ARTIST SPOTLIGHT: Braden Bales
Braden Bales is one of those artists whose success is very easily predictable.
He’s a heartthrob from Canada (which has proven successful for Bieber, Drake, and The Weeknd)
He produces, engineers, and writes his own music (which allows him to work at his own pace, rather than waiting on numerous other creatives to finish each track)
His personality is addicting. Being in a room with him for 15 minutes will immediately confirm that he, Ryan Gosling, and Ryan Reynolds are from the same country.
He has the work ethic that most other acts lack in todays aspiring musician scene. He makes content constantly, and does what is required of a new artist to standout in todays digital age.
For these reasons and more, he’s going to be famous, and you’re going to hear him on the radio.
So, who is he?
Originally born in Oakville, Ontario,
Braden Joshua Bales is a 20 year old singer-songwriter who has been working towards becoming an artist since age 14. After high school, Bales attended the Metalworks Institute (of Mississauga), where he would receive a degree in audio engineering. This education was a massive part of his development as an artist. He always knew he wanted to make music, but now he also knew how to mix and master it, allowing it to sound EXACTLY the way he had pictured it in his head.
On this, he had the following to say:
“I think that there's a lot that goes into music. And there's a lot more to music than just the melody and the words that are used. Half of it is really body language, and the distance between yourself and the person you’re speaking to or about. The production and mastering elements that I’ve been able to learn throughout my education and career are just as important to the song to me as the actual composition, because it helps better tell the story.”
Considering the often somber, post-breakup subject matter of his most recent tracks, his influences make a ton of sense: when asked about them, Bales quickly and confidently named Jeremy Zucker, Alexander 23, Ed Sheehan, and Bon Iver. Bales actually made a TikTok two days ago, in response to an open verse challenge that Zucker had offered to his following, and Zucker responded with immense love and support for what Bales was able to cook up in such a short amount of time. We are incredibly hopeful that the two will hop on a track together sometime soon. This is because we truly believe that Braden is the final member of the Holy Trinity of Sad Boy Pop; a trio of himself, Alexander 23, and Jeremy Zucker.
Although his subject matter can often feel sad and introspective, this is NOT the way Bales presents himself. Having spoken with him to prepare the subject matter for this article, Bales has been one of the most addictive, refreshing, extroverted characters we have met so far. He is incredibly optimistic and funny, he has the energy of that Jack Harlow clip from the Met Gala this year. He’s a man crush kinda guy, there's not much more else to say.
With all of these strengths and advantages, you might find it crazy that we still feel the need to touch on his TikTok usage as being one of his most prominent legs over his competition. Bales posts TikTox everyday. He goes live on TikTok and Instagram often. He participates in nearly every open verse challenge that comes his way, and is often noticed by the artists that create these challenges (i.e. previously mentioned Jeremy Zucker video). For these reasons, he has been able to garner a TikTok following of over 13k, which consists of a pretty reliable fanbase that actually tunes into his releases, unlike many other artists who often feel like they are shouting into the void when pitching a single rollout to their followers.
Bales is a class act. We’re incredibly happy that we were able to catch on to this quickly, and we truly hope he remembers us when he hits it big. If you’ve been looking for an artist to get you through your current or next breakup, you found him, so go stream him and see that we’re right about this.
