Today we’d like to introduce you to Troy Amidon.
Hi Troy, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
LUPER DUPREE music was born when my old band Earfood ended after my lead guitar player moved back to San Diego and sort of disappeared. It’s very hard keeping a band together. We had achieved more than most bands. We toured all around the states and released a few good records, and I started my own record label. But everyone in the band was spread out all over SoCal so I decided it was time to go solo and proceeded to play a bunch of shows with just me and my acoustic guitar as LUPER DUPREE. I had no expectations, I just wanted to play. I had a bunch of new songs and it was refreshing to start a whole new thing. I had a great group of friends and fans encouraging me and a cool little scene coming to shows, and eventually a few friends asked to play with me and LUPER became electric. It was fun to start rocking again. But my main goal with my new music was always to make records. I love playing live, but touring all around is a rough lifestyle and due to my constant health battles and multiple surgeries dealing with Crohn’s Disease I didn’t think touring was the best thing for me anymore.
So I made the LUPER DUPREE debut album “LD in LA”. The album came out great and really captured my brand of psychedelic rock. But I never released the album. I wanted to take a little break from music to enjoy my wedding and honeymoon with my amazing wife Allyson. But when we returned from Hawaii my world changed so much as both of my parents died within two months of each other, and then my wife had a very rough pregnancy with our first daughter Scarlet, so I pretty much dropped all my creative endeavors. What was going to be just a little break from music turned into a seven year musical hiatus after two more kids, TJ and Aurora came along. I honestly thought my musical career was over. I didn’t care though, I was enjoying just being a dad. Plus, my thumb metacarpal joints were shot and had no cartilage left, so I really didn’t play guitar much during those years due to the pain. But once the dust settled and the years went by, I decided to release “LD in LA”.
Before I knew it, a bunch of radio stations, primarily in Europe, were playing LUPER songs, and then a few major radio shows like “Rodney on the Rock” on SiriusXM Underground Garage started playing my tunes. And then I signed a licensing deal and got a few songs on major TV shows. It was pretty amazing considering I wasn’t even really trying. These neat things kept happening and the momentum kept building, and I wasn’t even playing shows or touring, nor did I have a PR agency or anyone helping me. It was very organic and the reception all these radio stations were giving to LUPER DUPREE was pretty amazing. My creative juices started flowing again so I recorded the follow up album, “Hanging Out with LUPER DUPREE”. I then had to have arthroplasty surgeries on both thumbs, and after that Covid hit. I delayed releasing the new album due to the pandemic. Like everyone else, I felt music wasn’t so important anymore and was just trying to keep my family safe. But after giving it some thought and knowing this was our new reality, I released the album in October of 2020. I felt if these songs could give people some joy and rock their souls, why not release it. The album has done great. It charted at several radio stations around the globe, made some top tens, and even hit #1 at a few stations. It’s been a wild ride for LUPER DUPREE and I’m excited to see what comes next. And after being cooped up for so long, who knows, I may even start playing out live again someday.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It’s never been a smooth road for me due to my health. I’m constantly dealing with obstacles and flashing red lights as I try to navigate this life. Just when I think all is well, my Crohn’s Disease rears its ugly head. I’ve been sick with it since I was a kid. I recently had my 4th resection of my small bowel in July of 2021, and a bad infection caused me to be re-admitted to the hospital post-surgery and nearly cost me my life. The other three resections were all life-saving as well. I had withered away to almost nothing every time after not being able to eat for weeks prior to each surgery. But thanks to modern medicine and all my surgeons, I’ve been lucky and have survived. I honestly thought I was going to die young, but I’m so grateful to still be here. The song “Something About My Biology” from the new album tells this tale of my life dealing with Crohn’s Disease.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My LUPER DUPREE music is known for being a unique form of psychedelic rock. My sound is reminiscent of the retro late 1960’s, somewhere along the vibes of the Beatles, Pink Floyd, and Grateful Dead. I strive to invent catchy hooks and to deliver a wide range of pretty harmonies. My guitar set up is very simple. I only use a wah wah pedal and a distortion pedal and don’t use many effects on my vocals. I pride myself on sounding as real as possible and not having to use all these electronic devices that try to make musicians sound good or better than they actually are. On some songs, I run my acoustic guitar with electric strings through my wah wah to prevent feedback, and it creates this deep thought-provoking vibe which I think sort of sets my sound apart from others and helps to give my brand of psychedelic rock its originality. I’m not some amazing virtuoso musician at all, but I’ve always had a knack for writing and singing some pretty good songs.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
My advice to anyone wanting to start a career in music would be to find people who are trustworthy to help you. It’s already hard enough to make a go of it in music and nearly impossible if you don’t have people who you can trust to assist you. I’ve been burned a few times by people I thought were my friends but then tried to steal my record label from me when I was out on tour with my band. I was also let down by a producer who held our master recordings from our first album because he felt we would get signed to a major label and thought he would try to cash in on that. There are a lot of shady individuals involved in the music industry so you really have to be careful out there. Back in the day, I was told by an entertainment lawyer I was the next Kurt Cobain. And I’ve been told by a very famous guitar player that my LUPER DUPREE music sounds like a cross between the Beatles and the B52’s. Those are very nice compliments, but I never let it go to my head or boasted about my music. Those things do help me remain confident and without confidence, you have nothing. But most of all, I would suggest to others to try to stay true to your vision.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.luperdupree.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LUPERDUPREE/
- Twitter: @luperdupree
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=luper+dupree
