Brian Massa Singer Guitarist from Sea Girt, NJ

Education: 2013-2015: Berklee College of Music, Boston MA Summary Of Musical Experience: I am a versatile musician who began my love of music and rhythm at the age of 8 when I was given a drum set for Christmas. My natural affinity and passion grew by age 11 when I started playing guitar and writing music. I trained under Jazz guitarist Frankie Cicala throughout high school. I wrote original songs during that time as well as gigging in local coffee houses and on the live and local Great Adventure stage as well as The Bitter End in NYC. I attended Berklee College of Music for 2 years where I studied under many great musicians including Livingston Taylor and Tomo Fujita. My singer/songwriter style is influenced greatly by John Mayer, Jack Johnson, Jason Mraz, Amos Lee and James Taylor. After gigging at the Jersey Shore between semesters, I had an opportunity to stay on the beautiful island of Maui, Hawaii, the summer of 2015. The gigging opportunities were plentiful on the island and I soon became the newcomer with a pop rock, reggae, jazz sound that the Maui music community embraced. I was featured and interviewed on a local radio station in Maui for my original album, 'Dip It In The Sauce'. I played as a regular at the 5 star Four Seasons resort, every Friday and Saturday night for the last year and a half on the island, along with many other top venues. I was noticed among many greats that visited the island including country great Willie Nelson, Philip Bailey of Earth Wind and Fire, and Larry Coryell, the father of jazz fusion. Lukas Nelson, Willie's son, embraced my original music and asked me to open for his band, 'Lukas Nelson and the Promise of the Real' at a local club in Paia. My stay in Maui lasted longer than expected, but I returned to the Jersey shore in 2018 and am excited to share my live performances with the east coast again. I started gigging at many venues in south Jersey, mostly LBI. I also did private events and guitar lessons when people approached me after gigs. I recently moved to Sea Girt from Toms River, where there are more year round opportunities. My gigging style is a mix of covers, original music and improvisation.