SAN ANGELO, TX — "I started playing music when I was in 4th grade, my dad was in the Air Force, so we moved around a lot, so I was in a lot of different programs"
Taylor Mcmanaway is a Cooper High School graduate.
"I didn’t start taking music seriously until I moved to Texas and my dad retired in Abilene," said Mcmanaway.
Who went on to pursue a Performance degree at Texas A&M Commerce.
"I was pretty much a starving broke musician after college, auditioned for the marine band and now I’m here," said Mcmanaway.
Now he's been in the marine corps for almost a year and in his first month he performed in 2 NFL half time shows.
"I did the San Francisco 49ers during the salute to service and then I also did the Arizona Cardinals,” said Mcmanaway. “Those are probably the coolest gigs I’ve ever done in my life."
One thing Lance Corporal Mcmanaway says most people don’t know about musicians in the military is that they also must go through 13 weeks of intense boot camp.
"The toughest thing about being in the band is the same thing about just being a marine in general, upkeep of physical standards, upkeep of rifle standards things like that," said Mcmanaway.
Every morning they do physical exercise and then rehearse depending on the gigs they’ve booked.
"It’s the best option, like I get paid to play music and work out I mean that’s about as good as it gets if you’re a musician," said Mcmanaway.
So what’s next after the Marine Corps?
“This is the after,” said Mcmanaway. “The Marine Corps has given me and my wife so many opportunities I feel like me giving at least 20 years is the least I can give back.