Dustin Brown: Viewing the Art of Pop Culture Through the Lens of Music

By: Andie Horowitz

Dustin Brown has been immersed in learning the intricacies of music for as long as he can remember. Since he was only a child, Dustin has been writing and producing his own songs out of pure enjoyment. It all began with just a pen, a few pieces of paper, and a piano, but as he grew older, Dustin found himself pursuing his passion in more formal ways. His love for music had always been more of a personal hobby, but now, as a senior at U-M studying both Computer Science and Performing Arts Technology, he is ready to showcase his talent to the world. Not only is he one of our esteemed Junior Content Writers, highlighting the intersections of fashion, music, and pop culture at large, but Dustin is also preparing to release two new songs to the general public under the moniker, Ferris Hill. We sat down with him to get more details on his background, story, and when we can expect to hear more. 

A: How long have you been creating your own music for?

D: I think I wrote my first song when I was like four or five… it was something I had been doing forever without really realizing what it meant. When I was younger, I would go on GarageBand all the time — my parents’ computer has like hundreds of songs on them of me just making random songs— and it was something I really loved to do. As I grew up, I learned more techniques with production in general. There's a lot of experimentation. I was fortunate enough to have really good music teachers who taught me a lot, and in high school, I had a rock duo with a good friend of mine. He played a bunch of instruments, I sang and produced. That was my first introduction to formally producing a song through the more legitimate production process. It was also my first experience being in a recording studio, and that entire experience really showed me how amazing it is to work in music. 

A: What inspired you to pursue your specific educational curriculum at U-M?

D: I had been making music fairly often throughout high school, just as a hobby that I cared about. When I came to college my freshman year, I really wasn't spending time working on that, and once the year was over, felt like there was a part of me missing. So, I signed up for two different music production classes through the music school for sophomore year and I was waitlisted on both of them. One of them ended up kicking me off the waitlist, and the other one opened a spot the day just before the “Add/Drop deadline”. I took that class, and learned about the Performing Arts Technology department through the course — I had never even heard of it before — and decided to apply on a whim. Why not just see what happens? And when I was fortunate enough to get in, I couldn't say no.

A:  How has your music evolved since you formally started?

D: I love working with other people and trying to figure out how to make a song as good as possible. The process is just this back and forth where sometimes I'm trying to get better at producing, and other times trying to get better at writing lyrics. That’s what I’ve been doing most lately. It was also a realization that I can pull inspiration from anything, and so it's beyond music now. It's reading a lot of books and short stories and watching movies and finding that stories are everywhere. It’s learning how stories operate to let you build a narrative around your own experiences and emotions to make a point. It's the cultural aspect of it all. 

A: Who are some of your biggest musical influences?

D: For modern stuff, it's a lot of The Internet, Mac Miller, Frank Ocean, Anderson .Paak — the world of hip hop, R&B, and soul. At the same time, I'm pulling a lot from earlier stuff. I love Wings; I love Stevie Wonder. There's this film composer, Henry Mancini, who I'm absolutely obsessed with. He did Pink Panther and Breakfast at Tiffany's. With this though, it's important to note though that while those are my primary influences, I spend most of my time  listening to stuff that isn't what I just mentioned. I'm always trying to broaden my horizons — right now, I’m listening to a lot of punk music and George Gershwin. I’m just trying to keep my ears fresh. Then, when I come back to the stuff that I really love, the music that has influenced me the hardest, I have a new perspective from other sounds that then lets me create something that's more unique.

A: When is your new music coming out?

D: I have no set date to announce, but it will 100% be out before the end of the semester. I'm waiting on some sample clearance stuff and I'm in the final stages of getting the songs mixed and mastered. And then just finalizing the album artwork, but everything’s pretty much set.

A: Do you have a name for the release? 

D: It's two songs together, similar to how they used to do 7 inch singles where you'd have the A side and the B side. The first song is called “Train of Thought” and the second song is called “In This Life”. They're very complimentary, but at the same time they're different, and tell very different stories. I think that they fit well together and act as a cohesive unit with that duality. 

A: What motivated you to get involved with the MFMS?

D: That’s a really good question. I guess this plays back into tracing how the people I look up to operate. I realized that a lot of my role models in music have a relationship with the fashion world, and that got me into the idea of what fashion has the power to do. I realized that the purpose of it all is just like music: fashion is an artistic medium that lets people express themselves and speak upon things that matter within a community. There are a lot of different ways people can communicate ideas — we have everyone from scientists to politicians to artists. I think it's really valuable that we have people from every end of the spectrum, trying to do their part, and trying to make the world a better place.

A: What's next?

D: I'm very excited to get these two songs done because there's a lot of stuff that I've been holding myself back on. More music for sure and hopefully some more stuff beyond that. I can't say too much, besides just that I'm really excited to get to work.

A: Do you have any words of advice for aspiring creators?

D: I think the most important thing is to make what you love and not to make anything for anyone else, don’t be concerned with what people will think about what you're doing. If you care about your craft and you know yourself well, you can make something that's true to you and nothing else really matters.

We hope you enjoyed learning more about the multi-faceted and incredibly talented member of our digital team. Want to hear more? Follow Dustin at @ferris_hill on Instagram to stay updated with his latest releases.