Rising Music Star Amanda Brown On The Five Things You Need To Shine In The Music Industry
An Interview With Ming Zhao
“Create what you want”: I was very insecure when I was younger. I wanted people to like me and like what I created. As a result, I was heavily influenced by what the people around me thought I should be doing and the type of music I should be making. It took me a long time to realize that that model isn’t sustainable nor is it real.
As a part of our interview series with leaders, stars, and rising stars in the music industry, we had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Amanda Brown.
Her success on The Voice established singer/recording artist Amanda Brown as a captivating front woman; however in professional recording studios across the country, major recording artists have been drawing on Amanda’s talent for years. After her exemplary training at NYC’s world renowned FAME school and esteemed HBCU Howard University, she began working on the road and in the studio as a backing vocalist for legendary artists including Stevie Wonder, Adele, Alicia Keys, Tori Kelly, Michael Bolton, Cynthia Erivo and Tyler The Creator (with whom she sang on a Grammy winning album in 2020 for Best Rap Album). During 2018/2019, Brown toured with The Killers, opening their arena shows in promotion of her debut album ‘Dirty Water’. During stints when she isn’t touring, Brown has been diligently developing her skills as a composer for television, film, animation and commercials. Her debut bookings included a title track on NBC’s hit series Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist as well as a national commercial campaign for Nordstrom. From November 2022, fans will be able to find Amanda Brown take to the road once more with beloved singer-songwriter Adele, for whom she will be performing backing vocals during the highly anticipated Las Vegas residency. Listen to Amanda’s newest EP “From Here” on Spotify here.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive in, our readers would love to learn a bit about your “origin story”. Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?
I grew up in the Bronx, in New York City. My mom’s family is from Puerto Rico and my dad’s family from Jamaica. I spent a lot of time in church as a kid. Both of my parents were a part of the music ministry when I was born. After my parents divorced, church remained a constant in my life and I later became a part of the music ministry myself.
From junior high school through high school, I was in church anywhere from three to five days a week. Gospel music and Christian contemporary music definitely had a significant influence on me during my primitive years.
Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career Path?
I think all of my musical experiences influenced my love and appreciation for music in some way. That being said, my high school experience helped me see my gifts in a new light. I attended LaGuardia High School for Music and Art and Performing Arts (It’s called LaGuardia Arts now). I was a voice major and learned how to sing in multiple languages (mainly within the classical genre), performed in front of fellow students and faculty regularly and genuinely learned how to use and take care of my instrument.
While I’ve always loved singing and listening to music, my high school career helped prepare me for the performance aspect. It was shortly after I graduated high school (specifically freshman year of college) that I began to entertain the idea of writing, recording and performing my own music.
Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
I’d say, for me, opening for The Killers was quite interesting and memorable. Interesting because I was also working with them as a backing vocalist and memorable because I’d never opened for an artist/band of their caliber before. I was exhausted because I’d get ready for my opening set then rush backstage to change, catch my breath and then head back on stage with The Killers for their show. At the same time, it was exhilarating!
Hearing my songs and my voice ring out in the Staples Center (now Crypto.com Arena) while audiences smiled back at me and nodded their heads to my tunes is something I will never forget. This one is high ranking as far as interesting career stories go.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
One of my funniest mistakes/memories is from a time when I was singing duets with Michael Bolton on tour. I had to use the restroom badly and the band was about to walk on stage. I went to the stage manager and asked him if I had time to use the restroom.
He replied with a, “yes” and I ran to the nearest bathroom. As I’m in there, I hear the intro music for the opening song of the show. In a panic, I ran back to the stage (not to worry, I washed my hands). It was still dark on stage so I ran towards the riser where I customarily stood, jumped up, misjudged the height of the riser and tripped. My mic was on a stand on the riser and when I fell, a massive thud could be heard throughout the room. Thankfully, there was music playing so the thud was masked a bit but everyone in the band heard it. I looked over at the drummer, Drew McKeon, who is a good friend of mine and he was trying to contain his laughter. To this day, I make sure I have no need for the restroom long before walking to the stage and I never run backstage because clearly, I’m clumsy.
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on Now?
Right now, I’m very excited about the release of my solo EP, “From Here”. I’ve been sitting on this project for a couple of years due to the pandemic and I’m ready to release it into the world. I’m also ready to start exploring new musical ideas and experiences.
I’m curious to see what my next project will shape up to be. I’ve begun entertaining new musical ideas but it’s still early in the process. I’m also excited to be a part of the band for Adele’s Las Vegas residency. We’re slated to start in November and it will be my first time performing regularly in Vegas. I can’t wait. It’s going to be a lot of fun and Adele is an inspiration.
We are very interested in diversity in the entertainment industry. Can you share three reasons with our readers about why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in music, film, and television? How can that potentially affect our culture?
For one, I think a lack of diversity is boring. Seeing and hearing the same people and things over-and-over gets tiring. Also, seeing oneself represented in art and culture results in one feeling seen and heard — feeling connected to others and something greater than oneself. Lastly, there are so many creatives exploring refreshing avenues of music, film, television, visual art, etc. People are saying new and inspiring things with their art that you may not have heard before and those refreshing perspectives only prove to inspire others to create new and inspiring art, which in turn influences our culture for the better, in my opinion.
What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why? Please share a story or example for each.
“Create what you want”: I was very insecure when I was younger. I wanted people to like me and like what I created. As a result, I was heavily influenced by what the people around me thought I should be doing and the type of music I should be making. It took me a long time to realize that that model isn’t sustainable nor is it real.
“Your belief in yourself is all that matters”: The moment I stopped comparing myself to others and began believing that I am deserving of my gifts was the moment I became happier as an individual and as a creative. I am living out my dreams right now: writing, recording and performing music that I created (in collaboration with a fantastic team, of course but my vision). My belief in myself and my dreams helped me accomplish all of that.
“Speak positivity into your life”: As cliche as this may sound, I do believe negative thoughts bring about negativity in one’s life. I used to be very negative. I’d often pass that negativity off as comedy but it was a defense mechanism. Facing myself and my fears with love and compassion instead of judgment and hate allowed me to grow. I still catch myself thinking negatively now-and-then but I try my best not to feed that negativity. It’s made room for other positive things in my life.
“Write a song a day”: Practice may not make perfect but it makes it close to perfect. I got into the songwriting game later in life and there are times when it’s been a struggle. While I don’t regret any part of my journey, I sometimes wish I had certain tools more readily available to me and I think those tools only come with practice and experience.
“Pay for guitar lessons”: Writing while knowing how to play an instrument only proves to help the songwriting process, in my experience. I play mediocre guitar in real life but in my dreams, I can play like Jonny Greenwood. LOL. While teaching oneself has it value, I think having an instructor early on would have allowed me to progress faster, which would have only benefitted my songwriting. Pick up an instrument kids and start practicing now!
Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?
Rest and water. Learn how to use Photoshop and to record yourself well. Practice and experiment, rinse and repeat. Roosevelt said, “comparison is the thief of joy”, and I couldn’t agree more. Don’t do it.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)
Instead of buying more stuff for our nearest and dearest this holiday season (and every holiday season that follows if it were up to me), we each took that money and made a donation to our favorite children’s charity. There are so many unhoused children and children in foster homes all over the world. They need our help and it breaks my heart to think that children are going without hot meals, a clean set of underwear and socks, or in some cases, shelter. If we gave less to each other this holiday season and gave more to some of the most vulnerable of our population, I image that would have a positive knock-on effect on our future as a species. Here’s a good place to start:
https://www.preciousdreamsfoundation.org/
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
I always think of this individual when telling mystery because I don’t believe I’d be exactly where I am now if it weren’t for him. Dave Watson is a musician/saxophonist that I met when I was singing in wedding bands during my college years. On a gig one night, I jokingly asked him (knowing he played with Alicia Keys), “if she’s ever looking for backing singers, can you put in a good word?” He responded with, “actually, she’s auditioning tomorrow at this location. You should go”. So I went the following day and when I arrived, it looked as though there were 500 people in line. The lines wrapped around multiple New York City blocks. So, I waited in line and after some time it was announced that they weren’t going to see people after a certain time. So I called Dave, let him know what was going on and thanked him for the opportunity. I basically said I was going home. He told me to stay and that he was going to make a phone call. He called me back and told me to walk to the front of the line. Next thing I knew, someone came down and brought me upstairs to audition. That audition changed my life! I got the job after a few callbacks and that job opened other doors, which open more doors and here I am — a prime example of when preparation meets opportunity. That being said, Dave believed in me and helped alter the course of my life and I am forever grateful.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
Theodore Roosevelt said, “comparison is the thief of joy”. That quote is incredibly relevant to me and my life because, at one point, I was very insecure and afraid to be myself. I was constantly comparing myself to others (people I admired; people others admired) and I was very depressed. It did nothing for my confidence and creativity. The change didn’t happen overnight but there was a moment when something clicked in my head, and I said to myself, “you are enough”. The floodgates opened and I felt free.
Free to be my fully quirky, sensitive, silly self and express myself however I wanted. To explore what I’d create if I didn’t think about what anyone else might think. That freedom is something I now cling to for dear life.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. :-)
This is a tough one because there are so many people that come to mind but if I had to choose one person from that list it would be Tina Turner. I never had the opportunity to see her perform live but she is a massive inspiration to me. She is an American, a black woman, creative, performer, artist who experienced success, heartache, and loss at various points in her life and career. She is also one of the few black, female, rock and roll artists to see mainstream, worldwide success. There is so much I’d ask her.
How can our readers follow you online?
This was very meaningful, thank you so much! We wish you continued success!
