On another rainy Thursday afternoon in early July, Nick Carpenter, aka Medium Build, took a break from touring the country to talk about his new song that just hit the Billboard charts, his record deal, and what Alaska has done for his career.
“Making it” hasn’t changed the essence of Carpenter. He’s still the same honest, gregarious, slightly anxious but incredibly self-aware person that he’s been since we began meeting with Carpenter in January. He’s still down to hit a dark bar (Reilly’s in this instance) during the daytime.
Carpenter’s personality didn’t change over the past seven months, but his life has. He was no longer shoveling roofs to make some extra cash before our meetup. He’s planning out international performances and now has an entourage from his record label filming content for his social media.
Carpenter signed with Island Records, he recorded an album this spring and he has criss-crossed the country opening for Lewis Capaldi and Finneas, as well as touring on his own. He now has a finance manager and a lawyer, a true mark of someone who suddenly has something to lose.
This summer Medium Build has been playing many of their old stomping grounds while back in Alaska: a free pop-up show at Anchorage Brewing Company, the 4th of July in McCarthy, two sold-out shows in Hope, the Forest Fair in Girdwood and the upcoming Salmonfest. These shows have been intimate and sentimental, like a ‘thank you’ to the people and the place that helped launch Carpenter to a national stage.
It’s likely that after this summer, if you want to see Medium Build you’ll have to travel to the Lower 48 or Europe. Shows are already selling out, but no matter where Carpenter travels he can count on Alaskans showing up and making their presence known. But stay out of his DMs — he now has people who answer them, and they probably can’t get you tickets.
