Meet Goldie Pipes | Singer/Song Writer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Goldie Pipes and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Goldie, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I was born and raised in Houston Tx. Houston is a very diverse city culturally, socioeconomically, politically, musically etc. If you have an open mind it’s hard not to get a quasi-global experience without having to leave the city. I went to a mixed school. People came from everywhere so it gave me an opportunity to see the world from other perspectives and made me a more well rounded person. My family, however, is primarily from Louisiana and Mississippi. So my values and manners are very southern.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My story is a long one that consists of different lives. I started singing when I was a little boy but I started taking it seriously around age 10 when I joined the gospel group that my father managed. We sang all over Houston and the surrounding areas. Most of my weekends were spent doing that while other kids were at home playing or out doing teenager things. A few years later I joined a rap group with some friends I grew up with. It was definitely a conflict of interest and a clash of ideologies. People always wanted to make a choice but I loved doing both so I pushed forward. I’ve always sang and wrapped even before it was the standard. These days if you don’t do both the industry looks at you funny, but back then I was always asked was I going to sing or rap.

No, it wasn’t easy at all. Honestly, it was a bunch of disappointments. I put so much effort into my craft and invested so much time and money to get to that next stage and it never quite happened. I was right at the doorstep of seeing my dreams come true on many occasions, but for whatever reason the opportunities would be snatched away. I even almost went to prison over chasing this music dream. There are a lot of sacrifices that have to be made for most of us. Some of us just get lucky and get to live out the dream. That ain’t the case for the majority of artists.

I learned that this definitely ain’t for the weak or for those looking to get rich quick. It’s a grind, but if you persevere and study the market you can find your lane and still do what you love. These days I’m actually building my own rand and creating my own lane as a Blues singer in Tx. It’s different from what I grew up doing, but it’s what I should’ve been doing. I’m no longer looking for someone to drop a dream in my lap like I did as a young artist. I’m now carving out my own legacy.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Austin is full of live music spots and food joints. Especially food trucks. You can get live music every night of the week. My favorite spots are The Skylark Lounge, Friends Bar on 6th St, Antone’s, and C Boy’s. Houston has the best food selection in the world. No exaggeration, and the live music scene is definitely growing. My favorite music spots are Green Oaks Tavern, Shoeshine Charley’s, and the Big Easy, but there are so many more dope spots.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
As a man I have many different layers. This particular interview is focusing on my music career. As far as that goes, I have a lot of people to shout out, but I’ll keep it concise. My father was my 1st manager when I joined the gospel group that he managed which consisted of my older cousins Smokey, Maurice, Witt, Jr, and Skiggy. Skiggy decided to move on and live the teenage life because our schedule was pretty demanding. We rehearsed multi[le time per week and we performed every weekend. I ended up joining a rap group with Skiggy a few years later that also included the Holcomb brothers Redd and Dello. I split time between these two groups in different iterations over the next half decade. I still make music with Skiggy and Witt all these years later. So my shoutout is to my boys that I started this journey with back in the late 80’s. I’d like to shout out my grandmother, Anner Roberson, who I git my singing chops from, and my mother Veronica Williams that was my biggest fan. RIP to both of them.

Website: https://www.goldiepipes.com

Instagram: @goldiepipes