Do You Hear The Beat?NAIRN MILNE

BY DONNIE RUST

We have covered before how the future of entertain-ment will have its basis in the individual artists and performers taking the time and making the effort to

establish themselves a fan basis through the likes of social media. The connectivity found in community group sourcing and sharing allows talented individuals and groups to engage on a direct basis with their fans both economically and effectively. The Likes of Twit-ter, Facebook and Youtube have given everyone the equal chance to propel themselves ahead into fame and fortune.

Enter Nairn Milne, the seventeen year from Aberdeen, Scotland who has created a name for himself on Twitter and Youtube

through his drumming. I was lucky to catch him during a brief period of inactivity between working at the

Common Wealth Games and rehearsing with his various bands to ask him about what he’s up to and the secret to his prolific sound.

Donnie: When and how did you get into drumming?

Nairn: I started to get drum lessons when I was around seven years old. I was one of those typical kids who liked to make a lot of noise and was given a toy drum at the age of five and I guess it took off from there. However I only became serious about drums around the age of eleven.

Donnie: Have you had any formal training?Nairn: Yes, I get regular lessons with the same teacher I’ve had

for over ten years now and I consider him a really good friend of

mine. He’s been a great influence to me over the years and taught me an incredible amount of skills and techniques which I will carry with me for life. I was also fortunate to meet up with Luke Holland last June for an hour lesson from which I took away some great tips.

Donnie: You’ve got a popular Youtube channel, could you tell us what the inspiration behind this?

Nairn: The inspiration came from other drummers which I had seen on YouTube such as Cobus Potgieter, and Luke Holland but also my mum had been encouraging me to make a channel and it wasn’t until she bought me a ZOOM camera for Christmas that I began to publish my drum videos all over the internet. Over the past few years I have put together my own home studio and I would like to think my covers encourage other drummers to share their enthusiasm and ideas as I do.

Donnie: You drum for the band Franklin, how long have you been gigging with them?

Nairn: I have been drumming for them since the band was founded just over a year ago and it is the first serious band that I have been a part of and I’m loving it. I have been in a few other

bands when I was younger at school but that was just for fun but this is far more serious.

What does it take to develop talent and skills? While all the technologically savy minds in the world are gunning to further enhance Youtube and Twitter to make it even easier to get seen there is absolutely no substitute for hard work and practise.

Donnie: On average, how much practise rehearsal do you have before you make a Youtube video?

Nairn: I practice a song for around an hour or so and learn it by ear, being dyslexic I find this is the best way for me to learn a piece than to sit down and learn it from tab. YouTube is a great source for learning and is another way in which I practice a piece by getting ideas that I can develop further.

Donnie: How Important is it to have a polished finished piece?

Nairn: I think it is vital to have a polished piece, as you obviously want to show off your abilities and feel happy about yourself after completion. There’s nothing worse than having an error in your piece which you will notice every time you go to watch it or listen to it back, maybe others won’t notice it but knowing it’s there can be irritating.

Donnie: How often do you rehearse with the band?

Nairn: We meet up regularly to practice but also just to hang out. One of the band members has a rehearsal room in their house which is a great perk because there obviously isn’t a time restriction and it saves us a bit of cash which we can put towards projects in the band.

Donnie: What are some of the other things that interest you?

Nairn: Yes, I travelled to London last summer to learn more about songwriting and the music business as a whole as this is something I want to progress further and I’m also keen to start teaching drumming via Skype or in person. I feel this would be a great way to share ideas with others.

So which platforms does Nairn favor when it comes to getting his name out there?

Nairn: The social platforms I use are Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. My personal favourite would be Twitter, I feel it is the best way to interact with your fans and keeping up to date with what’s going on around the world. Facebook however is also a really good way of promoting yourself, having your own page where you can promote posts, videos and gigs. I have been contacted via Twitter by Glen Power who drums for The Script and The Wombats after covering their songs so it has opened up some great doors.

Donnie: How long do you spend on Twitter on average per day?

Nairn: I tend to use the Twitter app quite regularly and tweet often to keep all my followers updated and when it comes to approaching things I’d say I am quite laid back about most situations, but you do need to approach some things in a professional manner.

Donnie: Relaxed is good, and where do you find most of your followers are coming from?

Nairn: I find most of my followers come from all age ranges and from all over the world as my videos have been watched in over 172

countries and counting! People become a product of their environment so it’s always

worthwhile looking at the calibre of person they are surrounding themselves with.

Donnie: How does your band influence each other creatively?

Nairn: Franklin consists of five members, but when the band was first formed there were 4 of us. We decided to add another guitarist this allows us to have more variation and a deeper sound. A band is brilliant for ideas when it comes to sourcing new music and writing new lyrics to our songs.

Donnie: Are you mates outside of the band? Nairn: Oh yes, we are all very good friends outside the band.

Donnie: So what are you looking forward to in the new year? What does the future hold for Nairn Milne?

Nairn: Having left school I am looking forward to going onto further education to study music which is all I’ve ever wanted to do. Being able to study full time something I am so passionate about

is great and after releasing an EP earlier this year Franklin are near completion of our debut album which we can’t wait to share with everyone.

Also, an esteemed music producer from the states contacted us about a recording opportunity later this year in October with Franklin which we are all extremely excited about.

Donnie: How are they going to improve/change things for your music career?

Nairn: I am hoping that pursuing further education in music will help me get into some session work in the future as that is something which I’d love to do and obviously recording with the music producer from the states could provide us with a number of opportunities as our tracks would be personally sent to various record companies, radio stations, TV broadcasters and other media outlets in the states and in the UK.

Donnie: All your hard work seems to be paying off?

Nairn: We have spent a lot of our time on our debut album as we want to make sure everything is perfect for when we release it.

Recording with the music producer will cost us quite a lot, as we are all students; however the possibilities that could come with it outweigh the price which we would be paying. We are also looking into selling merchandise to help fund the project.

Donnie: Thanks for taking the time to speak with me Nairn, finally, what would you say to budding musicians wanting to get a grip online?

Nairn: To practice, and only upload videos which are the best you can do at that time. Encourage friends and family to share your videos which will help create a base following from which you can build on. Be selective with your song choice initially by keeping up with the newest releases.