Interview by Jessica Cunha
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Country crooner Dean Brody knows the importance of getting kids hooked on fishing early. After all, the B.C. native has been casting lines himself since he was four years old. Brody continues to fish, while sharing his love of the outdoors with his own children.
On getting kids outside
Kids now are all about video games. When I grew up in the country, we only had one TV channel, and I think that helped, too. We didn’t have any entertainment. In the summer, we’d go fishing down in the creek, build forts, have dirt bomb fights and throw horse turds at each other. It was all outside, nothing was inside, except in the winter. To get kids involved in the outdoors is so important, because if you grow up indoors, you don’t grow up with that love of being outside, and you become a hermit.
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On keeping his kids active
One of the things we do with our kids, because we live in town, is we go to the nature park a lot, and take them down to the creek and catch frogs and look at snakes and stuff. That’s really important for us. Every day after school we take them down to the park, and it’s just really fun seeing them come alive. And they totally come alive when you get them outside—you see a totally different side of them. They get more animated and appreciate little things.
On early fishing memories
I remember going camping and fishing with my dad. He had a red Volkswagen Beetle. I remember he would open up the back, and we would pitch the tent up against the car. My dad was a big hunting and fishing guy. I’ve got a picture somewhere of me with my papa during a fishing trip, and I was probably one year old.
On hunting in his music
My song “This Ain’t the Same Town” has got hunting in it: “They’d probably look at me funny, or lock me up good, if I drove down Main Street, with a deer on my hood.” Some ladies aren’t going to like that. Down here, I think rednecks take it one step further. I’ve never seen anybody in my hometown with a deer on their hood, but they all like to show the rack sticking out the back of the truck.
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On fishing as an escape
My favourite thing is definitely just getting out and getting away from the crowds and the busyness. When I drove down here [Nashville], I was amazed at how busy it got on the southern interstates. My big thing is getting out and getting perspective on things, because you can lose that in the busyness, especially in this business. Even if I don’t catch fish, it’s okay. That’s what’s so fun about fly fishing even if you don’t catch fish: it’s still fun because you’re always learning new techniques.
On his dream fishing trip
I think it would be an overnight up B.C.’s Bull River with my dad and my brother and brother-in-law. We’d just eat hot dogs and hamburgers and have fires and go fishing every morning, and maybe go hunting. To me, hunting and fishing trips are all about who you’re with.
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