Today we’d like to introduce you to Eric Lee Carpenter.
Hi Eric Lee, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in an incredible family with three brothers and very present, loving parents. Sports were a major emphasis in our family, as my dad grew up in Brazil where soccer is every bit as part of the culture as anything. My brothers and I all played soccer, but I always had a deep love for music. From an early age, I would listen to the radio and have a keen sense of how the songs all came together. I continued on the path toward soccer, all the while with music in the back of my head. I ended up signing a scholarship to play soccer at Bethel University in Indiana, and shortly after I signed a professional soccer contract to play in the USL division.
After two years of living that childhood dream, I called it quits and moved to Nashville. It was finally time to start pursuing this nagging reoccurring music nudge that I’d been feeling ever since I could remember. I started learning guitar and began devoting all my time and energy to the craft. Before long I was playing on the Broadway strip, in and out of bars, and on my local church worship team.
Fast forward to COVID, and I realized the main thing holding me back was my lack of knowledge of music production. I had messed around in GarageBand a bit, but nothing major. I began spending all of my time writing and producing music for myself. The songs I were releasing started to gain a bit of attention, and that led other artists to begin inquiring about working with me. That led me to relocating my wife and five month old son to Los Angeles, where I am currently. I am a full-time songwriter and producer and I consider myself so blessed.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
It has certainly not been a smooth road. Self-employment in general is up and down, layered with joy and self-doubt simultaneously. There are months of plenty, and months where I’m not sure where the money will come from. But overall, I spend my days making music and I realize how much of a privilege that is. Music is what lights me up, it’s what comforts me in times of anxiety. I love what I do.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a songwriter, music producer, and recording artist. Most of my days involve an artist or another songwriter here in my home studio, and we’re creating music together. Sometimes I write and produce for a fellow artist’s original project, sometimes I write music for TV/film, and I also produce music for creative agencies. I specialize in pop songwriting and production. Catchy melodies, fun rhythms, and big choruses.
Two moments in particular stick out to me that I’m most proud of:
– I had my original song “Can I Be Honest’ featured on FOX’s hit TV show Farmer Wants a Wife. It was the first time my music was played on national television, and it was a very surreal moment.
– I wrote and released a song called ‘Don’t Push It Away,’ which talks about the grief of being a foster parent to a kid that left my home. Writing the song was part of my healing journey, and the song just means a lot to me.
The thing that sets me apart from other writers and producers is that I’m a great listener. I don’t have the best chops or skills or technical ability, but my ability to hear an artist and be able to translate their desires into a song is a special quality.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
I get asked this question quite often these days and my answer is always the same… become obsessed with your craft and connect with people. I know there’s a lot of noise out there today, lots of people doing the thing that you want to be doing. Tons of people marketing themselves really well on social media. But at the end of the day, if you become obsessed with your craft and develop an ability to connect with people, your art will be heard.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: instagram.com/ericleecarpenter
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6SQ1ULdrLjY0whogorQ2QD?si=h1GPFQf1TmOjyvSNoa4-lg
Image Credits
Photographer – Richard Gierman Media
