she actually was the real thing.

Not getting to hang out with Taylor Swift doesn’t even crack my top twenty regrets, but Swifties always have the same tragic reaction when I tell the story. One thing I’ve always loved about my dad is that he genuinely doesn’t care about celebrity. He treats Brad Paisley the same way he’d treat a youth pastor from a small church. So the fact that he was this impressed by that girl was a massive exception.

There’s this French idea called “le goût du terroir” – the taste of the place – where the soil you grow in actually shapes the flavor. Franklin definitely left its taste on us. Music and ministry are in our bones.
Most of our team members come straight out of the music world or the church world (sometimes both), and they never really leave either one – they just keep serving the Lord, keep making music, or keep doing both at the same time.

But make no mistake: we’re not a bunch of “failed musicians” who settled for AV.
Springtree is a team of people who, just like you, want our work to mean something, to leave the world a better place. We truly believe God handed us a rare gift: the chance to run a lighting company and literally fill rooms (and hearts) with beautiful light.

Thanks for reading my “I could’ve hung out with Taylor Swift” story. 🙂