We recently connected with Clay Carter and have shared our conversation below.

Clay, appreciate you joining us today. If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your creative career sooner or later?

They do say “better late than never”, which is true, but yeah, there’s definitely a part of me that wishes I had started sooner. Now obviously I had other musical projects before, but I was always in a supporting role, not really a driving force or leading. Even though I loved to play guitar and sing in my spare time, I was determined to be a drummer above anything else. The last group I was in kind of changed my perspective there toward the end, because we really needed a strong frontman and we couldn’t get it. The split of that group caused me to re-evaluate my own compositions I had been collecting and realize that I had my own artistic voice. Sure enough, the more I wrote, the more I felt a flow of creative power and the satisfaction of making new sounds that are all your own. Do I wish that realization happened sooner? Definitely, but I don’t tend to dwell on it. I’m just happy with all of the art I’m making now.

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.

Hello everyone! I’m a singer, songwriter, and performer under the name Manic Moon, which is an electronic-tinged indie rock project based in Denver. I started playing drums way back at age 11 and was a part of several bands back in Texas where I’m originally from, picking up several instruments over the years. While I had started to write my first songs for this project, I decided to make the move to Denver both for the music scene and awesome outdoors activities.

The thing I think makes me different from a lot of writers is that I’m really a listener’s composer. That’s not to knock jam bands or the more avant-garde – there’s a huge audience for that. But when I listen to new music, I want it to grab me, to kind of come out swinging and show me ‘the point’ I guess. Is it groovy, heavy, or just beautiful? I like things that kind of show their cards, so that’s how I write. I am thinking about hooks constantly, whether rhythms or melodies. So in my songs, there’s always going to be a strong hook for the listener and I’m super proud of them.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

Unfortunately, the ecosystem for creatives is really under pressure right now. Most people who create don’t do it for money – there are plenty of more lucrative choices – but you do need to LIVE in order to create. The advent of streaming has been pretty convenient for everyone, but the suits in control of those platforms are sucking their creators dry. Then of course you’ve got TicketMaster, whom we all love… Right? It’s just a monopoly thing. The TicketMaster/LiveNation merger has been such a disaster that I can’t believe it was allowed in the first place. The irony is that the artist is the one who takes the most risk and generally gets the least back.

But the good news is that creators want to create anyway! I know I do. We can and should push back against those monopolies and there are awesome groups leading that charge like the Union of Musicians & Allied Workers (UMAW). There is a promising groundswell about these things. In the meantime, just support, support, support those creators that you know. If you’re a streaming music person, just consider buying merch, or show tickets, or tips etc. The nature of income has changed. And honestly, appreciate the work and tell them. Tell them what you love about the art, and that it matters to you. That goes a long way.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

I guess you could say so. It’s almost like golf in that I’m competing with myself, to just do something better every time. I’m driven by a desire to create music that I love and feel proud of. To bring into existence a piece of art that didn’t exist before is a very cool feeling unlike any other. And then the other half of the equation is the listener. To have those people then digest the art and really get it and love it. THAT is a full circle for me.

Contact Info:

• Website: manicmoonband.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/manicmoonband
• Facebook: facebook.com/manicmoonband
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@manicmoon5387
• Other: linktr.ee/manicmoonband

Image Credits
Nick Nidositko Elise Falkenstein Anetta Odnoralova