He is recognized as a versatile songwriter and singer in the Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C., area. Performing over 250 shows annually, Brian Franke is an in-demand artist who often takes center stage at area restaurants and wineries.
Rather dedicating his songwriting and performances to one genre, he has branded himself as a musician that is both universal in practice and style. Taking the form of hard rock, pop and folk, Franke punches out acoustic notes and profound lyrics. We spoke with Franke as he gave a candid, behind-the-scenes look at what it means to build a career in music.
What makes NoVA the perfect location for musicians like yourself to build a career and perform the type of music you want to perform?
There are a lot of places to play in the area. I have toured and done other cities. Here, you have more of an opportunity to get your feet wet performing. You can find any kind of music any night of the week. Whether it is jazz, hip-hop or rock, you can find it because there are a lot of different people living here that play different styles of music. I hope one day there is more collaboration between musicians. Everyone kind of gets stuck in their own little music subcommunities. I am in the singer and songwriter community, [and] there is not that much interlacing between different genres. I feel like there should be more because we could possibly come up with some sort of new genre or certain sound coming out of this area that does not exist somewhere else.
What do you enjoy about performing at venues like restaurants and private events?
As a musician you have to know and adapt to the things in people’s lives. Music can enhance that moment or feeling that they have at the time. There are sad moments, like when Paris was attacked. You have to play a show when people are scared, which you have to try and make it all better through music. It is about going back to when music was first being played. It tends to bring people together, whatever their mood or event of the day was.
Private events are intimate, and they are probably the most intimate types of shows that I have done because people are hiring you for a very specific purpose. I have done house concerts where I was invited to people’s homes. Usually, it is people that appreciate music, are fans of music or of you. You play for a small audience and talk about songs, what they’re about and how they were written. This just goes more in-depth in front of people as a musician.
You built your brand on being versatile. Why do you think this is important as a musician?
I have lived here since 2005 and played hundreds of shows where people are from all over the country and world. So you have to learn a little of everything. That helps to keep the crowd around, and people appreciate it if you play a lot of different things, not just one thing. It keeps people’s ears fresh and keeps them listening for me to have a wide range of songs that I can play for them. I have had discussions between breaks with people who maybe did not request a certain song but will say a song I played reminded them of their dad who just passed away or just a moment in their life. It is neat to see what people’s reactions are when the music opens them up in a way they share, even though you don’t ask them to.
What do you want to bring to the music industry here that you think is missing?
I run a few open mics in the area, and I see a lot of people getting started in the area that want to take things to the next level and do gigs like what I am doing. Oftentimes they know how to play and are good, but they don’t know the business end of things—how to present themselves, put a website together—or they have never recorded, so they do not have an idea where to go. I like to help people. I am considering coaching, where I take people who are serious about their music or starting a career and give them the resources and guidance. When I started, I had to figure a lot on my own, but I had people who were in the same position as I am today to ask questions and mentor me. That is something that is missing here. There is not anyone really doing that right now.
I think I can do the same in helping music venues. There are so many places to play music here, but a lot of venues do not always know how to organize, promote and market their music. In my mind, I think you should treat you music the same way you treat something on your menu. A lot of places sometimes forget they have music, or they don’t know the artist like they would be able to talk about the special on their menu. I think it is important for venues to know who they are hiring and be able to promote them as well.
For more information when and where Franke will be performing around NoVA, you can visit his website for more details.
