An enlivened Goody Grace sits down minutes after his set at Delaware’s annual four-day Firefly Music Festival. Instilled is the adrenaline rush from performing for The Woodland’s enthusiastic crowd who came out to watch the Canadian crooner take the stage. But, that is not all Grace has to be excited about. He just played Firefly the same exact day his biggest musical influence of all-time, Bob Dylan is slated to headline.
“Funny story… I actually got booked on Sunday, which would be tomorrow,” Grace shares with a great deal of zing in his eyes. “Firefly decided to change my slot to a bigger stage, which pushed my performance back a day. So now, I literally play the same day as him… as Bob Dylan. It’s really, really crazy. He’s the reason I learned to play guitar in the first place, so you could say today is one of the craziest days of my life.”
On the topic of influencers, the singer-songwriter reveals he considers gnash a mentor in the industry as well, as the “i hate u, i love u” hitmaker was one of the first people Grace befriended when he moved to Los Angeles three years back. Long before seeking an interest in one another’s professional journeys, they would simply play together for fun. Once their careers flourished over the course of time, the two continued to collaborate on a handful of songs, conduct a sold-out tour, and remain close as can be- Grace even calling gnash one of his “best friends forever.”
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Coincidentally, both LA-based artists share quite a similar foundation and storyline of how they were able to let their voices be heard individually though DIY bedroom tracks and the power of the Internet. That resemblance, can be referred to as the SoundCloud generation.
“I think nowadays social media is the most important thing [when it comes to getting music heard] and you know, I have luckily been able to gain a good following and people see me on there,” Grace explains, also expressing the benefits of being a part of a diverse, festival atmosphere.
“Playing shows like Bonnaroo (where he performed the previous weekend) and Firefly is awesome because there was probably like, 200… 300 people in front of me, all there to see different artists and I’m certain they all don’t follow me on Twitter or Instagram, but it’s cool that they know the music and they’re out there singing my lyrics back to me. Spotify and SoundCloud pretty much have turned into these prominent social media outlets too.”
Most recently, the Manitoba native used the surged streaming outlets, in addition to his personal social media accounts, to promote a new song titled “April,” the lead single off of his anticipated debut EP set for release later this summer. The track itself has already received positive reception from the public eye, consisting of an upbeat tempo and captivating lyrics, as Grace taps into a Smiths-inspired emotive vein. It also displays an unique, modern-meets-nostalgic sound he has yet to explore with past songs.
“People can expect honestly everything on my EP and going forward,” he confidently responds when asked if there is more of this fresh style headed our way. “I don’t ever really limit myself. If it [music] feels right, I just let it do its thing.”
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Grace personally produced four of the seven songs on his soon-to-be released project, cutting all vocals at home and channeling raw feelings accompanied by his acoustic guitar, an instrument he has picked away at since the early age of four.
Although the EP has been considered finished for months, Grace continuously finds himself revisiting his work and has become ambivalent about when the over-analyzation will come to an end.
“I don’t feel pressure from the world at all, but there is pressure on myself, you know? It has been an ongoing process to get this as perfect as can be. Someone like Bob Dylan has like, 35 albums now, but I’m sure he still knows how that first album felt.”
Following his weekend festival endeavors, Grace will catch a flight back to his hometown of Selkirk to celebrate his 20th birthday with family and friends, who he has not visited during the summer season ever since his spontaneous move to the City of Angels. To extend the celebration, Grace also plays his very first headlining gig at West Hollywood’s Roxy Theatre on Monday, June 26. Those in the area can still grab tickets to the show here.