Ben Fuller on Overcoming Addiction, Finding Faith, and Pursuing Country Music in Nashville

As a part of our series about rising music stars, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Ben Fuller. Southern Vermont native, Ben Fuller, was raised working on his family dairy farm, where he learned about hard work and a passion he saw first-hand from his father. He started singing at a young age to pass the time and somewhere between the farm and college, he picked up a guitar and never looked back.

​In 2015, he was involved in a beautiful yet devastating drug-fueled relationship which led him to understand the other side of the disease. He abruptly lost his best friend to a drug overdose and his entire outlook on life shifted in 2017. Motivated to change, he moved to Nashville to pursue his career as a singer/songwriter in late 2018. Falling face first into his music and a new-found relationship with Jesus he was led to begin writing with a burning desire to help individuals who struggle with addiction. Today, his heart continues to fill with stories of loss, hope and love as he travels across our country to sing his story as well as the stories of those who can no longer.

Ben dubbed his first album “Witness” after his first single by the same name, before having read Isaiah 43:10. It has now become the focal point of his music, which has turned into a beautiful ministry. God has not only played an important role in Ben’s life, but THE role. He knows what he has witnessed in his own life and some of the lives around him. He has turned tragedies into miracles. With God as his lantern, he has lit this path and this fire in his soul to reach as many people with his music as possible. It is his hope to share his music and his stories with anyone who needs the hope and faith God can bring.

​Ben can be found singing at Nashville Rescue Mission, Men of Valor, The Beat of Life, Recovery Centers of America, Seacrest Studio’s Vanderbilt Children’s and churches and festivals across the country.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?

Music has taken my life and made it into something he never would have dreamed. I grew up in Southern Vermont, on my family’s dairy farm, where I learned about hard work. I saw passion first-hand from my father as we worked together. I started singing at a young age to pass the time. The songs never stopped and somewhere between the farm and college, I picked up a guitar and never looked back.

​Then came 2015 where I was involved in a devastating drug-fueled relationship which led me to understand better, the other side of the disease. In addition, come 2017, I abruptly lost my best friend to a drug overdose and that is when my entire outlook on life shifted.

Motivated to change, I moved to Nashville to pursue a career as a singer/songwriter in late 2018. I fell face first into my music and a new-found relationship with Jesus led me to begin writing with a burning desire to help individuals who struggle with addiction. My heart continues to fill with stories of loss, hope and love as I travel across the country singing my story as well as the stories of those who can no longer.

Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?

It wasn’t even my idea! The constant push of friends and family telling me to go, that I “have to go, you just have to go to Nashville”. Even when I made the drive down, I couldn’t believe I was actually doing it. It was everyone else believing in me, that gave me confidence to pack everything up and go. That’s why supporting someone is so important because look what it did for me. I wouldn’t have met my manager; I wouldn’t have met all the people I now call family or had any of the amazing opportunities I’ve had if I hadn’t listened to the support around me.

Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

I quit drugs cold turkey and alcohol shortly after finding my faith. I have come to have this beautiful relationship with God and realize where my strength and talent comes from. It gives me purpose as to what exactly it is I’m doing with my music and what I want to be doing moving forward.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

I’m sure everyone tells you this but forgetting the words YOU’VE written is embarrassing enough. Doing it twice in a row…I mean, that’s just ridiculous. I guess I learned that sometimes there’s just not enough coffee in the world! We are all human at the end of the day, we DO mess up!

What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?

This isn’t necessarily a project but being able to join forces with a PR company and getting a distribution deal, although normal for most musicians, that is the newest step for us right now. It takes a village so it’s exciting to slowly be gathering our team. Being surrounded by my killer manager that knows no boundaries and knows nothing but impeccable hard work, makes ALL the difference in the world as well. Making sure all of our goals are the same as we journey on this path is exciting to me because it makes me feel I’m part of a team. Music wasn’t meant to be done alone, it’s way more fun when you have people around that you can trust and lean on and learn from.

We are very interested in diversity in the entertainment industry. Can you share three reasons with our readers about why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in film and television? How can that potentially affect our culture?

I got asked to play at a funeral of an Asian women’s grandfather last year. She called me up and said “I have this song I wrote and I’d love for you to sing it at my grandfather’s funeral.” So, of course, we get together and we meet at the house of a Transgender African American that plays cello. Well, I just watched the video back this morning and let me tell you, it was so powerful. If we can look past our differences, at the core, we all want the same thing. We were all there sitting down making music together all working together making a special moment. Everyone needs confirmation in their own way. We are all looking for that. An Asian female breaking into country music, a transgender and myself all coming together for one thing. To touch lives through music. Music is universal just like math. It is the same in every country, music is the same no matter who is playing it.

What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why. Please share a story or example for each.

1. How amazing it was going to be. I heard so much negativity about how difficult it was going to be and don’t get me wrong, it is. But I wish I knew how many opportunities I was going to be thrown, and the peoples lives I get to touch.

2. How tiring it was going to be!

3. Stock up on steak while you have the money!

4. Take advantage of a good job and save your money while you have it!

5. The actual business side of music is much more in depth and detailed than I ever thought. My manager jokes around with me all the time about how I need to read more books about the industry she’ll send me articles all the time. We are just learning as we go!

Which tips would you recommend to your colleagues in your industry to help them to thrive and not “burn out”?

Hold onto the big dream and keep that in the forefront but realize there’s going to be a lot of small victories along the way. Celebrate them. A lot of the small victories will lead to the big dream.

You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

Taking responsibility and being a TRUE friend to each other is such a small thing that can make the BIGGEST difference in people lives. Letting people know you are there for them. Comfort level is massive for people. That goes hand in hand with God. Telling people about the amazing love that God has for us is why I share my story on how He changed my life. He made me relatable to people who are constantly reaching out to me asking me how I got over my addiction. If I can reach those people by singing a few songs and telling them what worked for me, maybe we can change some lives!

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I spent so much time being very angry with my dad. We didn’t always get along, and I would say that our relationship growing up was strained. But one thing that always resonated with me was something he’d constantly say. “Ben don’t ever let anyone tell you that you can’t do something”. As a kid, that can get pretty annoying to hear over and over. But as an adult, looking back and growing up and moving to TN and trying to pursue one of the hardest career’s I could have, I remembered his words probably every day since I’ve started this musical journey. Then you add God into the mix and know that He doesn’t give me anything I can’t handle. That saying has literally helped shape my future into what it is now. So, I’d like to take this opportunity to thank my dad for instilling that in me at a young age.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

“When you reach the end of your rope, tie a not and hold on.” — TEDDY ROSEVELT.

Before God, I tried to do everything by myself. When I found myself in a tough situation, scared or alone, sometimes I felt like I’d had enough and didn’t want to keep going. But in those times, I hear my dad’s voice — “don’t ever let anyone tell you that you can’t do something” and then this quote. It just reminds me that, to me, that knot is God. I’ve been hanging onto it ever since…without even knowing it. That’s the craziest part.

Is there a person in the world, or in the US whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. :-)

You know, for the past few years everyone keeps asking me if I’ve heard of Zach Williams. Of course, I’ve heard of him! What an incredible man and story he has! In fact, we have such similar stories a friend of a friend told me that Zach has heard of my name because people keep asking him if he’s heard of me. We have even played at the same places but have never crossed paths. So, I think it’s high time I met him and sit down to exchange stories. It’s nice to know that another person with a similar story has succeeded in creating an amazing God led career. I would love to pick his brain! Whaddaya say Zach…tacos?

How can our readers follow you online?

www.bendfuller.com

Instagram — @bendfuller
Facebook — Ben Fuller Music

About The Interviewer: Karina Michel Feld is the Owner and Executive Producer of Tallulah Films. Karina has 20+ years of experience in TV, film, and print and is a respected member of The Producers Guild of America. The mission of Tallulah Films is to bring together directors, entrepreneurs, film investors, and screenwriters to produce award-winning TV and film projects. Tallulah Films continues to be drawn towards films that are meaningful, influential, and uplifting. Karina is also Co-Owner and CFO of Fresh Patch LLC (as seen on ABC’s “Shark Tank”).