This is a really great interview by The Times of Arcadiana about Sam Bradley. The interviewer, who is also AccentOnLife is also one of my Twitter followers, really asks Sam some great questions about his music, his writing process, influences, etc. You also get a real taste of Sam’s sense of humor, which we all LOVE!

Here is just a small sample:

ToA: You write your own material — tell us about your writing process. What are your inspirations?

Bradley: People are my main inspiration. I do a little bit of living where I won’t writing anything. I go through life, and then I reflect and bang out seven or eight songs in a couple of days. Then I grab my guitar and strum. I sometimes put poetry to music. I’m not constantly writing. My songs would be really s****y if I was continually writing; I’d run out of things to write about!

ToA: Who are some of your musical influences?

Bradley: Ray Charles. R. Kelly. Babyface. Stevie Wonder. OK, I’m going to name some white musicians. (Pauses) Hmm, maybe I don’t like white music. No, no; I’m just kidding. (Laughs) I just love soul music.

ToA: So, not even Elvis (Presley) or The Beatles?

Bradley: The Beatles weren’t that big of an influence on me because I didn’t grow up listening to them. But I do love them now.

ToA: Talk a little bit about the differences between recording and playing live. Do you prefer one or the other?

Bradley: With my live show, I have the space to do whatever I want. If I want to grunt out a line, I can. I love performing. And it’s not just the songs. Even if I’m grumpy, performing helps. Playing live, I connect more. When I record, it’s a process. A very long process. With layers and layers. It’s more calculated, whereas performing live has more freedom.

ToA: What is your favorite song to perform?

Bradley: One of my new songs, Wide Open. It’s fresh, it’s deep, and there’s no way I’m not going to connect with it. When you play every night, you do lose connection with some songs. I remember playing them a month ago and how much it meant to me then. Two nights ago, it didn’t have the same meaning. Internally, it’s a little different. I’ll start singing it again in a couple of weeks and start relating again.

Read the complete interview here. You won’t be disappointed!