A Pop Duo On The Rise

Surfaces is and up and coming act filling 3,000 seat rooms on their own and presently touring in support of LANY. They are a fascinating story: two friends from a small Texas town go to YouTube to learn about how to enter the music business and wind up on the rise behind a series of albums and accelerated attention which followed their hit song Sunday Best which has racked up more than 800 million views.

The act is a duo: Forrest Frank and Colin Padalecki who connected on the internet and built from there. This is a story of drive, talent and the unlimited opportunity which results from an internet connection, a drive to succeed and the work ethic to keep going and growing.

Their new album is Hidden Youth which is their fifth album.

This is really a moonshot story, as most people who seek attention performing live music rarely break out of their garages or local rooms around town. In a world in which as many as 70,000 songs are uploaded daily, it’s nearly impossible to break out. Sunday Best gave Surfaces their chance as the attention which followed from that song catapulted them out of obscurity. Their ongoing work performing live and continuing to create and release music has kept their audiences growing.

Surfaces started in 2016 after Forrest and Colin met on SoundCloud. They put out an album using their YouTube acquired knowledge, without spending any money on marketing. The response to that album made the idea or touring realistic, and the band began to gather audiences.

Technology provides a lot of advantages which didn’t exist for musicians in the recent past. It’s not just the ability to record music and distribute it from the road, using simple online tools, a laptop, and the access which the internet grants. There are also social media networks such as Bands In Town and others which help acts maintain continuity with fans, alert them to when shows will take place in their local areas and motivate the sales of tickets, merchandise and recorded music.

Their demographic has broadened over time beyond just the internet savvy. Now, they’re on bills at festivals and in support of acts which provides access to an ever-broader audience. Because of the pop nature of their sound, Surfaces’ music is accessible to many demographics who convert to fans after seeing them play or hearing their music on streaming services or radio.

They travel lean, which approximately a dozen people alongside Forrest and Colin as they tour. Given the ongoing struggles of all musicians to balance the price of tickets against stunning increases in the operational costs of touring, modesty in overhead is the best predictor of a profitable result. No one wants to tour for six years and come home with nothing except memories. It’s always a win to make a few dollars along the way. The quickest path to assure that is to be outrageous on stage, then realistic back on the bus.

They have a very pragmatic approach. They subscribe to the idea that a song which is supposed to do well will do well. It will grow on its own. A song that doesn’t connect won’t. Music is not a push business; it is a pull business. The audience must want the music. Their belief is a good song is going to sell like a good song. Their music inspires a positive feeling in part because it’s authentic.

Colin and Forrest have a genuine love of music, so their approach is passion first rather than all about business. They’re open and engaged music lovers who grew up on classic pop music. There are echoes to summer songs in their music. That’s engaging to a wide group of fans.

When you have an upbeat show in a 3,000-capacity room the energy from the room enhances that connection between musicians and fans. Music is long tail. This story exists because of the reaction from my team to the performance which Surfaces delivered at Live is Beautiful.

I had the opportunity to speak with Forrest and Colin who beamed into our Zoom conversation from their tour bus. They’re personable, enthusiastic, and interesting. This is a fun conversation in both video and audio format. I believe it becomes ever more engaging as the interview proceeds. Stay with it.

More than 100 episodes into this series of podcasts for Forbes a certain pattern is emerging. All artists are interesting because art is intrinsically stimulating. What’s less predictable is how it is to spend thirty minutes or so with the artists as they discuss their path and their craft. The best results are when the artists themselves are self-aware and humble. Success in artistic fields depends on both the quality of what was produced and the authenticity of the performance.

There were unusual circumstances in writing this story which imposed a longer delay than typical between when the podcast was recorded and when the piece was written. As I watched the video playback while writing this piece, I was reminded again of just how much I liked Colin and Forrest. They have an easy comfortable manner as they discuss what they do and the ability to connect with people which is how audiences are built.

This duo has a long runway in front of them. They are going to keep creating music and friendships as they navigate the world. You might as well start listening to them now. It’s inevitable, so why be late to the party? Add them to your playlist and stop by when they’re live in your town. There are no guarantees in life, but if you could put an asterisk on that statement, it might lead you to this: Surfaces’ music and live performance will kick your endorphins into hyperdrive.