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

Troy, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Learning the craft is often a unique journey from every creative – we’d love to hear about your journey and if knowing what you know now, you would have done anything differently to speed up the learning process.

I started learning music pretty early. I didn’t come from a musical family by any means, but I took advantage of everything my public school had to offer. There’s only so much to learn in a school that wasn’t a performing arts type, so I was self-taught to some extent before I went to Berklee College of Music in Boston. Knowing what I know now, I would have concentrated on songwriting earlier. I would have tried to cowrite more with experienced musicians. Listening and being open-minded are important skills to learn anything, especially music. The main obstacle for me has always been the day job. I could probably have done more if I wasn’t working since I was 16.

Troy, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I formed my Americana rock band, TruckerBomb, about five years ago. We have eight singles released and are working on getting a full album out soon. I’m proud of every gig we’ve played and that our fan base is constantly growing. People sing along with the songs, and when I talk to them after the shows, they have favorites and even tell me what some of the songs mean to them. If I never have any greater success than I have right now, I’ll be happy. Anything that comes next is just a bonus.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

There’s nothing that pleases an artist more than to know someone is listening. I don’t mean streaming our tunes, but we do appreciate that. A share on social media is huge. An actual comment on a post rather than a “like” is super cool. Coming to see a live show is cherished by us. We know it’s hard to get out of the house after a long day, traffic is a drag, and parking is yet another hassle. I think all of us can get by with little to no money, and little or no “fame” in the traditional sense, but what will stop us from moving forward is thinking no one is listening to what we do. As a songwriter, you’re basically sharing with the world that you have voices in your head. We don’t know if that’s a good thing or not, or if anyone cares. When someone comes up to me and says, “That new song about Van Nuys … that one’s really something,” that’s the kind of thing that will keep me going for about two years.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My mission is to create the songs I wish were out in the world. I don’t want to repeat what’s been done, I don’t want to sound like anyone else, and I want to bring a unique perspective that no one has seen. Even if the perspective is small and maybe pointless to some people. If it means something to me, it’ll mean something to someone else.

Contact Info:

• Website: truckerbomb.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/truckerbombband/
• Facebook: facebook.com/truckerbombband
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@truckerbomb/about
• Other: https://linktr.ee/truckerbomb

Image Credits
Pierre Robert