Ottawa, ON’s Logan Brown: A Decade in Entertainment, Combines Comedy and Music to Create New Album Black Man, White Privilege
Logan Brown has been carving his path in the entertainment industry for over a decade, sharing stages with some of Canada’s top comedians and establishing himself as a notable act. Now, the Ontario musician introduces a humorous blend of comedy and music into his acts.
Brown is exploring the musical comedy universe and will make space for it with his debut album, Black Man, White Privilege. The provocative name comes from Brown’s heritage history.
“Despite being a split between Irish and Nigerian I look like an extra from the Sopranos or your least favorite uncle after a trip to Florida.”
Even the album cover follows this witty intelligent provocative set, featuring Logan as a young boy wearing a ballerina skirt, joyfully playing in a toy kitchen. It subtly hints at the evolving understanding of privilege that resonates within the artist’s work.
However talented in music and in comedy, for a while in separated creative spaces, Brown is very passionate about comedy alone, and for a long period of unstable mental health, turned to that as a force to keep going.
“Comedy saved my life not because I connected with a particular comic’s viewpoints or political ideologies, but because the involuntary compulsion to laugh is something I couldn’t avoid no matter how deep into depression I was.”
Black Man, White Privilege holds 12 tracks, with extremely funny and sarcastic, but provocative lyrics. “The album is an accurate representation of the type of humor I excel in,” he says.
His light-hearted humor touches on a wide range of topics in its melodies, from race to mental health, and even the quirkiest aspects of everyday life. Logan’s unpretentious wit, complemented by catchy melodies, offers an experience that’s equally enjoyable upon repeated listening.
Each tune in Black Man, White Privilege is like a whimsical escape from the mundane. Whether it’s a witty exploration of the profound love some have for their furry companions in “Just Kidding,” a wink-and-nod contemplation of aging and the pursuit of eternal passion (although he’s now divorced) in “Middle Aged Love,” and a lot more.
“The creation of each song begins with a simple query: “Is this humorous?” And it only ends when I catch myself chuckling solo in my car or strumming my guitar at home – my rather suave way of saying, “Absolutely,” affirms the musical comedian.
On “Secret Burger,” the 7th track of the album, Brown tells us a little tale of how whenever his wife asks him to go to the drive-thru, he gets himself a secret burger – a different packing, different everything, just a little extra fat added to the system, a little guilty pleasure no one will know.
‘What my wife don’t know could never hurt her
So I get myself a secret burger
Always on impulse never planned
Last minute purchase at the drive thru stand
Don’t need a wrapper just throw it in my face
And forget you ever saw me set foot in this lace’
Care to introduce yourself?
Hello, my name is Logan Brown. I am 50% Irish, 50% Nigerian and 100% sexy. I am 27 years old and entertain people for a living, which is a fancy way of saying that I don’t actually have a job.
In another life I was a Jazz/Fingerstyle guitarist that has shared a stage with members of the Glorious Sons, the Tragically Hip, I Mother Earth, April Wine, The Guess Who, Coney Hatch, Carole Pope, Jeff Martin (The Tea Party), Howard Jones, Philip Sayce (Jeff Healey, Melissa Etheridge), and probably countless others that will probably be famous next year or something, I BELIEVE IN YOU.
Now, I use that Jazz experience and the wealth of harmony, counter-melody, and theory knowledge to write…songs about my weiner. You don’t question the muse, you just follow her and let her give you enough material to become a club feature, release a comedy album, and work with some of the funniest names in Canadian comedy in under 2 years of comedy experience.
Tell us about the process of writing and recording “Secret Burger.”
“Secret Burger” started out as a regular stand-up bit. Honestly a lot of the lyrics, aside from the ending portion, were regular jokes I had included in the original take. It took me close to 8 months before I took a guitar onstage. I really wanted to make sure I was funny first. When I crossed that line I started looking at old bits I had tried once or twice that may lend themselves to the key of D major and that’s where Secret Burger came from. The song came out pretty quickly, I write most of my stuff using voice notes while I drive, and then I learn it after I get home (I’m a noodler with guitar in hand and tend to spend the hour of “comedy writing” playing Kings X tunes instead). I needed a big finisher that kind of brought it all together so I decided to lean into the goofy nature of the song and end it on the “this man is completely unhinged and will not stop sneaking cheeseburgers” vibe.
Recording wise I just set a date, lost years off my life/inches off my hairline trying to put 105 butts in seats, and prayed to whatever deity, denominational or otherwise, that people would laugh at the song. SHE WORKED OUT.
What’s it like being a comedian/musician in Ottawa, ON?
I love working in Ottawa. I’ve been busier than I ever have been both as a “guy in the corner of a bar” musician and as a comic. The scene is really strong because the ceiling is being a club middle/feature (which will net you about $12 annually) so the result is a bunch of comics writing and performing strictly for the love of it with very little ego (there are exceptions of course) involved.
All comedy scenes have their good and bad of course, but at a time when everyone stresses about how “tight and topical” their 8-minute showcase set is, or how comedy will help them sell a show to CBC or help them get more acting work, it’s nice to be part of a scene that’s sole focus is on being undeniably funny.
Who was the first and most recent Canadian artist to blow you away?
As a frequent partaker in the devil’s lettuce (or regular lettuce if it helps get this section in print) the first time I heard I Mother Earth’s “The Universe In You” my entire perspective on life was changed. I’m not trying to blow smoke in case Jag reads this but his lead break in that song completely rewired my brain and I was a different person when I sobered up. Recently, I don’t think a day has gone by where I haven’t listened to Ariel Posen. I don’t know if it’s the looming threat of being stabbed that keeps budding guitarists from Winnipeg locked in their bedrooms until they come out writing the most beautiful music you’ve ever heard but I’m forever grateful for whatever that secret sauce is.
Comedy-wise, Mike Rita is incomparable. The man is as funny as he is kind. I look at jokes very analytically, perhaps it’s my autism, and he is one of very few comedians that makes that part of my brain shut off and just enjoy a show. The term “masterclass in comedy” is used (overused) when watching a headliner do their thing. That isn’t watching Mike. There’s no “class” because no one will ever be able to do what that guy does. If he isn’t a household name at some point in his life it is a testament to how terrible we are as a species at “discovering the next big thing.”
Honorable mention to Ian Thornley/Big Wreck. There isn’t a single thing I play on the guitar that isn’t lifted/stolen from that man. If their next album was a concept album about farts it would still be a collection of the most beautiful music you’d ever heard.
You’ve been making music for a while now, what’s one piece of advice you can offer to those starting out?
- Write songs about your genitals. That seems to be working really well for me.
- Your art needs to be a reflection of where you are at in life and a vessel of gratitude for the art you consumed to get you there. Anything less and your ego is going to get in the way, and I would know my ego is MASSIVE.
- Do it for you and only you. At some point, you will be 100 years old on your deathbed (or 40 watching an AI release the nukes) thinking about your life. If what drives you is writing songs about “how last night was a movie” or whatever, fill your boots and get it. BUT if you write that stuff just for the fame you’re gonna be miserable in the end. You might sell a bunch of records, and you might even become famous, but your following won’t be with you in the end. Your thoughts and past will be, so try to create, and live a life, where you have the thought “I woulda done this differently” as little as possible.