Graham Peeples Facebook
Graham Peeples's itch for the music writes often takes him to coffee shops and venues.
Graham Peeples Facebook
Graham Peeples decided to forego college and work toward his musical dream.
For GreerToday.com
Estuarie, a band familiar to Greer, got its start when Graham Peeples had the itching desire to introduce the music he was writing. Constantly performing in coffee shops, local venues and wherever their voice can be heard, the band took a nontraditional route to form the passion project it is today.
The atmospheric indie rock group was an idea birthed by Graham Peeples, a 19-year-old from Greenville. Having been a former student at The Fine Arts Center, he was able to take his passion for music and consider what could be done with it. “The Fine Arts Center had a huge influence on my career path and playing style, but not as much on my taste in music. I also gained technical skills when it came to music,” Peeples said..
With the technical skills he gained, he was able to implement them and start looking into the possibility of producing music. A decision had to be made. Would Peeples take the traditional route and go to college, or fully devote his time to music?
“I chose not to go to college due to money, and so I could focus more on music and coffee as my career paths. Unfortunately, music school is ridiculously expensive and coffee is not a degree…yet,” Peeples said.
While working at Methodical Coffee, Peeples can pursue another passion while having a schedule that works well with music. But, working with coffee wasn’t the most popular decision. “It was terrifying to choose to not go to college. It was a very unpopular decision among my peers, and I felt really alone during that first fall when all of my friends moved away,” said Peeples.
After working with coffee for a while, Peeples became more comfortable with the path he chose for himself. “I’m very fortunate to be in a really healthy work environment with great coworkers and fantastic coffee,” Peeples said. “I love my job.”
Peeples’ love for what he does and the passion he has for music are obvious when listening to Estuarie. He doesn’t regret not going to college and is content with where life is heading. With an extended play already released, “Floodgate”, Peeples is already working toward another project that he hopes will captivate people’s emotions and hold true to the atmospheric feel always maintained by Estuarie.
You can catch the next performance on Sept. 15 at Hampton Station. Follow Estuarie’s Facebook page for more information.
Georgia Gay is a senior at North Greenville University.