*Everyone in the entertainment industry knows it not only takes talent, but luck and support, in order to make it in the business.
There are plenty of talented singers in the world who never get their big break. EURweb is all about helping and encouraging up and coming talent. Recently, a young man named Brandon Wattz came on our radar that EURweb would like to introduce to our readers.
A video of Wattz absolutely killing “Reasons” by Earth Wind and Fire is making its way around Facebook and caught the attention of EURweb (watch it via the player above).
I set off on a mission to learn all I could about this very talented singer. As part of my research, I watched more than a few YouTube videos, where Brandon covers a lot and I mean a lot of songs. He moves effortlessly as he performs everyone from Sam Cooke and Nat King Cole to The Temptations, Whispers and Isley Brothers. For good measure, he even throws in Anita Baker and Natalie Cole.
I had a telephone interview with the old soul and Birmingham, Alabama native, where his Southern charm oozed through, loud and clear, as we discussed everything from his roots and upbringing to his singing career and the current state of the entertainment business.
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When I asked Brandon to tell me all about him and how he got started, after carefully thinking about it and deciding where to begin, Brandon shared his father was a musician (guitar and piano) and his parents cultivated his love of music, which like so many, began in church.
He recounted that before church each Sunday, he and his brother had to make sure they had learned the songs that their father would be playing that day, which fortified his love of singing and music. He continued through Junior and Senior high school and once an adult, he began performing around town at karaoke shows and in his words, “One thing escalated to another and here I am singing for a living.” Although he has been pursuing music fulltime since 2010, he relocated to Los Angeles in 2016 in order to better pursue his craft.
Brandon’s musical style is calm, mellow, laid back, with that HE CAN SING element, but since he also has an old soul vibe, I felt compelled to ask him who were his musical influences. Although the Temptations are his favorite group of all time, I was not at all surprised when he included Sam Cooke and Nat King Cole in the response, along with Aretha Franklin.
Since Brandon has covering songs down to a science, I asked him if that is a niche that is paying off for him. He shared although early in his career, he did more covers, these days he is doing more of his own songs, saying, “The music industry today is very versatile and requires you to be well versed about music in order to be exposed to different audiences, because everyone has different tastes musically” Although he continued with, “In order to distinguish yourself from other artists, you have to be able to bring something a little different to the table” he also feels he should pay homage to those who went before him and paved the way, so there will always be other songs covered in Brandon’s performances.
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Brandon’s debut album, “Feelin Some Kinda Way” was released independently in 2018 and contains some smooth tracks. He is currently working on his second album, which promises more of the same, but it will “also offer a slightly different approach.” New music may be on the way, but someone needs to give this brother a record deal.
As previously mentioned, Brandon’s cover of Earth, Wind and Fire’s “Reasons” is all abuzz on Facebook and what brought him to EURweb’s attention. I asked him how it felt to channel Phillip Bailey while Phillip is still alive and he shared an interesting story saying …
“I almost got a chance to work with Maurice White (Earth, Wind and Fire’s leader) before he passed away. My mentor, Preston Glass, who is an amazing songwriter, was in the process of writing new material for Maurice White before he passed away and he was going to bring me on that particular project to sing background vocals and other things.” He added, “Earth, Wind and Fire is the best band of all time in terms of putting on a show.”
So, in other words, his cover of their song was his way of paying homage to them.
I asked Brandon if I only had $20 to spend on a CD, why should I buy his?
“You should spend $20, if you so choose; I hope you would choose, on my music because the atmosphere and energy that I’m trying to invoke through my music is that feeling of chivalry, of a calming feeling of love that we’ve lost with this generation. The impact doesn’t come out like it did in the 70s, 80s and 90s, to a degree; that genuine care, concern and commitment that a man has for a woman and a woman has for a man. I would hope that shines through in my music and will be a breath of fresh air and a change of pace from what is mainstream nowadays.”
Sold!
When asked his outlook on the music industry in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, he shared:
“This is probably going to open the door for people who otherwise were kind of shut out and command everyone to come to the forefront and be even more creative and get their product out to the audience via their social media platform because that is primarily going to be the vehicle to move your product since we won’t be able to have concerts and contact with each other for a while.”
He is currently working on getting his product ready for Facebook and Instagram. Be on the lookout for Brandon Wattz and don’t miss out on getting to know more about this talented young man. In the meantime, watch/listen to Brandon perform on his YouTube and Facebook pages.
Marilyn Smith is a Los Angeles based writer/reviewer. Contact her via [email protected].
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