Welcome back Excitable friends! It’s time to meet a new 311 fan spotlight. This week let’s hear the story of Brandon Scott!
This story starts with a little bit of illegal action, but the statue of limitations has passed according to Brandon, so it’s ok to tell it. When he was 16, he and his friends used to steal CD’s from the local Camelot Music store at the mall and them sell them at school for extra cash. “There was one CD that no one wanted to buy. It was 311’s self-titled album, commonly known as the “Blue Album”. I vividly remember sitting in my white 94 Ford Probe looking down at the CD that I was unable to sell, debating on whether to throw it away, when I decided to open it up and slide the disc into my CD player. Little did I know, every day for the next 3 years, that CD would never leave my car’s CD player. That’s right… my car stereo partially broke; the eject button was fried and it would only allow CDs to play. I was annoyed by the circumstance at first, but slowly ended up embracing it. So, what drew me to 311…. fate. The rest is history.”
Exact count of live shows is unknown for Brandon. His first one was October 23, 2000, at the Bronco Bowl in Dallas, Texas. As for his favorite event or show, he said it’s hands down the first 311 cruise. “The first cruise was absolutely amazing. Everyone on the boat were cruise virgins, not knowing what kind of shitshow we were walking into. The energy throughout the boat was surreal. My favorite show on the boat was the second indoor theatre show. We were fortunate enough to watch from the mini pit. We were so close, my eyes were stinging from SA’s sweat.”
The song that holds a special place in his heart for Brandon is “Trouble.” “My interpretation could totally not be accurate, as I make up my own meanings and lyrics to most songs, but I took it as ‘hold yourself accountable for your mistakes’. I was a real bag of shit when I was younger and whenever I got in trouble, I would never take responsibility for putting myself situations and would blame my misfortune on anyone but me. I wasted a ton of time holding useless grudges and/or dwelling on it. This song changed my mind set and I can now own up to any mistake and move forward. I’m not sure of the actual meaning of the song, but that’s what it means to me.”
As for favorite lyrics, Brandon said there are really too many to list out. Right now though, he loves this chunk from the song “Electricity:”
“I’m in disbelief at what people will believe
All along I thought we had our hearts on our shirtsleeves
If one thing I can say as a piece of advice
Don’t believe it till you see it and then see it twice.”
Plano, Texas, is where Brandon was born and raised. The infamous black heroin epidemic occurred there while he was in high school. Currently he is working as an Operations Manager for a National Mortgage Lender. He started his first job in mortgage lending back in 2000, which is where he met his beautiful wife of 14 years (they’ve been together for 22).
While Brandon is a huge champion of Marijuana, he’s always paranoid about bringing it with him into shows, thinking security might find it and if he was charged with anything he’d lose his job. For 311 Day 2012 he constructed a prototype of a product he invented that looks like a stack of credit cards and fits in your wallet. “After 311 Day that year, I decided to start a hobby business so other like-minded individuals could benefit from the product. I got a patent, had it designed, and went into production. It’s called the Wallet Caddy and available at Walletcaddy.com. If you think you could benefit from, or know someone that would, feel free to support. 20% off with promo code: PLUGS.”
Interesting fact about Brandon is that he has claustrophobia and globophobia, which is the fear of balloons. “Balloons that ignite my fear have to be latex (mylar doesn’t bother me) and must be inflated. Also, the balloon must be compromised (in the grasp of a child or being bouncing untethered by the wind). When I see a balloon in this state, I immediately cover my ears and go into a panic state (sweating and hearing blood pulsate through my ears). These two examples are the only things that give me any sort of anxiety.”
Unique attribute for Brandon is that he is a self-proclaimed pinball wizard. “My awesome wife bought me a South Park pinball machine for my 30th birthday and I have put more hours into it than I would like to admit. I have perfected it and the same angles translate over to other pinball machines, so I basically just figure out the gameplay aspect and can hit high scores. Playing really isn’t enjoyable anymore because I will end up playing a single ball for 45 minutes while others wait their turn. Now I just let others play.”
Guilty pleasure for Brandon? That would be the reality T.V. show Big Brother. “I have watched every season and consider myself a super fan. Along with everyone else who is a fan of the show, I believe I would absolutely kill it as a contestant; most contestants right now on BB care too much what America thinks of them, and I don’t give a shit about that. I have a strategy to win all planned out and have applied to be on the show over the past few years with no luck. My dream is to give a shout out to 311 after a jury vote. “I want to say what’s up to Tim, Chad, Nick, P-Nut, and my man SA Martineeeezzzzz….311’s got the boom y’all!!!” So, if anyone knows any Big Brother casting directors, holla atcha boi.”
While Brandon said he feels like he’s the only 311 fan that doesn’t really like reggae that much, he does like a few bands that he was introduced to thanks to 311 like Dirty Heads, Rebelution, and Prof. He also likes Incubus, but is mostly into rappers like Kanye, 50 Cent, Post Malone, Chainz, and Lil Wayne.
For what Brandon would say to 311, he directs his question directly to Nick: “To Nick about his changing of the R-word on the song Lucky. My question to Nick would be, “Of all the words you could choose from…why ‘rehard’?” Now hear me out, for all I know, he is not saying ‘rehard’, as I have not seen the updated lyrics, so if he is saying something else that makes sense and not just replacing one letter of the R-word, then it’s a moot point, but let’s say it is ‘rehard’. “Why?” I think a better option would be to replace the word with “Jake Paul”. ‘Bernard’ and ‘hard’ have a certain drawl on the song that I think it could be pulled off… “I throw down like a crazy Jake Pauuu(l)”. I think there would be a certain inuendo there for us old school fans. Plus, Jake Paul might talk about it, which would open 311’s music to a younger fan base. Possibly re-record/release and “Lucky” goes tik tok viral…who knows? All I know is, I’m not a fan of ‘rehard’ (it’s my opinion, chill) …and I want my 10%.”
Now here are his words to the other 311 fans out there:
“
Hello other fans,
If you read all the way to this point, thank you. My personal message to you is just me wanting to spread some knowledge that I have learned from my years on this Earth. First, buy a washlet (toilet seat bidet/$200). It will change your life forever if used properly (fill up the chamber, empty out the chamber…think: fracking). My hope is to normalize washlets in the States like they are in Japan so that I can go on vacation and there will always be one available. Second, join the revolution…of only tipping employees who make below the standard minimum wage. As you may have seen, every place under the moon is now displaying a tipping option. It’s ok not to tip on everything. Don’t feel pressured because you think you will be judged. Whenever you find yourself in that moment, just think back to this spotlight and know I think you’re a dope for tipping. And finally, if you ever get a tattoo with writing, always triple check it once it’s on you, but before the tattooing starts, no matter how stoned you might be… or you might find yourself with a slightly different quote than what you expected…with that said…
“Stay Positive and Live Your Life” – Brandon Scott
Thank you Brandon for sharing your story with everyone! Of course, many, many thanks to the readers each week. Thank you for coming back and being the amazing people you are. Have an excellent week!
Much Love – The Runt