Meet Nick Bradley

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nick Bradley.

So, before we jump into specific questions about what you do, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
Growing up, for as long as I can remember, the piano has always been my favorite instrument. I always wanted to learn how to play, but I never got involved in lessons, and I never really had access to a piano. About six years ago, I was at my Grandma’s house with my family for the holidays, and I remember there being a Keyboard in one of the rooms. It was probably the first time I actually sat down and started messing around on a keyboard. The crazy thing is, I was honestly just pressing keys, but it didn’t sound bad; and I can remember the joy it gave me being able to do a little bit on the keyboard for my first time. That same year, my parents got me a keyboard for Christmas, and I started teaching myself how to play. Since I still wasn’t taking lessons, I used music that I liked in order to teach myself. It didn’t matter if the songs were more advanced than my abilities at the time. The fact that I liked the songs and I wanted to learn how to play them drove me to figure it out. When I went off to college, if I wasn’t in class or doing work, I was in my dorm room finding more songs to learn how to play. Then, I would take what I learned and use it to create arrangements. Little did I know, that I was training my ear the whole time. By the time I graduated, I was to the point where I could hear a song and sound it out in about five to ten minutes. At that point, I knew I wanted to do something with this gift, it just became a matter of figuring out how to create opportunities for myself. So, I started learning the music of aspiring artists around Atlanta and sending them videos of me playing their songs. That landed me the opportunity to be the keyboardist for Devenaire and Tacinda LaShell. I am also in the works of learning how to produce, teaching people how to play songs they want to learn, and writing songs; whether for me or for other people.

Has it been a smooth road?
The journey has been challenging but expected. You can’t expect to go after something you want without hardships. The hardest challenge for me is mentally, because I live in my own head. I can be my own worse enemy at times. I use to feel like I’m not good enough to play for people, I would talk myself out of opportunities, I was legitimately battling myself. It wasn’t until last year that I finally stopped holding myself back and started going after everything I wanted. Right now, I’m the student and the teacher. I play 100 percent by ear, and even though I played well, there’s so much more I need to pick up on. Sometimes, I have major breakthroughs and it propels my playing and understanding of theory; Other times, I’m stuck on something for days and I’m getting nowhere. Either way, I look at it the same way I look at life: you will have your ups and downs, but focus on the things you can control and everything else will work out itself out.

We’d love to hear more about your business.
I am a self-taught musician, I have never had a lesson in my life. Despite that, I have been able to compose music for short films, accompany artists with acoustic sounds, write song lyrics, perform with bands, and even assist others with learning songs. I am most known for my playing style. It creates this tranquil aura that tends to really relax and soothe listeners. I’m mainly proud of how much I’ve grown as a musician in such a short time, and finally coming out of my bubble to share my gift with others. One thing I will always do is put my personality into my playing. Music has a way of reaching us at a level that people can’t. I’m always in good spirits and I want my positive/optimistic energy to rub off on anyone I come in contact with; Because at the end of the day, we’re all in this together. We all get down, and sometimes there’s not a word that can be said to uplift someone, but if I can reach you through music, then it becomes therapeutic and it possesses the power to alter moods.

Is our city a good place to do what you do?
I think it is a great place! Atlanta is huge with music. You never know who you’ll run into and what kinds of connections they’ll have. Plus, there are tons of venues around here that want people for live music. Then, you have thousands of churches, so the opportunities are endless. You just have to get out there and find what you’re looking for. So yeah, I would definitely recommend anyone doing music using Atlanta as a starting point.

Contact Info:

• Email: bradleyn23@gmail.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/_nickbradley2

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