Today we’d like to introduce you to Spencer Dugan.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
Everyone had that kid in their high school that carried around an acoustic guitar and sang to anyone who was willing to listen. I wasn’t him, but I always wished I was.
Growing up in San Diego, I lived inside a sub-culture of “emo kids” who listened to bands like The Maine, All Time Low, NeverShoutNever, Copeland, and Mayday Parade. I would sit in my bedroom and play covers of these songs, hoping that one day I would write some songs of my own. It wasn’t until my senior year of high school that I wrote something that I liked enough to play in front of people. And what better way to start than a talent show in front of my whole school. The only problem was, the song was about my girlfriend at the time, and not only did a lot of the kids pick up on that, I was essentially talking trash about her the entire song. So yeah, not my brightest moment, but I definitely ripped the live performance band-aid off.
When college came around, I decided against it. Instead, I moved to New York City to pursue songwriting. It was a rollercoaster of emotions–a lot of excitement, a lot of loneliness, and a lot of credit card debt–all resulting in a collection of songs that would become my debut EP titled “Dreaming Too Fast,” produced by San Diego native Jesse Barrera.
Please tell us about your art.
I’m a singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer. My debut EP “Dreaming Too Fast” stayed around the acoustic/singer-songwriter genre, and I performed most of my shows either solo or with one other instrumentalist. Those songs are about things like first love and coming of age.
My new band, Burgundy Arcade, will venture out into different genres with influences anywhere from Bright Eyes to Gary Wilson. All the songs will be self-produced from the comfort of my own bedroom with my good friend Samer Bakri. The DIY approach seems to be where independent music is headed in 2019.
With any of my music–like many artists–my only objective is, to be honest with how I’m feeling in the moment and hope that people can relate to the emotions. The songs I grow to love are the ones that make me feel less alone in this bizarre world. So I hope my music can do that for people too.
Choosing a creative or artistic path comes with many financial challenges. Any advice for those struggling to focus on their artwork due to financial concerns?
I’m still figuring that out myself, but I’ve definitely learned to utilize every hour of every day. If you work a day job to help put food on the table (like a lot of us), there is still plenty of time in the day for your art. If you want something bad enough, you’ll use your free time and energy to further your artistic career. Arnold Schwarzenegger has an amazing motivational speech about that. It’s a great watch for some inspiration.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
All my music can be found on all digital platforms (Spotify, Apple Music, Youtube, Soundcloud, etc.) under Spencer Dugan or Burgundy Arcade. All shows will be announced on my social media (linked below).
Contact Info:
- Email: sddesd@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spencerdugan
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/spencer.dugan
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/sdoogz
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/user/SpencerMDugan
Image Credit:
Dexter Offer, Adam Johnson, James Parker
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