We were lucky to catch up with Benjamin Crane recently and have shared our conversation below.

Benjamin, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

I feel incredibly fortunate to make a full-time living as a performer. From a young age, my parents rewarded and encouraged my passion for creative pursuits, and I have followed that throughout my entire career. I got into performing later than most of my peers, not until high school, and I believe that the experiences I had prior to that helped me learn tenacity and perseverance, qualities which I believe are most important to sustaining work as a creative professional.

I remember being told constantly as I was growing up the statistic that ‘less than 1% of performers in the field succeed in a full-time career.’ This led my college roommate (and current bandmate) and I to make a decision that we would hold off on pursuing non-creative career paths until we had given music and performing our best shot. Even now, I’m so grateful to say that both of us are full-time creatives.

If there’s a lesson to be learned from my path, it’s to never be afraid to say ‘yes.’ In my career, from the very beginning, I’ve been presented with opportunities that required me to jump into the deep end with both feet. From being granted scholarships to pursue a music degree, to signing record deals, to performing at the wonderful theme parks in the Orlando area, to designing large-scale events, I have always said ‘yes,’ and it has allowed me to fully embrace the life I’m so grateful to live.

As a result of launching new projects, I have been musing on this idea of ‘success’ a lot lately. I believe it’s vitally important to frame ‘success’ as it relates to yourself – what that means for you, how you achieve those goals, and how that defines and informs your perspective of ‘success’. I may not have a Billboard #1 record, but I own a house, have an incredible wife and dog, and make a full-time living doing what I love – that’s ‘success’ for me.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Hello, and thank you for being here! My name is Ben Crane, I’m a Musician/Actor/Creative Producer here in Orlando, FL. I have performed in bands since 2010, and moved to Orlando in 2017 to start a career performing in our theme parks.

My entrance into performing was actually as a guitar player, when I started playing in bands my freshman year of high school. Soon after, I auditioned and was cast in our school’s spring musicals, where I discovered my love for singing and learned valuable lessons about entertaining an audience. From there, I began writing original music and grew that career in college, with appearances in major music festivals, regional tours, and a record deal. I’m forever grateful to a number of my professors in my music degree, who’s valuable insight I still use every day in my career.

I have multiple music projects – If I’m Lucky (@ifimluckyfl) and Pacific Rush (@pacificrushmusic), as well as a production company that produces events in town, Fortune House Productions (@fortunehouseproductions). Through these various creative pursuits, I can connect to our community and our city in a meaningful way – I love nothing more than to hear audiences singing lyrics back to me that I’ve written, having a communal moment to a song that means something to everybody in the room, or helping audiences discover their new favorite band at an event I’ve produced.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

The best thing anybody can do to support the creatives around them is to CELEBRATE THEIR ART. Go see independent bands, independent films, buy merchandise from your favorite artists, go to their exhibitions and share their work on your social media. Art deserves to be consumed, and there has never been a more important time to support those around you that are making it. For me, I never feel more creative than when I’m enjoying the art being made around me, so I need it – I need art to survive, and the joy and creative energy brought on by it is contagious. Go enjoy your friends’ art and see their passion, and let it inspire you.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My goal is to pursue creative endeavors that continue to inspire me – I believe that audiences can tell when you love something and are passionate about it, and I never want to lose that. The old adage ‘a rising tide lifts all boats’ is also incredibly important to me – I always want to use whatever platform I have to lift up those around me, whether that’s musically or as another type of vendor at the events I produce.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.fortunehouseproductions.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/benncrane
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/benjaminneilmusic

Image Credits

Zach Roy, Chris Deroche