PORTLAND (NEWS CENTER Maine) -- A wildly successful career with Nickelodeon in the early 2000's put Drake Bell on the map: he appeared on The Amanda Show and was the hilarious teen heartthrob in Drake and Josh. In 2018, he's found a way, and he's 'Uncovered.'
But Drake is a musician in his own right (you bet I still know the words to the Drake and Josh theme song) and is back with a brand new sound he describes as more modern, urban, with Latin influences stemming from his travels and tours. He even has a song coming out at the end of the month en español.
"I think I just get inundated with all this music and culture, and then I get back to the states and I get the studio. I’ve been traveling all over the world. I’m getting older and I’ve had a lot of experiences. I really like to evolve."
Does that come with being independent? You're without a label, which is huge.
"That is a luxury of not being signed, being able to do whatever you want. I did a cover of Lil' Pump's Gucci Gang, just an acoustic fun cover. The label might say, 'You can’t do that, that’s not your sound, you’re working on this album over here, you can’t release that,' and I can just do whatever I want. I can go on Twitter and Instagram and be live in the studio and say, 'Hey guys, what do you think of this song?' And know what the fans want immediately and have a direct connection with them, and be able to just drop records whenever I want."
How was streaming and social media changed the game for you as an artist?
"It’s really put the power back in the artist's hands if they utilize it. That’s why a lot of labels, when they’re picking up all these younger artists, they have to put them in these deals where they’re taking touring and merchandising, all that stuff, when they used to be in the record-making business and selling records. Records aren’t selling anymore. Now they’re taking everything from the artist. It’s really nice to be able to take it back and put it into our hands and be like, you know, 'What if we find these tools and we utilize them?' If we can get our own a distribution and build our own fan base. A kid here in Maine can be on YouTube playing his acoustic guitar and build up a fan base on his own and do it right there organically -- and that’s when the vultures come in and be like, 'Oh we can take you and make you into this.' If you just cultivate it yourself and you just work your tail off, you get the power back."
And what about that wedding snub from Josh Peck?! It turns out it's all good for Drake. He says they're like brothers, and in fact, the entire cast of Drake and Josh is still pretty tight. Which makes my heart happy.
"It’s really rare to have somebody in the industry, especially in this business, where you’ve kept a relationship with for 20 years. We’re still best friends and we still love each other. It’s just really cool because I’ve been in this business since I was a kid. Very rarely do you have somebody who’s just like .... he’s like my brother."
Drake is currently on his 'Drake Bell Uncovered' tour, performing at Port City Music Hall September 18 at 8 p.m.