Austin Brown is a muscian’s muscian. A native of Tarzana, California, the accomplished singer/songwriter, who seamlessly flows across all various genres, descends from music royalty as the son of Rebbie Jackson and the late Nathaniel Brown.
Launching his career as a producer and songwriter, he first came to prominence for his collaborations with Tim & Bob, The Underdogs, and Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins.
As a solo artist, he’s released several projects, such as Highway 85 (Mixtape, 2013), Canyon Sessions (EP, 2017), and Heart over Mind (2021).
At the 2025 Grammys, Brown won two awards for his contribution to Tank and the Bangas’ The Heart, The Mind, The Soul, which won for Best Spoken Word Poetry Album, and Lucky Daye’s “That’s You” from the album Algorithm, which won for Best Traditional R&B Performance.
In April, Brown released his latest album, The Festival, featuring BLVK CVSTLE. Filled with adroit musicianship, stirring vocals, and impeccable songwriting, The Festival captures Brown at his best.
WBLS caught up with Brown and discussed the making of The Festival, what inspires his creativity, and how he sees the musical legacy of the Jackson family.
WBLS: When did you first have a connection with music?
Brown: That’s a great question. It’s definitely genetics on my mom’s side, but also my dad’s side. I’m a third-generation guitar player. My grandfather played guitar, my uncle played guitar, and now I’m playing. But I think when music connected for me was when I got into piano. When I started playing chords, there were certain notes that I would hit, and I had a certain reaction to them. The combinations were just so incredibly mind-blowing for me. That’s when I realized that I could create my version of what felt good to me.
WBLS: What role did your parents play in identifying your musical gifts?
Brown: I have to credit my mom, who kept me around what she was doing. So she had me with her at her shows and always made it known that this was something for her to share. So I realized at a very young age that it was real, but my father was the one who put me in piano lessons. He was like, “If you’re going to do this, you gotta learn the right way.”
WBLS: As you developed as a musician, did you always want to be a producer, or did you always have aspirations of being a performer?
Brown: I was always into producing. I looked up to the producers. I was always intrigued by how things were made, and I used to read album credits. My parents had vinyls, and so I would read the back, and I would say, ‘Who’s Michael? Michael Narada Walden” Who’s Gamble and Huff? Who’s Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis? Who’s Quincy Jones? I had a brother-in-law who had a studio, and he taught me how to produce when I was nine years old. I even have pictures from that time with me using the MPC. When you’re younger, you’re able to retain things a little quicker, so when I see kids on their iPads, they’re doing what I was doing, but I was in a studio. After a while, I had five years under my belt. So yes, I wanted to be a producer first. But since I didn’t have a lot of people to make my records, I was learning to make my records and working on being an artist at the same time.
WBLS: Listening to The Festival, it sounds like a new cutting-edge sound of California with the vocals and instrumentation. What vibe were you trying to create with the album?
Brown: I was born and raised in California, and I have a melting pot of friends. There are so many subcultures here. I had moments where I was hanging out with the goth crews, with my homies who are our musicians out in Inglewood, or some of the best beat makers in the Valley. You have such a melting pot of people, so over the years, I picked things up. One thing that I want my music to do is to lift you up, so it’s always bright. I like energy, and I’m realizing that whenever I’m at my shows, it’s always an exciting element with people. So the creative process of the album was to show an authentic experience of California from my lens, and you see a little bit of everything. It doesn’t have to be just one narrative. That’s what Cali is.
WBLS: On the album, you have several standouts such as “Destructive”, ‘Take Care of Me”, and “California.” How long did it take you to complete the album?
Brown: When I first started forming some of the early music for The Festival, it was around 2012 or 2013 when my father had first gotten sick. One of the first records that had a profound effect on me was “Destructive.” I worked on it with Tommy Parker and Kelly, his sister, and it was just something that uplifted my energy. When my father passed, he never really spoke about his background because he lost his mom when he was young, and there was a lot of pain there. My father was Jamaican, so I started going back to Jamaica a lot to reconnect with my roots. That had a profound effect on my sound. I started jamming with musicians out there and brought my influences back here. When I played guitar and I felt these songs, and they just started coming. Then I knew how I wanted the album to feel, so I had to level up to make it happen. That’s why it took so long to make.
WBLS: At your album release party, you got to perform on stage with your mother. How was that moment for you? Are we ever going to get your version, “Centipede”?
Brown: So we’ve performed and rehearsed “Centipede,” and I just had so much going on that night that I didn’t think to do it! Anderson. Paak, Andra Day, and Evan Ross had just been up. It was just such an amazing night. My mom is a professional. That’s what she does. But she hasn’t been on stage since my dad died. To see her come on stage and hand her the mic, and she went right into the mode. I was like “Oh my god. You’re back!” It inspired me to push her more, because that’s who she is.
WBLS: As a member of the Jackson family, how do you see yourself as part of this incredible legacy?’
Brown: I’m very proud to be from my family. I’m so thankful that my mom is my mother. She’s been amazing as a person. My family is full of great human beings, stemming from my grandma on down. I take it as a badge of honor because I can look back and be proud of who they are. Not only as great musicians, but as people. To put another spin on it, I feel like my family’s created an insane quilt. Everyone’s patched in, and for me to be able to add in whatever my little pieces are to that, I’m thankful.