Life & Work with Billy Wilson

Today we’d like to introduce you to Billy Wilson.

Hi Billy, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Hey thanks for having me! I’m Billy Wilson and I’m a recording artist. I’m a singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer. I was born on September 14th, 1995 at 12:44 p.m. in Thousand Oaks, CA for all you astrology weirdos. Another fun fact, I’m an ENTJ 3w4 for all you personality type fans out there. Anyways, when I was six years old my dad bought a copy of Room For Squares by John Mayer. He played that CD in his truck everyday for about two years straight. That album was really the blueprint for me. I started playing guitar at eight and was writing my own songs by ten or something like that. By the time I was in high school, I knew exactly what I wanted. I started singing and recording my own songs and playing my first coffeehouse shows. I started a duo with my friend Cameron Levy. We picked up some traction when Selena Gomez tweeted one of our videos. I dropped out of college and we went on “The Middle School World Tour” which wasn’t really a world tour at all, we just played a ton of middle schools in Southern California. We’d play for fifteen minutes and sign autographs for forty-five; it was unreal. After that, Cam decided to focus on being on the business side of music and I went solo. I recorded an EP called Hopelessly Optimistic and played a lot of shows both acoustically and with a band. I even did “Middle School World Tour 2” solo this time. I then recorded three singles with Robert Davis (Animal Waves, Lauryn Hill) and Mark Needham (Fleetwood Mac, the Killers) called New York Love, In the End, and My Favorite Drug. I started playing with my current band in summer of 2018. We played a lot in LA during that time, mainly on the Sunset Strip, at venues like the Whisky a-Go-Go and the Viper Room. We hit “Middle School World Tour 3” together in the Fall. Then I started recording this album at Henson Studios that I’m still working on. It’s my first one and I’m two years into it. There’s 22 tracks so far. So it might be two albums, who knows?

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Of course not. Nothing worth doing ever is. I was pretty wild a few years ago. I was getting absolutely loaded every day, which made making music virtually impossible. Ever since I cleaned up my act, everything got a lot easier.

Can you give our readers some background on your music?
I write, arrange, and produce all of my songs. The music that I make is quite diverse, really. There are elements of Pop, Rock, Blues, R&B, Funk, Jazz, and Country. I have a ton of different musical interests and will embrace whatever style I think is right for the song. When I play live with my band, I sing and play guitar. The current lineup consists of myself, Zach Fenske on guitar, Brady Young on bass, and Levi Matulis on drums. I’m very excited about the album that I’m currently working on. It initially began as a ten song project in late November of 2018 and was completed as a thirteen song album in January 2020. However, due to Covid-19 and a forced cancellation of the upcoming summer dates we were rehearsing for, I decided to record an additional nine songs. I’ve been recording at Henson, The Village, The Music Box, Mad Muse, Little Big Room, and Kingsize Soundlabs over the course of the last two years. I’ve played 22 different instruments on the album so far. I enjoy taking obscure instruments such as Bouzouki, Optigan, Marxophone, etc. and placing them into an accessible musical context. It’s always fun to pick up a new instrument because the interface is always different. The instrument’s unique layout of notes inevitably leads to new melodic ideas. I’m also obsessed with guitar effects pedals. These stompboxes are often tiny instruments within themselves and continue to be endlessly inspiring for me. Drum machines and samplers are my newest fascination. I intend to have a prolonged career, akin to my favorite artists such as Dylan, Bowie and Prince, who constantly reinvented their musical styles, always pushed boundaries, and amassed immense catalogs of 30 to 40 albums each. I’m proud of the fact that I’ve stayed true to myself and the music and have retained my artistic integrity in the process. I’m proud of where I’ve been and where I’m going.

Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
Oh wow, that’s a great question. I don’t know that I could narrow it down to just one but I would say just keep going no matter what. I’ve played the worst shows in the world. I played for four years old at a YMCA in a jolly jump. I played at a legitimately empty pizza restaurant where the cooks were out back smoking. But I kept playing over and over and eventually sold out the Whisky a-Go-Go. And maybe someday I’ll sell out Madison Square Garden. You have to swing to hit the ball, you know? Another big one is that you have to put in the time. I went on a SXSW tour as a guitar player for another artist and I was terrible. I mean, I bombed every single night. It was my first time playing lead on stage and it was so different than being the frontman and singing and strumming along. So I went home and I locked myself in my room for two years. I ran scales, learned licks, did exercises, everything you can think of. And now I can play whatever I want. I’ve done my 10,000 hours. I’ve doubled it. You have to be willing to outwork everyone around you, and then yourself and anything you’ve done before.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: www.billywilsonmusic.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/butterbill/

Image Credits
Sebastian Vargas, Emily Fodran, Riley Taylor, Stevie Mendez