Meet Scott B. Mackay | Musician & Curious Creative

We had the good fortune of connecting with Scott B. Mackay and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Scott B., any advice for those thinking about whether to keep going or to give up?
This is something I struggle with on a daily basis. Giving up seems like the best option until I give it a try and I begin to feel even worse than I do when I’m up against the challenge of working on what I care about. I’ve been doing my best to approach this question from a more proactive perspective this year. A friend was gracious enough to gift me a copy of Steven Pressfield’s “War of Art” in December of 2022 and the central premise of overcoming resistance has sort of become my foundation for this last six months. Making music has been such a recurring passion in my life but my approach to it has always been something of a scattershot. A lot of what Pressfield’s book centers on is the idea of getting past that voice inside that wants to think about outcomes, or shortcomings, or wasted time, or inability, and just put yourself in front of the thing that you care about and work on it daily. It’s not always easy but the attempt to make that effort a more consistent practice has become a little less daunting and the result is generally me feeling more whole afterward. I’m not always the best at being able to communicate the entirety of my being but music is the place where that picture becomes more realized and the more time I spend with it, the more complete I feel. I’m not ready to give up yet, as persistent as that voice can be, and I’m going to do my best to keep going.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
In the past I’ve been so interested in so many things that I’ve found myself pulled in too many different directions. Recently I’ve been trying to narrow that focus toward my music first and allow that to be the foundation for other creative interests to rest on. I’m in the midst of recording some songs for an upcoming project that I’m really excited about. The production approach has been incorporating a lot of my varied taste and I’m giving myself constraints and specific sound influences while also allowing for songs to take shape in ways that I’m not expecting. Most of these songs were written over the last year and a half and either started at the piano and were written with a more traditional approach while others emerged from playing on my iPad, which I use a lot live for looping and has become a really central piece of my creative process. Even up until the beginning of this process I had been really particular about isolating each of these creative approaches into separate categories but as I’ve been recording and producing these songs, its become clear that marrying all of these things is what really brings me the most joy. I love electronic music and production, I’ve been writing for a long time, and I love the intuitive and creative spark of live-looping. When I decide to integrate all of these things the palette becomes a lot more thorough and exciting for me. Another spark that’s been happening is attempting to plan other facets of the release process, namely music videos, that allows me to step away from the recording, production, and mixing process and get reinvigorated for the project by other aspects, like visuals, that are a part of that expression and are allowing me to collaborate with other creatives. That’s something I’d really love to focus on more moving forward, collaboration with the amazing community of creators here in Los Angeles.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Well I worked in the coffee industry for a long time and find coffee tours to be a fun way see different parts of the city and get a glimpse of the community that populates those little hubs. I’m in Eagle Rock right now so we’d probably start at Found Coffee, which is right up the road from me, maybe head up to Mandarin Coffee up in Pasadena because it’s great and is tucked away in a beautiful little brick plaza. We’d hit Kumquat or Loquat, because they’re both excellent and right around the corner then stop at BOXX in the Arts District, because their roaster, Altug, is incredibly passionate and focused on getting the best out of their coffee, and then start meandering towards some of the shops that have opened up recently that I’ve been hoping to try. Cafe Nido is first on that list because of the immaculate layout and then we could stop by Stories in Echo Park to peruse some books. Other than coffee cruising, I’d see if they want to check the surf and hang at the beach for a while. I don’t hike often but there are some great trails up in the foothills surrounding Glendale and NELA that are worth checking out. We’d probably try to catch some music and dance while they’re here and the Echo, Permanent Records, El Cid, and Los Globos usually have something worth checking out. All we’re going to be eating are tacos so we’ll just make a point to stop at as many different trucks as we can to compare their buche. I’d also probably invite them to Light On Lotus in Mar Vista where I play music for the class on Sunday mornings with the owner/operator Kate Duyn. It also lets stop in to see a lot of familiar faces at Alana’s Coffee where I spend a lot of time either helping out with a project, doing sound for an event or bugging the staff and owners.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
First I want to shoutout Oscar Bautista, who recommended me to your publication and has been a collaborator and great friend and influence at various points in my life. Oscar was booking quite a few shows pre-pandemic and he was always incredibly generous and supportive and eager to reach out to ask if I would be willing to be on a bill. I was always happy to accept and it allowed me to play at a lot of different venues and spaces around LA because of his persistence. His consistence and continued pursuit of his creative passions is also so inspiring and encouraging for me to feel like I’m not alone in working toward a goal that often feels insurmountable. I also want to shoutout Erin Ward who used to be my boss and has now become a great friend, supporter, patron of my work, and a steady voice of encouragement. Erin genuinely appreciates my ideas and has been such a present, understanding and patient presence for me while also doing her best to provide me with opportunities and platforms to express these ideas. Last but not least is my friend Dylan Nichols, who goes by the artist name Slower Power. We both struggle with a lot of the same anxieties and difficulties surrounding our work and yet we both keep going whether or not we always feel the most capable. We’ve played shows together, we’ve written together and are both doing our best to self-produce, write, mix, and release music, which can be incredibly daunting. It feels great to see her grow and feel like I have someone to share struggles and approaches to creativity with when otherwise I start to feel very solitary.

Website: scottbmackay.com

Instagram: @scottbmackay

Youtube: @scottbmackay

Image Credits
Marta Mandryto (Main Photo) Bogdan Shelestyuk (B&W Photos) Amelie Uchiike (Yoga Photo) Thomas Brodahl (Live Photo)