Working and singing full-time, Kean alumni Perry Brody shares his post-grad journey

By Wynter Aiken | Published by October 20, 2019

Two years after graduating from Kean, walking through busy Cougar Walk seems like a long time ago to Perry Brody. He remembers the long lines of Starbucks in the Nancy Thompson Library and the rush to get to class from Downs Hall to CAS. But, what Brody remembers most is the walk across the stage to get his degree and start the next journey of his life. 

“After graduating, that year I jumped right into the music, got on the road. Even though my major was Special Education…all jobs were taken, the school year had started and I was just a musician for a while even though it was tough,” said Brody. 

One of the hardest parts about following a passion or chasing a dream is that in most cases, the dream doesn’t make money right away. So, unless one lives at home with parents or is willing to pull the next meal from garbage cans, can one balance time between a lifelong dream and a full-time job? 

For Brody, traveling cross country from Nashville to California, booking shows, meeting new-found fans as a musician, he was living the dream-until reality set in and the rent was due. These harsh realities can be hard to come back from but Brody’s motivation and talents kept him afloat. 

Creating a balance between working full-time and living as a musician got Brody to where he was able to release his first album “New Roads” and connected with a Nashville “Jam Buckingham” music producer who worked with the likes of Tim McGraw, Dionne Warwick, and many more.  

“Traveled a lot, met a lot of people, got back home and realized ‘Oh my rent is due!’ and working my teaching job gave me the assurance and insurance so I could continue doing my music,” said Brody. “I still have the freedom to focus on my music, achieve some goals, because the last thing I want to do is break a leg and be in debt.”

For most small-town musicians such as Brody, trying to break into the music industry or make a living as a musician requires 3 major keys: hard work, dedication, patience and not a little bit of luck. There are certain industries that are a lot harder to get into than others. The good news is that it’s possible and it doesn’t matter how old you are, busy you are or where you live. 

“It’s a trial and error in doing what you love. It’s hard when multitasking but I’m releasing music because it’s fulfilling. I’m also teaching because that’s fulfilling as well,” said Brody. “It’s tough but if you know why you’re doing it, it doesn’t seem like work.” 

Reflecting on the lessons college gave you can be rewarding in a way that shows in the path that you’ve chosen post-graduation.  Even though Brody has been out of school for two years, he still reflects on the courses that benefited him especially in regards to music, one being Dr. Susanna Rich’s Poetry course. 

Brody had incorporated his lyrics into his poetry in order to fully grasp the concept of poetry and developed the necessary skills in order to be a good writer, storyteller, and musician. 

“Perry would bring his guitar and sing his songs to us, illustrating how poetry sound, rhythm, and the textures of language are a physical experience,” said Dr. Rich. “He continues to be an inspiration to all to be authentic, work hard, realize our truest selves. We learn that poetry is a process of treasuring moments. Perry really took that to heart in writing his lyrics.”

Stay up to date with Perry Brody’s tour schedules, latest news, and social media by visiting his website http://www.pdbrody.com/index.html 

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