They didn’t see it coming, but the employees at Opportunity Sheltered Industries in Houston (OSI) thoroughly enjoyed the surprise they got last Thursday.
While OSI workers and their family and friends were enjoying a “family fun day” of various activities not related to their usual routine, country music artist Brian Collins and two band members showed up at about 2 p.m. for an unannounced three-song performance. The impromptu appearance by the accomplished singer-songwriter and guitar player and friends was received with smiles and ovations, and many attendees even sang along.
Also present were numerous residents of Houston House Nursing Home, who were scheduled to attend a different activity that was rained out.
Georgia resident Brian Collins plays an original tune last week in Houston.
That same evening, the trio set up their gear on a flatbed trailer in the parking lot at Pizza Express in Houston (on U.S. 63 next to Walmart) and played a 90-minute-plus set in front of an appreciative crowd. A native of Douglasville, Ga., who currently lives near Atlanta, Collins has a connection to Houston that stems from meeting Pizza Express owners Richard and Linda Wood about four years ago on an “Alabama and Friends” cruise out of Miami, Fla., in which he and his band was one of several acts on board (in addition to the country super-group, Alabama).
The Woods became (and still are) members of Collins’ “brigade,” or fan club.
“We like his music a lot,” Richard Wood said, “but we like him as a person every bit as much and we’re more than happy to help him in any way we can. I think it’s only a matter of time before he really makes it.”
Collins’ sound has been tabbed as almost a cross between Bob Seger and Bruce Springsteen, with a couple of other influences obviously mixed in. Over the course of his career, he has shared the stage with numerous well-known acts (including Alabama, Lynyrd Skynyrd, the Marshall Tucker Band and even KISS), but has also worked as a producer, engineer and graphic designer for several familiar artists.
Collins, 38, launched Blue Light Studio in 2005 and an independent record label and publishing company, Blue Light Entertainment LLC, in 2013. His recent album, “Healing Highway,” has spawned several hit singles, including “Never Really Left,” “Shine a Little Love,” and most recently the title track.
“Never Really Left” resulted in Collins being named a CMT “Discovery Artist,” and he has had multiple music videos reach the top-5 on CMT’s countdown.
Collins co-wrote and co-produced every song on “Healing Highway.” The title track’s video will debut on CMT in the near future.
“I’m very proud of this project,” Collins said. “We worked hard to write, record and produce material that captivates me as an artist and person. I think we nailed it.”
Accompanying Collins in the two Houston shows last week were keyboard player and singer, Michael Magno (of Atlanta), and guitarist and singer Rockwell Jacobs (of Nashville). The trio performed three original pieces at OSI, and in the evening offered up a mix of originals and covers (including tunes by Gordon Lightfoot, Eddie Rabbit, The Band and more).
Collins can almost always be seen wearing a “flat cap,” and many people in the crowd at OSI donned them after they were handed out prior to his arrival (for an un-communicated reason). Collins said he doesn’t take his role in such situations lightly.
“The reason I do this kind of thing is giving back,” he said. “You get what you give out there, and for me it’s not only satisfying, but I have to do things like that to make what I do as a musician mean something. A lot of my songs have a positive message to them, and when you see the joy in someone’s face through music – especially your own music – that does something to you and I don’t know what better motivation there is than that.
“When you can bring a smile through all that turmoil and tragedy that goes on in one’s life, and bring a little happiness and shed some light in a dark area for somebody for a brief moment, that moment sticks in their mind – and definitely sticks in my mind.”
Collins began playing guitar and writing songs when he was 18 and has been making a living in music ever since. He has appeared on TV programs in several states, and he and his two cohorts played a song on Springfield’s KOLR-10 last Friday during its “Ozarks Live” show.
While his performances were largely acoustic last week in Houston, Collins is part of a 7-piece band when he plays concerts in big arenas.
“My career has sort of been a building process,” he said, “and that’s how I found the guys in my band – who aren’t just my musicians, they’re my friends. We’ve all explored just about every corner of the music industry, and kind of ended up back together.
“When I got the ‘Healing Highway’ project going, I had to put a band together to promote it. I called some of the best players I knew who were also people I could tolerate for long periods of time, because this is like a marriage in a lot of ways.”
Collins’ time in Houston was part of a tour of the entire eastern half of the U.S. He plans to take a break soon, and then begin touring the western half of the country.
“We’ve been from Florida to Maine and everywhere in between,” Collins said, “and then back down to Georgia and up to Minnesota. We’re touring as a 3-piece group to short of showcase the singer-songwriter quality of the music. But a great song is going to speak for itself. A 7-piece band is just going to rock your face off, but there are elements I like about the 3-piece, like how much less expensive it is to move it around.”
Collins is an independent artist who does his own marketing, managing and other related tasks.
“That takes a really good team of people, we’re just not under a major label,” he said. “I’ve been in meetings with major labels, and they’ve shown interest, but I have something that’s singular to me and that’s what separates me from all the other artists.
“I don’t want to be like everybody else, and I don’t want my music to be that way, either.”
Collins said he doesn’t rule out hooking up with a major label at some point – if the price is right.
“A million bucks isn’t worth selling my soul,” he said. “Maybe two million. But really, music is my life and I want to keep going up. But I also want to do it for the right reasons.”
“When you can bring a smile through all that turmoil and tragedy that goes on in one’s life, and bring a little happiness and shed some light in a dark area for somebody for a brief moment, that moment sticks in their mind – and definitely sticks in mind.”
BRIAN COLLINS
Inspiration for Brian Collins’ songwriting comes from many different aspects of his life. Collins’ younger sister, Karen Collins, died from leukemia in 1985 (at the age of 8) and he used his creative and artistic ability to help heal the wounds of his family’s tragedy through a song he co-wrote with a close friend, titled “She Will Ride.” In January 2013, the young girl’s memory became an anthem in the fight against cancer through the launch of the She Will Ride Foundation. The non-profit entity (founded by Collins and Blue Light Entertainment) aims at contributing financially to the determination of finding a cure for cancer and leukemia in this generation.
Brian Collins has two websites: www.briancollinsmusic.com (for general information and music) and www.bcbrigade.com (a fan club site). Collins can also be found on Facebook and Twitter.