Meet Brandon Ellis

We were lucky to catch up with Brandon Ellis recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Brandon with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?

I’d have to say I learned most of my work ethic from my dad. He truly is the hardest working man I know. Growing up I got to see firsthand what it meant to do a job or task until it was right, not merely until it was done. My dad was always the first to arrive for a project in the morning and the last to leave at night; he’d pick up the extra overtime shifts at his job as an aircraft mechanic that other people would pass up; he’d make sure that a home renovation had every loose end tied up before deeming it complete. I took this model from him and applied it in my own life and career. Work ethic is ultimately what will set you apart from other people, especially in the music industry. Hard work opens more doors than talent ever will.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I’ve been in Nashville now for nearly 5 years, and in that time, I feel as though I haven’t stopped growing. I began my time in town working at a church in Franklin as a music minister, while also working to connect with the writer’s community, and I also was playing guitar on people’s records and in live band situations. Over the course of those first few years in town, I found some doors opening for me in the music industry to tour for several major label artists, and I made the jump of quitting my job at the time to explore that avenue.

Looking back, I’m so grateful that I took that leap of faith. The experience of traveling the world playing music night after night is something I can’t quite put into words. There is a perspective and maturity that comes with it. You physically and mentally grow exponentially as a musician. You learn to advocate for yourself. You learn that relationships matter far more than contacts. None of that time would I trade for the world. At the beginning of 2024 I made the decision to focus my efforts back to being in Nashville and not as much to being on the road.

A few months back I joined the team at The Life Church Nashville as their worship director, and I also have been focusing much more on writing, producing, and session work. My time on the road gave me a new-found fire to invest in my community and to be present here in this city. Something else that I also set out to do was to release music every single month this year. I’ve been sitting on such a wealth of material, and I’m now at a point where I want that music to stop collecting digital dust on a hard drive. I’ve aptly called my dedication to releasing music all this year “The Renaissance”. I wanted to fall in love with why I decided to do music in the first place, and I feel that I have.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

1) Always come to the rehearsal/gig/session/etc. knowing the music better than everyone else. Not in an arrogant way, but in an informed way. Your awareness of what other people are playing and NOT playing and you relate to that is paramount. Being an intentional listener who’s done the homework ahead of time will take you lightyears in this industry.

2) Don’t be intimidated by the perceived over saturation of musicians in Nashville. The cream always rises to the top. There are plenty of people in this town that aren’t great. There are a good number of average players, singers, writers, producers, and artists. But there are even fewer folks who are truly exceptional and world class. Those are the people to strive and model yourself after and to be inspired by. This town has room and work for everyone, and the more you can ignore intimidation and trade it for inspiration, the better.

3) A great work ethic will take you farther than talent ever will. Hard work always pays off. Every single time. Don’t get lost in the comparison game. Someone will always have better streaming or social numbers than you, or a more prestigious gig, or a pub deal, or a killer band. Focusing on those things will do nothing but send you six steps back. The more you can keep your head down, strive to get better at your craft, be good to all people, and work harder than you did yesterday, the more doors will open for you I promise.

What was the most impactful thing your parents did for you?

My mom and dad really were so incredibly supportive of my brother Blake and I’s development as musicians. They did such an immense number of things for us growing up, but at Christmas 2010 they got me a Fender Telecaster and my brother a Fender Jazz Bass. I had so badly wanted one after seeing David Ryan Harris play a butterscotch Tele on the John Mayer “Where The Light Is” DVD. That was without a doubt my first quality instrument. The instruments were not cheap, and I knew at the time my parents were making a sacrifice for us to have these. I felt subconsciously that I wanted to make for a good return on their investment in us. So that guitar went with me everywhere. Every single church service, every gig, every studio session, every rehearsal, you name it. I put some serious miles on that guitar. It’s been my #1 electric ever since, and it has even served me well in Nashville. It is currently out of commission due to needing a refret, but it’s become the metric of measuring where I started and how far I’ve come.

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Image Credits

Ethan Dsa, Libby Danforth, Dylan Reeves, Alex Wieland, Mick Bodie

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