Artist Interview - Betcha - Traklife Music: Community Platform

Betcha is an up and coming alt-rock band who is gearing up to release their debut album, Placebo, on August 25th. Ahead of the release Traklife got to speak to Betcha’s lead vocalist Charlie. He spoke about how the band name came to be, his hopes for the bands future, and more in this Traklife exclusive interview.

What was the inspiration behind the name ‘Betcha’?

So we actually spent the first few years as a band under the name “Wilder” which is my (charlie) middle name. Turns out we weren’t as original as we’d thought and ended up needing to change it. After weeks of unsuccessful brainstorming sessions, we finally landed on combining all our names to form the word “Betcha”. We loved the spontaneity of the name and went with it!

When did you realize that you wanted to be a musician?

I feel like I’ve been singing my entire life. Somewhere my parents have a home video of me leading the school choir with “God Bless America” from like 2nd grade. My mom always said I sang more than I talked as a kid. It wasn’t til I started writing my own songs in high-school when i actually knew it was something I wanted to pursue.

Who would you say are your biggest influences, both personally and for Betcha as a group?

I’ve always loved bands- I grew up hooked on bands like Coldplay, Phoenix, and Kings of Leon. So, this feeling of wanted to make music with other people has always been ingrained in me. I think personally Mac Miller has gotta be my biggest inspiration just in a creative sense. He was someone who experimented so much as and artist and has such a diverse body of work. I tend to be a bit all over the place when it comes to making music and I love not feeling trapped in a box.

Betcha’s debut album, Placebo, comes out August 25th. What were some of the challenges you faced when creating the album?

I think the biggest challenge was committing/sticking to making a full length record. It can be super overwhelming to follow through and finish what feels like a cohesive body of work. As soon as you have 6 great songs its normally like “this is an awesome EP lets put it out!” The last 10% proved to be harder than actually writing the music. Weaving those last pieces into the bigger picture was a much more demanding process. Luckily, I’ve had the album title in my head for a few years now so it was cool for it to have such a strong identity from the start. It was like “ok, we’re in our Placebo era now”

Between making your 2020 EP, Feels Like We’ve Been Here Before, and Placebo, where have you seen the most growth in Betcha?

I feel like we’ve just gotten more intentional. Both our previous EPs just felt like we were trying to put out a batch of singles. Nowadays I feel like I can write much more freely and with the vision of a project in mind. We’ve also starting producing a lot more of our music independently. A lot of this record was done in a bedroom.

Your most recent single, Trippin, is the fourth single you’ve released ahead of the album. How do you think Trippin sets the tone for Placebo?

Trippin is one of my absolute favorite things we’ve done yet! I think it’s got that familiar alternative smash feel, but in a way that sets it apart from everything else. It also has this message of unapologetically being yourself, despite what negative things people will say about you. I think this album takes a lof of risks, but is always 100% us.

You recently played a sold-out show in Columbus and have more shows lined up throughout the summer. What can a fan expect when seeing Betcha live?

A band that is always playing every show like it’s the biggest show of their life. The fact that people show up to see us play always amazes me. I hope anyone who loves our music gets a chance to see us play soon.

Where do you see Betcha going in the next 5 years?

I hope we’re a band thats loved for their albums. I just wanna make great bodies of work and have fans who love us for that. I hope we can continue to grow and grow with a strong community of fans.