Rising Stars: Meet Ben Gage of Ohio

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ben Gage.

Hi Ben, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
If I was asked to share my story, I think I could distill it down to a single word “noticing”.

If I was then nudged to expand on that single word, I would happily crack it open. For me I think that paying attention to things is a beautiful way to experience life. While we are walking down our own individual paths we have so much opportunity to look to the sides. Most lives start out somewhat the same, born, family, social norms, regional influence, etc. You are a product of your environment. As you start to develop, you get to add moments of choice. My choice has always been to notice what’s going on around me and then veer off the path whenever I can.

I grew up in rural OH in a large family. I was the oldest of what become 7 children. My childhood was amazing and full of rich diversity from 6 other developing minds and access to the outdoors (the ultimate teacher). I was happy to stay the traditional course and go through school, into college for business, and then into the workforce. My personal story doesn’t get truly interesting until around 2014. The year I started a bluegrass band with one of my brothers.

Entering the world of music (outside of school choirs and marching band) was exhilarating. As we grew I saw that music could take me into new circles, new places, and new ways of noticing. We ended up playing in 15 different states under the band “The Gage Brothers”. When that broke up in 2017, I knew that I had to find a way to get to the rest of the world and I’d prefer to do it on the wings of music. I started writing songs, leaned into folk guitar and blues harmonica, and created a songwriting realm to exist within. Since then I have released multiple full length albums, and have visited all 50 of the US states, and a number of other countries. The noticing is getting stronger!

Music and travel is a way to strip down walls that we have around us, either self made or imposed by others. To be in a new place, surrounded by strangers, and for us to all feel the same emotion through a song, that puts us all on an even playing field. You can’t help but notice in those moments how we are all the same. We all want to have a beautiful day, to have conversations with interesting people, to taste delicious food, to be moved by what the world has to offer. It’s an incredibly precious way to structure a life.

Now my story is a mix of the people I get to spend my days with, a perfect gumbo of existing. There is so much more of the world to see, and I plan to see as much of it as I can while my guitar strings are still shaking and my legs are capable of carrying on.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No. An artistic road is never going to be smooth.

One of the greatest challenges is the personal emotions that come with creating art. It’s a great responsibility to be a conduit for art to leave the ether and come into our world. Being that pathway can be exhausting. You are standing directly next to the raw power that is emotion, experience, and magic. There is no way you won’t feel overwhelmed at times because of it. I’ve had days or even months when I’ve been so overwhelmed and burnt out trying to make a life as a musician a possibility. I’ve also had times when I have felt detached from that energy, and the idea of not being creative anymore, that’s even worse. It’s my purpose, and a purpose isn’t always smooth.

The other piece that is always a factor is the cost of the world. As the dollar dances up and down, the need for a life stays pretty constant. Pennies get farther and farther apart and you have to get pretty scrappy to make ends meet. It always seems that if you stay true to what you are doing and don’t get distracted by mindless comfort and consumerism, then there is a way to make it happen.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
On paper, I’m a songwriter, photographer, and visual artist.

I think what I try to specialize in is capturing a moment. Everything I do, I look through the lens of the 100year old me. I want to look back at the places and people I was inspired by and see how precious those moments were. That leads to authenticity because I’m thinking long term not short.

My recordings of songs tend to lean towards live recordings. My songwriting is inspired by the people that I share the road with that I want to immortalize. My photography is to capture the places I’ve been that I don’t want to ever forget.

When it comes to art, I want to stay in the physical realm. I’ve started doing visual art by carving into Lino blocks and wood and the hand pressing those into prints. I created a monthly mailing where each month members get a carved print delivered right to their door. It’s free of marketing, screens, digital noise. Just analog old school art mailed with love. https://www.bengagemusic.com/monthlypress

One of the other projects I’m most exited about is called “Gage House Sessions”. They started as little concerts in my home and it has turned into a video series where I capture live takes of the other songwriters that I meet around the world. They are beautiful, honest performances, that will only grow in value as we get farther away from the moment they existed.

In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
I think we are about to see some massive change in the arts world across the board. With AI taking the world by storm, there is an artificial magic at peoples fingertips that hasn’t been there before. Up to this point art, and music, and pictures where byproducts of a handful of outliers communing with an alternate reality where creative potential is swirling around trying to find a way into our realm. With AI we are able to make a version of what the end products seem to be, but it’s missing all of the natural wonder. I think of fast food vs grandmas cooking. The artificial pieces can be made faster, last longer, be sold cheaper, and can trick the masses into thinking it’s real, but you can never beat the way the genuine article fills up your stomach with a warmth that permeates through your whole body. I think we are going to see an even great fracturing of scenes and crowds, but at the same time I think that is going to distill true believers of human creation into an amazing potent sector. We are always going to have the movers and shakers and the ones who want to experience something honestly simple with only real ingredients.

Pricing:

• The Monthly Press – $8

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.bengagemusic.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bengagemusic/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bengagemusic
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BenGageMusic
• Other: https://www.patreon.com/bengagemusic