Why the Black Keys ignored “the single worst piece of advice we ever got as a band” and made their careers
The Black Keys have opened up about the advice that nearly derailed their career before it even took off.
More than 20 years on from their humble beginnings in Akron, Ohio, guitarist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney are reflecting on the so-called music industry wisdom they were urged to follow – and how ignoring it might’ve been the best decision they ever made as a band.
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“There are a lot of false prophets in this business,” says Auerbach in the August issue of Classic Rock. “People who want to give you advice, and really they have no experience or any fucking idea what they’re talking about. There was this whole indie-rock credibility thing that was rampant in the music industry at the time.”
That scene came with all kinds of unwritten rules – and one in particular stuck with the duo for all the wrong reasons.
“The single worst piece of advice we ever got as a band was basically: don’t allow a song into a commercial,” says Carney.
“It put this whole thing in our heads of worrying about what other people were going to say, rather than paying attention to the fact our music isn’t on the radio, and this was a way for people to hear our shit. And we could also maybe pay some fucking bills.”
The band didn’t wait long to break that so-called rule. After initially refusing to license their music to commercials for fear of being branded ‘sell-outs’, Auerback and Carney soon relented. One of their first major breakthroughs came when their song Set You Free was licensed for a Nissan ad – a move Auerbach later admitted ‘helped immensely’ by putting the Black Keys on the radar of a wider audience.
What followed was a run of high-profile syncs, from Sony Ericsson and Victoria’s Secret to American Express and Zales, that introduced their music to millions around the world.
Looking back on their journey, Carney doesn’t mince words: “There’s a reason the music business is considered a slimy hellhole,” says the drummer, who earlier this year spoke out about the band’s ill-fated North American tour and the fallout that led them to fire their management.
“Be careful who you trust. I wish the work was just making the songs and playing the shows, but it’s also worrying about who you’re working with, and every venue you’re playing, and ticket prices…”
“It all comes down to the band,” he adds. “No one is going to be as passionate about it as the two guys in the band, but you have to maintain a level of hyper-vigilance, or else it’s gonna get fucked up.”
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