Bridge The Atlantic Brendan Brown: Wheatus, Management & Learning from Experience
Feb 7, 2017
32:39
Our guest this week is Brendan Brown of Wheatus. Wheatus are perhaps best known for their hit “Teenage Dirtbag” but their story goes far deeper. The band have remained unsigned & unmanaged for the last 8 years, and continue to write, record, and tour 15 years after their inception.The band are in the process of releasing Volumes 1-8 of Pop, Songs & Death, a series of EPs available exclusively from wheatus.com as multi-format “pay-what-you-want” digital downloads. With a band biography that includes lawsuits, lineup changes, interstate art heist investigations and more, Brendan shares his experiences of the music industry and the advice he'd offer to his fellow musicians.Highlights:- Our introduction for Brendan is outdated, but for once it isn’t completely Ross’s fault!- “We are still stubbornly obsessed with making records in an analog format” - Brendan B Brown- Brendan wants to buy an artifact from Ross’s music geek childhood- Brendan tells us about Wheatus’s major label experience and why they have remained unsigned since- We hear how Wheatus were excited about Napster as it enabled more people to have their music than just outside their local scene- Brendan tells us how the label wanted to change his appearance, and he wasn’t comfortable with that- We hear how Brendan and Wheatus juggle all the different tasks that need to be done as an unmanaged band- We talk about the pros and cons of having a manager, and some of the challenges Wheatus have faced- “Everything goes into your experience basket and you use it to be positive in the future, so you don’t fuck up again” - Brendan Brown- Brendan shares a story about a legal battle involving their former manager- “If a manager is not doing the job and bringing that percentage in, they’re an unaffordable cost” - Brendan Brown- “Your manager has to be a member of the family, and has to be truly trusted” - Brendan Brown- Ross and Marcio accidentally create some new social networks through getting tongue tiedAdvice:- Conventionality is the danger - you have to find your own way, built on mistakes and the unexpected- You have to let go of the things you thought would happen, and go with what comes your way- Learn how to use the broken version of your dreamsGuest Links:- Website: http://wheatus.com- Facebook: /wheatus- Twitter: @wheatus- Instagram: @wheatusofficialSponsors:- Chris Keaton @ Chris Keaton Presents- Christine Infanger @ Thirty Roses- Joe Settineri- Music Launch Hub- Buck Naked Soap Company---For more episodes, visit http://bridge-the-atlantic.comFollow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/bridge_atlanticSubscribe on iTunes: http://bridge-the-atlantic.com/itunesSupport us on Patreon: http://patreon.com/bridgetheatlantic
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