Essential 8: Corey Durkin

Courtesy of the Artist

Speaker/author/entrepreneur and musician Corey Durkin released his latest single, the delightful "Rest My Bones" in March and is currently prepping the release of his new EP August 1st. Here, Corey answers his Essential 8 and talks musical mentors, shares his insightful touring tips, his love of Whole Foods, must have albums for the road, and more.

Did you have a musical mentor? If so, who was it and how did they influence you?
Every singer/songwriter from the 70’s. James Taylor, Billy Joel, Petty...all of them. There’s also a great documentary called Running Down A Dream about Tom Petty that I’ve watched approximately 13,145 times and that doc contains endless roads of theoretical and tactical gold for a musician to travel on. To travel upon...to walk on. The analogy and sentence structure of this answer has really gotten away from me.

What’s the best advice you have ever gotten from another musician?
Years ago, my friend Stephen Kellogg told me that the barometer for whether or not you should go into music full-time is whether or not you would absolutely die if you had to do anything else...in other words, do you love writing/playing music enough to be so steadfastly committed that you’d sacrifice everything else in your life to make the music work? That advice allowed me to go easy on myself when I realized that I loved music but I had other interests as well...and I made the choice to go into the world of business and speaking and writing books. Being a musician is an especially tough business as you’re required to be open and honest and vulnerable, all of the time...while still trying to maintain a thick skin against rejection. It’s difficult. Stephen’s advice gave me the permission to take a different career path than the one I’d dropped out of high school to pursue and that has guided me very powerfully throughout my career as an entrepreneur.

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What’s your favorite/”go-to” food on the road?
The Whole Foods buffet. In fact, I love it SO much that when I moved down to Florida a few years ago, I ate at the Whole Foods buffet for a week until I finally found the nearest grocery store.

Do you have any touring tips?
So many touring tips. I’m a super nerd. Ironically, I’m currently in the process of hacking my travel game & upping it significantly so you might see some posts from me about that in the near future. HOWEVER…for me, I travel as a speaker and an author rather than ‘touring’ but the rules still apply. I’ll share my top 3 because I have about a million and ain’t nobody got time for that.

#1 - Immune system support. Rigorous travel & eating on-the-go can produce dips in immune system efficiency. So I take care to use Zinc Spray a few times per day while traveling...I also use saline mist when on airplanes to keep my nasal passages from drying up which leads to a higher rate of respiratory issues...and I’ll do 3,000-4,000mg of vitamin C per day while traveling. However, I’m not a doctor nor do I play one at charity golf tournaments.

#2 - Get a really good backpack. Tamrac is a company that makes photography bags & backpacks & historically, their backpacks stack up against anything else I’ve ever used. You can take out the compartments and rearrange as needed...highly underrated travel hack.

#3 - Get a shiatsu neck massager. They’re amazing. I’m actually in the process of developing MY own because I’ve used a bunch recently & they all have different features that I’d like to combine into one. But honestly just search for it on Amazon and you’ll see a few different brands to start...I love these things SO MUCH that I’m sending them as presents to friends. My buddy Frank Viele will be getting one in the mail next week...hi Frank. Surprise!

OK! I’m done being a nerd!!!

What are your “must have” albums for the road?
Jazz - Queen
Before Nightfall - Robert Francis
Wake the Mountain - Pete Francis & Barefoot Truth
Nellyville - Nelly
And my buddy, Ricky Young’s EP, Feels Damn Good because there’s a song on there with Bubba Sparxxx and honestly, after you refill with gas & Starbucks at a highway rest stop, there’s nothing better than pulling back out onto the open road with Ricky and Bubba, gently yet enthusiastically caressing your inner ear canals.

Who would you love to collaborate with?
I’d love to work Brian Young, the drummer from The Jesus and Mary Chain...AND Fritz Lewak who is Jackson Browne’s drummer...AND Billy Hawn, who I’ve interviewed on my podcast and is one of the most wildly creative drummers/percussionists on the planet...AND my goal for 2019 is to get back in the studio with my buddy, Jason Scheff, who is an absolutely brilliant musician, singer and lover of ideas. Google him and watch that dude sing. He’s a MONSTER. Setting that intention for 2019, now!

Do you have a favorite thing to do on a day off?
I love going to baseball games. I never usually watch the game but when I have a day off during the baseball season, I try to get to the local stadium & catch a game. My goal is to visit every single MLB park mostly because I was a huge baseball fan & played the game as a kid.

Do you have a favorite gift from a fan?
Socks and coffee, preferably not in the same can or bag. I’m known for wearing crazy socks AND drinking a ton of coffee (my podcast is called Highly Caffeinated, after all)...this also really cuts down on my sock/coffee expenses.

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