By Briana Harris
Donavon Frankenreiter is no stranger to the ebb and flow of the music industry. The veteran singer and guitarist’s latest album Get Outta Your Mind was released in September 2024, which coincided with the twenty-year anniversary of his debut self-titled release in 2004. Over the past two decades, he’s toured the globe, collaborated with legendary musicians including Mavis Staples and Devon Allman, and has navigated a constantly changing musical landscape.
Before his career as a musician, Donavon was a professional surfer, a background he shared with friend and collaborator Jack Johnson. Johnson’s label Brushfire Records signed Frankenreiter for his debut album, and Johnson was featured as a guest on the hit track “Free.” Frankenreiter continued to build momentum opening for some larger acts of the era, including Dave Matthews Band and Warren Haynes. “It means a lot when people let you get a foot in the door in their world for a moment, and to play for their audiences” he says. “It’s lifechanging.”
It’s an understatement to say the record industry has greatly shifted since the early 2000s. “To get a record deal and get distributed all over the world was a huge hurdle. And now I tell somebody I have a new record out and they’re like, ‘So what? So does my Grandma,’” Frankenreiter jokes. But he keeps a healthy perspective. “You have to just adapt. I don’t even try to overanalyze the situation. Let’s go and do the best we can.”
The adaptive mindset is something Frankenreiter learned from surfing. “Surfing is a lot like music,” he explains. “It’s forever changing, and you never catch the same wave twice; you’re never going to have the same gig again. That’s what keeps me addicted to both of those things.” It’s also an activity where he’s able to practice the mantra of his latest album. Get Out of Your Mind is about abandoning overthinking, and focusing on enjoying the moment.
“The biggest killer to creativity is comparison,” says Frankenreiter. In the past five years, he noticed social media becoming a bigger distraction, particularly as musicians were forced to move many operations online during the pandemic. Eventually he outsourced all his social media operations to other team members; “I have absolutely no social media on my phone anymore,” he explains. Both surfing and live performance provide spaces untethered to devices, which is something he relishes. “They’re two things I do in my life that are a real ‘get out of your mind’ moment. You aren’t connected to your phone, and you feel so free.”
Frankenreiter has continued to expand his latest collection of songs with a version of his album featuring a lineup of superstar collaborators, including Susan Tedeschi, Joe Bonamassa, Midland, and more. “I couldn’t believe it while it was happening, because I just love all those people so much,” he shares.
Frankenreiter’s tour for his latest album features stops across the U.S., including five dates in Colorado. “It’s a spot that’s got great energy, and it’s a really eclectic group of people from Telluride to Boulder,” he says of the state. His sets will include selections from Get Outta Your Mind as well as his deep catalogue of songs. “I have eleven records out, so it’s fun performing in the sense that you have a lot of songs to pick from. Sometimes somebody yells out a song and it’s like, let’s try it! That’s the beauty of playing live – it’s always different.”
Through the highs and lows of a life in music, Frankenreiter tries to avoid the stasis that can come from overthinking. “I forget who it was- maybe a guitar player- but someone told me ‘hey, if you think, you’re gonna sink.’ My best shows are the ones where I didn’t even realize what I was doing. I didn’t second-guess.” It’s another tie back to a life as a surfer, working with the motion of the waves. “You just gotta keep moving,” Frakenreiter says.