We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Ebenezer Gilbert a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Ebenezer, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?
As my life has developed, I’ve become more resilient, and have gained so much to fight for, but in the beginning, I had nothing to fight for, and everything to gain. I was born in a litter of seven kids, and I was fifth in line, and lived mostly off of hand me downs and poor advice. I quickly realized I was in a scenario that I didn’t belong in. I’ve always enjoyed singing, and started playing instruments around the time I was ten years old, which I’m very fortunate for, because the therapy that comes with music saved my life. Although music was my therapy, there were a lot of bad influences and bad habits that came along with that lifestyle, and by my mid twenties, I had developed an alcoholism problem. I became a father in May of 2017, and became influenced to better my life. Shortly after she was born, her mother and I separated, and I started to drink more, and started developing health problems, and came to a place where I decided to permanently quit drinking, in early 2021. Since I quit drinking, I’ve had a much more constant musical career, at least as far as releasing music is concerned, I quit smoking cigarettes, my health normalized itself, I’ve mended a lot of broken relationships I had, have way healthier friendships than I’ve ever had, I started college, left a kitchen Job and started a second career in an industry that I enjoy, and I started enjoying playing music again. In honesty, my resilience is built up in layers, and every move I make in my life now adds to my resilience, because I surround myself with resilient people who are constantly moving forward. When I started putting my focus into the little things going right over the little things going wrong, it was a lot easier to move forward in my life and to leave the stagnant lifestyle behind. Always appreciate the people who are cheering you on, and always try to recognize who they are. I believe all of these elements are important.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
My life has kind of been tied up in music since I was about 16. I started playing shows around then, and as my career has progressed, I’ve used my art to really focus on what I advocate for, such as women’s rights, civil rights, mental health awareness, and as I continue that work, I’m also looking to try and see if I can help those with disabilities. I’ve released 4 EP’s, 22 songs, and I’m about to be releasing my debut album on 1/31/25, and I’m also recording new music so there isn’t much of a time lapse between releases. The upcoming album is very dark and gritty, and kind of tells a nasty part of my story for me, but I think that It’s important to know about the worst part of me, just as the best, to grasp the evolution throughout my life. The title of this album is “Eb and Flo,” and when writing this album, I kept mental health in mind throughout most of the writing process, and while writing these songs and stories, I realized it needed a true liberation in It’s end. These are all songs I wrote when I was in very dark places, but I’ve reflected and healed passed these topics, and truly hope to connect and relate with others that may need it. Performing out has been complicated because I’m in college, but as I reflect on what I’m about to release compared to what I’m writing now, and can guarantee that people have a lot to look forward to when it comes to my music. Time being limited has been rough, but I’ll likely be back in full force by the end of 2027.
As it is for most artists, my music is very special to me, and each song I’ve released has a special place in my heart, and the cathartic liberation is very real. I started in Naples, FL, and the only reason that makes me happy is because Laura Jane Grace from Against Me! is from there, but by the time I was 13, I knew I didn’t want to be in Florida, and my heart was meant to explore. I based myself out of Orlando, FL professionally for awhile, and throughout the 2010’s, I played a lot of music on the east coast, and stayed as consistent as I could. I became a parent in 2017, took a small break, but after about a year and a half, my daughter actually indicated that I should be playing music, and I started writing new songs, and before long, I was playing again. As time has persisted, I’ve found ways to blend my music and my advocacies together, and as I continue writing, I find ways to give others a voice, because I can relate to the days where the light feels very dim, and I don’t want anyone to feel like that, and try to influence a good attitude in others, through my music, my poetry, my photography, my personality, or whatever it is that you experience from me.
I went on hiatus in 2021 after quitting drinking alcohol, and although I continually released music into my catalogue, I put a halt to live music, aside from a few stand alone shows, and a recent East coast tour that we played in September, but currently, my focus is more on school, and recording our next album, all while preparing for the release of our current album in a few weeks. In March on 2024, I moved and rebranded in Washington state, because I’ve wanted to come here since I was a teenager and got an opportunity, and I’ve taken my time to meet a lot of musicians here and to work more on stage production for bands such as Foo Fighters, Blink 182, Korn, Slipknot, P!nk, Metallica, Pearl Jam, and many others. As I begin to work my way back into live entertainment, I find a lot of excitement within my future, and I’m excited to share more ideas, along with many more experiences that I go through on my personal journey, that it seems I’ve decided to showcase with everyone.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Perseverance – Giving up is the easy thing to do, and if I gave up every time I was advised to do so, I’d have missed out on many great opportunities. I think perseverance and resilience go hand in hand, and It’s important to remain active, to always be practicing on your life work, and to always keep an open mind to change. Don’t give up.
Be Kind – Being kind has gotten me into some really cool situations in my life. It takes no work and minimal effort. The main thing that we are in charge of in our lives is how we react and respond to our own environment. Just be kind. The world is hard enough on everyone.
Be Patient – I’ve been working at this realistically since I was 16, and that is 18 years. I’ve been songwriting and playing music, mainly because It’s been my coping mechanism for so long, but in the beginning, it was definitely a dream. As it became reality, it became a continuous therapy, and I write songs and play music now, more because I need to, as compared to wanting to. All of the work and time I put into this is only a representation of the life of an artist, and although I normally don’t expect much recognition, It’s nice when the moments come that I get some, and I appreciate it.
What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?
Go find nature and go for a walk. I normally like to find a creek and follow it down for a while and to sit and listen to my environment around me. Normally, I’ll bring my Nikon or Holga, but there are times where I like to completely disconnect from everything and be to myself for a while. I also write regular poetry to get my thoughts out of my head, but those normally end up being scribbles on a notepad, and those thoughts normally go away fast. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, remember to breathe, to hydrate, count backwards from 10, and for each number, remember an area of your life that gives you joy. Sometimes, you just have to walk out and do your thing, and if I can do it, anybody can. I believe that.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://open.spotify.com/artist/19b20kygAGXv8lGQSmWIHb?utm_medium=share&utm_source=linktree
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ebenezerandthescrooges/?igsh
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ebenezerandthescrooges
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCSvRBque6BWkjd5MOcs-4-g
- Other: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/ebenezer-and-the-scrooges/1502853311
Image Credits
Ebenezer Gilbert
Jim Leatherman
Kelly Russell
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