Meet Chad Gerber | Guitarist, Songwriter & Performing Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Chad Gerber and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Chad, what role has risk played in your life or career?
I see risk as an unavoidable part of life, and the sooner you develop a healthy relationship with it, the sooner you can work with it. Everyone experiences levels of risk daily, and each level seems to have the same feelings of uncertainty and fear involved, so mine as well learn how to get used to it and risk it all on what you want. I had to start taking important risks when I was a kid by coming up with creative ways to get backstage at concerts in order to speak with real touring musicians. I absolutely had to speak with them in order to learn how to get where I wanted to be in music. Sometimes that process resulted in me getting in trouble, yelled at, or kicked out, but no security team’s punishment for sneaking backstage was anywhere near as awful as the thought of me not getting where I needed to be in life. In retrospect I can safely say the risk was very much worth it.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I like to think I’ve created a unique balance with my music being on commercial releases under labels like Warner, Sony, Armada, etc, while still being able to explore music in the the underground/indie scene as an electronic artist under my Woodrowgerber moniker. I spent a lot of my career thinking you either had to be a major label artist or an indie artist, and eventually I realized my own self-imposed limitations kept me from experiencing the joys of both. Now I’m able to enjoy being a guitarist/songwriter on collaborations with exciting artists like Malifoo (I was set to kick off a series of international dates with Malifoo at Lollapalooza Brazil pre- Covid), Will Grands, Kris Kross Amsterdam, Damon Sharpe, and many other amazing artists, while still releasing my underground Woodrowgerber music (like my recent album Liquid Data). To obtain this balance was a long process that involved cutting ties with a lot of “musicians” that were stuck in dead-end ways of thinking. People that had too many opinions about the “purity” of music and how it used to be made, versus those who just want to create without limitations. I had to learn there is no wrong or right way to make music, it’s just important that it moves people. Now that I’ve become better with some of the creative balance, I’ve been able to pursue some amazing projects with Gibson Guitars as a Gibson artist, and patent music tech I’ve invented that will hopefully revolutionize the music industry very soon.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I like to keep things pretty chill when friends visit (which is often in LA) so I try to get a feel for what they’re looking for. I usually end up taking them to the Santa Monica Pier after it’s closed so we can hang out on the steps watching the fisherman without tourists bothering us. It’s a good place to get caught up and take in the ocean vibes. If they want some classic LA we might drop by Chateau Marmont for that “Sunset Strip Experience”, but otherwise I’ll take them to Sushi King, Malibu Seafood after El Matador Beach, or if I want a late night burger I’ll drag them down to The Kettle in Manhattan Beach. Sometimes the night might just get away and move into crashing a party in the valley or hanging in an art or music studio with friends. Of course in there we’ll squeeze in some Disney, Six Flags, probably a Big Bear trip, The Getty (my personal favorite) and lots of random foodie spots. If they’re a little more experienced with LA I like to take them to the Upright Citizens Brigade and the Bourgeois Pig after, but I rarely stick to a plan and just let LA happen the way it happens. I find Los Angeles usually has its own itinerary and it’s best to just follow that as it unfolds.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Despite having a lot of people on this list, I will have to direct this shoutout to the incredible Playwright, and composer, J.P. Kavanaugh. Back when I was sneaking backstage to meet artists I was lucky enough to meet him and he gave me my very first leg up in the music industry. Up until then nobody gave me the time of day in my musical endeavors but he offered to check out my demos and help however he could. Not long after I met him I ended up working on music in Miami with him which led to other opportunities that got me up and running. We’re still close to this day and he still checks out my demos when I send them over.

Website: www.woodrowgerber.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/chadgerber
Twitter: www.twitter.com/woodrowgerber
Facebook: www.facebook.com/chadgerbermusic
Youtube: www.youtube.com/woodrowgerber
Other: www.chadgerber.com

Image Credits
Joel Edwards Matt Garsteck