Note: The interview for this article took place in 2004.
Just looking at Marc Broussard, you envision his baby-faced 25-year-old exterior holds the usual mainstream pop music voice. Then he opens his mouth to sing, and your expectations are shattered to pieces as husky, low notes lap at the lines of funk, soul, and rock that lie within.
Broussard, who is Louisiana Delta born and raised, is a product of the sounds with which he grew-up. By the age of 5, he was already performing club gigs with his father, Louisiana Hall of Fame guitarist Ted Broussard, and tunes of choice were not kid music, but R&B, rock, jazz, and southern funk. Calling himself a “white boy singing soul,” Broussard is not much different now that he’s all-grown-up, just going with the flow.
“I think it’s directly involved with my influences as a young child; it’s definitely evidence of a soul and R&B background, and a little bit of jazz. Things just come out the way they come out, and if they come out cool, that’s great,” he says of his music.
Broussard was in good company while working up to the release of his first major-label album, Carencro (the name of his hometown), which was released in August 2004. He has shared a stage with the likes of the Dave Matthews Band, Maroon 5, The Clarks, Tori Amos, Martin Sexton, O.A.R, and Willie Nelson, to name a few, and has taken a bit of knowledge from each.
“I’m always checking out the scene, checking out how cats are handling their crew, how cats are handling their opening acts, how cats are handling themselves on stage, because I still have a lot to learn. Just in the past two years, I feel that the growth I’ve made as a writer, especially, and as a performer has been huge. The lessons I’ve learned on the road are completely invaluable, and I’m just going to keep doing it until I can’t function anymore, till I run out of breath and say I have to go home for a little while.”
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