Aly Cook is regularly featuring freedom artist interviews from the 2023-2024 Freedom playlist. Let’s support those musicians who stand against the narrative and stand shoulder to shoulder with us all. Please follow the playlist by clicking the above image and share.
Aly took time out this week to chat with Brad Skistimas who is a successful independent artist. Brad is the man behind Five Times August, the monika he uses to release his music to the world, including his latest album, ‘Silent War’.
Brad began releasing protest songs as Five Times August that were pushing back against the narrative. His single “Sad Little Man” reached #1 position on Amazon and Apple Music charts.
Enjoy this interview with Five Times August.
Aly: Brad nice to E meet you tell me where in the world are you from?
Brad: I’m based in Dallas, Texas.
Aly: You first came to my attention during these crazy times, when you bought out ‘Sad Little Man” the song about Fauci. Which I added to the Freedom Songs Playlist however looking back, you have had a very successful independent music career, including some amazing sync licensing of your music onto MTV Laguna beach and various others . Tell us a little background on your career up until Covid hit?
Brad: “I started Five Times August back in 2001 right after I graduated high school. I had my first big break around 2004 when my song “Better With You” was used on Laguna Beach. The music supervisor for that show ended up using my entire album throughout the second season the following year. From that exposure came more licenses in film and tv and commercials, and I started touring college campuses. In 2007 I became the first completely independent artist to have an album distributed in Walmart and Best Buy stores without a record label. I stepped away from FTA in 2018 to start work on a kid’s music project called The Juicebox Jukebox, which was a family project I started with my kids. The songs and videos for that have since found themselves in schools and classrooms around the world which has been pretty incredible to see. That was my main focus up until Covid hit.“
Aly: So where we’re you at with at the end of 2019 when everything changed in our world?
Brad: “I was mainly focused on just being a dad, raising my kids, and working on The Juicebox Jukebox project. I was actually touring elementary schools, which were like the best shows ever (performing for kids), and all that stopped when schools closed and distance learning took over.”
Aly: Standing up against the narrative, what has that meant for you with your career and peers around you?
Brad: “It really showed me who I am, who we are, and who the real punks and rebels of our time are. All my musical heroes let me down and revealed themselves to be cowards. Everything they preached prior to 2020 is meaningless now. Personally I felt like I didn’t have an option. I had to speak up, regardless of who I was going to make upset, regardless of the fans I’d lose, regardless of the opportunities I’d lose… it was too important to keep quiet. I was thinking about my kid’s future and I couldn’t go on not saying anything. So I spoke out, and a handful of other artists did, and here we are four years later now, still here — battle scars and all. Not only has anything lost been replenished, we are thriving now. It’s incredible.”
Aly: Your new songs ‘Ain’t No Rock n’ Roll’ really hit a nerve for me as a musician as those I thought might stand up didn’t ? Instead they seemed to be pawns for selling the vaccine. Do you think it has backfired on them or will?
Brad: “Absolutely. It already has backfired on them. They’ve revealed themselves to be nothing more than owned industry pawns, willing to do and say “whatever” in exchange for a check. And people have woken up to this, they recognize all the rock and rollers sold them out. But on the other side of that is an amazing opportunity to carve out a new path for music, art, and culture. One with real integrity. That’s what I want to be a part of.”
Aly: Also having been deeply entrenched in the music industry I have always known the Major record companies and their being owned by the same multinational conglomerates that own media and the Pharmaceutical companies. Were you always aware of that connection?
Brad: “I don’t think I was as aware of the big pharma connection until recent years. Endorsement deals of all kinds have always been a thing. But when we started seeing one artist after another falling in line, posting pictures of themselves getting the shot, taking part in such an obvious and thick propaganda campaign, I think that cemented the fact these acts are all bought and owned — and that’s exactly what they are, an act.”
Aly: The 60s really showed what arts, music and film could do to fight narratives and standing for freedoms. Do you think we can develop a market for ‘Freedom Music’ and encourage those awake to the narrative to stop supporting the music owned by the very people they are standing up against and get the freedom movement at large to support the music of the independent music artists standing against the narrative?
Brad: “Absolutely. We’re already seeing it happen with artists like Tom McDonald, Jimmy Levy, Hi Rez, Bryson Gray, The Defiant — who are all charting next to big machine artists. When my album Silent War came out it reached #5 on the Amazon best selling albums charts, sitting in between Taylor Swift and Bruce Springsteen’s latest albums. That told me a lot about the power of voting with our dollars, and the power of the people in our movement. We can change things when we come together to get behind what we believe in. And that hunger and drive for change is only going to keep growing.”
Aly: Your interviews on the Highwire and in particular the interview with Ernest Ramirez (whose son was killed by the covid 19 vaccine) was heart wrenching. I realised then that there are so few of us standing up as artists against the narrative and for the vaccine injured and that we don’t know of each other’s existence. I have a vaccine injured son (Pfizer) and have been standing up for vaccine injured at events and online . I wrote a song and released it here called Little White Crosses ( a reference to the little white crosses that hung outside of our parliament protest, with the names of people whose families believed they’re loved ones had died from the injection) Little White Crosses was used in the Silent No More documentary. We have many other artists here in New Zealand and Australia who are standing up and whose music has featured in a highly successful box office documentary film called River of Freedom. In New Zealand we have had a number of great documentaries around standing up to the narrative, protests, vaccine injury stories. Have you seen other documentary filmmakers around the world using their skills to stand up against the narrative and use Film making as their medium?
Brad: “Oh absolutely. There have been so many important documentaries coming out over the last few years. I’ve lent my music to many of them. Oracle Films, based out of the UK, have been putting out fantastic work illustrating the times we’re in. We’ve partnered on several projects and have become good friends. Mikki Willis has his important Plandemic series which is a must watch. Most recently my song “Fight For You” was included in a film called “Shot Dead” made by We The Patriots. It’s about the parents who’ve lost children from the jab. In fact yesterday I learned it was just selected for the Santa Monica film festival coming up here in the states on February 3rd. That’s amazing when you consider they didn’t even submit it! Really telling that people are starting to wake up.”
Aly: I really feel that working together we are stronger, this is happening with Doctors, immunologists and other Scientists around the world pulling into global bodies (Together we are stronger) This is why I developed the Freedom Songs playlist to help people to find the artists who are standing up against the Narrative. What ways can we bring artists together?
Brad: “I think more live performances and concerts are key. I’ve been at a lot of protest and rally events over the last few years and have met a lot of the artists who’ve spoken out through music. The conversation always finds itself with the desire to tour together beyond just the rallies. There are enough of us now to where I think we could really have some beautiful music festivals. Jam for Freedom is a new one starting up in the UK, which I performed at last year. It was three days of music and speakers, and I think did a great job bringing together our community for a new and unifying experience. Beyond that, I think more collaborations on projects for singles and videos would be great. Last year I collaborated with Joseph Arthur on a single as well as a song on The Defiant’s new album. I really enjoyed that.”
Aly: Have you ever performed downunder in Australia and New Zealand? Would you like to perform down here one day?
Brad: “I have never visited but would 100% love to come. Whenever I’m invited I will absolutely be there!”
Discover Fives Times August on the Freedom Playlist 2023-2024 on spotify: