STILL PLAYING

Brent Barcus first toured with Shania Twain as a guitarist in 1997 all the way through 2005.. Years later, after building a career in audio production and investing in real estate, he got another call from Shania. This time, he came back as her Musical Director. That call eventually took him to Wembley Stadium.

Brent and I have played guitar together on and off since 2004. When I decided to start Still Playing, he was the first person I wanted to sit down with. I wanted to hear how he got that first gig, but I was just as curious about the years between those two calls. What do you do when a tour ends and you have to figure out what comes next?

In this conversation, we get into how Brent picked up the guitar, found his way into Shania’s band, and went from life on the road to mixing and producing audio for major networks. We also talk about real estate, finding his way back onstage with Shania, and playing Wembley.

I’m John Radebaugh, a guitarist in Nashville. Still Playing is my interview series about the different ways musicians build a life around music and how that changes over the years. This is episode one.

If you’ve ever had to change direction to keep doing what you love, I’d like to hear your story in the comments.

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