We were lucky to catch up with Cole Rolland recently and have shared our conversation below.

Cole, looking forward to hearing all of your stories 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?

Fortunately, yes! I left my day job five years ago and have been growing my creative pursuits ever since.

When I first started taking music more seriously, it was still very much a passion project. The YouTube Partner Program didn’t exist, and the main place to upload your music was iTunes. My first video was a guitar cover of DragonForce’s gold single, “Through the Fire and Flames,” in 2009. Given the ideal timing, that video racked up a few million views during the early era of YouTube.

Eventually, I learned how to create full-production covers, originals, and collaborative projects that could exist on newer platforms like Spotify and Apple Music. This allowed me to monetize these works while simultaneously growing my network through collaborations and covers.

From day one, I would have changed things by refining my branding and image earlier. My style has gone through many different eras as I’ve grown up and my tastes have changed, but honestly, that has kept everything fresh and interesting. I’m grateful to have the freedom to create what interests me while still retaining the loyalty of my viewers.

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

Of course—my name is Cole Rolland, and I’m an independent musical artist and producer, mostly known for my technical guitar abilities. I’ve grown my YouTube channel to nearly 1.5M subscribers at the time of writing and have had the pleasure of performing live with some of my favorite acts, including ILLENIUM, DragonForce, Krewella, Adventure Club, and more.

I have extensive experience in music production, branding, and video production, which I’ve used to grow my profile over the past 15 years. What sets me apart, aside from my guitar skills, is my deep proficiency and understanding of technology. I’m constantly learning new skills and optimizing my workflows to improve. I know at least a little bit about every aspect of my business, making me extremely effective at speaking and networking with anyone. My willingness to try new things, work with new people, and my metaphorical “puzzle-solving” abilities make me a strong producer, artist, and businessman.

Have any books or other resources had a big impact on you?

There are a few pieces of media that have really impacted me over the years in my pursuit of “continuous improvement.”

I’m such a wannabe reader, haha. I haven’t read a ton of books, but one that had a long-term impact on me was Atomic Habits by James Clear. The book references tons of great real-life studies that changed my day-to-day perspective in a positive way. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People also helped me level up my social and networking practices. Both are great fundamental reads.

From the podcast front, I came across Joe Rogan in my early 20s (circa 2015), and I can confidently say I learned a lot from listening to the guests on his show. Currently, my favorite podcast is Modern Wisdom, hosted by Chris Williamson. I truly admire what he’s done, and the knowledge I absorb from his show is invaluable. It’s one of my top recommendations for young adults looking to broaden their knowledge and improve their lives.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

There are two answers that come to mind:

Being able to create meaningful projects with my talented friends. This means the world to me and always will. I chase that electric feeling of making a song “work,” with high fives around the room and everyone excited about what we’ve made. That’s what it’s all about.

Performing live and absorbing the energy from the audience will always be an incredible feeling. I spend most of my time in production and writing modes, which I really enjoy. I’d love to do more live performances and clinics to experience this more often. Some of the live performances I’ve done with my favorite artists are highlight moments in my career.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.colerolland.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/colerolland
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/colerolland
• Twitter: https://www.x.com/colerolland
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/colerolland
• Other: https://www.twitch.tv/colerolland

Image Credits

Image Credits:

EMP Media
Lucan Coutts
Colin Stevens
Dustin Luttrell