We caught up with the brilliant and insightful August Casteel a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

August, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What did your parents do right and how has that impacted you in your life and career?

My parents raised me to be a creative. Not once in my childhood was I told to be anything but what I was called to. Painting, drawing, piano, poetry; these are the joys of life and I was taught to respect and cherish them. There’s a video somewhere on the internet of me as a baby absolutely JAMMING to some old soul song from my dad’s vinyl collection. I carry that with me every day. When it comes to my music, I want it to come from that energy that moved me to dance despite not even being able to speak yet. What I write in these songs is and will stay entirely true to my perception and experience of the world because I was raised to believe that the only way to express yourself is honestly.
My dad also was in a multitude of bands throughout his life and I still have some recordings of his old songs in my playlist for inspiration (shout out “io”!).

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m the main writer of the music duo “august” along with my partner Rykken. “august” started out as a solo project with Rykken kindly lending his production, and quickly morphed into a joint effort. We make music for anyone who loves a good sad indie song, with a little folk/rock influence sprinkled in here and there. As of now, we have two singles and an ep out for listening on all streaming platforms with plenty of stuff in the works! I’m currently outside of the country on the experience of a lifetime, so there won’t be a new release from us for a few months, but that doesn’t mean the creative process has stopped! I’m always writing and thinking about what I’ll bring to the table next. I was lucky enough for our song “Perfume” to get picked up by Tiktok back in February of this year, which is where the majority of my audience knows me from. “Perfume” explores a one-sided relationship in which the speaker is utterly devoted to a relationship that is failing itself. It rang true for so many people and to any of you who relate to “Perfume” let me say: you deserve to be loved the way that you are.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

Being a creative doesn’t mean I came out of the womb singing. I have had to push myself over and over and over again to become the person I am. Performing and putting myself out there in music isn’t something that comes naturally to me just because I enjoy it. There are artists who were born to be on stage and there are artists who would rather be anywhere else. That “life of the party” energy doesn’t always just come with having the gift of creativity. For me, it is learned and I will make mistakes and be afraid and fail along the way, but I make that choice to do so because it’s what comes with sharing my art and being recognized for it.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

To be able to show a deep, dark, scary part of myself that I would normally be ashamed of and instead be met with hundreds of people who know exactly what it looks like. You don’t get that community anywhere else.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/augustcasteel
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/augustcasteelmusic
• Other: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/31vud17CHfbLMmdk3Bl2pt?si=ESVYZqBlTHiu_jq6qQgyXw

Image Credits

Jaime Crawford / JC Photography
Max Stranahan