Brandon O’Neill on surviving DIY music and staying true to your art

Episode 006 – Brandon O’Neill | MAKE // BREAKBrandon O’Neill is the founder, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and vocalist behind Wine & Warpaint, the Richmond-based indie rock project whose debut album Disassociate (2024) earned recognition as one of the year’s standout independent releases. Known for blending raw emotion with meticulous production, O’Neill has built Wine & Warpaint into a self-sustaining project that thrives at the intersection of DIY ethos and professional polish. In this episode of MAKE // BREAK, he joins host Lance Marwood to discuss recording with producer Kyle Black (Paramore, Pierce the Veil), the mental shifts that come with travelling for art, and the constant push-pull between algorithms, AI, and authenticity. O’Neill’s perspective offers a grounded, thoughtful look at what it means to create meaningful work in today’s music business.👀 What you’ll hear• Unpack how Wine & Warpaint built momentum with their debut album Disassociate and a fiercely DIY approach• Share what Brandon learned working with producer Kyle Black (Paramore, Pierce the Veil) and why meticulousness matters• Debate the rise of AI tools, social media burnout, and whether content creation helps or hurts real artistry• Expose the broken incentives of algorithms that reward rage and novelty instead of genuine music discovery• Explore why local community, collaboration, and micro-level choices are how artists can break out of toxic systems• Leave with Brandon’s advice on how artists can stay humble, experiment, and keep making the work they believe in🕰️ Chapters00:00 Intro and welcome with Brandon O’Neill02:00 Flying cross-country to record with Kyle Black05:00 Shifting headspace and finding inspiration in LA09:00 Discovering meticulous creativity in the studio13:00 Lessons from producers vs DIY recording18:00 Fast workflows, Pro Tools shortcuts, and setup hacks20:00 Debating AI tools, artistry, and the algorithm26:00 Social media, content grind, and why he deleted Instagram32:00 How algorithms gatekeep discovery and reward rage40:00 Community, DIY ethos, and breaking the system locally50:00 Responsibility, regulation, and cultural shifts01:06:00 Generosity, art, and finding meaning through action01:11:00 What’s next for Wine & Warpaint and upcoming music🔗 Guest Linkshttps://wineandwarpaint.comhttps://www.instagram.com/wineandwarpainthttps://www.youtube.com/c/winewarpainthttps://www.facebook.com/wineandwarpainthttps://wineandwarpaint.bandcamp.comhttps://open.spotify.com/artist/4IDDdNItHvj6aRkZ2LnCRe🔗 MAKE // BREAK & Host Linkshttps://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/makebreakhttps://instagram.com/lowkeyhellishhttps://tiktok.com/@lowkeyhellish🔗 V13 Media Linkshttps://v13.netSubscribe for more and drop a comment: should musicians fight the algorithm or ignore it and focus only on the art?(explicit language)#MakeBreak #WineandWarpaint #MusicBusiness