Soulspeak With Musician Brian Mackey

“There’s a lot of turmoil in the world right now, and there’s a lot of negativity. I think if we all try to understand that everybody has problems, and everybody puts one leg into the pants at a time and that we all breathe the same air – Just take that moment and realize that we’re  all connected – We’re not really all that different. We can blame the rich or put down the poor… We can blame everybody. But we all have a part to play in this world and if we’re not playing that part and working in unison then it’s chaos, and I think we have to tap into that commonality – that common bond which is HUMANITY.”

WHO IS BRIAN?

I grew up in Northern Florida in the Georgia border. I started writing songs in the bath tub.. Yeah, I started making up little songs as I went on singing into the soap like it was a microphone. My parents would come in. They’d say “Wow that’s reay good!” and I’d keep singing and just doing everything that I could to keep on at it and I was doing it ever since and working hard at it. Everyday I write, and work on soundtracks for films…I’m always doing something with music. Playing piano and guitar…playing at shows and stuff. 

DREAMS & ASPIRATIONS.

A lot of the things that I saw as a child in my mind are happening today.  I think a lot of that happens to be because I think if you have a will to do something – a lot of things you can will to happen and a lot of things you are in control to do. But there’s definitely a higher power that can help you if you let it …if you really let certain things help and guide you. Watch for signs, listen to them and that will guide you along the way. I kinda wanna see where everything goes and I leave it up to that. I don’t really try too hard to force anything. I’ve kind of let things take control.

YOU TRUST.

Yes, that’s a good way to put it.

WHAT INSPIRES YOU TO WRITE & MAKE MUSIC?

My inspiration could come from anything. The sunrise…The sunset. It could be the smell of the air, a look in the eyes of somebody that you meet along the way. It could be a conversation with an old friend.  It could be a TV show you’re watching.. It could be a powerful romantic thing or it could be something funny. It could be somebody dying or somebody being born. Theres so many things – so many experiences in life that you use as paint to paint your picture. 

YOUR MAJOR INFLUENCES.

There’s so many of them Juno. I’d say a lot of the classical composers (Mozart/Beethoven). I play classical piano. But I also like Bob Dylan and The Beatles. A lot of old stuff from the 60s and 70s and 80s. I also like Coldplay…Just a bunch of different people. It’s hard to say really. It’s like if somebody asked me if I had a favorite child it would be hard for me to say who that would be. You love them all, but you love certain things about them a little differently.

WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED FROM YOURSELF FROM THIS EXPERIENCE?

I think I learned that we can’t be too sure of anything. You can’t expect certain outcomes. You have to trust in the unknown. When you do that it’s such a weight off your shoulders because you feel like it’s gonna be okay. I learned that you have to just trust and let go sometimes. 

AND WHAT HAVE YOU UNLEARNED?

I stopped eating jellybeans for a while and then I went back to them ’cause I couldn’t resist. But really, I’ve let go of a lot of relationships in my life. I’ve let go of destructive ones that I used to hold on to at a fear of being alone. Maybe some bad habits…I don’t drink really. I let go negative thinking. Yeah – I’ve let go of a lot I learned  to accept more things in my life and have more faith in humanity itself.

IF YOU COULD WAKE UP ANYWHERE TOMORROW MORNING WHERE WOULD IT BE?

I’d like to be in the coast of Italy somewhere…Maybe on a beach in the Mediterranean. Just hanging out or maybe in California, surfing because I like to surf. Just somewhere near the beach. I really like the water a lot. 

IF YOU WEREN’T SINGING WHAT WOULD YOU BE DOING?

Probably acting because I used to do some on stage acting in school. maybe TV commercials or something like that. I like to work with people and I’d like to tell a story and I like to make people feel and think so I think it would be something where I would portray something or try to send a message out through some type of medium to get to more people.  

TELL ME THE STORY BEHIND YOUR VIDEO “HONEST LOVE“ 

The story behind it was we were in Chicago filming it and me and the director was looking around the location in which we were recording and we saw some homeless people – people that were really down on their luck and we saw that a lot of them stayed together as family – mother daughter – they had a strong tie, an emotional connection that couldnt be broken even though they didn’t have much money or their situation wasn’t the best,  they really showed that they stayed alive on LOVE. 

We looked at that and we were really touched by it. We talked to them for a while and we sat with them, we ate a meal with them… We talked for hours actually and we got stories from them. We told them how we would love it if they could be in our video, and it’s up to them really, no pressure. We played the song for them and they were amazed and said they’d love to be in it. I was really honored that they wanted to be in it. It really was a strong message of love and how things change… The transition of cars going by, lights going by, people with different problems, and different situations, but the common theme was that love really just brings everything and everyone together and to the forefront. 

WHAT IS LOVE?

I think love has never really happened to explain why you feel a certain way. I think love is understanding. I think love is forgiveness. I think love is patient and kind. I think that love can be the anchor and it can also be the ladder.It can hold things down and it can elevate things and it could just make things a lot better. I think a lot of people get confused with what love really is. I’ve been confused in my past too. I was in a couple of bad relationships. I thought that it was love and it really was just about control and being afraid to let go. When you find real love it’s a powerful, powerful thing. 

IF THERE’S ONE THING THAT YOU’D LIKE TO CHANGE ABOUT THE WORLD. WHAT WOULD IT BE?

There’s a lot of turmoil in the world right now, and there’s a lot of negativity. I think if we all try to understand that everybody has problems, and everybody puts one leg into the pants at a time and that we all breathe the same air – Just take that moment and realize that we’re  all connected – We’re not really all that different. We can blame the rich or put down the poor… We can blame everybody. But we all have a part to play in this world and if we’re not playing that part and working in unison then it’s chaos, and I think we have to tap into that commonality – that common bond which is HUMANITY.

ANY REGRETS?

There’s a lot of regrets. I’ve had things fall apart that I thought were really strong. I regret sometimes not being strong enough to stay away from things that I knew were bad for me. There was one relationship I had that went on too long I think. Looking back at it I wouldn’t make the same mistake now because I learned to accept  that there are certain things that are just not meant to be.  I don’t walk away with a lot of regret anyway because I think that sometimes when we regret we’re basically putting ourselves into being reminded of something you know happened but you know you just won’t make the same mistake. You have to  just say to yourself “That happened then when I was a different person” – and then you move on. I think we can all evolve just like seasons in a lifetime,  the way the leaves come back under the trees and they fall off again. We all evolve. 

WHAT’S IN THE PIPELINE? WHAT CAN WE ALL LOOK FORWARD TO?

I’m gonna be on TV in Nashville Tennessee on May 4th (on a Fox morning show). Also I have some songs that are in four different movies here in the US. We’ve been working. We’ve been working really hard over here Juno, and really saying our prayers. Just trying all we can to make things happen and having a lot of faith. 

YOUR ONE MESSAGE TO THE WORLD.

Just love…Don’t be afraid to love anybody. No matter how hard it is. You may see them as the opposite and I think that’s even more reason to love somebody. Without love it’s all gonna fall apart. It’s that glue that’s going to hold us together.  

(This interview was conducted via Sykpe on April 23, 2012)

Photo by Aleksey Moryakov

 FOR MORE ON BRIAN VISIT HIS PAGES

Facebook   - http://www.facebook.com/brianmackeyfans

YouTube   - http://www.youtube.com/brianmackey

Twitter  - http://www.twitter.com/brianmackeynyc

Soundcloud - http://soundcloud.com/brianmackey

Reverbnation  (Ranked #6 in New York) 

http://www.reverbnation.com/brianmackey 

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