Today we’d like to introduce you to Cameron, Tyson and Sheldon Osceola.
Alright, thank you for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, how did you get started?
Cameron Osceola: I got my first guitar at 7 but wasn’t serious about it until about 10 or 11. That’s when I started to teach myself how to figure out songs and map out what I wanted to hear. I love rock n roll and heavy metal, but once I went backward and discovered the Blues, I fell in love all over again! My tribe has a boys and girls club with a music program that puts on shows to let everyone play for friends and family on the reservation we grew up on. Before we had a band, I could play some events with RC North and James Payne, who worked there. We played stuff like Hendrix, Chuck Berry, and Metallica. Around 2012, Tyson got a bass for his birthday. I taught him what I knew from guitar, and we learned how to play “Pride and Joy” together! RC’s dad gifted us with a drum kit that they weren’t using anymore, and we set it up under our Chickee in the backyard. Sheldon would take drum lessons from James and eventually started the band! The first show we played was for a memorial concert that our relative Paul Buster put on for a loved one. We didn’t have a name, so he put us Cameron’s brother’s blues band, eventually changing it to The Osceola Brothers. After a few months, we started playing different events throughout South Florida through food truck events, bar and grills, and eventually working to bigger opportunities! Over the years, we’ve been able to open up for some amazing people such as Jonny Lang, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Creedence Clearwater Revisited, open the Hard Rock Rising festival 2015 in Barcelona, as well as the Experience Hendrix Tours in 2015 and 2016!
In 2016 we released our first EP, “Out of Nowhere,” which has a hard blues/rock sound! We recorded it in two parts, one at Osceola Circle Studios, owned by our cousin Will Osceola Jr. The other half we worked on while in Nashville at the Mojo Oil Factory with our friend Brendan Harris (Larkin Poe, Tyler Bryant & the Shakedown). We also worked with award-winning Native musician Derek Miller, who helped produce and write and mix the record with us.
In 2019 we released our first LP, “Holding On to Love”! The sound of this record is more blues pop rock with some dark emo vibes. Tyson and I lived in Nashville and went to Belmont when we recorded this. Sheldon only played on a few tracks. The rest was programmed because of the distance; we’re planning a release tracked live!
When the pandemic hit in 2020, we moved back to South Florida and released our second EP, “One to Hold Onto,” on Christmas. That song capsulated how the world was going; some people had someone to hold onto, while some had none. In 2021 we got to play the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in Deadwood, SD. Harley Davidson sponsored it; we got to meet the family and perform for some important people!
This year we went on a run of shows to test a new sound, and we’re so excited at how we were received! We also got to play a show with Classless Act, the openers for the Motley Crue stadium tour! Currently, we’re working on our second album in my home! We’re working on many exciting things behind the scenes, including starting our own recording studio and record label, FTR Records! We can’t wait for the world to hear what we’ve been working on and are excited to hit the ground running with this next era!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Nothing comes easy. We’ve had our ups and downs. When we were younger, some people would try to say that we couldn’t play the blues because we were too young. Being Indigenous, some people wanted to see us do “the Indian thing” and wear feathers and warpaint in a costume. We’ve always gone against the grain and stuck to what we want to do. We’ve learned from a young age that you can’t please everybody, and nobody will do things to the level that you do. We’re glad we can channel our thoughts and what we have to say into a medium that people will eat up! And we are so thankful to all of our supporters and family, to everyone that’s stuck with us on this ride, and to those we’ll meet in the future!
Please tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others.
Cameron: We are diverse as individuals but also similar in ways. Each member of the band brings their energy that makes us unique. Tyson loves photography and painting and has a beautiful style of artwork. He also loves bands like Thin Lizzy, Johnny Thunders, and the Heartbreakers. Sheldon loves producing beats and songwriting! He loves making songs with our other family and friends for fun! He also loves to listen to bands like Pierce the Veil, Motley Crue, Sleeping with Sirens, Kendrick Lamar, MGK, and Juice WRLD. I enjoy writing, audio engineering, and a lot of nerdy stuff. We’ve been making this new record in my home, and it’s been enjoyable to wake up, come down here, and create something. I love listening to all kinds of music; some of my influences are Jimi Hendrix, SRV, Mötley Crüe, Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, and Gorillaz. Growing up together, we all listened to everything and shared a lot of influences. I think it’s amazing to lock into a groove and have those influences come out through our music!
Risk-taking is a topic that people have widely differing views on – we’d love to hear your thoughts.
Taking risks is one of the best and scariest things you can do in life. We took the chance to form this band and express ourselves. It’s led to so many doors being opened, like being able to play in Barcelona and open the festival Lenny Kravitz played or being a part of the Experience Hendrix Tour! Being Indigenous, it wasn’t that long ago that it was against the law to be able to sing or have any form of expression. In 1883 any form of indigenous gatherings and expression was made illegal. Dances, feasts, paying someone rent, etc., were called “Indian Offenses” and were punishable by starvation and incarceration. In the 1970s, Indigenous peoples were “allowed” freedom of religion like every other “American.” Even if it became illegal again, we’ll double down and electrify the masses. We do this for those who can’t speak, those who can’t and will not be heard, and you can too.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.theosceolabrothers.com
- Instagram: Instagram.com/theosceolabrothers
- Facebook: Facebook.com/theosceolabrothers
- Twitter: Twitter.com/theosceolabros
- Youtube: YouTube.com/theosceolabrothers
- SoundCloud: SoundCloud.com/theosceolabrothers
Image Credits
IG: Ikigai_foto First American’s Museum
