We were lucky to catch up with Vincent Brue recently and have shared our conversation below.

Vincent, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your creative career sooner or later?

I definitely wish I had started playing music much earlier than I did. Music has always been my first love and for so many years growing up, all I wanted to do was write songs and start a band but I didn’t know how to play any instruments and I was way too shy to sing (I was literally too shy to talk most of the time back then). I tried taking guitar lessons a couple of times in middle school but the only place offering lessons nearby was a little rough, you were basically just sitting in a tiny attic with an old dude chain smoking butts while he showed you the sheet music to Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and said “play.” It didn’t stimulate me in any way (aside from inhaling all that sweet second hand nicotine) and both times I gave up, feeling hopeless. Thankfully though when I was 19 I got my heart broken pretty bad and immediately picked up an old guitar my brother’s friend had left at our house and I said “I’m gonna learn this damned thing one way or another” and that’s what I did. Started learning chords, writing songs and playing in bands. Better late than never, certainly, but sometimes I can’t help but wonder how much better I could be right now had I stuck with it during those formative years, and how much fun I would’ve had playing music with friends in high school and college. Playing music definitely brought me out of my shell and has led me to meet so many of my best friends, so naturally I just wish I’d started a bit sooner.

I also perform stand up comedy and didn’t start doing that until I was about 38 years old, but I’m actually very glad I waited cause I’m pretty sure I would have been terrible.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

As an artist, the main things I strive for are authenticity, originality and having my own voice. I feel like if you’re an artist or a band and can easily answer the question “what other acts do you sound like?” you’re doing it wrong. I certainly have a large number (and wide array) of influences, and naturally some of them shine through my work more than others, but I’m never trying to copy anyone’s style or sound like anyone other than myself. Unfortunately this does make marketing/branding a bit tricky, because when you’re not easy to define/pigeonhole or fit neatly into one sound/genre, some people don’t know what to do with you. But I always have been and always will be more concerned with artistic success than commercial or financial success, and I define artistic success by creating works that I’m personally proud of, that aren’t derivative, and which bring me joy. Every song I write, whether it be happy or sad, aggressive or silly, comes directly from the real honest place inside of me where those emotions lie and getting all that out is all that matters to me.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

I spent most of my 20’s and 30’s playing in bands all over New York City/New Jersey and beyond, but I never went to a music open mic until I found myself in Los Angeles in my early 40’s, and it completely changed everything. Hearing so many different talented singer/songwriters of all kinds playing their original works was immediately inspiring to me, both creatively and personally. Since I started going to the Open Mic Revival at Cinema Bar in Culver City on Wednesday nights in the beginning of 2023, I’ve made countless friends with some of the best singer/songwriters/musicians I’ve ever met, a couple of whom (David Gonzalez and Katie Nicholson) I recently started a band with (The Vincenzos). It’s an incredible community and there are so many other great open mics in LA too at the Silverlake Lounge, The Barrel, Tr!P, The Third Wheel, and more, where everyone is really supportive of each other and it’s a great resource to meet and collaborate with other musicians. So bottom line, I REALLY wish I had been going to open mics in NYC back in my 20’s and 30s, and I don’t really have a good reason as to why I didn’t, except I just didn’t really know of any. Everyone I knew just played in bands and played clubs so that’s how it was. Wish I could turn back the clock on that, but at the same time I’m incredibly grateful to be a part of it now and highly recommend any singer/songwriters out there to check out the mics and make pals!

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The greatest reward of being an artist, to me, is the work itself. It’s easy to get caught up in reviews or other people’s opinions or turnouts at shows or social media follower counts, all that noise…but at the end of the day I just try to remember that kid who just wished he could play the guitar, or write a song about how he was feeling, and when I think about how I’m now able to do that, I feel like I hit the lottery. I’ve pulled myself outta some pretty dark holes with my songwriting (have dug myself a couple too, to be sure), and to be able to bring myself that joy, from within, or wherever that inspiration comes from, that’s a gift that beats any amount of Instagram likes or followers or anything else.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/vinbrue
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vincentbrue
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/callitevin
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/vincent-brue

Image Credits

Eve Brue
Sylvia Tribel