Today we’d like to introduce you to By The Lee.
Hi Lauren, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Thank you for having me and I’m excited to tell you the story of By The Lee. Pete (my husband and bandmate) and I met in Colorado at a house party outside of Denver on March 26, 2011. I was playing in a makeshift band that night and Pete was there hanging out with friends. As the night went on, we found out we shared a love of music and outdoor sports, and one week later, we went skiing for our first date.
In January of 2012, with two other friends, we formed a 4-piece bluegrass band (which would later become a 5-piece). That band was called The Railsplitters. In 2013, The Railsplitters won a well-known band competition at RockyGrass Festival (in Lyons, Colorado), and shortly thereafter, we began touring full-time. We toured all over the US as well as Australia, Germany, and the UK. One of my personal favorite shows we ever played was in 2015 at the Del Mar Powerhouse. That was my first time seeing southern California and I remember when we got out of the van at the dog beach, I told a friend “I’m gonna live here someday.” Between sound check and our set, I went boogie boarding at 15th Street. It was a great time!
After 5 years of touring full-time, in 2018, The Railsplitters decided to scale back, sell the van, and play a few local Colorado shows a year. During that time, Pete and I started playing a few shows here and there as a duo under the name By The Lee, and then in 2020, when the pandemic hit, The Railsplitters decided to call it quits completely. That’s when Pete and I really began focusing our energy on By The Lee and playing more private events.
In October of 2022, we decided it was time to be closer to the ocean so we could surf regularly (not just on vacation!) so we relocated from Boulder, CO to Del Mar, CA. Since then, By The Lee has already played lots of shows in the San Diego area. We feel so fortunate to continue making music together and to be exploring our new community.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
We’ve been super fortunate along the way in our musical careers and luckily, not many complaints. We both agree that one of the hardest things about being in a band was touring. While we got to go to so many cool places and meet lots of interesting people along the way, living in a van with 4 other people was, while great at times, sometimes very hard. We would often be on the road for a month at a time if not more. Then we’d come home for 2 weeks and have to turn around and get right back in the van for more road trips. That lifestyle can really put a lot of wear and tear on your mental and physical health as well as relationships. We have always felt lucky to have shared these experiences, one of us never having to leave the other behind, but the lifestyle itself was still challenging. We are happy to now play more local gigs near home so that we can maintain a sense of balance.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
By The Lee is an acoustic duo that plays covers. We’re not currently writing our own music or recording any albums. Over the past few years, our clients have made some fun song requests… songs we wouldn’t have chosen to play with our instrumentation, but the result has been really fun! We feel that because we are able to offer a wide range of genres on acoustic instruments, our sound stands out as unique.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
We always appreciate being referred to anyone who is looking to add a unique live music experience to their wedding, event, or party.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.peteandlauren.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/bytheleemusic
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/bythelee
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@bytheleemusic1420
Image Credits
Anastasya Photography
