Musician Interview: Megan Bee

I'd now like to introduce to you one of my favorite independent musicians, Megan Bee.

Q: How long have you been performing music?

A: I had a solo in the school Christmas pageant when I was in 1st grade.  I was dressed as a penguin and singing to help Santa remember who he was because he had gotten amnesia in a sleigh accident.

Q: I know you didn't start out in music. Could you give us a little of your background before you became a musician?

A: Yeah, went to college to study Ecotourism and focused on teaching environmental education.  I interned as a naturalist one summer at Camp Oty’ Okwa in the Hocking Hills, and I still teach there on occasion.  The schedule of the camp allowed me to have the winters off.  One winter I went on a journey to work on organic farms across the country.  Eventually my car broke down, I started backpacking, I found some great wilderness camping areas, and I met some people around a campfire who were playing music under the stars every night. 

Q: What inspired you to be a musician?

A: Really that first trip across country did it for me.  It was the joy of sharing music around the campfire.  I never had anything like that growing up.  It was a dream come true.

Q: Who are some of your biggest musical influences?

A: My best friend’s parents owned a bar in high school so we spent a lot of time listening to jukebox classics: Fleetwood Mac, CCR, Merle Haggard, etc. I use to always listen to Country Gold on Saturday night where I found Lorretta Lyne, Patsy Cline, and Emmylou Harris.  Now I tend towards folk/Americana artists: John Prine, Steve Earl, Lucinda Williams, Iris Dement, Patty Griffin. 

Q: Which of your original songs do you enjoy playing the most? (Mine was always the Frog Song, by the way)

A: Thanks!  It really depends how I’m feeling and if I’m playing with other people.  I like to play them all. Many times I enjoy playing whatever song I’ve most recently written because it’s new. 

Q: What about songs you like to cover?

A: “Who will save your soul” by Jewel, anything by John Prine, and lots of old folk tunes that people will sing along with.

Q: I first encountered you at Wisteria Event Site during a festival. Could you talk about some of the festivals you've played and your experiences with them? I know you turned some heads at Nelsonville Music Fest earlier this year, earning you a spot on Gladden House Sessions.

A: Yeah, Nelsonville was great.  I love playing festivals because I get to be outside.  I love seeing communities come together at a fest.  People tend to slow down and take their time.

Q: I heard you got to play right after Jorma not too long ago at Fur Peace. How was that?

A: It was lovely!  It was outdoors during the Arts and Minds Festival.  Jorma and all of the folks that run Fur Peace are so laid back, kind, and welcoming. 

Q: Do you have any venues you frequent the most?

A Donkey Coffee is my standby spot here in Athens.  I love that back listening room. When I’m out west in the winter I spend many Saturday nights at “The Range.”

Q: Do you have a favorite show you've ever played?

A: On my last tour across country I played a spontaneous unplanned show to four naked people in a natural hotspring under an amazing sky of stars in the middle of nowhere.  I just thought “Man, why can’t every show be just like this?” We were all just so relaxed and had no expectations, worries, or other place to be except in that moment.

Q: What all recordings have you produced, and how may they be obtained?

A: I have 2 albums with my band Wormz and the Decomposers “Little Birdie” and “Grow”.  “Grow” is online in all the regular places including my website meganbeemusic.com.  A couple songs from “Little Birdie” are up on reverbnation.com/meganbee.  Of course you can always find my CDs at my shows.

Q: You fund your albums through Kickstarter? Can you talk about that?

A: When I funded “Grow” two years ago I was absolutely terrified to ask for help.  It’s hard for me to ask for help especially financially, but somehow I made it through.  People backed me, and that was such an encouragement.  I’m coming around to accepting that being an independent artist doesn’t mean I have to do everything on my own.  It just means that I have no recording label to back me so I am dependent on my fans.  I love this grassroots concept of supporting music.  I just ended a Kickstarter last month for my new solo album.   I had asked other friends for advice, done more research, and felt much more comfortable with the process. You can’t just create a project and hope it succeeds.  You have to work for it, spread the word, keep everyone informed, ask for help, and promote it.  In the end it was a great success, and I love how the crowd funding gets lots of people involved and builds momentum around a project.

Q: What are your current plans for your musical future? Any upcoming releases or exciting shows?

A: I’m working on my new solo album “A Sense of Place” right now out at Peachfork Studio with Bernie Nau.  I’m so excited about the work we’ve already done.  The album will be released sometime this fall.  I’ll be playing at the Paw Paw Festival on Saturday September 12th. I’ll once again be migrating south and west on a cross country tour later in the winter.

Q: I heard you've recently been enrolled in Song School?

A: I just returned from my week long study at Rocky Mountain Song School in Lyons, Colorado!  What an inspiration.  There were 180 songwriters and 30 instructors.  The experience was priceless.  I took classes on harmony, rhythm, directed writing, and children’s music. Peter Yarrow (of Peter, Paul, and Mary) gave an amazingly moving talk about how music brings people together.  Besides classes we all spent every night playing music for each other. Connecting with other songwriters was the most valuable part of the week.