CRAIG VELTRI : Origin Story Interview by Jenna Rose

Pittsburg artist, Craig Veltri is an artist on the move! Lately he's been making the rounds between home, Nashville, and the Carolinas building a name for himself along the way. 

Welcome Craig! Lets start with an introduction for those reading who are unfamiliar with you and your music. How would you describe yourself as an artist?

Craig Veltri: My name is Craig Veltri. I am a singer-songwriter that actively avoids being pigeonholed. I love all kinds of music. I’ve been influenced by a multitude of styles: rock, country, folk, blues. I like to follow the sound and lean into a genre if it becomes apparent.

I hear you’ve got a couple new releases of previous work- Tell us more about these projects. 

CV: My most recent album is a country/bluegrass concept record entitled Letters To The Defendant. Released in 2023, It details the downfall of marriage due to alcoholism and other personal baggage. Last month, I released Letters on limited edition vinyl through Hellbender Vinyl in Pittsburgh.

I also released a music video this year for my 2021 single “Biloxi”. It’s already received airplay on several streaming platforms and websites.

Who was involved with the album? What drew you to those people? 

CV: Letters was produced by New Orleans native Jon Porobil in Pittsburgh. It began as recording demos in his house. Jon is a songwriter as well and has released several brilliant albums that were all self-produced. Not only did I like the quality of the recording, Jon was very easy to work with. Even in dealing with some heavy topics, he has a very gentle demeanor. Jon was also so punctual and diligent, especially in dealing with people literally emailing their parts in.

What are the messages and/or themes in Letters that you are hoping your audience takes away or learns through experiencing it? 

CV: Love and love lost, anger, resentment. Also, learning how to process these often traumatic moments.

Tell us where these themes stemmed from - Has their meaning changed through production? And is this a sonic change from your past releases?  

CV: Most definitely! Letters is an all acoustic record with no percussion. Everything since 2016 has been full rock or country band.

Both projects mentioned were a product of cathartic explosion. The way I wrote songs, almost exclusively, was when the feelings built up in me to a point that I couldn’t contain them, they would spill out into songs. The songs that I’m working on now, I hope, demonstrate a contrast in how I process events and emotions now that I’ve gotten sober and gained healthier perspectives.

Which track stands out the most to you? 

CV: “Miss Me” is certainly the climax of Letters To The Defendant. Without going into too much detail about the downfall of my marriage as I have exhausted the story in other interviews, I’ll sum it up like this: I drank, she left, I filed for divorce.

After my ex left me, which she was right to do, she kept sending me messages stating that she loved me, if I had gotten help in time she’d have never left and that she missed me.

I was in a raw state of wounded pride and anger. So after another text saying “I miss you”, I wrote a response in song saying, in summary, “You left me for dead. You don’t get to miss me!”

“Miss Me” is really the only Letter to my ex-wife as she had heard a version of every song on that record except this one and “The Good Guy”. It is a eulogy and a death warrant to everything we were and anything we could ever be, including friends.

Thank you for sharing such personal experiences with the world. It’s so important for people to feel like they’re not alone in their feelings, and as specific as our experiences may seem sometimes, we are definitely not the only ones feeling the emotions that stem from them. 

Lets switch gears with some rapid fire questions to get to know you as the person behind the art. When you are not creating music what do you like to do in your free time?  

CV: I’m in the gym everyday, I’m active in my recovery and I host a podcast called The Craig Veltri Interview on The Scarfire Media Podcast Network.

What are you watching or reading right now? 

CV: I’m a wrestling fan and I’m writing this a few days before WrestleMania weekend. Lately, I’ve been rewatching some of my favorite matches from WrestleMania’s history.

If you could have dinner with one person living or passed, who would it be? 

CV: Any or all of my grandparents who are all deceased.

What is the best concert you have ever been to? 

CV: Van Halen. I got to see Eddie play twice. I’m nowhere close to him in style, but Van Halen is my favorite band of all time and I would argue the greatest American rock band ever. It’s like saying that I got to see Tiger Woods play golf, which I have actually done. I saw one of, if not the greatest to ever other respective vocation.

​​If you could have dinner anywhere tonight where would it be and what would it be? 

CV: I’m in Nashville right now…probably a platter from Edley’s.

What is at the top of your bucket list? 

CV: Tour Europe.

What was the best year/week/day of your life? 

CV: 2023, my first year sober, newly divorced. Played in 14 states. I felt reborn.

What does the next year look like for you and your career? 

CV: I hope to complete 2 full records. One is a project with my friend Megan Pennington called Moonshine Vagabonds as well as a hodgepodge of genres entitled Sounds Like me.

In the meantime, I’ll be playing sets in Pennsylvania, Tennessee, The Carolinas and anywhere else with a zip code.

Thank you so much for taking the time to spend with us today. For those looking, where can we find more from you? 

Facebook: Craigveltriofficial

Instagram: @craig.veltri

TikTok: @craigveltri

Spotify: Craig Veltri on Spotify