If you’ve ever sought an eloquently different brand of country, look no further than Brian Collins.
The independent artist, whom received for previous single “Shine A Little Love,” sat down with TCN during the annual Country Radio Seminar to discuss his next project and life on the independent side.
TCN: So “Shine A Little Love”…
BC: That thing did great. It got to #9 on the Music Row chart. Apparently I’m the only independent artist to do that in many, many years, and I just couldn’t be happier and I’m just very thankful that radio and the listeners are requesting it. It seemed to happen really organic, and it’s just a great message.
TCN: It shows kind of like the power of your determination and your fan base as well.
BC: I mean there just so many people that you start realizing that are out there listening and the words were grabbing people. People were making their own videos to this, to the message.
TCN: Did you get to watch any of them?
BC: Yeah they would tag me on the videos and I would see kids making music videos to my song. And even adults and they were just using it for very positive things.
TCN: So how did that make you feel? Watching all this?
BC: Mission accomplished. That’s all. I’m out there… The song’s called “Shine A Little Love.” I can’t explain it any more than that. It’s all self-explanatory. It was just a great message that I was hoping that would catch on. We haven’t heard the last of that either. I’m going to bring that back up again sometime. If I gotta be the “Shine A little Love” guy – I can live with that. I love hearing people sing it. You get something positive back from it when you sing it. You just see the smiles on people’s faces. And especially – I love kids, so when you see kids out there and they’re singing it, it’s really just something to see. And it just kind of spring boarded me to my next project, which is also a positive thing, which is the “Healing Highway” which is my title track.
BC: You know the fans are the main factor in that. You want to get your music out there. It’s so hard because without the big machine behind you that’s paying for these big ads and these big marketing things you have to kinda be savvy about how you go about doing your marketing – marketing on a budget. But there’s ways to do it via social media and at the end of the day a good song is just gonna rise to the top. The song is king, and that’s why I take such good care when I’m releasing material and it’s legitimate and something that I want to sing for the rest of my life, and that I can identify. So being an independent you’re just up against a huge wall so you need to do your best at whatever it is and do your best at it.
TCN: Forgive me because I always hate asking artists about how they feel about other artists, but another huge independent artist who just made it through is Granger Smith. He finally was signed to Broken Bow. Is that something ideally that you’d hope would happen with your career? To have a major label?
BC: I’ve been in talks with majors and currently am in talks with majors. But it’s trying to find that – I still want that freedom to do what I want to do and I feel like I’ve had some proving ground that has shown I may know a little bit about what I’m talking about, so that helps when you have radio on your side and a fan base. But at the end of the day, signing isn’t making it. You could get signed by a major and get shelved the next day. There’s a lot more to it than just getting signed. I do music because I love it and I’m an independent artist and I work hard because at the end of the day that’s what I want. I want a catalog that I can be proud of and I want fans to look at my show and go “Man, I got my money’s worth.” If I can keep doing that and bigger, that would be great.
TCN: If there were any career goals or ambitions that might have what would some of them be?
BC: I just want to keep traveling. I want to have a concrete foundation where I can have a career where people will still come and see me years to come and enjoy the music. And just have my career in music cemented. And if that’s being an independent the rest of my life, or being a major, that’s great too. You know it’s great to shoot for that big pie in the sky and it’s real. You can get to it, but you have to love music. If it’s about the money, then you’re in the wrong business because it’s hit or miss. I want to create a song that’s better than the last song and I like to affect people. I like to see the reaction of people and that’s what makes me happy is moving people through music.
TCN: What would be, from your experience, the biggest advice that you can give someone who’s considering a career in music, or just starting out?
BC: Don’t chase trends. Be yourself, and write music that moves people and moves yourself. If you don’t believe in the songs that you’re singing, no one else is going to believe you. And that’s the thing – when you can take an honest look in the mirror and put that song to the test, and know that it’s a great song, get behind it. Not every song has to be the epic end-all be-all, but just have fun doing it and make sure you have the love for it and you’re doing it for the right reasons. Because if you’re doing it for other reasons you’re just chasing ghosts, because a lot of times what people think that they’re chasing isn’t really what they’re after, and it has nothing to do with music at all.
For more information on Brian Collins, visit his official website, Facebook, or Twitter.