Becoming Young Collaborates With Producer Austin Shawn for His Upcoming EP, Feeling Single
Love hurts. But the process of healing from our past wounds can open doors to the sublime, allowing us to tap into a new expression of beauty. Eventually, pain transforms into joy and life begets art. Indeed, some of humanity's most significant breakthroughs are the result of its deepest suffering. For electro-pop/folk musician Brandon Calano, a.k.a. Becoming Young (BY), it's no different.
Colorado-born, Nashville-based Brandon was driven to write songs about life's messiness after a deeply sorrowful break-up. And for a sensitive soul like Brandon, the consequences were harder to comprehend. Propelled by music and a sense of "the greater pain," he decided to let his broken heart make music that inspires others to hope.
Having just collaborated with acclaimed Nashville producer Austin Shawn on Becoming Young's upcoming EP, Feeling Single, the sentimental musician seems ready to fly with a new batch of narrative songs that have captivated audiences across the country. Let's dive deeper and see what made Brandon become a believer in himself.
Self-doubt to self-esteem
Launching one's debut album is probably a bit like looking up Mt. Everest from base camp. Once the dreaded first step is taken, the rest of the journey becomes about settling in, slowing down and conceding to the elements.
BY's first album, Circling the Flame, was released in 2018. Aptly titled, it warmed the young artist toward his abilities and to believe, "I'm good enough to do this." Completing the (self-produced) album forced Brandon to establish his own style early on—and gave him a musical identity.
If you can't say it, sing it
Brandon's self-doubt was 'essential prequel' to his current work, making it original and self-owned. Never an emotional livewire, he was a bit guarded romantically—the kind of guy who'd hide his emotions to protect himself. Although this realization might have upset the older Brandon, the 'Young' Brandon used this reluctance as inspiration to write "a slew of songs about that whole transformation."
Trust in magic and just wait it out
Nashville proved ready for a drop of electro-pop when BY moved to Music City in 2019. There he went on to win True Music Room's Top Writer Series, released a pop single, "Trippin'," and sang to sold-out crowds from Atlanta to the Pacific Northwest. With fate leading him by the hand, BY stopped in Seattle during his Fall 2019 tour to meet up with music producer Ryan Hadlock (Vance Joy, the Lumineers) at Bear Creek Studio. In early 2020, the duo worked there on Becoming Young's upcoming album, The Songs I Wrote You. Although the record will not be released until fall, BY has promised fans a hot new single, "High," which will drop on April 24th. It'll be the first song on his summer EP, Feeling Single, which precedes the album.
Inspired by an eclectic blend of contemporary songwriter artists from "fizzy Ed Sheeran pop to the dark grandeur of Dermot Kennedy," Becoming Young is ready to wear his heart on his guitar strap. Brandon has channeled trying memories into a collection of songs built from his authentic personality. "For this body of work, we didn't cram five songwriters into a room to engineer emotions, like labels often demand. These are just honest songs I wrote during both ecstatic moments and times where I couldn't find the light at the end of the tunnel." Indeed, life's messy, and Brandon writes about it.
