So when the Friday dance party at Soulfest comes to a halting stop, because the floorboards below us are breaking, every fan, except maybe my sleeping five-year old, is jumping to their heart’s delight to the mixing magic of Brad Dring, Lead Singer of New Zealand’s own Rapture Ruckus. The misfortune lead to my fortune…because the show gets shut down, I land a nice long interview with Brad!! And we all dance our hearts out the next day, at the outdoor stage, where there is no limit to how much, how high, or how hard we can jump on the Gunstock grounds during their big show. And what a show it was! I personally think a buzz was created about RR and how they partied so hard, the walls nearly fell down. Next thing you know, everyone wants to hear them and see what all the RUCKUS is about. Well, here’s a little glimpse into the life of Brad Dring, the man behind the voice. Enjoy…
Raj: Okay. We’re on. [Digital Camera this time. But not the best lighting for the video since the room was dim.] So you’re name is Brad?
Brad: Yeah. Brad Dring. D.R.I.N.G.
Raj: Okay, Great. Awesome. And you’re from New Zealand. All right. So just a fun question to start out with: what’s your favorite flavor of ice cream?
Brad: Oh. Umm. They have this flavor in New Zealand called “Hokey-Pokey.”
Raj: Hokey Pokey?
Brad: Hokey Pokey. That’s my favorite. And you can only get it in New Zealand.
Raj: Okay. Well, what’s in Hokey Pokey?
Brad: Well, it’s called “Hokey Pokey,” but the stuff that’s in is kind of like a crunchy toffee. It’s a New Zealand thing. It’s delicious. New Zealand might make the best ice cream in the world.
Raj: All right. Sounds delicious. All right. You said you were nineteen when you knew this is what you wanted to do.
Brad: Yeah. Yeah.
Raj: Did you grow up singing? Or playing an instrument.
Brad: Oh Yeah. I grew up playing music. Yeah. I played drums since I was quite young. And started playing in the school jazz band and that. And I when I was nineteen was when I first wrote my first song that was on the first trip tour. When I started writing, and rhyming and mixing and that.
Raj: So what was your first song called?
Brad: I really can’t remember what it was called.
[Me laughing]
Brad: It wasn’t a very good one.
[Both of us laughing.]
Raj: Oh. Okay. Um. So who inspires you? In terms of music? Artists? Bands?
Brad: Some of the stuff I grew up listening to like my mum used to listen to like some of the big different kinds of music, like Queen, and Michael Jackson, and Phil Collins, and she liked pop music like Ebert. I grew up listening to what she listened to. They all influenced me. And I love rock music and I always loved hip-hop.
Raj: Yeah. Are there any Christian bands that inspire you?
Brad: Yeah. To be honest, I’m still learning about all these big bands here in America.We knew about Switchfoot before we came to America. And we’re pretty tight with P.O.D. We know them. They’re an inspiring band as well.
Raj: I know at Wilmar, Toby totally came out and endorsed you guys.
Brad: Really?
Raj: Do you remember that? I remember he came out and said, “These guys are awesome. I remember him doing that.”
Brad: When was that?
[Brad takes a swig from his water bottle. He’s not convinced.]
Raj: At Wilmar, in Minnesota. Last summer. He came out and totally gave you guys a thumbs up.
Brad: Paul Coleman. Toby? [Brad turns to a band member taking apart a speaker behind him who agrees with me.]
Raj: Am I imagining it? That’s what I remember. [famous last words]
Brad: That was at Sonshine then? Wasn’t it?
Raj: Yeah. Yeah. Sonshine.
Brad: Okay. Now I remember that. That’s cool.
Raj: Okay.
Brad: Toby’s awesome.
Raj: Okay. Okay. Tell me about your family. Are you married? Have kids?
Brad: I’m married. Been married for about five years.
Raj: Very nice.
Brad: My wife comes on tour with us. She does our lighting. And I was raised in a single, solo mother and I’ve got an older sister.
Raj: No kids yet?
Brad: No. Working on it.
Raj: Oh Okay.
Brad: [Looking straight into the camera] Maybe soon.
[We both laugh.]
Raj: And you said you have an older sister?
Brad: Yes. An older sister. And a couple of half brothers and sisters.
Raj: Okay. Great. Great.
Brad: I’ve got a mish-mash family. [Big Smile]
Raj: Okay. That’s awesome. So, as a writer, one of my favorite things is just good stories.
Brad: Yeah.
Raj: So tell me a story behind one of your songs.
Brad: Aww Man…
Raj: I’ll give you a second. You can think about it.
Brad: Hold on.
Raj: I know artists often write songs, they often come from stories. Like something that happened.
Brad: All of our songs are written for people. When I first started, when were playing shows and that, I used to write for some of my friends that were going through some hard times. I always wanted to cheer someone up. I always had someone in mind. It was always someone I knew.
Raj: Okay. Yeah.
Brad: Like our song “Hold On” which is done really well, I wrote it for some of our close friends. I wrote it for them. Then gave it to them. And it ended up a single on our album.
Raj: Were they going through something…
Brad: Yeah. A friend whose marriage was breaking up and I had a friend who had cancer, and they were my really close friends, so I ended up writing the song for them.
Raj: Like a gift you give them.
Brad: Yeah.
Check out “Hold On”
Raj: That’s awesome.
Brad: And for the last five years, now when we do shows, kids tell us their stories after the show, and we write songs for them. We don’t give it to them directly. We might not remember their names. But I remember the kid and I write if for him.
Raj: That’s awesome. [I said this a lot!] Wow.
Brad: Yeah.
Raj: If you could tell your fans anything about you? About New Zealand? Or about what your passion is. Like every band often has a message they want to share. What do you want your fans to know? What do you want to tell them at the end of the day?
Brad: […] The whole idea is that, we get kids for, like tonight it was only 15 minutes, [we both laugh, although I’m still so bummed the dance party got cancelled!!] but usually we get them for an hour or forty minutes or half an hour. And we just want to pour everything of ourselves into them and lift them up, you know. So much stuff is going on in these kids’ lives. We know that because they share that with us.
Raj: Yeah.
Brad: So for the minutes we have them, we don’t know what’s being poured into them, what they’re being told at home or about who they are. We just want them to know who God thinks they are. We just want to lift them up. Give them a positive image and a hope. … Is that good?
Raj: That’s awesome.
Brad: Okay. I’m out.
**Great to meet you Brad. Can’t wait till y’all come to New York City to break some floors at Madison Square Gardens. Cuz I, and my whole crew, will so be there. Ready to partay. See you next summer. Fo sho! -Sincerely, Raj
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Thanks Chris! I think they are well on their way… Thanks for stopping by! 🙂 -Raj
Great interview! I hope this band becomes well known in the US. I’ll definitely spread the word to my friends.