We had the good fortune of connecting with Caleb McFadden and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Caleb, how do you think about risk?
Woof. Risk taking, in my opinion, is everything. Don’t get me wrong, I find myself in a lot of situations in which I’m too timid to take the risk — whether it’s out of fear of the unknown or fear of leaving behind comfortability. But because of these fears, I think it’s crucial for any artist or businessperson to take leaps, big and small. Every time I’ve taken some sort of risk, I’ve at the very least learned something about myself or others or my environment. Even when the outcome has turned out to be less than desirable (or just genuinely terrible), I always have an easier time saying, “I shouldn’t have done that”, as opposed to, “I wish I would’ve tried”.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
For the better part of a decade, I’ve been writing and performing music in one way or another. I started playing saxophone in middle school and was lucky enough to have music educators to encourage me to keep playing and make progress. After high school, I picked up the guitar and studied music for a bit in college before I realized that studying music was started to strip away the feeling of it for me. I think a lot of that has to do with my personality and the competitive nature of studying music in degree-based programs. That’s when I decided to take music into my own hands and began to study and write music the only way I knew how — with a lot of fiddling, drive, and expression. I began plucking away at the guitar, obsessively writing lyrics based on what I was learning in my new academic focus of creative writing, and experimenting with sounds as much as possible. All of this lead me to starting a band called Chess at Breakfast with my best friends, Justin Daggett and Mike Davis. After five years of performing, writing, and recording with these cats, as well as developing two new solo projects (Saint Faint & Goth Club), I feel as if I’ve found my place in the music industry– writing to make others FEEL; writing to make them dance, to make them cry, to make them laugh, to make them wanna punch a hole in the wall. Now after every song I make, I just try to channel the “mom and dad that just sent their kid off to college vibe” — “This isn’t ‘mine’ anymore,” I tell myself, “it’s up to the creation and everyone who interacts with it to make anything more of it.”

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I’d tell them to extend their visit and just take them everywhere. It’s all great and all the best things happen with timing and luck.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Alright, I have three shoutouts: The first goes to my friend/bandmate/business partner/roommate/local hero: Mike Davis. Mike is a jack of all trades and has taught me a lot about a variety of different things, such as music (duh), graphic design, politics, writing, self-care, empathy, confidence, speaking your *&$#ing mind, video games, cinema, acceptance, you name it. He knows a lot about a lot and is one of the very few people I’ve ever met who can juggle all of their work, hobbies, and relationships equally and with such ease. My second shoutout goes out to all the bad ass women in my life for consistently teaching me to be a better person and filter things through a different lens. I’d list them all here, but then I’d have to write an entire index so you knew what page to turn to in order to find a specific name. If you’re a woman in my daily life and you’re reading this, you know damn well you play a big part in my life. Need I say more? The third shoutout goes to comedians and the meme industry for getting everyone through this past year. Laughter is literal magic.

Website: gothclubmusic.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mcfaddydaddy/?hl=en

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caleb-mcfadden-63a262121/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/settings?tab=account&section=username

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1RWSj6LMwmmhYhOfkYcnHQ

Image Credits
Photo Credits: Callen Liverance Kim Desmond Gregory James

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