We recently connected with Hugh Bram and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Hugh, thanks for joining us today. Do you wish you had waited to pursue your creative career or do you wish you had started sooner?

I definitely would have started my music journey a bit earlier if I could go back in time. I released my first single in 2020 as an independent artist but I’ve actually made music in the past during my earlier days in high school stating back to around 2011-2012. In middle school, I used to write poetry and raps in a notebook while in class or once I’m home because I’ve always had a love for music whether it’s different genres. My friends around me in middle school used to beat on tables then we took turns freestyling or we would be in the back of the class reading off our rhymes in our notebooks. That’s kind of where it all started really. I grew up in Champaign, Illinois so I formed a group called ‘Paign Killaz’ in 8th grade. We wasn’t on any killing agendas, we were just homies hanging out in middle school then once high school came around, we added more members which it finally became an official rap group. We put songs on Soundcloud and had people rocking with us in our school and around town. We were just freshman then so I was about 14 years old, still a young bull. Unfortunately though, my pops wanted me to play sports and focus on school because I didn’t have much care for it at first. I was grounded a lot my first two years of high school so it kinda pushed me away from the rap group and made me just do my thing in sports and school the final last two years. By senior year, I signed and went on to play football at a D2 college which was McKendree University in 2015. I had a whole different friend group by then and I didn’t make any music since those early years. The worst thing about it all, football was not my passion so I didn’t see myself going far with it although I had the talent and the support. I then quit the sport the following year and transferred to Illinois State University just as a student. I still was not making nor writing any new music but I was a big listener. Being at ISU (2016-2018), it was quite a nice experience which I was partying a lot and meeting all sort of people from different backgrounds with different music taste. I feel if I was making music during those years, times maybe would be different right now since I was out adventuring a lot more and open to many scenes. Plus, I was still popular and known in Champaign which is a 40 minute drive from Illinois State University (Bloomington-Normal, IL) so I would take those drives back home some weekends to even party there with my people. I was young and turnt pretty much

Hugh, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I am Hugh Bram, I am a music artist, songwriter, executive producer, and audio engineer. I had a past with music already so around 2018-2019, I wanted to get back involved with music which I started managing artists. We would go to studios and I would sit and see how things process and took mental notes from the artists and audio engineers/producers. I was staying in Cedar Rapids, Iowa around this time but I grew a small buzz from that on social media and plus, I was already known a bit in the towns I lived prior. A lot of artist was asking me to manage them so in 2019, after I moved back to Champaign, I worked a job then saved money to buy my own studio equipment and Logic Pro X. My original intent was to use the equipment to audio engineer the artist I was going to manage instead of always going to a professional studio. I spent a lot of days and nights alone just learning, experimenting and crafting. I stopped managing artists and became more of an audio engineer. In my free time, I was making my own songs and built confidence to release them. After I dropped my songs ‘R.I.P. Hugh Hefner Freestyle’ and ‘Rich For Y’all’, I grew a fan base and the rest is history. I’m a reserved person which I don’t post much of myself on social media and put my work out there like that so I’ve been most proud of how people respond to my music and the process. Being independent and seeing when people actually rocking with you, it gives you a nod that you’re doing something right. Then having other artists want to work with me and wanting to know my opinion on their unreleased music, it’s even clearer in a way that my peers respect my gift also.

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

I have a passion for music which is driving my creative journey. I also vision myself and those around me with the finer things in life so I feel why not try to do something I love and good at to help me achieve that vision. I know I’m not the best/greatest at what I do but I know I have some good value. Many people support me so on the days I might not be all in, I might get that random notification on my screen from a fan/supporter which helps me keep going. I want to provide for my family and those around me so I feel it’s on me to be great.

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

People don’t have to be your number one fan or your biggest supporter but it’s always helpful as an artist when people who’s following us/seeing what we post/people who is around us is actually tuning in instead of just clicking through and scratching us off. A repost, sharing to a friend/group chat, song purchase, or even word of mouth goes a long way then a non-creative think it can, As an artist, you don’t want to be that annoying person spamming everyone in their DMs or posting the same thing on your story a million times so it’s very helpful when the people who follow you and those that’s close to you, actually support. As a music artist, I try my best to support other artist by reposting them, setting them up with other artist/important people, and even purchasing their music at times. It’s a million other people who is doing what we do so anything positive on this journey is a win.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @hughbram
• Twitter: @hughbram
• Youtube: @hughbram

Image Credits
Robert K Media Focus. Inc Photography Hugh Bram