DRU
When did you decide that a career in music was for you?
I knew Music was going to be my career after my first high school talent show. I was nervous to death, but as soon as I came out singing, can you stand the rain by New Edition my school went crazy and the applause was overwhelming. It was a feeling that I will never forget, and that was when I knew I was going to make this my career. I wanted to capture that feeling every time.
Who are your musical inspirations and why?
From my childhood, some of my musical inspirations were of course, young Michael Jackson as a boy that was when I realized children could become recording artist. I used to try to copy young Michael, when I was a kid around nine years old. As I got older, I was very inspired by Marvin Gaye, Donny Hathaway, Boyz II Men, Jodeci, D’Angelo New Edition. I love the camaraderie of groups and the R&B soulful voices Just really got to me and is still with me to this day.
Can you tell me 3 things about yourself that people might not already know?
1. I love to cook as I’ve gotten older I enjoy cooking more and more I usually cook for my family. They love my chicken wings.
2. I am a huge Seinfeld fan. I still watch the reruns to this day. I’m still addicted.
3. I use to skateboard as a kid. I still enjoy skateboarding to this day.
What song of yours best describes you and why?
My song from my most recent album “TRB the prayer” It’s a very authentic song and it talks about how far I’ve come and the obstacles that I have overcome it also touches on the fact that I am a proud father, and that I do everything for my children.
What has been the best gig you have done to date and why?
One of my favourite gigs was being on the Sean Paul full speed tour across Canada. It was such an amazing experience to do a tour on that high-level. Every night was sold out, and canada really reminded me that they still knew my songs, and they were singing along to every word it was an amazing experience, I got to hang out with reggae legend Sean, Paul, and also Future Fambo ( rum and red bull)
If you could perform a gig at any venue where would it be and why?
It has always been a dream of mine to sell out Madison Square Garden. It’s just a legendary venue and many legends have grace that stage I would love to be added to that list.
What has been your best achievement to date and what would you like to achieve in the future?
My greatest achievement to date is raising my 19-year-old daughter. Straight A student, beautiful, smart, respectable. I’m so proud that I could watch her grow into the young lady that she is today being a father is definitely my greatest achievement.
Tell me a story from backstage or after a gig?
I remember when I was with the group In Essence and we were opening for 112 we had been rehearsing so much and we were so amped up to get out there on stage. We were very competitive and I remember us saying let’s dance so hard that we break the stage and they won’t even be able to come out. We were never intimidated or felt inferior to other groups. We wanted to literally crush them all lol.
What do you like best about being a musician and why?
What I like best about being a musician is being able to connect with audiences around the world through my passion, which is Music. It’s a very freeing career and you get to express yourself and let out certain emotions that you would maybe have to hold inside in other jobs and careers. I also like creating something from nothing from just an idea in my mind I can create something that will live forever.
If you were not in the job you are now what would you be doing?
I’m not sure what I would be doing if I wasn’t in music, but I think it would still have something to do with the arts. Whether it’s me managing peoples careers, executive producing projects, A&Ring projects. I think it would still have something to do with the music industry
What has been the best gig you have been too as a fan and can you tell us about it?
Surprisingly enough one of my favourite concerts was at Latin artist Mark Anthony. His show was simply amazing. His band is spectacular and his live vocals sore through the whole room. He is definitely an amazing performer. But I can’t forget when I saw Prince years ago and his show was just insane and he seemed so down to earth. It was another amazing concert.
What would your ideal festival line up be and why?
The ideal festival lineup in my opinion would be Michael Jackson, Prince, Bob Marley, Donny Hathaway, Marvin Gaye, Luther Vandross, new edition, Jodeci, Boyz II Men, Mary J. Blige, D’Angelo Usher, Black Street.
Do I really need to say why these are just some of the greatest of all times in my opinion that’s a crazy festival right there.
What would you say is the best piece of advice you have ever been given?
God will never leave you, believe in him even if you don’t see it clearly right now. Everything will work out in your favour if you just trust and believe in God.
What things make you happy and what things annoy you?
Some things that make me happy are the sound of good soul music playing, the sound of my daughters, happy laughing the sound of friends and family gathering together to enjoy quality time. A beautiful Caribbean beach the sound of the water. Spending quality time with my fiancé.
Some of the things that annoy me are rude people people, that don’t know how to show compassion, people that are mean and lack kindness and empathy, people that are fake and trying to fit in instead of just being their own individual.
What things do you like to do when you are away from music?
When I’m away from music, I’d like to watch an intriguing movie usually an intense thriller or a very silly comedy. I also like to work out like to stay fit and active love to play basketball.
Do you think social media and the internet are a good thing in the music industry?
I think Social Media and the Internet has its pros and cons when it comes to the music industry. Some of the cons in my opinion are: Recording Artists have lost their mystery, Everything they do is shown online and we can look at it anytime so the mystery of waiting to watch an interview on TV or waiting to read an interview in a magazine. Those days are kind of gone because we’ve gotten almost too close to the artist now with social media. And we can almost watch their every Move.
But the pros to social media, and the Internet is that us as artist can reach the masses of fans so quickly, and we can market in such an instantaneous way that millions of people can hear our new music very rapidly. Us as artist can speak directly to the fans, and there doesn’t have to be a middleman anymore.
We can announce a tour and it will get to the fans right away.
How important do you think your look and image is when it comes to being in the music industry?
I think your look and image as an artist is very important as long as it’s authentic and you’re not trying to copy anyone else. Nowadays, I feel like too many artists are clones of other artists that they’ve seen, we really need to keep the individuality as artist.
Can you tell us about any tattoos you have and the significance of them to you?
I have one tattoo on my ring finger. Myself and my fiancé got them done with the date in Roman numerals that we got engaged. That’s my only tattoo.
If you run the country for a day what would you change about it and why?
One of the first things I would change if I ran the country is, how much artist make from streaming platforms. I would change it, so that artist can make 5 dollars per stream If not more. My new album the rebirth MMXX is almost at 3 million streams that means I would’ve made $15million off of that album since 2021.
What would your ideal day consist of?
My ideal day would consist of me getting up at around 6 AM. Having a very good workout for about an hour, come home to my fiancé, making a nice beautiful breakfast for the whole family. Then we would head to the airport on vacation to a tropical island, eat great food Spend the day on the beach and end with a beautiful dinner at sunset.
If you could say one thing to your fans what would it be and why?
If I could say one thing to the fans, I would say appreciate moments and live like you know you’re going to die one day, so do everything you can in this life before our time is up. Choose happiness.
How would you answer the question Who is Dru and what are the differences between you as a music artist and you away from music ?
That’s a very good question. A lot of people don’t actually know who they are and they spend most of their life trying to find themselves. I think I’m still in that process, but I’ve learned a lot about myself in recent years. Dru and Andrew Grange have now come together to be one. There is no separation Dru as the artist used to try to be what he thought he was supposed to be as an R&B artist but I have now realized that you can only be your authentic self. I am a father, a brother, a son, fiancé and a loyal friend and I am someone that wants to improve and grow every day.
What was the first record or song you purchased and why?
I think one of the first songs I purchased was by Boyz II Men. I really really love harmony and their rendition of “it so hard to say goodbye to yesterday” really got to me.
What would say to someone thinking about becoming a musician and getting into the music industry?
If you’re thinking about becoming A musician focus on authenticity and carving out your own lane so you’re not following anyone. Do it for the love of the music not for the possible success that you could have.
If you could collaborate with any other band/singer or musician who would you choose and why?
I would love to collaborate with DeAngelo. He’s just one of the coolest, most soulful singers I’ve ever heard in my life. And he’s just so creative and multi talented. I would love to get the chance to work with him.
If you could have written one song from history which would it have been and why?
If I could’ve written one song in history, it would be by my favourite singer Donny Hathaway, “a song for you”. Those lyrics are so emotional and heart wrenching it touches you deep in your soul. He just definitely aligned with something when he wrote that and it will forever be one of my favourite songs of all time.
What things make you uncomfortable?
You’d be surprised, but I am uncomfortable in nightclubs. I’ve never liked them, the whole VIP booth and bottle service just seems very fake and very show offish I’m not a fan never have been. The nightclub scene is not really for me to be honest.
If you wrote a book about yourself what would it have in it?
If I wrote a book about myself, it would be about my journey and my spiritual growth. It would show how the things that I focussed on in my life have changed. It would show my mistakes and how I’ve learned from them. It would show my role as a father, And it would show my work ethic going from having nothing to having a lot of success to then being broken back down to nothing and having to rebuild. It would show my relentless work ethic, and my determination to be a better version of myself every day.
What has the rest of the year got in store for you?
I’m very excited for the rest of 2024, I have started a new chapter. I have put together a new group myself, and the Recipee Band have joined forces to create a new band, entitled Soul Nostalgic, and we do live R&B throwbacks with full choreographed dance moves in black-and-white tuxedos, we’ve already started a residency in Toronto at the Acqua Supper Club it’s an immersive experience. We will be running a residency there and will be doing other events throughout the summer so look out for us.
Follow Dru:
https://www.instagram.com/drugrange/
https://www.facebook.com/DruGrange/