Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Mike Ruby

During one of the most challenging times in his life, singer-songwriter Mike Ruby found solace in his music. He turned to his craft as an outlet to express himself and decided after a heart-to-heart with his father to pursue it professionally. Since then, his words and sound have connected with listeners around the world, with over one million streams on Spotify alone. Earlier this year, he released his poignant and timely new single, “Burn Again,” and we caught up to chat with him about it.

PC: How did you discover your passion for music?
Mike: My big brother. I watched him play tenor sax on stage once with actor Dan Aykroyd when I was super young, and I thought it was the coolest thing. I started playing that summer, and music became my life from that point on.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Mike: [laughs] This seems like a family interview now. The truth is though, my dad became very ill in high school, and during those years, music became an outlet for me. I’d spend around eight hours playing, practicing, and writing music every day. Before he passed away in my last year of high school, we had a heart-to-heart about the future, and I decided music was going to be the path.

PC: You have a new single out now. Tell us about “Burn Again” and the inspiration behind the song.
Mike: I do! I was super pumped to release it. The song is about an ex that you had something special with. It kind of poses the question “Will we ever get back together/burn again?” My music video actually depicts someone heading on a journey to look for that person but realizing somewhere along the lines that what they were looking for was never there. Still though, sometimes those memories from the past come back, and that’s what this song is all about.

PC: You’ve released a few singles thus far in your career, and collectively they’ve been streamed over a million times. Does that add any pressure for future releases?
Mike: It actually does the opposite. I released my first song around nine months ago, and I was super nervous to put it out into the world. Once it was out though, I started getting messages from fans, radio play, and some love from online platforms. People were starting to relate to my music, and that took away all the stress/worry about how it performed. Some songs will hit people more than others for sure, but that’s totally natural, so there really isn’t anything to worry about. As long as I continue to grow as an artist and continue bringing my fans with me for the ride, I think I actually feel less and less of that pressure to have a song that outperforms the previous ones.

PC: Your debut EP, You Wrote These Songs, comes out this summer. What can fans expect?
Mike: They can expect a lot of pop, a bit of R&B vocals, some songs they’ll want to dance to, a couple of songs to drink to, a few songs about exes, and one serious one in there to shake up the mix.

PC: If you had to choose one song off You Wrote These Songs that best encompasses you as an artist, what would it be and why?
Mike: I would have to say my first song, “Close.” It kind of encompasses every piece of me. There’s some soul/R&B elements in the vocal, which come from my years of playing jazz, pop elements in the melodies, sax hidden underneath the chorus in the synth parts, and lyrically it’s simple but to the point.

PC: As we look ahead to the rest of 2020, what does the year hold for you?
Mike: I’m already working on album two, and it’s more in the pop/R&B vein. My writing collaborations have kind of been halted because of COVID-19, but I’m still writing a ton of new material on my own for the album and can’t wait to share it with everyone.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Mike: Travis Scott or maybe Eminem

PC: First album you bought?
Mike: John Mayer’s Room for Squares

PC: First concert you attended?
Mike: Probably a jazz show in Toronto at the Rex. [laughs]

PC: An album that changed your life and why?
Mike: Jon Bellion’s The Human Condition. Every song is so real, and I could relate to every lyric on the record at that time. Going back, I can’t discount Continuum [John Mayer] either. That record shaped who I am musically.

PC: A venue on your bucket list to perform at?
Mike: Madison Square Garden

PC: A must-have on the road?
Mike: Good people

To keep up with Mike, follow him on Twitter, Instagram, and Spotify.