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

Alright, Max thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.

I honestly owe everything I have to my parents. They have been nothing but supportive of my career and have given me nothing but the best advice and kindness. My parents rock. Both my Mom and my Dad are Lawyers, and my sister is an Archaeologist, so I’m a bit of a black sheep in the family. However, they know it’s my dream to be a musician, so they’ve supported me. When I was doing Sing Street, one parent had to stay in NYC with me because I was 16, but my sister was still in school in PA, so one parent had to be home in PA. My parents took turns every week, alternating who was in NY and who was in PA. They’ve sacrificed so much for me, and I just want to make them proud. Besides just career support, my parents are truly my best friends. They’ve always taught me to be kind, be my most authentic self, and don’t ever hide my heart on my sleeve. Move forward in life unapologetically.

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

Yeah! Hey, I’m Max! I’m a 22-year-old folk singer/songwriter from New York City. I started making music during the pandemic and just absolutely fell in love with it. There truly is nothing like playing live music. I’m about to embark on a National Tour with my band to promote my upcoming album “Waiting At The Crossroads,” which will release on 9/16, with my final single from the album “Faithful Friend” dropping on 7/23! I try to find the intersection between the sonics of folk bands/artists like Mumford & Sons, Noah Kahan, and Glen Hansard, and combine them with the lyricism, attitude, and authenticity of bands like Green Day. Someone actually once said, “You’re like if Dave Grohl had a folk project!” Aside from the music, I’m also an actor! I originated the role of Darren in SING STREET on Broadway before we were shut down by COVID. I started in the entertainment industry through a bit of a rough story. I was a 4 season lacrosse player and boxer back when I was 11, and one day I went out for a family bike ride. One thing led to another, and I ended up falling off a cliff and into a river. I was diagnosed with a Traumatic Brain Injury (which I’ve since recovered from), and I had to stop Lacrosse and Boxing. The only thing left was music, so I started teaching myself guitar by listening to AMERICAN IDIOT, and here we are 11 years later.

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

Something I’m really passionate about is mental health awareness. I think as a society, we’ve come a long way in terms of de-stigmatizing mental health, but there’s so much more we could do. I’ve actually done a few fundraisers for an amazing Lancaster-based nonprofit called AEVIDUM, which was formed by local students after a classmate took their own life. Along with AEVIDUM, my band and I are volunteers for the incredible Jake Luhrs from August Burns Red’s organization called HEART SUPPORT, which is an incredible organization that helps people know they’re not alone. There are online forums and trained professionals for people going through a difficult time to talk to and connect with. I like to write about the hard-to-talk-about subjects. A lot of my new album is about fighting mental demons.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The most rewarding thing for me is building a community. No one can do everything alone, especially in the arts, so building a community of like-minded artists and collaborators is immensely important. But beyond that, the community of an audience at a show is one of the most powerful things on the planet. The relationship between artist and audience is one of the most incredible things, and fostering that and building it has been the most rewarding thing. I love meeting new people and sharing experiences with them. Also, being able to reach out to someone who could be struggling with something and helping them through a difficult time because of a piece of work you’ve made is truly what makes this all worth it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.maxbartos.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/max_bartos/#
• Other: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4ekRHXkuKRexo1ocWbPnuy?si=-nRIWfcLRAi8i0VcJsSq8g

Image Credits

Bryn Turnquist, Zaffira Medici, Nicole Yuengling