Alleyne: Yo dawg, how are you?

Drew: Very Well and you my new friend.

Alleyne: I wanna thank you for taking time out of your schedule to talk with me and to PulpMag

Drew: Thank you for your interest.

Alleyne: Iiight lets do this!!! Aside from music and what is written in your bio, tell us something about you that your fans don?t know.

Drew: I am a devoted listener. The most important part of being a good player/musician and writer is listening in my opinion, not just to people but silence that's when you hear the melodies in your own head. These melodies tend to be the most pure. I try not fill my ears and head with a constant bombardment of outside sound or stimulus. Of course there is a time and place. As far as performing, All the musicians that I have been fortunate to play with will tell you, I always say "It's not what you play, It's what you don't play that makes all the difference".

Alleyne: As an artist, the musical journey is long (trust me I know) and can not be done by oneself. Who are some of the people in your life who have supported you and continue to support you through you musical career.

Drew: My family are huge supporters. My parents, my sister Jane and my 4 brothers. All support me in different ways. In a practical sense my songs support me financially, people come to my shows buy my music, those songs really support me. The songs are like my boss. I'm more like an athlete. I just have to keep my shit together physically and keep in the game. My greatest support comes from God. I'm not a Bible thumper or anything but with the miles I've traveled. I mean, I have toured constantly and in a low-fi way (trains,planes,bus,cars,hitch hiking back in the day)for years and have been safe. I have met only Angels on my path. I am truly blessed.

Alleyne: At what point in your life did you know you wanted to pursue a musical career and realize that you had what it takes to succeed in this messed up industry.

Drew: I first wanted to be a Mountie, Yes, a R.C.M.P baby. I have always been a writer, starting as young as 5 years old writing poetry. I have and still do have a deep passion to do good works. Choosing a career that would allow me to do the most good was my only decision. Once I was older and seen that being a Mountie would not be just pro-active but a lot of re-active stuff, clean up stuff, I changed my mind. Please don't take that wrong "God Bless the Mounties but presenting and creating ideas that help us see the world more clearly has been a double blessing for me. In helping others I've helped myself. I hope that doesn't come off high brow... As for talent, I don't know about my talents or lac of. I leave that judgment to the audience. I just have some interesting ideas/messages and I'm going to deliver them the best way I know how. I keep getting gigzz , so it's workin.

Alleyne: What experience do you value more and in turn get more personal satisfaction from as an artist: The creative process of making a song from the thoughts, inspirations and feelings to the writing, producing and/or recording of that song OR performing the finished track at one of your live shows and feeling/seeing the crowds positive reaction and love for your musical genius.

Drew: All aspects of the industry I truly enjoy. I wear all the hat's(experience,write,produce,record/engineer,performing,market..etc). All though, the quiet moments in the wee hours when a song is first conceived, I guess, that is the most exciting time for me. When a song just passes through you, lyrics on to paper, chords on to guitar...cleanly, with as little disturbance from me. I open my eyes and say... Well, Alright!

Alleyne: Who are the musical legends that influenced you growing up, and/or affected your musical career and who are the unsigned artists you respect and love.

Drew: Mr. Bob Marley! No doubt in my mind. His lyrics blow me away the same now as when I first heard his prophetic words. Mr. James Brown's rhythm of course, he got me up and I never sat back down. The old Ludwig Van Beethoven, his piano melodies haunt me. I'll never forget the first time I heard Miss Nina Simone, I heard SOUL pour out of a speaker. Passion and the insane vocal technique of Mr. Nusrat Fateb Ali Khan....God Bless them all. As far as new artists???? It's hard to find stimulation like those I have mentioned these days. Midnite is an Awesome band but they have been around for a while. As for Respect and Love...Those are the two laws I live by. Everyone gets that from me. If I like them or not.

Alleyne: Aside from me hahaha, who are some contemporary musicians you would love to have the opportunity to collaborate and work with.

Drew: MIDNITE the best band on Earth, reggae or other. Unpolished is my favorite album. I have been a huge fan for many years. Check them out, like right now. I hear tell they dig my stuff as well. Let's see U2 would be interesting, Neil Young would be a good time, Dave Mathews Band, Bjork, Dr. Dre, N.E.R.D.S....You know, I don't, who could? It's all chemistry, have to meet them kind of thing...

Alleyne: Talk about the musical environment that you consciously chose to immerse yourself in that helped foster the development of your fundamental musical skills such as the self-examination of your strengths and individuality, creating improvisational music, and writing/performance techniques; shaping your musical competence and helping you discover your unique voice that your fans are blessed with in your musical creations.

Drew: Well, It was all by accident really. I was born into an environment(like forests etc.). Not much music being played. I wrote poetry constantly at a very young age. I started playing guitar in a field out on our families organic farm. The wind whispered me tunes, a loose barn board slapped the beat out against a beam, the mix of birds singing and leaf rustling filled in. I could not tune my guitar so I just turned my tuning pegs till my guitar sang to me. My Dad broke my first acoustic guitar by accident. So I played a friends guitar for a while. Then my Mom got me a electric later on. I was always more into the acoustic vibe, acoustics you can play anywhere. I would plunk away on a neighbors piano and finally talked them into selling it to my Mom for $50.00, years later we found out it was a really good make. I just thought it sounded great. I was just playing that old piano while I was visiting my folks over Christmas. My Mom still cries when I play piano, I love that. I realized while I was back at the ranch that my father has always left the radio on. He loves jazz so it was on my whole young life, jazz all night, CBC most of the day. It used to really bother me but it must of also influenced me as well. I remember falling asleep to it. It was not load but there. My mother and I would sing for hours picking weeds in the gardens. I would also sing doing my chores. There were no lessons or anything. Just time to burn and self imposed isolation practicing to the tunes in my head. Beautiful memories.

Alleyne: With the emergence of Online Independent Music Labels such as Magnatunes that are capable of selling there own music online, and can market/promote music primarily through the internet medium via the assistance of the burgeoning online communication networks such as myspace.com, do you think that the major record labels in the world will eventually cease to be the gatekeepers to musicians seeking lucrative sales and worldwide acclaim.

Drew: They have never been the gatekeepers. The listener is the ultimate gate keeper and they got sick of eating it just because some corporation said so. As soon as technology gave us an out we took it and thank God. It's happening in all kinds of other industries as well. There are only 4 major labels left and they are hurtin. I have been selling my albums since the time I first wrote and recorded a song, Independently and affectively. The internet has defiantly made it easier to sell your music directly to a greater audience and promotional/multi-media sites such as your super cool PulpMag has immensely helped the independent artist. It has been and is possible to sell your music out of the trunk of your car, off the stage or in music stores(all have indie sections)..etc. and make a good living, all It takes is a little organization and sell your CD's. That is what this business is all about "Selling pieces". What most, dare I call them artists, are looking for now is matha fu#%ing fame, to quote an urban artist. Acclaim ,fame, call it what you will but it is a different beast all together and it is a mother fu%#er...haaaa! Write,practice,perform,tour, sell product and go world wide. If you believe in the shit you write go out and live it!!!

Alleyne: Nurture VS Nature...Do you think music talent, song writing, music producing, playing instruments, performing etc...is something that is learned or something that comes naturally?

Drew: Wow, that is a great question! I'll try to answer it clearly, short and sweetly. Nature, if we are allowed to grow, we grow. A little food, water and light that's it. We all are creative beings at birth. All though some of the best players, writers I know of, have had to contend with all kinds of repression. They had to fight for there space to grow and it made them stronger ie:Just think of all the Blues writers..etc. There families and communities were Nurturing but the society was definitely not. On the Nurture side of things, if your abilities are nurtured it can be much easier and great things can happen but it can have negative effects as well. I had a fabulous Cello player in my band when I was living in NYC. She played the Lincoln Centre regularly and sot me out after one of my shows at the Bitter End on Bleaker St. She wanted to play so play she did. Her parents sent her to a well known European music institution(notice I did not call it a school). Classically trained from a child up, she was and is one of the best. A pleasure to play with. I could sing her her parts and she would write them out and play them perfectly. One day I said to her "Instead of me singing you all your parts (which was one of the benefits of her strict training) for your solo just play what you feel". She just looked at me like, what the hell? I said "You know! jam on it" She said in a very heavy accent "What is this jam". Need I say more! This, so called Nurturing can become over intellectualization as opposed to spontaneity and feeling. Some of the best schools of music offer in my opinion institutional repression, as opposed to teaching musical expression. Technique over emotions is another way to say it, where as it should be a balance of the two, with the scales leaning more to emotions side. In other words, You can't teach feeling but you can teach people not to feel.

Alleyne: Where do you get your inspiration to write your songs?

Drew: Nature, the human condition, God, Injustice, justice, women, travel. You name it, my job is to find the inspiration in it. Half the time I'm a craftsman. Just like a wood worker or something. I meticulously build the song (a Songsmith)The other half, the song just flows out of me or through me. It is a really good feeling when that happens, I mean physically feels amazing. Another way to explain it is, I become just a conduit, the less I mess with the song the better. That is the best feeling. I'm not into drugs. I guess cause, that feeling is my drug. When the song comes through me, it runs in my veins. I feel Gods presence fully. I hope you don't think I'm some kind of freak Holy Roller...haa but that is truly what I feel.

Alleyne: How do you feel about the Indy Music scene in Toronto?

Drew: It's happening. It's healthy and we(Canadians) produce fantastic song writers. Torontonians, Canadians in general are great at making there own happenings. I headed south a long time ago because I was delivering a message. I come home often to Canada to recharge. In The City of Angels they call me The Canadian, cause I'm always like "Well in Canada we don't do this or in Canada we do that" haaa. The Yanks are good sports. We as conscious Canadian song writers should travel far and wide delivering our distinctly Canadian message of tolerance, diversity, compassion and humor. Singing our songs of peace, beauty and blessing. We can manifest peace around the world. Canada is the Moral Super Power of the world. The mountain is clearer from the plain but I always call Canada home... Wow, Lets all sing Ohhh Canadaaaah! ha

Alleyne: P2P File Sharing. Do you think that with modern technology enabling us to share music is a heaven sent for indie artists or total hell for big record labels that lose millions due to illegal downloading of files?

Drew: Yes, It's heaven sent. It's all good. Music is medicine, most music that is. Pass it on. It belongs to the wind anyway.

Alleyne: How do you define musical success? Is it a personal feeling of achievement based on goals you set out for your self? or is it ?money in the bank? international stardom, fame & glory Drew: I used to say "when I do IT, I'm going to do this or that". Then one day a dear friend said to me "You are doing IT every day, every minute, if your not doing IT, I don't know who is" She was right. I used to think the dough will make things easier now I just keep touring, writing, recording(working on my 7th album right now)...you know doing it! Just excepting and enjoying every second of this time right now because things are just getting crazier and faster. I make my living performing and selling my music. That's all I ever asked for.

Alleyne: I?m gonna say a few words...tell me the first thing that comes to mind...

Alleyne: Drew

Drew: Freedom

Alleyne: Change

Drew: Constantly

Alleyne: Journey

Drew: Scenery

Alleyne: Destination

Drew: Rest, play then off I go again...............

Alleyne: Love

Drew: Actions

Alleyne: Favorite word

Drew: Consciousness

Alleyne: Least favorite word

Drew: destroyed

Alleyne: Favorite word to cuss with

Drew: Swearing is caring...kidding

Alleyne: Your favorite body part

Drew: Hands

Alleyne: Do you have sex or ?make love?

Drew: Both at the same time. it's like chewing gum and walking!

Alleyne: For all of our readers who will hear some of your songs, read the interview, and become instant fans; tell them where they can learn more about you, your music and your production. Tell everyone your website addresses?

Drew: WWW.DREWROUSE.COM and GOOGLE ME...

Alleyne: Cool, on behalf of the PulpMag Familia I wanna personally thank you for taking the time out to chit-chat with me. You are an awesome singer, song writer and musician and down to earth person and artist... Keep on pushing and we will work together again!!!

Drew: Thank you, and everyone at PulpMag. The Consciousness is rising because we are lifting it. Thank You Guys. Love and Respect to you and yours...Drew