We’re looking forward to introducing you to Conner Brooke. Check out our conversation below.
Conner Brooke, we’re thrilled to have you with us today. Before we jump into your intro and the heart of the interview, let’s start with a bit of an ice breaker: What makes you lose track of time—and find yourself again?
My mom’s dad (“Papa” to us grandkids) grew up in the small south Georgia town of Alapaha. It’s a quiet farming community nestled between miles and miles of pecan orchards, cow pastures, and peanut farms. His childhood home has stayed in the family over the years and anytime we get together, that’s most likely where we’ll be. We spend our days fishing, playing cards under the carport, picking up pecans and going on dirt-road drives in the old CJ-5. (I need to mention none of these memories would have been made over the years without my Papa’s sweet friends in the community who let us come fish in their ponds and practice stick-shift skills on their roads.)
Anytime we’re in Alapaha, the phones get put up and the camo boots get put on for a good time outside. It’s the best place to slow down, spend time with family and friends and remember the good stuff in life. Now that I live full-time in Nashville, TN, Alapaha can feel a million miles away some days and I miss it often. I don’t get there as frequently anymore and that’s hard. But anytime I do it reminds me who I am and what life is about, and I’m always so grateful.
If you want to go learn a little bit more about our adventures in Alapaha you can stream my song “Miles and Miles” or read the children’s book “Bumpity Bumpity Bumpity” written by my mom to honor our Papa after his passing in 2022.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m an up-and-coming country artist originally from Columbus, GA but now residing and playing with my band in here in Nashville. My love for country music began as a kid listening to all of the best 80s and 90s country artists that my parents had on CD like Garth Brooks, Tim McGraw, JoDee Messina, Reba McEntire, the Dixie Chicks and more. I began songwriting myself at 15, and cut my teeth in college playing shows in Athens during my time at the University of Georgia.
I believe that no music tells stories and appreciates the simple things in life quite like country music. And while I know it’s not always the most popular, I believe the world needs more of it, and I want to help add to the incredible country music that’s being put out in the world right now. I also think country music always needs a redhead so I’m happy to step up to the plate *said with playful wink*!
While I’ve been told that my voice surprises people because they don’t expect it to come out of a girl who’s only 5 feet tall, what I hope fans remember more than that after coming to one of our shows is how they were able to put their cares away for a while and genuinely have a good time with their friends just singing and having fun! My band wants to make each show a moment of joy in what can sometimes be a crazy world!
Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
While it’s not one singular moment, I can think back to growing up with parents who raised me to know how much the Lord loves us and the sacrifice Jesus made for us to take the cost of our sins on himself. This is the most important thing that shapes how I see the world now. I’m living knowing that my life is not about me. My goal is to make much of Him. And I’m living knowing that when things seem heartbreaking, there’s more than this.
Our lives are so short, our best achievements will be forgotten and we can’t take anything with us when we go, so I want to spend my life focused on something that will last- the hope that Jesus offers and making sure people know about that!
What fear has held you back the most in your life?
My fear of failure has been the hardest to overcome. It’s a constant struggle with each new opportunity that comes up. I know I’ve talked myself out of taking risks and putting myself out there out of fear that it wouldn’t go the way I hoped and I would wind up disappointed. But what’s funny is- you end up disappointed anyways because you missed out on the opportunity.
My first memory of really struggling with this was as a 5th grader. I was terrified to try out for the spring musical on the chance that I wouldn’t make it (Which just cracks me up for so many reasons now. I don’t think I realized how middle school musicals worked..). My parents basically forced me to try out and much to my surprise I ended up getting the understudy to the lead role and had the time of my life putting on that show with my friends. I ended up doing every musical from 5th grade through my senior year of high school. I think about all the fun I would have missed and what my life would have looked like without realizing that was something I loved if I had sat out on that opportunity.
But sometimes it’s true that we don’t get the outcome we hope for. I think about my audition for the Voice when I got cut. I was definitely sad, but then I realize it still didn’t take away my love for creating music and creating moments for others.
So now I would much rather make the choice to show up, be brave and go for it! It’s still very hard for me, but I am so grateful I have these moments to look back on to know I’ll regret it if I don’t and what doesn’t go my way will only help make me better and more grateful when the next opportunity comes along. And you never know where you just might surprised yourself!
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
I think one unhealthy belief in the music industry (similar to others certainly) is that many people believe it very heavily matters what you look like. It’s important whether or not someone has “the look”. However, sometimes this goes beyond someone just having a unique “vibe” that helps them stand out. We can take this to mean does someone look attractive enough to be worth listening to. Because of this many girls specifically believe deep down that they are not enough- that their voice or their story doesn’t matter unless they are “hot enough” to share it.
We girls have gotten really good at doing what is needed to succeed so we toughen up and do what we have to. Some may get work done that they don’t really want. But I think we’re all holding ourselves to a standard that never should have been set- that you have to be perfect.
I would love to see a world where the norm is that it matters more the sound an artist is creating, the stories they’re telling, the passion flowing through them out into the world, and the experience they are creating for others at their shows. I think we’ve seen some of this over the last several years but it still feels like we have a long way to go.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. If you laid down your name, role, and possessions—what would remain?
Easy- my faith and my family. I don’t know where I’d be without either one. I want to be remembered as someone who lived out my faith and loved my family and friends well because they are by far the biggest blessing in my life! They show up, love each other, challenge each other, and just make life so fun. I know they’ll be there for me in a heartbeat and I hope they know I’d do the same for them.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/connerbrooke
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/connerbrooke_official/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/connerbrookemusic
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@connerbrooke
Image Credits
Brianna Moore
Victor Oquendo
