Welcome to my series of conversations with Stalwarts of Music. Speaking of my guest today, I'm talking to a very interesting lady Tanya O'Callaghan, an established freelance musician, motivational speaker and activist as well. She's got a very eclectic and impressive career.

To date, she's never been afraid to take the leap of faith. Tanya's determination, passion and talent began to pay off when she spread your wings internationally. She started out in Ireland during her initial days, and she's practically played with every popular musician out there. She has performed, recorded, written and worked with legends such as Maynard Keenan of Tool, Dee Snider of Twisted Sister, Stephen Adler of the Popular Guns N Roses, and Nuno Bettencourt of Extreme.And last but not the least, David Coverdale of Whitesnake. She's one of the first and the very few artists who has made it really huge in the whole rock and roll and heavy metal music space.

Without any further adieu, I'm delighted to welcome my guest for today, Tanya O'Callaghan.

Aditya Veera: Hi, Tanya.

Tanya Callaghan: Hi, how are you?

AV: So how are you? Where are you right now?

TC: I’m Good. I'm in California. I just got back from Europe.

AV: What are you up to these days?

TC: Well, I just came back out a tour in Montreux, with Whitesnake, all across Europe.

AV: That must have been a dream come true.

TC: It was amazing. And I literally just got my gear back, like, yesterday because it took a while to come back. And then I came home and I got locked out of my social media.

AV: That's all right. That's completely fine. But I hope you're not jetlagged.

TC: I'm not really. Because I honestly travel so much and have done for the past ten years that I'm just so used to it. I know how to deal with it.

AV: You know, I've been looking forward to this interview, and I have a couple of very interesting questions coming your way, today.

TC: Well, awesome. Well, thanks for having me.

AV: Pleasure’s mine to have you on the show. Could you perhaps draw an analogy to the starting of your debut Whitesnake performance?

TC: Yeah. Well, the coolest part about the Whitesnake gig was, that the opening night of the tour was in Ireland, where I'm from.So it is, you know, baptism by fire. My very, very first show with Whitesnake was in my home country, and I hadn't been home in a couple of years. So it was extra special. But, you know, we didlike a week and a half of rehearsals before that. And it was it was just amazing because, you know, I'm a session musician, the hired guns.I'm so used to going in and out of lots of different bands over the years, but with the guys in Whitesnake, it immediately felt like a family. They're really, really cool people. I knew some of them I didn't know, some so but it was like instantly we all bonded and gelled. And for me as the bass player to play with Tommy Aldridge on drums is just incredible.

AV: So how did the environment receive you when you migrated from Ireland and shifted to America for music? Was it a pleasant experience?

TC: It was hard, like, because I just took a leap of faith. So I was, you know, I was busy in Ireland doing my thing with a few different bands that were based either in like Ireland, the UK or Europe. And I was sort of expanding my career over there. But Ireland is such a small country that at a certain point I had done all of the biggest gigs you could kind of do.And I thought, Well, I need to go further and I need to go bigger. So L.A. seemed like an obvious place, and I decided just to take a total leap of faith. And I went on my own, just me and my bass, and said, you know, if I throw myself into this scene because one thing I always say to people, no matter what it is you're trying to do in life, music or novels, you find people who are already doing that.And then you go and you surround yourself with people who are doing it. So for me, it was jumping into a scene where it was outside hired gun session musicians to play with big bands and just going to all these jam nights and asking questions and trying to understand like, how do you get these gigs? And the reality is it only comes with playing.So you have to be out there playing for people. Word-of-mouth recommendations. The only thing that helped me in America was I had Maynard Keenan from Tool on my CV because I had recorded with Maynard a couple of years earlier. So going in, not knowing anyone but being able to say Here I recorded with a big American artist before this was my little ticket of like, okay, this is interesting.

AV: Did you have an agency that sort of backed you up orwas it you scouting out for all of this on your own?

TC: No. Totally self-managed. Because it'san industry of,  building relationships and building relationships and friendships with people that we recommend. Because I mean, obviously, it's important to be a solid and strong player. But the more important part is like your relationship of communication with the people that you're going to be working with.

AV: I'm sure that it's quite hard to sort of juggle between all the stuff that you do. What is the special quality that the bass guitar had for you and what prompted you to get started with it and get going?

TC: Well, I was very late for music, actually. I start playing when I was 17 or 18 because I only worked with animal welfare. I was a little animal activist. I still am. Well, yeah, that's my first passion. I've always workedbass and music has given me a platform to use my voice in that space and the environment and animal welfare around that.But Bass came about, it was quite funny because I was working in an animal rescue shelter for ten years. Yeah, it's literally what I did. Everyone thought I would do that for life. Yes, I never played music, ever. I sang in a choir that was about it. And then I did a little music course in my hometown.

I wanted to be a drummer for a minute. I got this idea in my head but couldn't really afford a good drum kit. And, you know, it's hard to be a drummer when you don't have the space of the setup. So I saw a local guy playing bass when I was like 17 or so, and I never thought about it before that because think you're thinking of guitar, drums, more prominent, obvious things.

AV: You've been catering to a plethora of musical styles all the way from pop to R&B, soul, rock and roll and heavy metal. How is it that you're able to maintain authenticity in terms of sound and go about the process of delivering quality within a very short time frame that's put forth from the context of performance?

TC: Yeah. Well, I think for starters, as a musician, like often people tend to categorize themselves like, you know, they'll say they're a jazz musician or a rock musician. For me, I also know my boundaries. So it's like I would never say, okay, I'm like an experienced jazz player. But for most of the music genres, yeah, what I'm doing, especially as a hired gun, my job is to play the song well, it's like, especially if you're playing in the likes of Whitesnake or you're playing Twisted Sister songs.

AV: Obviously, that kind of like brings me to a follow up question. What is your muse that impels you to be the musician you are?

TC: That's a good question. I don't think it's a specific muse. What I find about performing, believe it or not, I'm quite introverted myself. That's me. So what I love about stage and performing is you're very present, you're not thinking about anything else. So the actual act of performing and being part of a group of musicians, it sort of just takes you to another level.

AV: Do you have a practice regime that you follow on a regular basis ?

TC: Honestly, at this point in my career, no, it's just been completely honest because what's usually happening is you get a call about a gig, be it Whitesnake or whoever you're playing for, and that's it for that, however long you have. Like it depends on the situation. So I've had calls like, can you fill in for someone tomorrow or the next day.

AV: What is the best thing about the bass guitar as an instrument? Is it the sound of it or is it the feel of it? Or is it what it can do?

TC: I think the feel of it for me as a player and for the audience, literally, you can feel it. It's a very guttural instinct. I'm naturally drawn to that. I love the feel of bass, its sound, and the fact that it can literally shake the ground.So that's my favourite thing in soundchecks, especially if you're in arenas when you'resound checking your bass and you stand out on the runways and you're like, How I can actually shake this building? Exactly. So it's very foundational. It's a very it's a very guttural instrument, which I love about it. Yeah.

AV: You're also an activist and you host a vegan lifestyle show. How cool is that? Could you elaborate a little bit about all of these other initiatives you are involved with?

TC: Yeah. So like that music is one factor of me which I love and obviously have had a really blessed career through the past ten years. But my main passion, as I spoke to earlier, has always been that activism sides like animals, the environment, people, human health, like just equality, all of that stuff. So I was trying to find ways over the years to really like bridge my passions.And my very good friend is Derrick from Sepultura, who is also a lifelong veggie and vegan. So we've been friends for years and we were both on a layover in Ireland a couple of years ago, just before the pandemic. And we were sharing this idea that because we're always trying to find ways of how do you in a fun way like show how easy it is to, you know, be plant-based or be semi face, how easy it is to have a positive impact on the planet.

AV: You did mention a lot about spiritual techniques like yoga, etc.. What are the set of spiritual techniques that you embody beyond the context of performance? So could you elaborate on that?

TC: Yeah. I mean, as far as and it's funny, I'm speaking to the motherland of yoga. You know, it's funny, when I first moved to L.A., I didn't do yoga. And I thought it was ridiculous because it was just like competitive over here and it was more about who had the cuter outfit and was ridiculous. And I was like, I don't like this is really fake, but what has it done for me over the years, because it's something you can obviously bring everywhere.

AV: Interestingly, in the place where I am, I am in right now we have one of the finest yoga centres called Isha Yoga, which is being run by Sadhguru. I don't know if you've heard of him.

TC: Oh yes, I know Sadhguru. Yeah, yeah.

AV: From what it seems you've always appeared as a very flamboyant personality on stage or be it anywhere, you know, in any public forum. How important is it for, one, to groom themself and be at their before presenting themselves in front of an audience?

TC: It's funny because I'm flamboyant on stage, but I'm the opposite otherwise. I mean, I'm very chatty. Obviously. That's kind of part of being Irish for a talkative nation, but I'm very introverted. But the stage is almost like an alter ego. But as far as like presentation, it's not something I have really thought about. It's just how I have always liked to express myself and make my own stage clothes.

AV: Here are a few rapid fire questions. What is that one song that always makes you cry?

TC: Oh, God, right now ‘Still in the night’ because I still love so attached to it. Yeah.

AV: What is your favourite guilty pleasure song?

TC: Oh, God. Carry on, my wayward son, Kansas.

AV: Let me test your Whitesnake IQ. Name Whitesnake songs, which has the word love in it.

TC: Okay. ‘Deeper the love’, ‘Guilty of love’. Uh, I don't think we heard again. ‘God ain't no love in the heart of the city’. Oh, my God. ‘Give me all your love’.

AV: What kind of snack would you be open to?

TC: Anything like nuts and seeds, fruits, but some like healthy green. You know, some of those powders I can bring you on the road just because you never know when you're going to get delayed or whatnot. And for me, I always bring I love essential oils. You're going on stage and stuff to stretch. I always have a yoga mat and a foam roller in my wardrobe case, and moisturizer, different climates.

AV: What is your favourite cuisine?

TC: That's a tough one, because food is like favourite cuisine. I actually love Indian food. It's one of my favourites. But yeah, I love just like when you consider whole food space creating. But I love the spice and I love actually one of my favourites would be Indian.

AV: I have one last question for you, what would you want to be remembered as.

TC: Someone who made a difference while they were here? Well, you made a difference and made it just because all of them when you strip away all of the music, all of the performing, it's wonderful to have. But I want them to be remembered for at least trying to make the place, the planet a better place and opening, you know, people's minds and hearts a little more.

AV: So before we conclude, I'd love for you to sort of give a concluding note for a lot of aspiring musicians and activists and a lot of people who could possibly be motivated by what you have to say.

TC: I often tell musicians, aspiring musicians who want to do professionally or not like to not put all the pressure on being a professional full time musician, because that will essentially maybe stress you if you're pushing too far in a genre, the best thing you can do is get out and play, play with different bands.

AV: It's been an absolute privilege and I hope to stay in touch with you and have you in India very soon.

TC: God, I love the idea of going to designer guru and I'm going to give notes. Oh, my God. Yes, I would love to, because India, unfortunately, is not yet in which I hate love to love to go. But thank you for having me and tell your listeners because it's and it was a really fun interview I think.

Interviewed by Aditya Veera.

Aditya is on his way to being one of the first Indian music podcasters focusing exclusively on interacting with internationally-acclaimed musicians of Western Music, with his unique interviewing style that brings out honest & insightful conversations. In just a year, he’s interviewed legends like the best-selling instrumental guitarist of all time Joe Satriani, American jazz and rock drummer Cindy Blackman Santana, R&B Hall of Fame inductee Phil Perry, American jazz keyboardist and four-time Grammy award winner Bob James, acclaimed American jazz guitarist ‘Captain Fingers’ Lee Ritenour, guitar extraordinaire and songwriter Doyle Bramhall II, the legendary Eric Martin from Mr Big, and many more.  

With a passion for music that started at a very young age, influenced by the diverse musical tastes of his family, Aditya started out as a singer-songwriter, forming the incredibly successful funk-blues band Thayirsadam Blues that played around 200 shows in Bangalore, Mumbai and Pune. When he’s not working on his podcast, you can find Aditya hosting and managing the best-and-upcoming indie artists of India, providing them opportunities to tap into the international music market as well. As much as he loves music, he’s also a big techie with a day job as a software developer/coder for PricewaterhouseCoopers (one of the Big Fours).