Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Michael Tiernan doesn’t toot his own horn

Instead, he writes songs for other people — and companies

Michael Tiernan: man of multiple musical muses.
Michael Tiernan: man of multiple musical muses.

The last time Michael Tiernan released an album was just before the pandemic hit in 2020. Before that, the San Diego based musician wrote music that was mostly about his life experiences, including surviving cancer as a teenager and traveling the country in a van with “wacky Catholic hippies.” In his college years, he jumped across the pond to Europe and found himself among monks in desert monasteries. Following that, Tiernan wound up living in the Vatican and studying to be a priest before realizing his calling was instead music.

“I started this in 2003,” he explains. “I thought, ‘I’m gonna be a rock star. I’m gonna go for it and see what happens.’ Okay, maybe not a rock star, but a folk star. I wanted to be able to travel and fill theaters and connect through music and telling stories. Then I realized it didn’t matter how successful I got. For me, the process is what’s magical.”

Today, Tiernan writes music about other people — and companies. He regards both as an unending source of captivating stories. During the pandemic, he says “I started putting myself out there to some of the companies I was working with to write custom songs. I wasn’t out there gigging. But if there was something somebody was celebrating, or something a company was going through, I could write something for them. Then I got a couple bites. That’s where the idea came from. The antenna went up, and I found I just wanted to write about the stories of others.”

Sponsored
Sponsored

In March of this year, Tiernan released the single “The Perfect Path” about the 1995 San Diego murder of Tariq Khamisa. The father of the victim, Azim Khamisa, “came to this space of forgiveness,” says Tiernan. “He started this huge foundation. They’ve spoken to millions of at-risk kids, teaching them about tools of non-violence. I heard him speak, and I thought, ‘I gotta get to know this guy. I want to write him a song.’ It’s stories like that, picking up on other people’s energy and finding what’s inspiring in them, that make you want to amplify their message. Where it’s heading for me is geared towards people who are suffering or grieving.”

Tiernan’s eighth studio album For Others is set to be released on November 9. Some of the song themes from the new album include: a teenage son lost to suicide, an elderly ex-nun reflecting on her long life and sharing her wisdom as she loses her eyesight, and a modern mystic who hears the stars talking. “I wrote the song ‘Children of the Stars’ for a town,” Tiernan says. “They were petitioning to become an international dark sky community. When they got designation, we had a big festival. The painting on the album cover comes from an artist in the town who has an insane story. He was a former high-powered lawyer who sold everything to go live in the desert. He can meditate and hear the frequency of the stars, like music.”

The album release includes a live show at the new TERI Campus of Life’s Bornemann Theatre in San Marcos. The 200-seat theatre is a part of a campus whose mission is to transform lives through performing arts, fine arts, fitness, nutrition, organic agriculture, and social gatherings. Says Tiernan, “It’s this beautiful new theatre. I went and saw Gregory Page there a couple months ago.” Many of the people who inspired the tracks from the new album will be in attendance. “My goal is to have the people who I wrote them for introduce their song. One of the songs is a legacy song, which is a type of songwriting where you interview somebody who’s nearing the end of their life. You get them to talk about life and perspective. I did that with the song ‘Mary Jane,’ who’s my aunt. I went through an official process with her with a guy who was teaching me how to write legacy songs.”

Spirituality has always been at the core of Tiernan’s music throughout his journey. “It’s not Christian rock,” he insists. “To me, it’s more about openness and making connections. We all have it from whatever angle we’re coming from. The whole idea of it and putting songwriting at the service to inspire people is exciting. I’m excited to share the songs and other people’s stories. It just feels good.”

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Chunky yellowtail from Alijos Rocks

Imperial Beach Pier thresher shark
Next Article

Pedicab drivers in downtown San Diego miss the music

New rules have led to 50% drop in business
Michael Tiernan: man of multiple musical muses.
Michael Tiernan: man of multiple musical muses.

The last time Michael Tiernan released an album was just before the pandemic hit in 2020. Before that, the San Diego based musician wrote music that was mostly about his life experiences, including surviving cancer as a teenager and traveling the country in a van with “wacky Catholic hippies.” In his college years, he jumped across the pond to Europe and found himself among monks in desert monasteries. Following that, Tiernan wound up living in the Vatican and studying to be a priest before realizing his calling was instead music.

“I started this in 2003,” he explains. “I thought, ‘I’m gonna be a rock star. I’m gonna go for it and see what happens.’ Okay, maybe not a rock star, but a folk star. I wanted to be able to travel and fill theaters and connect through music and telling stories. Then I realized it didn’t matter how successful I got. For me, the process is what’s magical.”

Today, Tiernan writes music about other people — and companies. He regards both as an unending source of captivating stories. During the pandemic, he says “I started putting myself out there to some of the companies I was working with to write custom songs. I wasn’t out there gigging. But if there was something somebody was celebrating, or something a company was going through, I could write something for them. Then I got a couple bites. That’s where the idea came from. The antenna went up, and I found I just wanted to write about the stories of others.”

Sponsored
Sponsored

In March of this year, Tiernan released the single “The Perfect Path” about the 1995 San Diego murder of Tariq Khamisa. The father of the victim, Azim Khamisa, “came to this space of forgiveness,” says Tiernan. “He started this huge foundation. They’ve spoken to millions of at-risk kids, teaching them about tools of non-violence. I heard him speak, and I thought, ‘I gotta get to know this guy. I want to write him a song.’ It’s stories like that, picking up on other people’s energy and finding what’s inspiring in them, that make you want to amplify their message. Where it’s heading for me is geared towards people who are suffering or grieving.”

Tiernan’s eighth studio album For Others is set to be released on November 9. Some of the song themes from the new album include: a teenage son lost to suicide, an elderly ex-nun reflecting on her long life and sharing her wisdom as she loses her eyesight, and a modern mystic who hears the stars talking. “I wrote the song ‘Children of the Stars’ for a town,” Tiernan says. “They were petitioning to become an international dark sky community. When they got designation, we had a big festival. The painting on the album cover comes from an artist in the town who has an insane story. He was a former high-powered lawyer who sold everything to go live in the desert. He can meditate and hear the frequency of the stars, like music.”

The album release includes a live show at the new TERI Campus of Life’s Bornemann Theatre in San Marcos. The 200-seat theatre is a part of a campus whose mission is to transform lives through performing arts, fine arts, fitness, nutrition, organic agriculture, and social gatherings. Says Tiernan, “It’s this beautiful new theatre. I went and saw Gregory Page there a couple months ago.” Many of the people who inspired the tracks from the new album will be in attendance. “My goal is to have the people who I wrote them for introduce their song. One of the songs is a legacy song, which is a type of songwriting where you interview somebody who’s nearing the end of their life. You get them to talk about life and perspective. I did that with the song ‘Mary Jane,’ who’s my aunt. I went through an official process with her with a guy who was teaching me how to write legacy songs.”

Spirituality has always been at the core of Tiernan’s music throughout his journey. “It’s not Christian rock,” he insists. “To me, it’s more about openness and making connections. We all have it from whatever angle we’re coming from. The whole idea of it and putting songwriting at the service to inspire people is exciting. I’m excited to share the songs and other people’s stories. It just feels good.”

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

San Diego Holiday Experiences

As soon as Halloween is over, it's Christmas time in my mind
Next Article

Remote work = cleaner air for San Diego

Locals working from home went from 8.1 percent to 17.8 percent
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader