Today we’d like to introduce you to Gabriel Page
Hi Gabriel, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I’ve always been passionate about music in one way or another through my whole childhood. At the age of 12, I completely fell in love with it when I signed up for drum lessons at my local School of Rock (in Mason, OH). I’d always loved the idea of playing drums since I could even comprehend what they were, but finally starting to understand and master the instrument was intoxicating. At 13, I got my first taste of guitar at my private school when I signed up for a general guitar class with Mr. Heflin. From that point my passion for music exploded; I would play guitar and drums so much around the house I drove my parents crazy. I did a bunch of shows with my local School of Rock, even heading up to Summerfest to play several years in a row. Through some friends I made there I met my good friend John Sheil who gave me my first regular gig. We all played together in the House Band every week for a local bar called Latitudes, which has unfortunately since closed down. Although, I still have a lot of good memories from gigs, jams, and hangs there which helped me develop a lot as a player. I always loved going to see a local band called the Bluebirds, who we’d hang out and jam with tons of other great musicians from around the Cincy scene.
The next few years involved initially attending engineering school, then changing majors, transferring schools, changing majors again, playing and touring with Saving Escape (a great Cincinnati original band), getting shut down by COVID, starting a college band, travelling all over for gigs (but not being able to sustain myself) and having several existential crises about my career path… I ended up graduating Belmont in 2022 but I hadn’t made many connections or friends, so I didn’t really know where to go from there. I strung together whatever gigs I could, but it wasn’t really turning out to be enough.
In early 2023, I found some of my first regular Nashville gigs on lower Broadway and made some amazing friends along the way. One of the biggest turning points for me came when I started subbing in on gigs with my friends in Hippies & Cowboys. They really helped me to get some visibility downtown and connect with lots of other passionate people around Nashville. I’m very thankful for everything they’ve done to help me!
So these days, I’ve settled into a routine playing regular gigs with some of my best friends! I play every week (almost every day) on Broadway, and I can be found playing other artist/original gigs around town or on the road at random times throughout the year. This year I’ll definitely be investing more time in original projects. I’m loving every minute that I’m on stage, in the studio, or even just practicing.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I wouldn’t say it’s been a smooth road, but it’s definitely been made easier by the immense support of my family and good friends. For years I felt like I was always on the verge of success but I could never quite reach it. I had never really been very outgoing, so being thrust into a city like Nashville with very few friends and almost no connections didn’t initially work for me. I found myself playing back in Cincinnati a lot and wanting to move back home. I almost gave up entirely because I was struggling to make friends or find work anywhere I’d go. Finally getting into the Broadway scene helped me a ton; everyone was so wonderful and welcoming that it really helped me come out of my shell and be more confident and social both on and off stage. I even started singing and fronting shows with much more confidence over the course of this last year, which I previously thought I’d never be able to do! Gotta shout out Kameron Jane for that too, she helped me a TON coaching me through developing my vocal technique and she’s still helping me today! I hope that in 2025 I can keep pushing myself to be better and continue finding inspiration and success wherever I can.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Well, I’m primarily a guitarist, but I also have experience from playing lots of drums back home and I’ve been working really hard on developing my vocals, and I’m even laying out a blueprint for starting my own band. I’ve been starting to get into the studio with some friends of mine, working on a variety of cool songs that I’m excited for everyone to hear! My current studio project is an 80’s flavored pop-rock song with my buddy Scott from my main broadway band, the Jukebox Heroes. Tuk Smith is producing it for us and he’s really bringing our vision of the song to life!
I take a lot of pride in having a distinct, unique voice on my instrument. I know there are plenty of players around town that can blow me away technically, but the thing that’s always been important to me is having a sound/tone/feel I can call my own… and I feel like I’ve achieved that. And for live shows you can always count on me to show up wearing something outrageous and act like a complete madman onstage! For the Jukebox Heroes, I’m also the musical director, so I’m constantly doing multiple things at once during our shows. I could be singing and playing a song while I’m guiding the band, with an eye on my phone watching requests come in over text or venmo, mentally figuring out the best transition into the next song… all at the same time. It can sometimes be overwhelming but I think my ADHD gives me the capacity to help handle it all and keep the show running smoothly.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
Honestly, none that I can think of off the top of my head. I find a lot of inspiration exploring new music or just spending time alone with my instrument, seeing what noises my fingers decide to make.
Although if we’re just talking about favorite books in general… I love a lot of the old Star Wars Legends novels. I particularly love the old Republic Commando novels by Karen Traviss and the original Thrawn novels by Timothy Zahn. And I of course love old school comics (particularly anything from the “Post-Crisis” era of DC). I could delve way deeper into all of these, but I’ll spare everyone reading this.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gabepagemusic/
