An Inspired Chat with Will Carpenter of Los Angeles

We recently had the chance to connect with Will Carpenter and have shared our conversation below.

Will, it’s always a pleasure to learn from you and your journey. Let’s start with a bit of a warmup: What do you think is misunderstood about your business? 
I think the biggest thing that folks get wrong about music is that it IS actually a business, and quite a complicated one at that.

Not only does the creation and performance side take an enormous amount of skill, and often lifetimes to cultivate those skills, but the logistical side – from metadata, to how the income structure works, ‘song’ vs. ‘recording’, splits, royalties, PROs, registrations, license agreements, legal contracts in general and all the various streaming and sales channels – is incredibly and increasingly complex.

Add to that the idea that, as artists, we need to find a balance between these creations that often feel as precious as children in a way and our own humanity vs. both of these aspects of our work actually being the product or brand and it gets complicated emotionally as well.

It’s also quite stressful (especially at higher levels of fame) to put yourself and your deepest creative expressions on display – so I think when folks mischaracterize or perhaps romanticize a career in music or entertainment as “oh, you get to just play / have fun all day” it’s missing the layers in all of that.

Yes, most artists or creators in a way get to “live the dream” but as most of us know (or learn over time), dreams don’t always feel the same when we live them in real life, and there are aspects of any career (even the most serendipitous one) that will bring you less joy than the parts that you originally got into it for.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Will Carpenter and I’m a songwriter, producer, mix-engineer, multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and the driving force behind Ships Have Sailed. I work out of a studio here in Los Angeles called Tiny Island Studios, and I frequently create with other artists to help them realize their creative visions in addition to pursing my own.

I’m fortunate to get to do what I love, and have worked hard to get here – having pursued a parallel career in software architecture to help ensure bills get paid as I’ve continued to build the musical aspect of my professional world.

I came from a humble upbringing in northern New England, one of five siblings raised by a single mother, and I feel fortunate for the life experience afforded me by growing up in hardship – I draw from these experiences frequently in my writing, and I’ve found that they continue to be valuable as challenges arise even now that the waters generally are a bit more smooth.

The name “Tiny Island Studios” (which is my most recent professional endeavor) came from a song lyric of mine, which refers to humans as “tiny islands in the night, reflected like we are the light”. The idea is that we truly are tiny islands – we can choose to be insular and isolated, but when we open ourselves up to others and join our “islands” together, that’s where true magic can be found.

Creativity can be very vulnerable, so I’ve crafted Tiny Island Studios to be a safe and unassuming place for creatives to open up and find new ways to express themselves…it’s relatively new, but already there are some amazing songs being created within these walls, and I can’t wait to see where the journey leads from here.

Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
This answer will definitely be about self-worth. Growing up economically challenged, you tend to notice from a very young age that people look at you differently when you’re wearing your sisters’ hand-me-downs or paying for your milk at the store across the street with food stamps. In a small town, these impressions spread quickly, and I grew up very conscious of my family’s economic status, and particularly how it seemed to make an impression on the people around me…impacting the way I was treated almost by default.

This was a really tough experience at the time, but it did give me a powerful motivation to lift myself out of those circumstances and build a better life for myself. Over time, even as my own economic situation has improved, I do my best to remind myself that human beings are much, much more than their circumstances, and that everyone is worthy of love, respect and dignity. This is a theme that tends to permeate through my writing, even in subtle ways, and I hope it is reflected in my daily interactions with the world as well.

As I move forward in life, I’ve been looking for ways to give back to those in my community who have less than I might, and that’s an area I would love to improve upon in the coming years.

Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
So many times I can hardly count.

Honestly the thing that most commonly gets me through the low moments is reminding myself that I came from nothing…I’ve literally been homeless, with no money, no bank account, nothing – and that was a long time ago…but I scraped myself into a job (a humble one at the time) worked my way into relative economic stability and put myself through college.

It’s never been easy, but the one thing I’ve learned is that I’m more resourceful and resilient than I thought I’d be…and if I remind myself that I’ve overcome all of that, then all of a sudden the challenge in front of me starts to feel a little less daunting.

Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. Is the public version of you the real you?
Yes, always. I’ve never believed in masks, and I think folks deserve to see the real human – it makes sure there are fewer surprises as we get to know each other better.

Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
I hope people remember me as a genuine, well-intentioned human being, however flawed I am.

A writer who tries to put good out into the world with every creation, a husband who does my best to nurture my family, a father who tries to give my children a better life (and a better world) than I had growing up, and a human being who cultivates joy and resilience wherever I can, and does my best to better myself every time I look in the mirror.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.tinyislandstudios.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tinyislandstudios
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/will-carpenter-music/

Image Credits
Photos 1-3 (non-studio photos): Gentle Giant Digital