We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Paul Trudeau. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Paul below.
Alright, Paul thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
I started playing music at an early age. It was pretty much all really cared about … and it has always been with me since as long as i can remember. I don’t really know of a time in my life when I didn’t understand the language of music. So consequently I never actually made the decision to pursue a career in music … it felt as if it was simply the path that I’d been on… for better or for worse!
Paul, 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 believe that creativity is the ultimate and most elevated state for a human to exist in. By that I don’t mean that everyone has to be a painter or a musician or some other type of traditional “artist”. I simply mean that by accessing ones own creativity it is the healthiest and most rewarding thing that a person can do. I was always encouraged by my parents to pursue my own creativity ( in my case it was a great love of playing piano ) I have since found many other ways to foster it. Writing / drawing / teaching etc. There have certainly been times when I have thought that my career choice was unwise due to financial struggles ( being a freelance musician in Los Angeles has many, many obstacles ) and frankly there have been times where if I could have done anything else ( ie: a ‘ normal’ job ) then I would have. The problem is that I’ve never had a plan “B” so …. I just kept soldiering on which has actually served me well. I landed in LA in 1988 and immediately set out to make a name for myself / or even just to work in my field. The only “strategy” that I could come up with was to continue putting myself out there and so that’s what I did. Eventually I did get a gig in 1989 with a Polydor Records band called Darling Cruel. From there I went from gig to gig and now I play with Billy Idol and have been doing so for the past 10 years. In addition to playing for other bands I have been pursuing my own career as an artist and have had many songs in film and tv. I’m currently working on my 3rd solo release ( TBA ) with the Blue Elan Music Group.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
I started playing music at an early age. It was pretty much all really cared about … and it has always been with me since as long as i can remember. I don’t really know of a time in my life when I didn’t understand the language of music. So consequently I never actually made the decision to pursue a career in music … it felt as if it was simply the path that I’d been on… for better or for worse!
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
For me the most rewarding thing about being a creative is related to my mental health. I feel that in my career
(although it hasn’t been completely stress free) I do lead a fairly stress free life. It is incredibly fulfilling to be able to write, record and perform. There is absolutely nothing like writing a song. One minute it doesn’t exist and then the next minute it does. Where it comes from and how it finds it’s way to me has always been a mystery! And although I’ve definitely experienced creative blocks ( which I have learned to just “ride out”, they always seem to come to an end eventually ) There seems to be an endless stream of songs bouncing around in the universe just waiting for somebody to pluck them out. And so I know that this quote is totally overused ( and I’m paraphrasing here ..) it is one hundred percent true … “Do what you love and you’ll never have to work a day in your life”!!
Contact Info:
- Website: www.paultrudeaumusic.com
- Instagram: Paultrudeau1
- Youtube: Paul Trudeau Band
Image Credits
David Murphy