Off the Record

Kevelle Wilson 0:05
There we go

Hello everyone. Today I'm here with David Cook was a rock singer songwriter performing at Packard Palooza and a few days. Thank you for coming to interview with us today. Thanks so much for having me.Okay, so first of all, I'm going to take it back just a few years, you made a band in high school called axiom? Just a few years. Okay, yeah.What did you learn from your first band that you carried on into your later career? And never? I'm

David Cook 0:46
really just, I think the big lesson I took from that band was was that you can'tyou can't really hide on a stage which, you know, why would you want to hide if you're going on stage? Butyeah, just you know, if I can go on stage and believe in what I'm doing, then it's pretty hard to expect anybody else to do that in the audience. So that is certainly a lesson I've, I've had to relearn over and over again.

Kevelle Wilson 1:15
Kind of getting over that fear of being on stage. How did you do that?

David Cook 1:22
You know, I got over stage fright.just from repetition. You know, I think I still get I had this conversation the other day with somebody I still get.I get antsy. I sort of get like the butterflies in the stomach. But I don't know if it's nerves Exactly. Now, like I feel confident that I feel competent, what I'm doing, or what I'm getting ready to do. But there's always the that anxiety about the unknown, like if something outside of your control goes wrong, like a drum cymbal falls over or a mic stops working or whatever. Those things that that can really abrupt, you shake you out of the pocket, and and then you kind of got to scramble to keep the show.Keep the shows forward momentum, I guess.Yeah, there's nothing that makes me more uncomfortable than to watch a performer or a band, find themselves in that position and not be able to navigate it successfully. So that's probably like, I guess I just told you what my biggest fear wasthatokay.

Kevelle Wilson 2:33
okay.

Speaking of being nervous, you must have been very nervous doing American Idol.I'm assuming a lot of our listeners have watched the show and love it. And I do as well. Thank you. How can you kind of talk about that, like the background experience of like, getting on the show and going through those kinds of steps for even, like, touch the stage and get on TV all the way to winning?

David Cook 3:00
Sure. So I, I had not, I had no intention of auditioning when I went to Omaha for the auditions. My little brother Andrew had wanted to audition for a while and I was living in Tulsa, Oklahoma.You know, kind of doing some solo stuff playing in a different band, bartending.And,yeah, it's sort ofit's just sort of happened. Like I got talked into it. While we were standing in line to register. I didn't really have any time to overthink it, which I'm pretty good at doing.And yeah, just sort of snowballed it really. It really wasn't untilwhat they callthe call, I forget what they call it now. But like they at the time, they call it Green Mile, where it's like, you've gone through Hollywood week, you've made it to the top whatever's left, and then they're out of that group, they're gonna pick the top 20 Year 2040 Go on the show. So that was probably the first time when it was just like, oh, this is this is real. Okay.And thenI think by that point, like, you kind of have to compartmentalize your anxiety,which is not always the healthiest thing to do. Butyeah, it was just like, Okay, well, I can't, I can't bail on it now. So I kind of have to just ride the anxiety out and whatever happens happens. Soyeah, I think it was just, I was really fortunate, though. I did have I had some experience, you'll get what we talked about earlier with bands and stuff before this, to where I kind of knew where I saton the musical spectrum, so I don't feel I don't feel like I lacked the, the knowledge of myself to where like I wouldn't misrepresented what I wanted to do post idol.So I was thankful for that and I just sort of kind of leaned on that as best they couldheld on for dear life.Nice.

Kevelle Wilson 5:03
Nice.

I'm kind of wanted to talk about your latest singletableaus, which I find really interesting.I just really liked the kind of soundscape of a song, I think the the cover matches are really well, thank you,when you kind of go into writing a theme or a motif, or a song, especially if it's not going to be an album, kind of its own, like solo thing, but what kind of your goal there.

David Cook 5:38
Um, I'm, I went to college and got a graphic design degree. So I do tend to think of songsin a visual medium a little bit. Andso I think anybody that like, parses my lyrics, like my, I use a lot of imagery, a lot of imagery.And so, I sort of had kind of a rough idea. In my head of like, what the, what I wanted that the cover to convey the song itself is just talking about, like, I'd watched this, this sort of actors roundtable interview,Tom Hanks was one of the actors on it. And he had talked about this lesson that he had learned about, you know,about how to just not live on the extremes of like, emotion and, and, you know, if, if something great is happening, you know, just just wait a minute, if something terrible is happening, just wait a minute, and,and so taco stands for this will all be over soon.And for me, what that song represents is just this idea, like,you know, everything is gonna be okay, just like ride the wave out as best you can. And, and, or the inverse is like, you know, everything feels really good right now. You know, try not to get too up, because it'll all be over soon.But then, when I finished the song, it kind of felt the music sort of conveyed this, like,isolation sort of vibe to me. And then I came across that image of like an astronaut standing in the middle of a space rock somewhere, just all alone. Andthe image sort of like really drove the point home for me of like that isolation. Andyeah, so it just, it felt like the perfect image for this.

Kevelle Wilson 7:33
Yeah, I kind of want to ask more about what you talked about kind of the highs and lows, I feel like that's very common in the music career, people having it, maybe something else happened, and they're not as popular as it used to be, then they go back to having another hit? Sure. How do you kind of like,manage your kind of like expectations of like, your career?

David Cook 7:59
Um, I mean, my expectations have never really shifted to be completely truthful. I mean,you know, I thinkyou can have like an individual goal, maybe change. But I think that consistent through line for me has always just been I want to put out stuff that I'm proud of, and I want to enjoy this process. And I want to enjoy the aspects of this job likethem, because they're not for everybody. The idea of going on the road for a long time, and particularly now, you know, it was easier to like, say yes, to go on on the road for a year when I was single and 25. And now at 40. And I'm married and have kind of a setup here at home, and it's a little harder to leave. Soit's, you got to really love this gig. I think first and foremost.Yeah, I don't know if that answers your question or not. Butit's, yeah, that answer your question? Sorry. I can go off on a tangent on that.

Kevelle Wilson 8:57
No, it does. I think a lot of people just kind of glamorize what it's like to be a musician and only see the highs of it.

David Cook 9:03
Listen, this this gig is is better than most, you know, I don't want to

It'syeah, I mean, any job you have, there's gonna be things about it. You don't like you know,I have slept on more uncomfortable surfaces than I you know, like, somebody who enjoys asleep, but we did a little weekend read last weekend. And I ended up having to sleep on like a, like a fan bench.It's like it's fine if you're in your 20s and you can recover pretty quickly and then all of a sudden, it's like, get a little older your back starts to hurt all the time.

Kevelle Wilson 9:54
I kinda also wanted to ask aboutone of my favorite songs yours read turns blue.So you've talked about in the past, I was kind of about anxiety. And I know you've been diagnosed semi recently with anxiety disorder. Yes. I think a lot of musicians are starting to talk about and open up about their mental health struggles. Why do you think that's so important than the music industry?

David Cook 10:20
I think I mean, listen, sunlight is the best disinfectant in general. So I'm,I'm thankful for the people who came before me that felt open enough to talk about it, because it opened that door a little bit more to where I felt comfortable walking through it.But it's, uh, yeah, I think,I think back like, even like, 25, when I was on Idol, and the level of access to the rest of the world that you had at that point, like, you know, was daunting, and then you think about it now. And, I mean, you know, it's, it's kind of hard to turn the world off sometimes. And I think there's a healthy aspect to being able to kind of, okay, I'm home now, and I'm not around X, Y, or Z, and I can sort of turn it all off. And I don't know that that exists fully anymore.And for all the great things that come with being able toconnect and exist in a, in a communal space with people all over the world, all all at once,there are definitive downsides. And so, you know, my anxiety sort of stemmed from the fact that all of a sudden, it was, you know, after 25 years of being taught and raised to live life a certain way, and this is what the world will be for you. And, and then, you know, by a sheer stroke of luck, I was also then forced to kind of rewire on the fly.And it's, it's not the easiest transition in the world.I still struggle with it. Sometimes, like the idea, like,people having an opinion about the color of my hair, or the length of my beard, or, or whatever. So.So yeah, I think it just got to the point where I felt like, alright, if I'm going to, if I'm going to keep doing this, if I'm going to keep being a musician and keep performing, I kind of have totake some of the onion layers away and, and be a little bit more vulnerable. And so that's, that was sort of the crux for putting that song out. And the response was,was heartening. I was I was a little nervous, I was more a little more nervous for that song released than, than any other one that I can recall.Yeah, I think it was a great thing, because I remember you talking about how progressing as a musician is so key into enjoying what you do.

Kevelle Wilson 12:48
And yeah, you said, pretty sure you said you would stop making music if one of your albums sounded exactly like your last one.

David Cook 12:55
Yeah, that's still true. That's still true. You know, I, I think any musician would tell you that I truly believe because it's, it's part of the joy of this gig is is the creation aspect. It's like, I get toput something out in the world that didn't exist prior. And, and I get to let that hopefully be, you know, my legacy and somuch that I care about a legacy. Soyeah, I just, and then I listened back to songs that I did, like, when I was a teenager, and it's like, God, that's not great. You know, but then you're putting that stuff out. You're like, oh, this is this song. This is so indicative of who I am and what I stand for. And I think it's fun to go back and look at that stuff and find, like, find those narratives and how they've progressed and how they've changed andyeah, I feel like if I started just kind of living in this lane,you know, forever as a as a, as a creative person.I don't think I'd find any joy in it to be completely honest.

Kevelle Wilson 14:06
Um, so how do you kind of push your artistic palette to be able to create new things like what do you how do you kind of reveal your creative bucket?

David Cook 14:17
I think honestly, as I get older,some of those things just happen naturally.I thinkwith time, you become a little less rigid in your opinions. You know, there's, there's music I listened to now thatI would never have admitted to and 25 or 20 certainly wouldn't have given it the option like I wouldn't give myself the option. And so as I've gotten older, I've kind of just gotten over myself and gotten out of the way and allowed my peripherals to open up and it opens you up to, to tomore influences more ins SPIRATION and so that's kind of really beenthe way I've attacked sort of like expanding my palate to use your phrase, which I like, by the way.It's, it's acknowledging that like, Okay, I might exist here. But that doesn't mean that something way over here or something way over here, can't influence this and maybe send it in a, in a slightly different direction that that interests both me and hopefully the people listening to it.

Kevelle Wilson 15:33
So when you perform, you will be a backup loser. Maybe it will, of course, be a bunch of college students who have may or may not have heard of you. Sure. How do you kind of go into controlling a crowd and making sure that your audience engages with you?

David Cook 15:48
Oh, man, I mean, that's the million dollar question. If I if I knew the answer to that, if I had the formula where I could do that 100% of the time.Like, Iknow, it's, it's about,you know, my job as a performer is to createyou know, a cathartic experience that only, I mean, I say only us, but now with the advent of like, live streams and stuff that sort of opens it up a little bit.But so just create, you know, an energy and a vibe that people can tune into and, and hopefully walk away with with something. So those have been my favorite concerts to attend as a listener is when I, I feel like, oh, this experience is something that is happening in this room tonight, and then never again.And so yeah, that's always sort of the goal.I'm excited to come out there. i It's been a minute since we've gotten to perform in Raleigh, andso to get to come back, and I've already been told not to wear any shade of blue, soI'm gonna avoid that. And, and then somebody was telling me abouta cut out, I forget the name of it now. But like, there's like a milk processing plant, like the ice cream thing with the ice cream thing. Holy cow.I've been told I have to do that. So it is really good. Yeah. Yeah.I mean, I'm wearing black to kind of because it's slimming. But I'm not. I'm not a stranger to ice cream, let's just be honest.That you kind of talked to before how you kind of look at, look back on past songs, and kind of wonder where your head was at at the time. I can'tperform. I asked myself that question that exact way, but not as nicely as you just put it.

Kevelle Wilson 17:52
So when you perform older songs that are what 15 years old? What's kind of your mental? Is it like you're just going through the motions? Or can you still find something to love about music that's that you wrote that long ago.

David Cook 18:05
I mean, it's

they're very different exercises, you know, they're different. You're using different muscles.So when I'm performing, and this is the lesson I actually picked up on Idol is my job is to tell the story of that song and to emote, whatever that song is trying to emote, so, it'syou know, if I'm singing a sad song, my job is not to dance around, you know what I mean?So, well, no, it's not.So, I my focus, when we're doing the shows is to is to really try to tune into what the song and the lyrics are trying to say and to emote those accurately as accurately as I can.And so in that way, it's sort of like I don't want to say acting because that almost implies that it's insincere.Because it does all come from a very sincere place.What you aresort of embodying the character of that song if that makes any sense. So which is not something I necessarily am wrapping my head around in the writing process.

Kevelle Wilson 19:27
So keeping that in mind, how do you kind of come up with a setlist?

David Cook 19:33
Um I mean, that's a good question because there's always every show can be a little different. And so in that way, it's it's this balancing act of like, catering the setlist to whatever vibe you're walking you think you're walking into.But also not doing that to such a degree that you're just sort of pandering to the audience.Guesswe try to keep an honest balance of, you know, energy and tempo and then finding those, you know, little moments in the setlist where you can throw in maybe something a little slower or just a different vibe.I guess the easy way to say that would be like, you know, try to find spots for balance.But yeah, we want I mean, I want our shows to be fun. You know, I don't want them to feel like an hour and a half ofsad power balance, you know?That doesn't sound fun for anybody.

Kevelle Wilson 20:41
So you've been all around the world during your tours? What hasn't been your favorite venue that you perform that?

David Cook 20:54
Great question.Ah,I did get to perform at Carnegie Hallto perform as a surprise guest. For then I want to say then she was Secretary of State, Clinton, Hillary Clinton.She was a big idol fan and voted for me. So thanks, Hillary.That was pretty rad. it's got to do a show with with my idol mate, David Archuleta we performed in the Philippines to 100 and seems like 115,000 people. And my next show was in like Ohio a week later for like 800.And then more recently, Chris Allen, the guy who won the season after mine.We went and did a like a two and a half week, like acoustic tour around Europe. That was a blast. I had like three days off in London. And, you know, got toI got to eat a Scotch egg for the I understand that none of this is really in reference to your question. I'm just, I'm bragging out I got to to Scotch egg, which it nobody's ever Oh, go ahead. This sounds like a crazy brag. It's it's weird to brag about having eaten like British food, but it was really.

Kevelle Wilson 22:21
Um, so kind of what you talked about you going from a huge stadium to a smaller venue, you have a preference for which one you'd rather perform it.

David Cook 22:34
Now, this is gonna sound like right in the fence. There are pros and cons to both there really are I think it's easierit's easier to find a pocket with a larger crowd, but harder to connect with the larger crowd.Yeah, I think that's probably the most concise way I can put it like, you know, you get you get in a room with a you know, 800 people, 500 people, whatever the number is. It's it's a,it's easier to I guess, to feel like, once you found the pocket, which takes a little longer, it's easier to kind of find a way tomake those individual connections throughout the audience. Andyeah, now if I had Taylor Swift budget and Taylor Swift show production, that's a whole different ballgame. But yeah, I don't.Yeah, I think I kind of relate to that. Because whenever I want to see an artist who is really showing it at Arena, I kind of pause and like, feel like staring at them when they're, they're so far away that they're literally an ad. Like, is it even worth going at that point? Right. Yeah. And there's Listen, there's, you know, there's artists that have in production staffs that have figured out ways around that.I think pink is really good at that, you know, she's figured out a way through and primarily through the flying through the air stuff, which Godspeed to her, I'm not doing anything.I feel like that helps. Do you know what I mean? Because it's not a static like, here's the stage, that's where there'll be and everybody else is kind ofwherever else almost kind of brings the show to you that way, which is interesting and really cool. Soyeah, I'm gonna start promoting other artists shows

Kevelle Wilson 24:41
so you've been in the music industry for a while now and I'm sure you've met plenty of people. Do you have any meetings that feel kind of like, you kind of fan girl when you kind of think about looking back at it?

David Cook 24:55
I love that. I just said I was gonna promote other people's shows. And then that was next question. That's so good. Youknow,I got to meet Springsteen, when he,how long ago it was, but that was when they were closing down the old Meadowlands in New York. And I got to go to one of those shows, and that was transcendent. That was incredible.past that.I still, I still brag sometimes Adam Sandler said hi to me at the Teen Choice Awards.And an athlete's man, I'm a, I'm a, I'm a sports fan. So I don't usually geek out with musicians and actors nearly as much as I do with athletes. Because, yeah, I grown up like all I wanted to do is be a baseball player. Soinstead, you know, I get to do this, which isn't too bad.

Kevelle Wilson 25:58
Do you have a favorite team?

David Cook 26:01
Royals fan? Okay. I actually I worked for the Royals when I was in high school in college, soI'll try to get oh, sorry about that. Syria. Was this good?Yeah.Yeah, Royals and chiefs in Boston Celtics. And I recently just randomly picked it a hockey team. I'm a Seattle Kraken. Okay.SoI know none of those are Carolina bass teams.Now you're good no obligation goodbut I will say and this is not at all pandering. It is entirely pandering if it's not Mizzou. Which I root for Mizzou. I NC State's my number two. Okay.All three you can't you can't prove I'm lying about that. So yeah

Kevelle Wilson 26:59
so after a long practice or performance and you're starving after what was kind of like a go to restaurant food for you.

David Cook 27:09
See, now you're just gonna get me in trouble. Okay, soif I'm eating after a show, which isn't a givenI do like a good waffle house.Okay, I agree with that. Yeah.If not thatthere is a I don't know if they're that Far East because they just came here to Nashville. There's a kind of a regional gas station chain called Kwik Trip.i What's the is Do you guys have walls or sheets?Okay, so Kwik Trip is like sheets, but more like Midwest region, okay.I'll make a good quick trip on or sheets or wallets for that matter. They're all pretty good.But I'm not like, I'm not like rocking like a filet mignon at four in the morning.

Kevelle Wilson 28:11
Um, so you've been under a label, and also been independent?What are kind of the pros and cons of those two?

David Cook 28:22
I mean, it's, it's resources versus creative freedom. And so I don't know, I really enjoy having creative freedom. I really do. That was always really, really important to me. Andbut, you know, there was certainly more resources, you know, so it's, it's, it's a given a take for any artist and I thinkI think nowit's,it's easier for somebody to listen to your music and harder to be heard. I thinkthat's, to me, sort of, like,you know,a label can help you be easier to to be listened to, but it ultimately becomes harder to be heard.And as a as an independent musician, I feel like you can kind of dictate that a little bit more. But at the, at the cost of, you know, having that that platform underneath to kind of push your do your stuff out to more listeners. Soyeah.Yeah, you kind of brought up I don't know, I was just gonna add on to that one's better than the other.Yeah, I didn't want you to pick issues when I was justthank you so much.

Kevelle Wilson 29:57
I think that's also why labels are kind of fun.I mean themselves in a weird spot right now, because artists who are really underground are big enough to have a label behind them, and they will wouldn't get behind them because they're too small. But once they have that hit through social media, tick tock, Instagram, whatever it is,then they don't really need a label to get recognition anymore because they've gotten that on their own. It's like,

David Cook 30:25
I don't know that the labels are as much of a gatekeeper as they used to be. And I don't mean that term derogatory earlier.Yeah, I think to your point, it's, it's, you can navigate this for yourself, way easier than you used to. It's a lot of work. And ultimately, it's what balance Do you want to have for yourself? For like, the business versus the creative?has, the more you take on yourself from the business side, of course, that means less time to devote to the creative and, and, and ultimately, it's, you know, which,you know, so the chicken or the egg thing at that point, like, which comes first? Soyeah, I think there's, there's more of an avenue to do it yourself. It's just a matter of what your preference is, and what works best for you and your, your business, I guess.

Kevelle Wilson 31:27
Yeah, I kind of wanted to ask about how you go about balancing your life between your music and your other daily responsibilities. You kind of have a schedule you set for yourself to work on music, like this is what I'm doing today, or that would be way smarter.

David Cook 31:45
Oh, it's, it's a constant give and take. You know, I'll go through periods where like, like, this month, I've been really, really busy. And my schedule, the second half of this year is way busier than the first half was.But the first half was more like, you know, getting all my ducks in a row to do the second half of the year as well asbeing more present here at home. Andyou know, so like,leave tomorrow for Raleigh, but today I went to Home Depot to buy a new thermostat for our attic. Soyeah, whether or not I tried to find the balance, I figured I figured out at this age that the balance just sort of finds me whatever it's gonna be.

Kevelle Wilson 32:29
So you are raised in Blue Springs, Missouri. And I'm assuming a lot of our listeners including me, have not I've never been there.

David Cook 32:39
I don't know it is a pretty big tourist mecca. So

Kevelle Wilson 32:45
if you're ready to take us all on a tour, what are some stops that we need to go to the kind of get the full experience?

David Cook 32:51
You know, it's funny in 15 years, I've never been asked that question. I love that question.Things to Do in Blue Springs.UmAlright, so here's what we I'll try to take you through the day.So we would start there's a there's a place in town called the Big biscuit and it's like a good local regional chain kind of thing for breakfast.Assuming sports are in season, like the schools are in session, all that stuff, it's not the summer, probably go to some sort of Blue Spring South High School Jaguars sporting event.That would be in the evening though. So I don't know what we would do during the day probably probably go back to sleep after breakfast.Just what I used to do.Lunch, we'll get some quick trip. When Igot my my brother and my my mom's still live in. In the Kansas City area, like not far from Blue Springs, and they're gonna hate this. Let's get up.And then let's see what would we do for dinner in Blue Springstrying to think there are man, are there any like?No, Betty's is close. So there was this place called Betty's family dining that when I was in high school, we used to skip homeroom and go eat there during school. I think the statute of limitations has passed I think. But they're not open anymore. So aman probably would probably have to leave Blue Springs and like go into the city or something for dinner. Like go to like Jack stack barbecue or something.Okay, sounds pretty good. And then, you know, maybe catch a Royals game or some.Actually, it'd be better to go to it.cheapskate like okay, okay

Kevelle Wilson 35:07
so I'm kind of curious, do you kind of collect CDs or vinyls or anything like that

David Cook 35:14
I did for a little bit, I kind ofmy, my,my collectors book sort of shifts every now and again. So like the last thing I really collected, I'm looking around down in our basement right now.Probably Lego kits, okay. And we were tracking my record digital vein.We were doing it here at the house. And we'd go through periods where my, my producer Andy would need to, like, you know, just do some busy work on the computer that I was, you know, didn't involve me having to be active in the room. So I would come out into the main area, and just be like, I'm really bored. There's nothing to do. And he's got to listen to stuff. So I can't put the TV on. Andso I bought like a little Lego kit, like a $60 thing and put it together. Like, oh, look like how I burned like 30 minutes doing that. And so then it turned into like, buying these giant kits. Like I've got the Roman Colosseum over here.Working intermittently about six months. Likeit's such a money and time suck, but it is it is fun if you if you enjoy like being able to just mindlessly do stuff. Sobut hobbies now more than anything.That's probably it, actually. Yeah, I think it's still Legos. So Lego, if you're listening.Send me some free stuff.

Kevelle Wilson 36:44
You need a David Cook. Minifigure?That's right.

David Cook 36:49
make this happen. I mean,

Kevelle Wilson 36:52
I actually have a friend who's really into LEGO sets, and

David Cook 36:59
I love it.

Kevelle Wilson 37:01
I was really into Legos as a kid and I kind of dropped off or

David Cook 37:04
I hated him as a kid could not really. Oh, it took me. Yeah, my getting into my 30s to be like, Alright, I'm in now.That's funny.

Kevelle Wilson 37:19
Now this kind of annoying question, but I have to ask. Okay. It's been eight years since your last album. Are you anywhere near album mode? So annoying? No.

David Cook 37:31
Has it been eight years? Since my less than eight years? IYeah. It's sort of trying to like I love making albums. I really do. It's it's sort of trying to figure out what the best way to coexist with this current environment. I don't I don't know that records.I do take a while between projects anyway. And so I think to really sit down and do a record record would almost take too long now with with the current like musical appetite. SoI've really sort of leaned into the EPS and the digital singles and stuff like that. AndII appreciate the parameters of it a little bit. It's like, Alright, you're making like a mini record when you make an EP. So you have to be a little more concise with your storytelling.Which,for me isn't the worst thing in the world? Because I could talk all day. Soyeah, I don't know, I don't know when another full length is in the cards. I know, I've got some stuff together right now thatas of now will probably exist as an EP, but if, if I start, you know, getting thegetting the inspiration at a pretty, pretty decent clip that can turn into a full length in short order. Soyeah, I don't know. I'm not I'm not actively working on a full length record right now. That's the concise answer to your question. Okay.

Kevelle Wilson 39:07
It's kind of interesting. You brought up the musical landscape on why you don't think kind of LPs fit in that anymore? Do you think people's kind of attention spans are worsening? Or do you think there's too much music coming out? You don't think making a whole album that's worth it? Um,

David Cook 39:25
I mean, listen, like, you know, it'sit's not quite the revenue generator that it used to be, you know, and it's still not cheap to make good sounding records.So, yeah, I you know, it becomes a bit of like, alright, is it worth it to drop, you know, five, six figures on on a promotional tool, which is effectively what the record has become.I guess people don't really you know, people don't really buy it.streaming and streaming revenues kind of present their own particular set of problems.But that's what the consumer has his, you know, hung their hat on and, and ultimately in thisin this business, it is a consumer based industry we are, we are a service industry. So, if if that's how the audience is listening to music, then it is up to us to figure out how to get that to them and, and, you know, hopefully make enough to where we can make a living at it and go out on the road performing songs for people. Soyou Yeah, I mean, I could,for lack of a better phrase, I could, I could, I could piss in the wind, you know, and, and keep making records andgo broke doing that. Soyeah, I think it's, it's more just what you kind of got it, you kind of have tonavigate, you know, the public's appetite for what you're doing and figure out the best way to put it out there.Somebody's gonna figure it out, make a million dollars, or a billion.I figuredthat is kind of interesting, you're talking about, you're able to kind of act more punch into your songs, if you will, in an EP, because you have so much less time to get across what you want to.

Kevelle Wilson 41:26
So how does that kind of change how you kind of your approach to songwriting. Um, it doesn't necessarily change my approach to songwriting, it does change my approach to

David Cook 41:39
putting songs on records or putting songs on the UPS. Like, if you think about it with like, a full lengthyou had you have your single or singles hopefully.And then, you know, you have like maybe your songs that like fans love,that aren't released as singles, but are important parts of the record. And then you have like deep cuts, I don't know that the luxury of deep cuts exists much anymore.So it's more about just being a little more aggressive in in, in trimming the fat, I guess. I hate saying that, because itdismissessome of my favorite songs or deep cuts. And so calling them fat is like, I struggle with that. But, I mean, ultimately, you know, it's, it's yeah, you kind of have to,you have to pass a higher bar, I think. And when you only have six, five or six spots, on an EP, it's like, alright, well, I want these songs to be the best representation of what I'm doing creatively and where I'm at.And I love this song over here.But it doesn't really fit this, you know,the good part about it isI'm accruing quite the catalogue of besides, so maybe they'll find that the light of day someday.Okay. We're looking forward to that.So that was my last official question for you. It's great.

Kevelle Wilson 43:14
Is there anything else you want to talk about that I didn't have a question about?

Um,

David Cook 43:22
Um,and just, you know, I'm excited to come out there and play I've been uh, other than being warned about the not wearing blue, which is fine.I've been told nothing but but good things about this, this event and and Raleigh and soyeah, I hope people come out. I'm excited to perform for everybody.

Kevelle Wilson 43:44
That was good. Do you mind letting our listeners know where they can find you on social media?

David Cook 43:50
Sure. You can find me on Twitter or x or whatever it's called. David Cook. I am on Instagram. David Cook official as well as on threads. David Cook official. You can find me on Facebook, or met or whatever that's called now.At I believe it's just David Cook. Maybe save a cook official. I should know that and I don't. Or you can find all that information out at David Cook. official.com. See, I know thatsounds good.

Kevelle Wilson 44:24
Everyone over here at NC State, you had the chance. Come out the 26th and go see him live great music is free. You have no reason not to go.

David Cook 44:34
Exactly. You have no reason not to. So.Love that. That's awesome.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai