Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Brooke Howard. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Brooke, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?
When I was 7 years old, I came home from school and told my mom I was going to Broadway. I had an incredible music teacher, Doris Turner, who heard me writing my own lyrics to Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy” after we watched a movie about him in class. She offered to give me voice lessons and it all took off from there. I quickly went from singing and dancing on our fireplace at home to working professionally as an actor and performing publicly nonstop. After studying at NYU I wanted to move away from the acting world so I recorded my first EP, and started playing shows with a band. I went through a dark period where I got a bit distracted and disconnected from myself. The music industry can be very daunting, especially as a woman, so I tried to find any other career that might fulfill me. That was a major fail and I ended up in the worst mental health of my life. When I moved to LA I decided I was going to be an entertainment executive. 6 months later I bought a keyboard and started playing and writing songs again. I realize now I had to go through all the ups and downs and grapple with my purpose to fully commit and never turn back again. My debut album “Witch Trap” coming out May 3rd 2024, definitely touches on the story of finding purpose and growing into my own skin as a woman and music artist.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
Here’s my “official” bio so you all can get a more condensed story of who I am since I tend to ramble:
Having performed at prestigious venues across the United States including the Hotel Cafe Mainstage, Mercury Lounge, Bowery Ballroom, and Los Globos; headlined the Nomad Field Trip Festival; caught the attention and support of GZA from Wu-Tang Clan himself; and raised over $12,000 from her first Indiegogo campaign for her upcoming album, Brooke Howard has stormed the scene with her alluring style.
She has captivated audiences, bewitched fans, and garnered support from near and far, just in time for her upcoming debut album, ‘Witch Trap’, a love child reminiscent of Stevie Nicks and Rihanna.
The album, set to release May 3rd, 2024 includes the gilded touch of Grammy and VMA winning artists who share Brooke’s multi-faceted and eclectic musical vision. From a young age, Brooke Howard immersed herself in any music or art she could get her hands on, and she shows her unique range in her 2023 singles. ‘Moon’, ‘Hallucinating’, ‘uh oh’, ‘Crawlin’, and GIMME (feat. lye.ll) blur the lines between RnB, alt pop, hip hop, and – with the single ‘Lavender’, ethereal jazz-influenced pop.
I’m currently most excited for the album release show we are putting together at Sassafras Saloon in Los Angeles on May 3rd. It’s going to feature performances by many of my favorite local LA artists, not limited to just music, but dance, and much more! I’m working with a great team to put on a release show/event that is creative, out of the box, and not your typical album release show. We all went to Experimental Theater school together at NYU and that’s inspired us to find a new way to get audiences engaged with live performance. These days, it can be difficult to hold people’s attention, so we want to meet the audience where they are and give them a night they won’t forget. It will be magical, mysterious, celebratory, and of course, a little spooky. We’ll be rolling out more fun details as the event gets closer so make sure to follow me on social media for updates.
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?
Literally just this week my amazing witchy chiropractor reminded me that authenticity is the most attractive quality you can have. I know I’ve gotten caught up many times in my life trying to be something or someone people want me to be whether on a personal or professional level. Trying to sound or look like other artists is a waste of time because they already exist. The most successful artists are the ones who are 100% unapologetically themselves.
You also must be willing to do the work. Whether it’s yoga, therapy, meditation, dance class, practicing your show or speech, or going to the networking event you don’t really feel like going to, you have to get yourself out there and push yourself out of your comfort zone so you can constantly grow. I’ve been practicing finding the balance between working hard and letting things flow and it’s amazing what magic can come from that. I recently saw a David Bowie interview where he said something to the effect of “Always go a little further into the water than you feel you’re capable of being in. Go a little bit out of your depth and when you don’t feel that your feet are quite touching the bottom you’re just about in the right place to do something exciting.”
Work with your friends if you can, it makes life so much more fun. Everyone I work with was either my friend before we started working or became one in the process. When work is fun it doesn’t feel like work anymore and that joy and excitement shines through in whatever you create.
What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?
I feel like I’ve grown A LOT in the past year or two. It all stems from my relationship with myself. Thanks to many books, podcasts, and conversations with wonderfully insightful humans, I’ve been able to see myself more clearly as a human and artist. I’ve examined my pitfalls, faced my fears, and learned how to relate to others in a much healthier way. I’m always a work in progress and will certainly never be perfect, but i’m finally okay with that. I’ve made friends with my demons.
Contact Info:
- Website: brookehoward.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brocklee/
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2LvxnjW2spHC23Ue7WUMiH?si=Fg7Tj0c0Tz-1F_xP2FWvZQ
Image Credits
David A Solorzano, Adaeze Njaka, Lyell Evans Roeder
