Today we’d like to introduce you to Brent Butler.
Brent, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
When I was maybe 12 or 13 years old, I began trying to play drums. Initially, my goal was just to impress friends, but before long my goal was to be Tré Cool from Green Day. Punk and pop punk was a huge influence in my life as a teenager, and throughout most of high school, I fronted my own three-piece punk band, Lehigh, on guitar and vocals.
After heading to New York University I became obsessed with hip hop and rapping, and without Lehigh backing me, I started producing beats on my laptop. Fast forward to 2015 and I was partnered with fellow rapper, Deascent. He and I were playing shows all around NYC and released a cowritten EP we were super proud of called The Cold Press.
With the attention and praise The Cold Press EP received, I set my sights on Los Angeles with the hopes of taking my music career to the next level, both as a writer and producer for other artists and as a performer myself.
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?
Definitely not a smooth road. It’s famously difficult to make a living as a musician, but it’s really not something you can pursue in good faith without giving it 100%. Therefore, balancing music with school work or balancing music with working full time proved nearly impossible most of the time.
Even just moving to LA cost me a steady job, which was really scary, but it’s almost scarier not to take a swing at your dreams.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Nowadays I’m best known as a rapper and producer, although I still play guitar in almost every project I’m involved with.
If I have a specialty, it’s definitely my production style which tends to combine hip-hop with a lot of my pop-punk and classic rock influences!
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
I’m an avid user of Ableton Live for recording/composing/producing/mixing.
Otherwise, I think YouTube is probably the most influential app or technology in my life. It’s the source of media I consume from most and when it comes to learning something new about production or musicianship I often turn to YouTube and the awesome community of producers, guitar teachers, music critics, etc. that constantly create and share amazing free content. You can basically learn everything in life on YouTube.
Pricing:
- Producing/Mixing – $100/hr
- Songwriting – $100/hr or $500 per song
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brentbutlermusic/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brentbutlermusic/
- Twitter: https://www.tiktok.com/@brentbutlermusic
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@BrentButler
- SoundCloud: https://www.soundcloud.com/brentbutlermusic/
- Other: https://twitter.com/brentbbutler
Image Credits
Cory Barker, Edsger
