Indie Spotlight: Marc Scibilia
There’s no doubt we’re living in a crazy world, and for Marc Scibilia, it can be overwhelming at times. That’s when he turns to the best medicine: music. “Sometimes I look at the world in a darker way, but when I hear a melody, when a lyric comes to me, I feel like things are going to be OK,” says the Buffalo, New York-born singer-songwriter, who grew up in a musical family, studying everything from Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix to the Beastie Boys. Committed to his music, he moved to Nashville after high school graduation. Three independent EPs, and a chance to tour with the likes of John Oates, Zac Brown Band, James Bay, ZZ Ward, and Sixpence None the Richer followed, preparing him for what was to come. Drawing from folk, pop, and rock and consisting of everything from beautifully penned narratives to danceable beats, Scibilia’s 11-song debut album, Out of Style, arrives Oct. 30 via the new IRS Nashville imprint of Capitol Records. For his first LP, the budding singer-songwriter enlisted hitmaker Butch Walker (Pink, Fall Out Boy, Taylor Swift, Keith Urban) who raves of Scibilia:
“I’m a sucker for someone who can write a song with heart and emotion and meaning, but still have the decency to put a pop hook in it and make it relatable.”
Highlights include the Michael Jackson-inspired pop-dance jam “Everybody is Somebody,” and “When the World Breaks,” written after a life-changing trip to Kenya a year and a half ago. “I’d never been to Africa before and I saw such unbelievable things – great beauty and heartbreaking tragedy,” shares Scibilia, who adds that the song as a whole represents an “enormous freight of optimism.” Scibilia may not be singing about the same things other pop stars seem to care about, but he can rest assured that the positive message in his music is making an impact. His rendition of Woody Guthrie’s “This Land is Your Land” featured in a Jeep Renegade commercial which aired during this year’s Superbowl simultaneously reached millions of people, becoming the most Shazam-ed moment of the evening (besides the Halftime show).
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