Four Questions for… Bosley
Photo Courtesy of Bosley
At Tracks & Fields we like to showcase the talent and inspiration of the artists behind our sync licenses, through their own words. For this edition of ‘Four Questions for’ we interviewed Baltimore-native Bosley.
Bosley performs a mixture of soul and blues alongside his nine-piece band, which includes a saxophonist and two trumpeters. Bosley has two albums under his belt and is currently on tour in North America, with shows in Philadelphia and New York. His catalogue includes music sync licensed in films such as ‘Begin Again’ (2013) and the comedy show ‘Workaholics’. More recently, Tracks & Fields synchronised Bosley’s song ‘Sharpshooter’ for digital cable television and broadband company, UPC Poland’s advert.
To find out more about Bosley, we interviewed him to about his inspiration and what sync licensing means to him as an artist.
How long have you been making music?
I’ve been making music for my whole life really. I can remember dancing around strumming a tennis racket before I could play any instruments. I sang in the State Choir when I was a kid, and then I taught myself guitar and piano when I was a teenager. I started writing songs when I was about 13 years old, and I haven’t stopped since. I bounced in and out of a couple of different bands for a few years; I did a bit of college in the North East, travelled around the country busking, playing small solo shows and honing my performance chops but had no real career to speak of. When I was 23, I wandered down thru Mexico by bus and got lost in Central America for a while. I wound up in Xela, Guatemala playing every Friday and Saturday for 15 dollars a night- which I should mention is plenty of a living wage in Xela – before I bottomed out and came back to the States. Travelling and performing in countries, where American music was a novelty kind of reignited my love affair with early Rock and Roll and R&B and Soul. After that I started writing songs for a bigger band arrangement and put out my first album ‘Honey Pig’ in 2011. ‘The Dirty Dogs Radio Show’ is my latest album and I’ve just put out a brand new single called, “Are We in Love?” Please everyone check it out!
How would you describe your personal sound?
Uhm… Magical Realism? Retro-futurist? I usually just say Pop music because it’s broad, non-specific and everybody likes it. Genre is not something that interests me very much. I tend to jump around sometimes pretty drastically in terms of style. I like to put on different hats as a song writer and explore my range. I think if you put American music from the 1940’s until the 2000’s in a blender you might come up with something like what I’m doing. I described my new single “Are we in Love?” as ‘Outkast vs. The Beach Boys.’ Holla.
Where do you get your inspiration?
Wherever I can have the most fun. For relief, I walk through museums with a sketchbook and draw. I go to movies and read comic books. I think if you want to work on your art, work on your life. I guess the real answer is: I don’t know. I don’t always get inspiration, or I should say I don’t wait for inspiration. I like to show up and work on music no matter what I’m feeling like. That way when inspiration does strike, I’m already in the habit of working. I think that this concept of ‘The Muse’ can be dangerous for artists. I spent too many years thinking that my own creativity was the product of divine forces beyond my control, which meant that if I wasn’t writing good stuff then I must be no good. That’s not how it works anymore. Now I believe creativity flows through everyone and our job is to be open to it. That said, I do feel the most creative when I’m taking care of myself, living in balance and not working too hard. Honestly, the times when I get that inspired feeling most often is when I’m trying not to worry about the music or the business.
How important was being sync licensed to you as an artist?
I’ve really enjoyed working with Terrorbird Media [who worked with Tracks & Fields to license the song]. They’re a fantastic company full of dedicated, hardworking, friendly people, and you can quote me on that. The sync opportunities that relationship has afforded me have been invaluable for me. It’s great exposure and usually good money. Can’t say enough!
