Interview with singer and songwriter Dru Hepkins
Dru Hepkins is a singer-songwriter, voice-over actor, vlogger and vegan. He currently works voicing characters, for video games, cartoons commercials and e-learning courses. He has made music professionally with various Dance labels like Blanco Y Negro and Catch 22 Records and he currently has a popular youtube channel called "Dru Story News" in which he covers pop culture, news, politics and current events. We have conducted an interview with him.
What kind of topics and subjects do you vlog about?
Everything. Nothing is off limits. I ran into a categorization problem at every turn in my life. I do a lot of things and I always had to compartmentalize my interests and run with one thing or one theme. I’m not doing that anymore. I initially wanted to make different channels and talk about different subjects under different channels, but I decided to not do that and just concentrate my efforts on one channel. I already have other channels for music, voice-overs and blogs. So on my YouTube channel I talk about everything; sports, politics, pop culture and environmental issues. The channel is most known for poking holes in and exposing the blatant dishonesty in our controlled and owned mainstream media. Infused into all these topics I try to bring people the truth.
Why did you become a vegan?
I became a vegan first intellectually, but then literally after I did a 7-day vegan challenge. Once I’m convinced something is my truth and speaks to my values it doesn’t take me long to act on it no matter how hard it is.
Before I decided to jump in and become vegan, I already knew that eating less meat and eating more fruits and vegetables was better for everyone. But it goes deeper than that. The food industry and the way the animals are treated make the meat even more disease prone and unhealthy. I also didn’t want to support an abusive system with my cooperation and dollars. I also learned a little history about how we became such a meat eating people and I was illuminated. In addition to the meat being bad, we were never supposed to be eating meat to the degree that we do now, and this accelerated meat consumption is also now affecting the planet and resources in so many ways people are unaware of. So pick a reason or all of the above. It was a no-brainer. After a 7-day vegan challenge I thought, “This isn’t so hard,” and I never went back.
What is your voice-over acting portfolio and experience? Which is/are your personal favourite voicing characters?
I’ve done voice-overs for Toyota, Coke Zero, Spartan Brands, Spotify and many others. I do a lot of singing, video game characters and cartoon voices. But primarily I do serious corporate voiceovers. So they aren’t always glamorous or cool jobs. Most usually I provide the voice for corporate phone systems, eLearning courses, infomercials, audiobooks and things like that. But I always look forward to playing a crazy, colorful, fun or challenging character and they do come sometimes. So my favorite jobs are the ones that allow me to act, sing or really do something different. I provide a little more than just voice-over services, so for example, in one job I narrated a children’s story and composed the music and sound effects for it as well. Those type of gigs are the most enjoyable.
Who/what inspires you in your songs and songwriting?
Lots of things. But mostly I’m inspired by letting creative ideas happen organically. I like to listen to the things in my head instead of manipulating talent and making contrived things.
If you don’t understand what to do with a talent, you might not be good at manifesting it. I got stuck in that limbo for a while. I had a gift for writing songs and making music, with good chord structure, lyrics and melody---but if you lose your focus of knowing why you do what you do, you might end up making bad music or not representing yourself in the best light. So finally, I got back to not caring or trying to fit in to a mold. I’m inspired by the feeling that comes with making something completely original and alive. I’ve matured to understand that it’s not about me and promoting myself for selfish reasons. We should all be serving something greater than ourselves or lending our talents to do something other than just garnering attention alone.
Which pop culture, news, current events 'touched' or affected you the most? How did it impact you?
Well I guess that would be the Cosby allegations, as much of my channel was devoted to it lol. But seriously it entails so much. There are different messengers out there and certain topics open a lane for them to speak truth while the attention is there. Some people have to shake people awake when the “powers that be” are trying to run something on us. Even when the situation seems hopeless, the truth has to be spoken. The reasons why continue to unfold in myriad ways.
That situation shows you perfectly, the gullibility and willful ignorance of the masses. And it shows you the awesome power of the media when you’re not careful or aware of what it can do, and what it does routinely. Many things we’re seeing now were designed in the 60s and 70s and were meant to target certain people and groups. Our media is owned and controlled, and they can literally create anything into reality despite facts or evidence. So for people who understand what is going on, any paradigm like the Cosby allegations can be used to wake people and make people think.
At specific times, why do they want certain things or people heralded and others brought down? What else are they lying to us about or making a reality? What other agendas are in place? How many things do you believe simply because the media told you? When people wake up and realize that the things they tell us and try to make us believe aren’t always true, it’s a game changer. Just lazily taking people’s word for things or believing anything bereft of proof, facts or evidence is a crime against humanity. Media brainwashing and indoctrination about any and all things has become an issue for me that I will continue to fight against. People always try to drag you back down into the matrix, so to speak, but I know what I’m called to do and I will not be deterred.
