NILES — Kody Bryant played his first full gig as a musician on a 100-degree day in August 2018. Both nerves and heat had him “sweating bullets,” he said.

Bryant had recently left a job as an engineering recruiter, working 80-hour weeks to find a more balanced lifestyle that included music. He had filled in for a friend, borrowed a sound system and scrambled to get his sheet music ready.

Now, nearly two-and-a-half years later, he is a full-time musician playing in Michiana and beyond. With his guitar in hands, a microphone in front of him and a host of songs over an array of genres in his head, Bryant will perform for an Iron Shoe Distillery audience at 8 p.m. Friday, 3 N. Third St., Niles for the Hunter Ice Festival, which runs from Friday to Sunday.

Bryant, a 23-year-old Leesburg, Indiana resident, said his goal is to relate his music to people, regardless of their personal genre tastes, through emotion and meaning.

“My heart is in capturing emotion in what I play, whether that be happy or sad songs,” he said.

Bryant’s musical ventures began when he was in elementary school, where a choir class and his teacher instilled his passion for singing. That led to playing bass in a youth praise band and, in 2016, learning how to play the guitar.

In 2018, he began taking the stage as a performer. What started as open mic nights advanced to performing between bands’ breaks, and later to headlining performances.

Bryant used his past recruiter experience to make cold calls and negotiate with the various bar, brewery and event managers that booked him.

From Tom Petty to Bill Withers to Imagine Dragons, Bryant said he sought — and still seeks — to play songs that have a message.

“It’s a lesson learned,” he said. “It’s a mantra. I like songs with a story.”

Music has helped Bryant himself. According to his biography on his Facebook page, it helped him get through tough personal moments, stressful times and high school weight room sessions.

Friends and family have helped him, too. They are people like Michiana musician Paul Erdman, who heard him play half a Chris Stapleton song and encouraged Heavenly Goat Brewing to book him. Now, Erdman and Bryant often play together.

They are people like Cassie Le Mills, of CLM Creative, who designed Bryant’s logo and cards and took photos “out of the kindness of her heart,” he said.

They are groups like Checkmark Sallie and Justin Staublin Band, who let him perform on their breaks from stage and whose members have consulted him on maneuvering in the music industry.

“All the musicians and all the people that have supported me thus far, I really want to thank them,” Bryant said.

Now, Bryant is excited to perform at a festival that emphasizes relationships between people.

“I’m a really big proponent for community events, especially when they’re kid-friendly,” he said. “It’s something other than whooping and hollering.”

Few events are open to all ages like the Hunter Ice Festival, he said, meaning that families have the chance to enjoy something together.

Bryant has been to Niles numerous times, but Friday will be his first Hunter Ice Festival experience. He said he plans to check out the goings-on outside of Iron Shoe if he can.

It will be his second time performing at Iron Shoe, the first being Oct. 18, 2019.

“The intimacy of the venue is really awesome,” he said. “It definitely benefits a solo acoustics show, too. I really like the aesthetics there and the aura. It definitely seemed like people were there to listen.”

The burgers are worth noting, too, he said.

Among Bryant’s 2020 plans are an EP release by fall and a southern states tour, ranging from big city Texas to mountainous small towns, all experienced from a cargo van.