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

Alright, Brett thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

One risk I took that really made a big impact on my life was when I was offered a job as a music director for a musical theatre show. I was in Atlanta taking classes at the university, but chose to leave to take this job. They paid for me to drive across the country to meet them at Glacier Park in MT. It was an amazing adventure to drive across the country by myself, see such a beautiful place, & be challenged by learning so much music in such a short amount of time. I am lucky that I got that chance of a lifetime and am so glad that I took that job.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Well, I’m an independent musician and I do several different things, like most independent musicians, I think. My new project is a “rock & soul” thing where I’m getting different singers on each song. I’m really focused on that right now, however, I also do educational music under the name of Mark D. Pencil and Friends, and I’m 1/2 of an artsy duo called Arcanum with my friend, Tree. Also, I do session work for others, record audiobooks, and teach. Oh, and I also have what I call my “personal music” (even though everything I do is personal) that I sing on. All of that keeps me very busy musically, which I’m thankful for because I’m obsessed with music.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

There have been so many times that I have wanted to quit music because it all just gets so difficult and depressing at times. Bands fall apart, expensive equipment gets broken or stolen, getting ripped off by people who say they can help you, but just want to scam money from you, etc, etc. At one time, a record deal fell apart and left me completely broke and lost. Listening to any music at all was too painful to endure as it only reminded me of my failure. Somehow, I found my way back to music within weeks. Another time, when it appeared there was some momentum with my “personal music”, I lost my voice at a big gig. It was horrible and embarrassing. The room was full when I began and about empty with it was over. Anyway, the point is, I’ve had so many low points, more that just those couple examples! Yet, somehow, and I can’t really explain why, I always find my way back to music. It’s how I think, it’s how I perceive the world, it’s how I sort out my emotions, it’s simply something that I love so much. No matter what happens, I just have to do write music and make my noise, no matter what happens. It’s just who I am. And music is magic. I truly believe that. Anytime I’m playing and really channeling in on something, it’s the best feeling. And now that I’m a bit older and have three amazing daughters, I feel as if my music is a way for them to connect with me, hopefully, after I’m long gone. So, basically, no matter what happens, I just simply continue.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

The most frustrating and difficult thing is just to get heard. I’ve never done music for attention or approbation, but when I release something into the world, it’s because I’m very proud of it and I just want it to be heard. Many times, I’ve put something out and get absolutely no feedback and very few plays. So, the most important thing that can help independent musicians like me is to listen, share, add it to your playlists, and drop a quick note saying that you like it, or whatever. All of that really helps and means a lot.

Contact Info:

• Website: MarkDPencil.com
• Instagram: @brettschiebermusic
• Twitter: @brettschieber
• Youtube: @markdpencil

Image Credits
David Goodwin David Goodwin Brett Schieber