Brandi Sparks uses music as a means of encouragement for the audience

Alternative folk and soul ballad singer-songwriter Brandi Sparks has been passionate about music since she was young, but didn’t write her first song until her early twenties.

Born in Cincinnati, Sparks said she grew up in Columbus after moving when she was 10. Sparks said she spent time in Florida playing music and “really growing up” before moving back to Columbus two years ago and starting playing locally.

“I’ve always been passionate about music and singing,” Sparks said. “I remember in high school, singing in my room with the door closed, with my piano. Every night, that’s what I would do.

Sparks wasn’t someone who played sports often or hung out with friends in high school, she said. Instead, she spent time alone singing and playing the piano.

Although she knew music was something she wanted to get more involved in, Sparks said she wasn’t sure how to go about it initially, instead pursuing several other professional interests, such as painting, service in restaurants, asphalt accounting and banking.

“I chased a lot of things,” Sparks said. “I always did other things to financially support music until recently, when I was able to kind of support myself with it.”

“I wrote my first song in my early twenties,” Sparks said. “It was a song of worship. I didn’t write much after that, until my son was born. From birth I felt this burst of creative energy, wrote all kinds of stuff and just couldn’t stop.

Sparks said the majority of her songs are written as she comes out of a weak spot in her life and flows from the things she wants to say to people to encourage and support them in their own issues.

“Beyoutiful Life,” Sparks’ debut album, was released on Spotify and Apple Music on July 13, 2018. She said the meaning of the album title and the songs were about rising above the storms in you. to be who you were created to be.

“That’s what the whole album was about,” she said. “Just the mental struggles that we have as artists, and I think everyone has their ups and downs, and showing everyone that ‘Hey, I’m here too, and we can get through this together. ‘”

Sparks’ second album is slated for release this fall. The first single from the new album is called “I Love You More,” written for her grandmother, Sparks said.

The song was not originally written with the intention of being recorded and released, Sparks said. However, after sending an iPhone recording of the song to its producer, Chad Warren, they began to exchange ideas, bringing the song to life.

Warren, who has produced music in Columbus for the past 10 years, said it’s important to show that artists can take a song from the grassroots to the highest level, if they have heart and dedication. passion.

“One of my goals as a Brandi producer is to be a bit like Robin for his Batman,” Warren said. “A lot of times you need someone to support you who really knows the music, knows the vision, and knows where the person wants to go. One of my goals is just to uplift that in her, and I believe in her.

Sparks said she has performed at weddings, restaurants and other venues around Columbus, such as The Barrel and Boar and Tin Pin Alley, for the past two years to build momentum as an artist local.

Although her current goal is to set up listening rooms and songwriter festivals so that she can continue to tell others about her songs, Sparks said the pandemic has given her time to heal. develop personally.

“I tried to stay present on social media,” Sparks said. “I did a lot of porch concerts and called it ‘Porch Sessions’. Every time I go out and play I always meet people who really love music, and that keeps me going. “

“I Love You More” and “Hold On” will be released on Sparks’ upcoming album this fall. According to her website, Sparks performs at the Barrel and Boar Canal Winchester Friday from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.