Today we’d like to introduce you to Benny Fish.
Hi Benny, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I first visited Austin in 2013 and was blown away by the musicians and artists I was meeting everywhere I went. In North Carolina, I was kinda the token musician amongst my friends and I wanted to live somewhere where music surrounded me. After I moved to Austin, I decided that I needed to get good at one thing instead of being decent at a bunch of instruments. I focused on my best instrument, the piano, and starting joining bands as a keyboardist.
After a few years of being in the scene, I felt comfortable enough launching a live project for the music I’d been producing. I pulled together some of my favorite musicians from different bands I’d played in and launched Viben & The Submersibles.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
You have to be truly delusional to think you’re gonna be successful in music. It’s just not an industry that is set up in a friendly manner. Playing shows and walking away with barely any pay, the expenses of recording, the fragility of the egos, the dreadful social media obligations it all requires. But there are fleeting moments, normally during live performances or a good rehearsal, when it is so clear that it all works and you know you just have to do it.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
The music I make is called Scuba Funk. One day some friends and I were driving to the greenbelt and somebody asked me how I would describe my music. Because I am notorious for using too much delay/reverb and it normally has a little bounce, I said “it kinda sounds like underwater funk”.
“You mean nautical funk?” my friend said.
“No, I mean scuba funk” I replied.
From that day on, the music has been known as Scuba Funk. A genre title that used to embarrass me at times but quickly became more memorable than the band name.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
I was referred to as a musical genius from a young age (although I would debate this). I was known as the “Beethoven of the South” for my original compositions. However, screamo music took me in a different direction at the end of middle school. From there on, many different genres had their way with me. But I was always coming up with tunes.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.scubafunkrecords.com
- Instagram: vibenandthesubmersibles
- Facebook: vibenforfree
- Twitter: vibenforfree
- Youtube: Viben Music
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2PwogUCKyPIBqwFwY2WD2h?si=Zmg05kuPTzO0AdTa-u3VTw
Image Credits
@alexparkermedia
