The Neue.Indie Podcast

Deraj & Frank Bentley
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Music

Being independent in music is being redefined. The Neue.Indie Podcast is about figuring out what it means to become the new indie — an artist who builds a sustainable career on their own terms, with real strategy behind it. Each episode covers the business decisions, music industry news, sync licensing opportunities, and career moves that shape what long-term independence actually looks like. Hosted by Deraj and Frank Bentley, two full-time indie artists building in real time. (Credits: Marvel, NBA 2k, NFL, Fortnite) New episodes every week. Follow @rep.indie everywhere.

  1. 19h ago

    10 Years Fully Independent: Wes Writer on the Real Flex in Music | The Neue.Indie Podcast Ep. 13

    What does it look like to build a full career in music — as a songwriter, producer, manager, entrepreneur — without ever signing a publishing deal, record deal, or anything else? That's Wes Writer's life for the last 10 years. Grammy on the shelf. Full independence on the table. And at 3:30 in the afternoon on a Tuesday, he's not at a job. For the first time ever, Deraj and Frank bring a guest to The Neue.Indie Podcast. Wes Writer (Wes Ryder) is a songwriter first — but also a producer, A&R, manager, and serial builder. His work spans Christian hip hop and the mainstream, from writing a hook that did 150 million streams on YouTube (for $400) to landing a Grammy for his work on LeCrae's Church Clothes 4. He manages KB, one of the most successful independent Christian artists working today. He's the top-rated songwriter on SoundBetter, has run national ad campaigns for Oreo, Papa John's, and KFC, and has worked writers' camps with Sony — all without ever signing anything. In this episode, they get into the full story: the Matty B work-for-hire lesson, the Fruity Loops origin, what it actually means to "be number two," why relational plays matter more than upfront money, and the calculated risk he took when he quit his corporate job two years into his marriage with a three-month-old at home. Plus — why he thinks 10 years of freedom is a bigger flex than the Grammy. 🎙 Hosted by Deraj → https://www.instagram.com/justderaj/ 🎙 Co-hosted by Frank Bentley → https://www.instagram.com/itsfrankbentley/ 📲 Follow the podcast → https://www.instagram.com/rep.indie/ Subscribe → https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq5OtnWdhtGiO7rnQHa-wGQ Join rep.indie → http://repindie.club/ Got a win or a question? → https://forms.clickup.com/8589472/f/86450-78391/3Q1IFDNE9PGSYIVAF1 --- Chapters 0:00 First guest ever on the pod 2:38 Who is Wes Writer? 5:46 "I'm a storyteller" — what Wes actually does 10:01 The Matty B story — writing a hook that hit 150M streams for $400 13:36 What work for hire actually costs you (and why he doesn't regret it) 16:35 Relational plays are worth more than upfront money 20:38 How a cracked version of Fruity Loops started everything 24:52 The $5,000 beat that changed his life at 17 28:15 How he realized you can make money in music without being the artist 32:01 "Don't feel like you failed because the primary dream isn't working" 33:27 The best advice he ever got: learn to be number two 38:01 How Wes built a 3-year relationship before KB ever recorded one of his songs 40:24 Why Snoop Dogg almost signed him — and why it falling through was fine 46:59 Risk-taking is a muscle. You have to build it. 49:48 He quit his job two years into his marriage with a 3-month-old at home 50:35 Rich Dad Poor Dad and the "on the other side of risk is freedom" chapter 52:02 The church studio built from scratch — 7pm to 10pm every night 55:03 Calculated risk vs. reckless risk — why he waited a year before quitting 56:01 "We glamorize foolishness" — the real math on quitting your job 57:00 What T-Mobile taught Frank that most creatives never learn 58:23 Deraj story time: the movie theater incident 1:01:27 Why musicians who've never worked real jobs are harder to work with 1:04:44 The unnamed Christian artist who will always stay stuck because of his attitude 1:06:13 "There are 100 other talented people — what separates you?" 1:07:56 Stop thinking about what value you can extract. Bring value instead. 1:08:52 The Cox accelerator story and the moment that changed everything 1:13:43 The Grammy — what it did and didn't change 1:15:01 "10 years not working a job is a bigger flex than the Grammy" 1:15:31 You get to define your own metrics of success 1:17:26 What does it mean to be the Neue Indie? 1:19:18 We Are the Good: be good, do good, live good 1:20:15 The moment Wes realized Deraj had become the king of sync 1:21:27 Outro --- Resources Mentioned - SoundBetter — https://soundbetter.com (platform where Wes built his songwriting career and got his mainstream reps) - Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki — referenced in the risk-taking conversation --- #NeueIndie #IndieArtist #MusicBusiness #Songwriter #IndependentArtist

  2. Aug 25

    How to Stay Inspired When Music Feels Like a Job | The Neue.Indie Podcast Ep. 12

    ## YouTube Description *(Use for YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and any platform that supports long-form descriptions.)* --- Writer's block isn't a creative problem — it's a honesty problem. In Episode 12, Deraj and Frank break down why creative ruts happen, what artists like LeCrae, LaRussell, and Russ have said about getting out of them, and why the most common advice (just push through) is actually making it worse. The real unlock? Collaboration, observation, and the willingness to write the thing you're scared to write. They also get into the BMG and Suno AI licensing deal and what it really means for independent artists who still remember when streaming was supposed to be the future. The math on AI royalties is wild — if streaming pays fractions of a penny per play, what do you think a fraction of a fraction of your song is worth? The conversation around opt-in AI licensing is still new, but the historical parallel to how labels opted everyone into streaming rates is one you need to hear before you make a decision about your catalog. Plus: the best actors debate (Denzel vs. Will Smith vs. Jamie Foxx — no wrong answers, some very wrong takes), Spider-Man's $2.3B box office and what it means when great art actually breaks through, YouTube's new view counting policy and why it's going to make vanity metrics worse before they get better, and AI hardware shortages that are going to make your next console cost $3,000. --- ## Chapters 0:00 Welcome — The Neue Indie Podcast, Episode 12 0:38 Updates — album mode, birthday week, content automation 11:00 How to build your own social media posting system with AI (free) 13:10 Wildcard: Best Actors Debate — Denzel, Will Smith, Jamie Foxx, Leonardo DiCaprio 29:12 Main Topic: Creative Ruts — How to Stay Inspired When the Ideas Dry Up 30:42 LeCrae on writer's block: you're not uninspired, you're scared to be honest 36:30 LaRussell controversy — when radical honesty in music costs you your career 44:30 The fitted sheet metaphor — finding inspiration in everyday frustrations 46:35 Russ on observation: the best writers turn small moments into timeless songs 48:30 Collaboration is the cheat code for creative ruts (and why it actually works) 49:42 Film & Entertainment: Spider-Man breaks $2.3B — what great art breaking through looks like 56:20 YouTube's new view counting policy and why vanity metrics are about to get worse 1:07:38 Gaming: AI is making consoles unaffordable — RAM went from $80 to $500 in one year 1:13:06 Sync: BMG signs Suno AI for 3M+ songs — step in the right direction or sellout? 1:26:00 Sampling history and why Cisco lost the biggest check from Thong Song 1:31:09 Takeaways — how to un-rut the rut --- ## Connect Subscribe to The Neue Indie Podcast wherever you get your podcasts. Follow @neueindiemusic on Instagram for clips, reels, and episode drops. #NewIndieArtist #IndieMusic #MusicPodcast #CreativeRuts #WritersBlock #AIMusic #BMGSuno #IndependentArtist #MusicBusiness #NewEpisode #TheNeueIndiePodcast

  3. Aug 18

    Making Music for the Love of It (Honest Conversation) | The Neue.Indie Podcast Ep. 11

    Strip away the money, the followers, and the fame — would you still make music? That's the question Deraj and Frank sit with in Episode 11, and the honest answer might surprise you. Both hosts get real about when music started feeling like a job, whether getting paid changed their relationship to the craft, and what it actually means to chase your purpose instead of someone else's definition of success. Deraj shares the "bamboo tree vs. oak tree" analogy that puts the whole conversation in perspective. The episode also covers the real numbers behind the music industry (it's not dying — it's evolving), breaks down the buzz around Rockstar's GTA 6 music licensing deals, reacts to the Children of Blood and Bone trailer (think: Black Panther vibes with a new cast), and gets into Japan's wild drone backpack that cuts 75% of your body weight. Plus the Heat Check: albums with zero skips. 🎙 Hosted by Deraj → https://www.instagram.com/justderaj/ 🎙 Co-hosted by Frank Bentley → https://www.instagram.com/itsfrankbentley/ 📲 Follow the podcast → https://www.instagram.com/rep.indie/ Subscribe → https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq5OtnWdhtGiO7rnQHa-wGQ Join rep.indie → http://repindie.club/ Got a win or a question? → https://forms.clickup.com/8589472/f/86450-78391/3Q1IFDNE9PGSYIVAF1 --- Chapters 0:00 Pre-show & Spain Trip Recap 11:18 Welcome to the Neue Indie — Episode 11 13:00 Life Check-In: Frank's 2-Year-Old & Deraj's Album Rollout 16:35 What's on the Agenda 23:15 Heat Check: 10 Out of 10 No-Skip Albums 32:46 Music Business News: Is the Music Industry Dead? 41:55 Film & Entertainment: Children of Blood and Bone Trailer 48:55 Culture & Tech: Japan's Drone Backpack 56:05 Gaming News: T-Pain, GTA 6 & Music Licensing History 1:09:30 Main Topic: Would You Still Make Music If You Weren't Being Paid? 1:28:00 The Figure Skater Story & Big Magic 1:34:00 Not Everybody's Gonna Make It — The Hard Truth 1:40:00 The Bamboo Tree vs. The Oak Tree 1:44:40 Outro & Final Thoughts --- Resources Mentioned - Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert — the figure skater story about giving yourself permission to create without monetizing - rep.indie community → http://repindie.club/ --- #NeueIndie #IndieArtist #MusicBusiness #IndependentArtist #SyncLicensing

  4. Aug 12

    Stop Blaming the Algorithm & Start Building Your Career | The Neue.Indie Podcast Ep. 10

    Episode 10 of The Neue.Indie Podcast gets into a conversation that every independent artist needs to hear. Spotify pays you pennies, the algorithm feels rigged, and the industry seems stacked against you — and you're not wrong. But none of that is your next move. Deraj and Frank Bentley break down why being right about how unfair the music business is won't change a single thing about your career, and what actually will. They cover the $17M Apple Music streaming fraud exposé (85% AI-generated), the AI models from Meta and OpenAI that literally slipped containment during security tests, why a music platform that gave artists 100% of sales still shut down, and what indie artists actually need to build — a community they own instead of followers they're renting. Plus a heated Watch, Save, Burn debate about superhero movies that almost got personal, and the GTA VI/Netflix announcement that has the gaming world losing their minds. This one's real, practical, and occasionally hilarious. Episode 10, let's go. 🎙 Hosted by Deraj → https://www.instagram.com/justderaj/ 🎙 Co-hosted by Frank Bentley → https://www.instagram.com/itsfrankbentley/ 📲 Follow the podcast → https://www.instagram.com/rep.indie/ Subscribe → https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq5OtnWdhtGiO7rnQHa-wGQ Join rep.indie → http://repindie.club/ Got a win or a question? → https://forms.clickup.com/8589472/f/86450-78391/3Q1IFDNE9PGSYIVAF1 --- Chapters 0:00 Pre-show: Spider-Man, the Backrooms & Frank's Spider-Man household 7:22 Welcome to episode 10 — how comfortable are the hosts getting? 9:46 Topic preview: the algorithm, Apple fraud, AI gone rogue, GTA on Netflix 15:28 How you feeling? Deraj's week: canceled ACL surgery, project overload & mental health 22:52 Heat Check: Watch, Save, Burn — Spider-Man 2 vs The Dark Knight vs Iron Man 29:02 Music Biz: Apple Music flagged 2 billion fraudulent streams ($17M, 85% AI) 38:02 Culture & Tech: Meta and OpenAI's AI models slipped containment and rewrote systems 44:27 AI in fast food, remote surgery & will AI become as essential as the internet? 50:09 Main Topic: The algorithm doesn't owe you anything — how indie artists should actually think 1:00:36 Nina Protocol shut down after giving artists 100% revenue — what it proves 1:07:16 Hard truths: are artists lazy or just misled? 1:09:22 How Deraj built 15K emails without leaning on social media 1:19:43 Building a career without social media — owning your community vs renting followers 1:21:50 Chase your purpose first — the algorithm cannot stop you 1:26:30 Gaming: GTA VI gameplay trailer coming to Netflix only — this game is different 1:37:49 Wrap up — skipping Black Panther & Sync Licensing, back next week --- Resources Mentioned - DeMiSA (independent music news): https://www.instagram.com/demisa/ - rep.indie community: http://repindie.club/ - Nina Protocol (shut down) — web3 music platform with 100% artist revenue - LeCrae on The Manager's Playbook podcast - Cato on a Track's post about the Nina Protocol shutdown - Clint (producer community for TV/film music placements) --- #NeueIndie #IndieArtist #MusicBusiness #IndieHipHop #MusicIndustry

  5. Aug 5

    Should You Chase the Bag or Chase Your Dream as an Indie Artist? | The Neue.Indie Podcast Ep. 9

    The Neue.Indie Podcast

  6. Jul 28

    Mental Health in the Music Industry — The Conversation We Had to Have | The Neue.Indie Podcast Ep.8

    --- Mental health in the music industry is one of the most important conversations nobody is having — until now. In Episode 8 of The Neue.Indie Podcast, we start with the Heat Check: a Christian rapper named Datin just dropped a 10-minute diss track against an online critic — and the debate about whether a faith-based artist can go there is real. Then we cover music business news (the RIAA and Grammys pushing for mandatory AI labeling on streaming platforms), react to the Doomsday trailer (Robert Downey Jr. is back as a Marvel villain), and get into whether AI data centers are quietly draining the world's water supply — at a rate of one bottle of water per 3 ChatGPT prompts. Then we go deep on the main topic: mental health in the music industry. 73% of independent musicians report experiencing stress, anxiety, or depression tied to their work. For artists between 18 and 25, that number is 80%. And yet, the industry still glamorizes the grind, treats burnout like a badge of honor, and expects artists to suffer in silence. We talked about all of it — hustle culture's grip on creative people, the silence stigma in hip-hop, why Kendrick made therapy mainstream, whether faith can be your therapist, personal stories about suicidal ideation, what happens when your whole identity is tied to your music career, and the affirmations every indie artist should be reading before the next bad month hits. This is the most personal episode we've recorded. We hope it reaches the artist who needs it. --- ⏱️ CHAPTERS 0:00 Pre-show 2:21 Welcome to the Neue.Indie Podcast 3:46 This week's topics 8:08 Heat Check: Christian Rap Beef — Datin vs. Talib Kweli 25:31 Music Business News: RIAA & Grammys Push AI Labeling 33:14 Doomsday Trailer Reaction (RDJ as a Marvel Villain) 44:58 AI Is Stealing Our Water 54:48 Main Topic: Mental Health in the Music Industry 57:17 Casey Carlroy's Vulnerable Moment 1:01:13 The Stats: 73% of Indie Musicians Face Anxiety/Depression 1:03:31 The Silence Stigma — Especially in Hip-Hop 1:04:06 Kendrick Made Therapy Cool 1:04:56 Frank Admits He's Never Been to Therapy 1:05:52 Caribbean Culture and the Weakness Stigma 1:06:03 Deraj's Therapy Journey (BetterHelp & Beyond) 1:08:52 "We Just Need to Be Heard Without Judgment" 1:10:39 Faith vs. Secular Therapy — The Debate 1:14:07 The Best Art Comes from Depression? 1:14:41 "If I Didn't Wake Up Tomorrow, I'd Kind of Be Alright" 1:16:04 Frank: My Whole Identity Is Tied to My Music Career 1:17:44 Redefining What Success Looks Like 1:19:54 God, Show Me Where to Cast My Nets 1:22:10 "We Promoted Our Show and 10 People Showed Up" 1:23:03 Stop Comparing Your Day 300 to Their Day 3000 1:24:46 La Russell — What Happened When He Tried to Say Something Real 1:26:20 Show Me Your 5 Closest Friends 1:27:26 Your Gift Blesses You First 1:28:50 Vulnerability Builds Community 1:30:03 Mental Health Affirmations for Artists 1:32:27 Outro --- 🎙 HOSTED BY Deraj → https://www.instagram.com/justderaj/ Frank Bentley → https://www.instagram.com/itsfrankbentley/ 📲 FOLLOW THE PODCAST Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/rep.indie/ Website → http://repindie.club/ 🎯 JOIN REP.INDIE The community for independent artists who are serious about their career. http://repindie.club/ 📬 GOT A WIN, QUESTION, OR TOPIC SUGGESTION? https://forms.clickup.com/8589472/f/86450-78391/3Q1IFDNE9PGSYIVAF1 --- #NeueIndie #IndieArtist #MentalHealthInMusic #MusicCareer #IndependentMusic #PodcastForArtists #MusicIndustry #ArtistMentalHealth #Burnout #Therapy #ChristianRap #RIAA #AIMusic #Marvel #Doomsday #IndieArtistLife

  7. Jul 21

    An Honest Conversation About Marriage as an Independent Artist | The Neue.Indie Podcast Ep.7

    # EP007 — YouTube Description --- ## Body Copy This is an honest conversation about being married as an independent artist. Deraj and Frank Bentley — both married over a decade, both active indie artists — sit down and talk through how marriage actually affects a music career. Not as a warning, but as the truth: a marriage you steward well becomes one of the greatest sources of support, belief, and stability an artist can have. Left unstewarded, it's the thing that can quietly derail everything you're building. They get into what that looks like in practice: the expectations you have to set early, the monthly "marriage eval" tool that's been a game-changer, the moment Deraj's wife believed in him before he believed in himself, and the promise he made before the ring was ever on the table. DistroKid just got acquired by CVC Capital Partners for roughly $2 billion — built on $20/year from indie artists. That story becomes a jumping-off point for a deeper conversation about audience ownership, the Tyler Perry model of building direct-to-fan leverage, and why the indie artist who controls their own email list will always have more power than the one who doesn't. Plus: the AI music debate is shifting. The question is no longer whether it sounds real — it's whether it can be trusted. Deraj and Frank get into it, including Deraj's honest admission that even he's added AI songs to his playlist, and the weird internal shift that happens when you find out. Sync is a $650 million global market, it's grown four years straight, and bad metadata is still killing 30% of deals. All that, plus a Wild Card debate that got heated: Bad Boys or Rush Hour? --- ## Hosts & Links 🎙 Hosted by Deraj → https://www.instagram.com/justderaj/ 🎙 Co-hosted by Frank Bentley → https://www.instagram.com/itsfrankbentley/ 📲 Follow the podcast → https://www.instagram.com/rep.indie/ Subscribe → https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq5OtnWdhtGiO7rnQHa-wGQ Join rep.indie → http://repindie.club/ Got a win or a question? → https://forms.clickup.com/8589472/f/86450-78391/3Q1IFDNE9PGSYIVAF1 --- ## Chapters 00:00 Intro — Deraj in Nashville, running ads, episode preview 07:30 Wild Card — Bad Boys vs Rush Hour (the debate gets real) 15:30 Main Topic — Marriage & The Indie Artist 40:23 The Marriage Eval Tool (Stay Connected method) 43:07 Going Full Time — Plan the Jump, Don't Just Jump 47:43 The Indie Artist Is a Business Owner 54:05 Music Business News — DistroKid's $2B Acquisition 57:44 The Tyler Perry Audience Ownership Lesson 01:01:10 Film & Entertainment — Mile End Kicks (Independent Artist Biopic) 01:07:40 Culture & Tech — The AI Music Trust Shift 01:12:08 How to Spot an AI Artist 01:22:30 Sync News — 2026 Sync Reality Check 01:25:00 Outro — Shoutout to the Wives --- ## Resources - **Stay Connected** — marriage eval framework referenced from Ladaris and Alice's community - **Tyler Perry: The Life of a Creative Genius** — Prime Video documentary discussed in the DistroKid segment

  8. Jul 14

    How to Make Music Faster Without Losing Quality (And Get Sync Deals Because of It) | The Neue.Indie Podcast Ep. 6

    Episode 6 and we're going live on Instagram for the first time — and the energy in the room is right. Deraj just got booked to perform at a boxing event in Spain because of a sync licensing deal. Frank came through with the blueprint for creating a full song in 30 minutes. And we got into the conversation that every indie artist in 2026 needs to hear: how to create high-quality music fast enough to keep up with industry demand, and why going direct-to-fan isn't optional anymore. We broke down the Steve Stout interview on why your favorite artists are going independent, what Tidal's new AI music policy actually means for your royalties, and had the most spirited Fresh Prince vs. Martin debate you'll hear this year. Plus Frank revealed he went to the Kanye Bully Tour without telling Deraj — and paid for it in the most Florida way possible. Whether you're chasing sync deals, building your fan base, or just trying to figure out how to make great music without burning 6 hours per session — this one's got the answers and the receipts. 🎙 Hosted by Deraj → https://www.instagram.com/justderaj/ 🎙 Co-hosted by Frank Bentley → https://www.instagram.com/itsfrankbentley/ 📲 Follow the podcast → https://www.instagram.com/rep.indie/ Subscribe → https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCq5OtnWdhtGiO7rnQHa-wGQ Join rep.indie → http://repindie.club/ Got a win or a question? → https://forms.clickup.com/8589472/f/86450-78391/3Q1IFDNE9PGSYIVAF1 --- Chapters 0:00 Pre-Show: First Time Going Live on IG While Recording 5:34 Welcome to the Neue Indie — Episode 6 in the Building 7:36 What's on the Docket: Topics for Today 14:09 Check-Ins: Frank's Rough Week and Deraj Is Going to Spain 21:15 The Spain Boxing Event — How Sync Licensing Made It Happen 24:50 Wild Card: Fresh Prince vs Martin — One Has to Go 31:08 Music Business News: Steve Stout on Artists Going Independent 38:33 Why Every Indie Artist Needs to Go Direct-to-Fan in 2026 40:05 Film & Entertainment: The Odyssey — $250M, Travis Scott as a Bard 47:10 Culture Attack: Is Kanye West Uncancelable? 50:35 Frank Went to the Kanye Bully Tour (Without Telling Deraj) 55:50 Gaming: PlayStation Is Killing the Physical Disc Era 1:03:23 The Blockbuster Lesson Every Indie Artist Needs to Learn 1:06:45 The Direct-to-Fan Math That Will Change How You Think About Streaming 1:12:34 Main Topic: Creating Music Faster Without Losing Quality 1:20:05 Sync Licensing Requires Speed — Here's How to Build the System 1:24:03 The 10,000 Hours Principle and Why It Makes Fast AND Good Possible 1:28:08 The Armani Placement Story: When You're Not the Right Fit But They Insist 1:34:14 Tidal's New AI Music Policy — And Why Spotify Needs to Follow 1:38:07 Outro + Key Takeaways --- Resources Mentioned - XVOX Vocal Plugin → xvox.com (Frank's vocal chain recommendation) - Spirit Vocal Plugin → mentioned by both hosts as a core vocal chain tool - Ozone (iZotope) → Deraj's EQ/mastering plugin - MetaTune → Deraj's pitch correction tool of choice - Steve Stout "Marketing Genius" interview (David Senra / Founder's Podcast) → search "David Senra Steve Stout" on YouTube - Will Smith's Memoir (narrated audiobook) → available on Audible --- #NeueIndie #IndieArtist #MusicBusiness

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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
2 Ratings

About

Being independent in music is being redefined. The Neue.Indie Podcast is about figuring out what it means to become the new indie — an artist who builds a sustainable career on their own terms, with real strategy behind it. Each episode covers the business decisions, music industry news, sync licensing opportunities, and career moves that shape what long-term independence actually looks like. Hosted by Deraj and Frank Bentley, two full-time indie artists building in real time. (Credits: Marvel, NBA 2k, NFL, Fortnite) New episodes every week. Follow @rep.indie everywhere.

Information

  • Creator
    Deraj & Frank Bentley
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    14
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 See & Hear
  • Show Website
    The Neue.Indie Podcast