Interview with VeeAlwaysHere

Hello! It is Adam. Welcome back to Bringing it Backwards, a podcast where both legendary and rising artists tell their own personal stories of how they achieve stardom. On this episode, we had a chance to hang out with VeeAlwaysHere over Zoom. Video V was born and raised in Siberia, Russia, and he talks about how he got into music. He does not come from a musical household at all. He tells us a story about coming home from school when he was in second grade and the TV was on mtv, and he was just kind of glued into it, couldn't understand what they were saying, but he loved what was happening. And that kind of opened the door for him to really fall in love with music. 3 (2m 8s): He didn't learn English until he was 14 years old, but he started making songs around high school, middle school, high school, on his dad's laptop. And that's when he began rapping. He talks about how he landed in Los Angeles. His parents weren't too stoked on him moving out of the country, obviously, all the way across the world. He had never even been to the United States. He just knew he wanted to go to la. So he figured out how he could do it. He ended up going to college in Los Angeles for performing arts. So he talks about landing in Los Angeles, just getting off the plane and being in this whole different world, and how comfortable he felt when he got there. It was in college when he gained the courage to start releasing some of his music. 3 (2m 49s): He talked about getting on an editorial playlist on Spotify for the song Sober and all about the new playlist he's released. It's not an album, it's not an ep, it's a playlist of eight of his new songs. It's called Ego. And he talks about why he called it a playlist and not an album or, or, or an ep. He wrote, recorded, mixed engineered the entire album, even did the Cover Art. So not album My Bad Playlist. You can watch our interview with V always here on our Facebook page and YouTube channel at bringing it backwards. It would be amazing if you subscribe to our channel, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok at Bringing back Pod. 3 (3m 35s): And if you're listening to this on Spotify, Apple Music, Google Podcast, it would be incredible if you follow us there as well and hook us up with a five star review. 4 (3m 46s): We'd appreciate your support. If you follow and subscribe to our podcast, wherever you listen to podcasts, 3 (3m 52s): We're bringing it backwards with VeeAlwaysHere. Yo, what's up? Hey, what's up? How are you man? Good, how are you? I'm doing well. I appreciate you doing this. 5 (4m 1s): Of course. Thank, thank you for having me. 3 (4m 3s): Of course. Do you go by V? 5 (4m 6s): Yeah, you can just call me V. Yeah. 3 (4m 7s): Or is it V because it's V always here, right? Yeah, 5 (4m 10s): That's, that's the, that's the full name, but 3 (4m 11s): Sure. Do you, do you, do you want me to call you the whole, the whole thing or what do you, what do you usually go 5 (4m 16s): By? Probably you call me V. That's totally fine. 3 (4m 18s): Okay, cool, man. Well, I'm Adam and I appreciate your time today. This is a podcast about you and your journey and music. And we'll talk about the, Well, it's not an album or ep, it's a playlist, correct? 5 (4m 30s): Yes. Yes, sir. 3 (4m 31s): I love it. Cool, man. I was just, I was just listening to it. It's very, it's, you've got so many different styles and genres in there. 5 (4m 39s): Yes, I do. And that, that was, that was kind of the point. 3 (4m 43s): Okay. Yeah, I wanna talk to you all about it. And I really love the last song. It's just like, like outta left field, you got this like rock pop, punk song going on. 5 (4m 52s): Yeah, 3 (4m 52s): I was, 5 (4m 53s): I was trying to make it surprising. 3 (4m 55s): Yeah, I love it, man. Well, first off, talk to me, where were you born and raised? 5 (4m 60s): So I was born and raised in Russia, in Siberia, actually. It's really cold. And yeah, I, I was born there and I was raised there and lived there for about 17 years. And then I moved to la completely different world. 3 (5m 16s): Oh my gosh, man. So born in Siberia. What was it like growing up there? I mean, you speak English so well. Was that a, like a, did like, tell me about learning English and then, and just growing up there. 5 (5m 29s): Yeah, growing up there, I mean, honestly when people ask me like, how, how is it different and stuff like that, it's honestly, it's not very different, obviously, you know, it's different from LA in terms of it's really cold there, or it gets really cold there And the language is different, But honestly, people are people and people are all kind of different and kind of the same at the same time, you know? So yeah, it, it wasn't super different for me. But yeah, I did not grow up speaking English or anything like that. And when I realized I wanna make music and I wanna make music specifically in English, you know, I had to learn. 5 (6m 10s): I had to learn. I had to, you know, get myself to a point where I can compete with, you know, everybody else in that, in that sense with people who were born and raised speaking English. So it took me a lot of time, a lot of work, a lot of sleepless nights for sure. But, you know, I'm super grateful for that journey as well. And very passionate about, you know, English in general. I'm very grateful to the language for giving me everything that I have and, you know, just allowing me to pursue my dream. 3 (6m 42s): Well, when you're, where growing up in Russia, did you have English classes in school? Or was it all, you just learned Russian and then you kind of had to do that? I was your side, like, you know, 5 (6m 52s): Yeah, I did. I did have English class for sure. It started in like elementary school or something, but I obviously, you know, it wasn't, it wasn't anything serious. It wasn't very good to begin with. And yeah, and I mean, you're a kid, you know, and they're making, they're making you learn a language in school. How much are you really gonna learn, you know? So when I got a little older, I actually, you know, about 14, I decided to take it seriously and I went to like a little separate, you know, ESL school and it was all right, but it wasn't what I needed, you know, so I had to do 90% of it on my own and, you know, find the information and figure it out. 5 (7m 39s): So yeah, it wasn't the easiest thing to do, but, you know, at least now we know it's possible. 3 (7m 45s): Right. I mean, from what I hear, it's like the most difficult language to learn anyway cause it's just so, it doesn't make as much sense as most language, I 5 (7m 54s): Guess so. I guess so, yeah. I mean, definitely, you know, from a perspective of someone who had to learn the language, I can tell you that, you know, yeah, it doesn't make a whole lot of sense and there's not a whole lot of logic in it, but you know, English is not something that you speak from kind of like a logical place in terms of like grammar and everything. It's right language of, you know, emotion and feelings and you know, that sort of thing. So it makes sense. 1 (8m 24s): This episode is brought to you by Smart Food. There are a bunch of ways to be smart during the holiday season, getting the shopping done early, not sitting your aunt next to your mom and snacking on smart food popcorn. It's air pop popcorn tossed and delicious white cheddar cheese, or sweet and salty kettle corn. You are what you eat. Welcome to the Smart Club Shop now@snacks.com. 3 (8m 51s): Paralegals 2 (8m 52s): Are highly essential from law firms and courtrooms to insurance, real estate, HR, and more. If a paralegal career or law schools in your future, Stevinson University, online's Bachelor's and Legal Studies will help you achieve your goals affordably with no application fee, 100% online approved by the American Bar Association. With new online sessions starting every eight weeks, get started today. Visit stevinson.edu/paralegal. 7 (9m 22s): Bank of Clark County is making it easy to give to local charities. We're featuring a different one at each of our Bank of Clark County locations to find out how you can support their good work, visit our website@www.bank of clark.bank, or follow us on our social media channels. And the hashtag give with B O C C, Bank of Clark County member F D I C. 3 (9m 58s): What about at home? Do your parents speak English at all or is it all you speak Russian? 5 (10m 3s): No, we just spoke Russian. You know, Russian language is the language of Russia and you know, a lot of people do learn English as a second language, either in school or, you know, on their own. But the, the way the system works, it's not very good. First of all, it's, it's mostly British, which there's nothing wrong with that. It's not necessarily what I wanted, you know? And of course it's very limited. It's very limited in terms of, you know, the teachers. It's very, it was very hard for me to find a good teacher or a tutor or something like that. So I kind of had to do it on my own. 3 (10m 38s): Sure. What about music? How did you get into music? Do you come from a musical household? 5 (10m 42s): I do not. I just, you know, I just decided to pursue stuff that wasn't in my family. You know, I, it was elementary school as well, and I came back from school, I think it was like second grade or something like that, and I turned the TV on and I was like, Oh, let me just chill for a little bit and then I'll do my homework, whatever. And MTV was on somehow, you know, that wasn't what I was looking for. I was looking for some, you know, cartoons or something like that. But MTV was on and I just stayed there frozen for, I don't even know how long. I was just so mesmerized by what I was seeing and what I was hearing. You know, back in the day when MTV used to play music videos back to back to back to back, 3 (11m 26s): Oh yeah, those are the days, man. 5 (11m 29s): And I literally, I was just sitting there and I just loved it. For some reason I could not understand anything they were talking about, but I just loved the way it sounded. And obviously I was old enough to knew to know that it was English. So, yeah. And I just, I ended up just sitting there listening and watching for hours and hours, didn't get any homework done or anything. And that's when I realized, you know, I would love to be just like them, you know, I would love to do that. And for some reason it just, you know, it had an impact on me, even though I couldn't understand anything they we're saying. It was something that music and Russian could never do for me for some reason. 5 (12m 10s): You know, it just, the way flowed in the way everything sounded, you know, you, you can really understand the, the, the emotion when you listen to it without necessarily, you know, listening to, to the words. So, yeah. And that's kind of how it started. And I started kind of writing little songs, obviously, you know, I didn't know how to produce or didn't have any means to produce yet. And slowly I just started building on that. And obviously I didn't know English just yet, so it was just like gibberish that sounded like English or maybe I would do it in Russian. And yeah. And then, you know, over time I just kind of, you know, leveled up and you know, built on that. 5 (12m 51s): And one thing about me is, because when I started learning how to make music, I really wanted it to keep it private, you know, with my hobby. It was for me only and just to myself. So, and that was the reason why I never told anyone about it. And therefore I didn't really have anyone to collab with, you know? So I had to learn how to do everything on my own, you know, every step of the way. Produce it, right? It, you know, record it, mix it, you know, get it to a level where you know, you can listen to that, you know? So yeah. And I started out rapping. I also didn't know how to sing and then I was like, it'd be cool to have someone sing on my hook or something, but obviously, who am I gonna ask? 5 (13m 33s): I was like, Okay, let me learn how to sing real quick. So it was literally just me kind of having fun with it and making music and acquiring those skills as I went 3 (13m 42s): Kinda outta necessity, sounds like. 5 (13m 44s): Yeah, pretty much. Pretty much, yeah. I was like kind of unlocking new levels. 3 (13m 48s): Right, right. Wow. Like as far as like inspiration and stuff or live music, sing stuff, like we're kids at your school or your peers pursuing anything similar? Like did you, were there other kids rapping at your school or were there people aside from maybe like a, you know, a school orchestra or, or something like that? Were there other, 5 (14m 9s): We didn't even have that. 3 (14m 10s): Oh really? Wow. 5 (14m 12s): Not even have that. Let me just put my computer on and I'll disturb. Yeah, I mean there were a couple of kids that were like singing and stuff at like school events and all of that, but aside from that, no one really liked me cuz you know, they, they were kind of taking the traditional, more academic route with that. And that was, that was never me, you know, I was always, I wasn't really learning how to do stuff and I still don't do it that way. I don't like go, if I say I wanna learn how to do something, I don't do it properly. You know, I open up a book or whatever. I kind of hack my way through it and you know, so that was kind of my thing. 5 (14m 53s): I was always, you know, self-taught in a lot of things. And so obviously you know them, those people. And I never really clicked cuz they were too trained or too 3 (15m 5s): Good 5 (15m 7s): And you know, but I was also kind of keeping it on the low as well cuz I didn't wanna put myself in the situation where, you know, I was very embarrassed about it, you know, I was very shy and secure about my music too. 3 (15m 17s): That's 5 (15m 18s): Why I honestly, I didn't start posting my music online until like 2018. 3 (15m 24s): And that was when you were already in Los Angeles at this point? Yeah, 5 (15m 26s): I moved to LA in 2013. 3 (15m 28s): Okay. So going through school and high school, were you learning when you were learning how to record? Were you doing that when you were still living in Russia and you still were in high school and maybe prior to that you were, so you just had like all this music on your computer or something? 5 (15m 44s): Yeah, I started in middle school and I was using, I was using my dad's laptop that he like got from work or whatever. And I was using one of those old school like white little Skype microphones that they were given at work. 3 (15m 58s): Yeah. That was 5 (15m 59s): My setup. That was my setup for a really long time. And then over time I was able to, you know, get like a little dynamic microphone and then it just kind of, you know, went from there. 3 (16m 10s): Wow. Okay. And then how do you get to Los Angeles? What takes you to LA aside from music and the passion there? 5 (16m 16s): Well, you know, my parents wanted me to be a doctor or a lawyer or, you know, something like that. It had to be very academic and serious. 3 (16m 23s): Okay. Like, 5 (16m 24s): Okay, let me go to school, then I'm gonna, you know, I'm gonna go to school in the us how about that? And they were like, Okay, that works. That was a little compromise. They, they weren't super crazy about the idea. Of course. 3 (16m 36s): Yeah. That's not close. I 5 (16m 39s): Have to do a lot of stuff on my own again because, you know, our deal was like, okay, we're not gonna help you with anything. You started, you do whatever you have to do. If you're accepted, we'll let you go then. So I was kind, I had to, you know, get all those papers, translate everything or you know, sometimes even figure, figure stuff out in the way that only I could, let's put it that 3 (17m 4s): Way. Was there always LA that you wanted to go to? Yeah, for sure. Okay. And have you ever been to the United States prior to that? Never. So there, it was just this mythical land. Like, okay, I like, I see this, I wanna go to la Like, cuz for me it's like if I wanted to go to Siberia, Russia and I wanted to go to school there, I don't even know how the hell they even begin that process. Like, was that just mad research on the computer? 5 (17m 28s): A lot of research. Yeah, a lot of research. I had to figure out what I needed. I had to figure out what tests I needed to take. I had to, you know, put some money on my Skype account so I could call regular phone numbers, 3 (17m 39s): So Oh wow. 5 (17m 40s): Difference. I had to wait until like 2:00 AM or 3:00 AM to call people to ask questions. 3 (17m 45s): Oh yeah. Cause it'd be like totally the time zones and everything else. Yeah. Oh my gosh, I didn't think about that. What time is it there? Are you, Oh, you're in la forget it. Nevermind. I'm in la Good question. I'll 5 (17m 54s): Tell you, I'll tell you right now. In my hometown. It's 8:00 PM right now. 3 (17m 60s): Wow. 5 (18m 1s): At the 3 (18m 1s): Moment. That's crazy. Crazy crazy. Okay. So 5 (18m 4s): Yeah, it was, it was a long process definitely. And a lot of research, a lot of emails, phone calls, trial in there and, but you know, I, I did it at the end of the day. I presented everything to them and I was like, okay, remember you said I can try and if you know it works out, you let me go. So this is my acceptance letter right here. 3 (18m 22s): And where did you end up going? Did you go to school out there in la Is that how you got through? 5 (18m 25s): Yeah, I did. I did. I went to this school for performing arts. So I have a, I have a degree, I have a degree in performing arts and musical theater specifically. 3 (18m 35s): Interesting. So you, even though your parents wanted you to be a lawyer or doctor you, they would still, as long as you got everything taken care of and you were going to make it like basically saying, here's all the stuff I did, everything I need to go there. They didn't care what you were pursuing as long as just, you just had to do the work. 8 (18m 52s): Want to tell the people in your life you appreciate them. Stand out with the best gift ever. Mickey Couture luxury blankets are the best gift ever for appreciation and recognition to say thank you every day of the year. And you won't have to worry about the best gift ever being late because Mickey can fulfill your orders without the supply chain Frustrations. Mickey Couture has you covered@minkycouture.com want to tell your employees or clients how much you appreciate them. Stand out from the competition with the best gift ever. Minky Couture luxury blankets are the best gift ever for appreciation and recognition to say thank you every day of the year for a job well done. For every member of your team, share your warmth. Show them you care. 8 (19m 33s): With Minky Couture Luxury Blankets, the best gift ever. Shop now@softminkyblankets.com. 9 (19m 42s): When you've had a long week and wanna mix it up with something new and interesting to eat, try blue aprons two or four serving menu plans with those hard to find ingredients. Sure. To spice up your weekend. With 60 plus options each week, you can choose from an ever changing mix of high quality meat, fish, vegetarian, WW recommended and wellness offerings. Get $130 off across your first six boxes, plus your first box ships free when you visit Blue apron.com/blue Culinary. 5 (20m 11s): Yeah. You know, as long as some kind of degree was involved, they were cool 3 (20m 14s): With it. Okay, that's 5 (20m 15s): Cool. Yeah. 3 (20m 17s): Were you into performing arts in, in musical theater when you were living in Russia? 5 (20m 21s): Not at all. 3 (20m 23s): Okay. So how do you even get accepted into a college for that? 5 (20m 28s): It was, you know, it was definitely a learning experience for sure and it was a challenge, but, you know, my thought process behind it was, you know, I, I can try acting and I can keep singing at the same time, you know, I wanna keep singing, but you know, I can also try acting and get into it and see, you know, what it's like and, you know, I don't necessarily want to pursue that, but it would be a useful tool for me anyway, just in general. Sure. So that was, that was my thought process behind that. And it was so challenging. It was so difficult. I had to learn a whole lot about musical theater that I never knew before. And yeah, it's a completely different beast. You know, I, I can't say that I'm a, you know, I, I'm passionate about performing in musical theater or it's something I want to do, but I definitely have a lot of respect for people that do because it's, it's tough. 5 (21m 18s): It's very tough. 3 (21m 20s): So you get to LA what was it like getting off the airplane the first time? Or in just being like, Oh my gosh, like I'm in Los Angeles, Like, my dream was to come here. 5 (21m 29s): I couldn't believe it. It was, it was like, I was like, Oh, I feel I've, I've lived through this moment a thousand times already in my head and I was like, okay, this is, this is okay, this is okay. But I couldn't believe it was really, it was happening. And because I was still 17, my, my, my dad had to come with me, I guess at the time. I couldn't, you know, fly internationally on my own or something like that cuz I wasn't 18. 3 (21m 54s): Yeah. They probably don't want you to just landing in the country as a minor. I mean that kind of makes, I get that but Sure, go ahead. 5 (22m 2s): Yeah, and it was, it was just weird. It was strange and I couldn't believe it. And then we flew in a couple of days earlier just to kind of, you know, get used to the time and just scope the area out and stuff. And then he had to leave. So I stayed, I stayed in LA on my own two days before like, you know, the first day where I had to like go and, you know, see my dorm and move into my dorm and stuff like that. And then the day that I moved into my dorm and met my roommates and everything, I was like, wow, I feel like I'm home. Like I feel like I'm right where I'm supposed to be. That's cool. Weight has been lifted cuz there was this mystery always, you know, maybe I'm lying to myself, What if this isn't right? 5 (22m 45s): What if it doesn't work? And you know, that first day I was just like, I feel comfortable, I feel like I'm right where I'm supposed to be was so weird. But, you know, a place I've never been to before, but it just feels right. 3 (22m 59s): So 5 (22m 59s): It, it was just, it was a magical moment for sure. 3 (23m 2s): That's incredible. And then what, you just start what, trying to work with, once you get to, to LA and you're, you're in college and learning, like at what point do you get the courage to start putting your own music out or showing people your songs? Cause it sounds like before that you didn't, you didn't do that. 5 (23m 18s): I, I used to post like little covers on YouTube and stuff like that, but you know, when I first started doing that I was very insecure about it. So I would post them and then delete them right away. So no one really saw them or people that did see them, you know, they saw them for a little bit. And then when I got to LA I kept doing it for a little bit as well, but I wasn't too crazy about it either, you know, I didn't feel like I was ready yet. And I still had a lot to learn in terms of, you know, being a music artist or an artist in general. So I just took the time to, you know, get my shit together. Also as, as a, as a 17 or 18 year old 3 (24m 0s): Kid. Yeah. 5 (24m 1s): Moving to a completely different country 3 (24m 5s): In one of the biggest cities in America too. Not only that 5 (24m 8s): Time on my own, I had to learn, you know, how to do laundry, how to, you know, 3 (24m 13s): Music, just live life, right? 5 (24m 15s): Yeah. Yeah. So, but also I was still working on music and stuff like that obviously. And yeah, I was just kind of doing all of that behind the scenes, just getting better at it. 3 (24m 27s): And then you finally just got the courage to put one out. Like what was the first song that you're like, okay, this is, was it, was it like, this is finally good enough I feel like I could share with people or Okay, let's just pull the bandaid off and do it. Like what, how did you end up finally releasing songs? 5 (24m 44s): Yeah, it was kind of a combination of both. For me, the biggest thing was I was like, okay, I have this song. If I don't feel embarrassed about it in terms of playing it to other people, even if I really want to play it for other people, if that's how I feel, then I'm ready. So I was waiting for that moment when I'm so, you know, when I'm just so happy with the song that I made that I wanna play for other people. Cause before it wasn't the case. I, I never wanted it, I never wanted to play my music to other people cause I was just so embarrassed, so insecure about it. So yeah, the first time I felt that way, I knew it was right and I, I I dropped it, you know, like on SoundCloud and stuff like that. 3 (25m 30s): And then once it's out it's just like, okay, now I finally jumped over that hurdle, like, I'm just gonna keep putting music out. 5 (25m 36s): Yeah. Pretty much, pretty much. Once, you know, I started, I posted my first song. I was like, okay, I think I got, I gotta do more now. I gotta do more and get better. You know, I, I had some kind of, it's out there in the open. So I, I felt like I had some kind of accountability there, even though no one was listening really. You know, still, I, I just felt like it was such a big deal and you know, now these three people are gonna be expecting music from me. So, you know, I was like, okay, now I just have to, I have to, you know, actively release music. 3 (26m 9s): And what, at what, like was there a song or something that kind of elevated it to the next level? I mean, I know you put a whole album out last year, right? 5 (26m 16s): Yes, yes, I did that. But before that 2019 I released a single called Sober. That was, that was that one that really connected and yeah, I got like an editorial Spotify playlist for the first time in my life. It was, it was very, very exciting. But I missed that email too. 3 (26m 36s): Tell me about 5 (26m 37s): That. I missed that email. So basically I was like, okay, cool, I check my, you know, analytics and stuff and I'm like, okay, the streams are doing very well. Wow, amazing. And then I'm like, I was looking for something else and I go on my Gmail and I type Spotify cuz I was looking, I don't remember what I was looking for. And then I see an unread email from like two weeks ago, Oh, you were added to this, this playlist. And I was like, no. So I took a screenshot and I was like, Oh, it's probably not there anymore, so I'll go on the playlist. It's not there anymore, it's gone. And I was like, oh, I missed my moment. But you know, I still have the email. At least 3 (27m 8s): That's, Yeah, at least you have the proof. 5 (27m 11s): Yeah, I was a little obsessed. I was like, okay, let me, let me make sure I, I keep an eye out for that. 3 (27m 16s): That's cool man. So then you have, well I wanna hear about this new, this new playlist that you've put together. You ru wrote, produce, mix, everything yourself, right? 5 (27m 28s): Yeah, I almost made it a point to make it so self-made and even the cover art, I drew it on my iPad, you know, I really wanted it to Wow. DIY and, you know, bad looking in the way in 3 (27m 43s): Terms, but it looks cool. It's kind of like a, it's got like that nineties ish like vibe to me for sure. Yeah, yeah. Like artistically not the songs, but yeah, 5 (27m 51s): Artistically. So I want, I really wanted this like DIY type of vibe for the artwork and yeah, I made it a point to, you know, just to be able to say that, you know, I, I did it. And that's the point of the title too. Ego, 3 (28m 5s): You 5 (28m 5s): Know, I, I did it, all of it. Everything that you see, I built it from, from nothing, you know, so that's kind of a big thing about my music, you know, I even though now obviously I have people to collab with and work with and co-write with, obviously. And I, while I love doing that, you know, there's still something special about just going into the room on your own, starting with nothing. And then, you know, at the end, the session having built this entire world, you know, it's, it's, it's, it's a feeling that, you know, not a lot of things can actually really compare to. So, you know, definitely for this one I really wanted to make it my fingerprint. 8 (28m 51s): Want to tell your employees or clients how much you appreciate them. Stand out from the competition with the best gift ever. Minky Couture luxury blankets are the best gift ever for appreciation and recognition to say thank you every day of the year for a job well done. For every member of your team, share your warmth. Show them you care. 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Be like merry log on to chumba casino.com and give them a whirl. That's chumba casino.com. No purchase necessary void or prohibited by law. 18 plus terms and conditions apply. See website for details. The voice of the preceding commercial was not the actual voice of a winner 3 (30m 16s): I'll 5 (30m 17s): Throughout. 3 (30m 18s): Yeah, and and you call it a playlist cuz you say it's just something like, it's not like a co like everything's gonna kind of sound like this vein, right? I mean there's a song, it might be the first song or second song on the record. It has violins in the beginning and then you have a song with ukulele and then you have like this kind of pop punk rock song at the end. Like where these songs that you were just kind of writing and, and how are you pulling, do you just listen to a bunch of music or how, how are you pulling influences into all these songs? 5 (30m 47s): Yeah, so I am calling it a playlist because I just don't see it as an album and I didn't want to call it an album. I couldn't really call it an EP cuz it's too long. But you know, I just, I was like, you know, my per as a consumer of music, my personal playlist is all over the place. You know, the way you just described my playlist, that's how my personal playlists are. It's just so random. You could never even see those songs existing together anywhere. And that's how I listen to music. So that was kind of a, my, my project ego playlist one reflects that, you know, it's, it's different but it's not super different cuz it's still, it's still me. 5 (31m 27s): You know, it's not that I went into all of those different genres. I was more kind of like bringing those genres to 3 (31m 34s): Me in Yeah, yeah. Cause it does, it does it all sounds like you, like I don't, I'm trying to make, I'm not, I'm trying to not make it sound like it's just like randomly all over the place. Yeah. But like, you can tell it's you in all the songs. I mean the, the, it still has that kind of like r and b undertone, like vocal, like your singing voice. And then obviously there's more elements that kind of go in there that, you know, add little different flavors to it. But yeah, it's just, it doesn't sound as much like a cohesive, like, okay, this is the general sound of the whole thing and it's gonna sound like one pe one project or whatever. It's like, and like when did you start realizing it was kind of going that route? 3 (32m 14s): Was it like you wrote this song and it just felt a certain way and then like ego for example, the last song on it. Like how do you go in this total direction of like, kind of this rock pop song? 5 (32m 26s): Well that specifically was planned, that was like, you know, I knew this is what I want. I wanna make that specifically for the rest of the songs. It was honestly just an accident. Honestly. That's, that's all I can tell you. I I, when I approach writing a song, I kind of start it backwards and I reverse engineer it. So I start with what do I want the listener to feel? And then once I have a clear idea of that I do whatever I can to arrive at that. So that, that is sort of how I approach making music. And all of that was just an accident. 5 (33m 6s): And once the first song that was ready was getaway and then from that went into other side and I was like, okay, those two already kind of different. Let me just continue that. So I, I kind of had an idea in the back of my head. I was like, I I could make them all different cuz I've never heard that before. And, but you know, I never, I I wasn't too focused on making them different or different genres. 3 (33m 32s): Oh, okay. Yeah, it just sounds so it was almost like you were just writing and then if whatever it felt, you just were like, Oh this is the coolest song, I'm just gonna go with that. And then it just ended up becoming this, this playlist. You said that Ego is the, was an intentional one. Like tell me like why, what like what's the story behind that one? 5 (33m 52s): Well that was the last one also made as well for, for the album, for the project. And you know, I already had these seven and I was like, okay, now let's do something just completely different that is not on the project or something I've never done before. My goal was to really challenge myself as a producer, as a writer, as an artist. And you know, as an artist you can make two different types of songs. You can make your comfortable songs, you know that that's on brand and it's very effortless and easy for you and you don't feel any type of way about putting them out. It's very comfortable and you make uncomfortable songs. Songs that are not meant for anybody to hear. It's just for you to get better and try weird different things that you can learn from and then bring them into your comfortable music. 5 (34m 38s): So the point of this project is it's eight uncomfortable songs for me, I was just trying a whole bunch of new stuff that wasn't, you know, wasn't super comfortable for me. So, and I was like, that is cool, that'd be cool to just put those together and release that. So yeah, I was just experimenting and really challenging myself in every aspect in every step of the way. 3 (35m 2s): Yeah, I love that song man. I, I, I, the whole album's awesome. But I think you really found something with that, with that ego song where it's funny that you just kind of really wanted to challenge yourself and your voice fits so rad in it and it just, not that the like, again, not that the other ones aren't cool as well, but it was just like, for me listening through it, I was like, oh wow, this is different. And then it kind of like really hooked me in. Yeah. So I just think it's, What about, I mean you just released this thing last on Friday, right? I mean literally just came out. Like do you have hundreds of other songs that you've been working on over the course of the years that you haven't put out yet? 5 (35m 41s): Of course. Oh my god, I have a lot. A lot. So I'm probably gonna revisit some projects soon cuz I already have some ideas for the second playlist, but Yeah. Yeah. But we'll, we'll wait and see for short. 3 (35m 56s): Oh cool. So you're doing, you think you're gonna do another playlist then? 5 (35m 60s): Yeah, I, I think so. I think so. 3 (36m 2s): Yeah. This is one thing that I, you've tapped into that I haven't, I've interviewed a lot of artists and I've never heard and I've never seen even recently anyone doing a playlist. Like I just think it's such a hip, cool, untapped thing that you, that you're doing. Yeah, like there's mix tapes obviously, but I haven't seen anyone do a playlist like that. 5 (36m 22s): There's mix tapes, there's collections and I just, I wanted something of that sort, but I just, you know, I wanted something different and it was just a no brainer when I thought about it, you know, when the first three songs were ready I was like, wow, they're so different. And I was like, it's kind of like my personal playlist when I go to the gym or you know, when I'm traffic I listen, you know, one song I could, I could be listening to a trap song and then the next song would be like a post hardcore song and then it could go into pop and r and b and it's just so different and you could never just opening my personal playlist, it could never tell that it belongs to one person. That was kind of, I was like, oh cool playlist. I don't think I've ever heard that before. 5 (37m 3s): So I was like, let me, let me, let me just go with that. 3 (37m 6s): I love it man. Yeah, like I said, I so, so unique. I haven't heard anyone do that yet either. Very, very awesome. And do you have a bunch of pop vinyl back there? Is that what I'm seeing? 5 (37m 15s): Yeah, they're Funko pops. Yeah 3 (37m 18s): Dude, I have so many of those. My, my wife is like obsessed too, but we got a million of them. I just, I just noticed that. What, what do you got back there? What ones you have? 5 (37m 26s): I collect that collect anime ones. 3 (37m 28s): Cool. I love it. 5 (37m 30s): Go for like the rare ones cuz you know, if you just, 3 (37m 32s): If you The Chases Yeah, all 5 (37m 35s): Of those. Yeah. Cuz you know, if you buy the common ones you can really have like a thousand, 2000 Funko pops and I have no, 3 (37m 43s): That's, that's what I have dude. I got like two giant like bins that are just full of ones that I'm like, gosh, like were these, they were just like such impulse things like, oh, it's so cool that they did this of this Funko and Yeah, 5 (37m 56s): Pretty, pretty much. Yeah. Well, you know, I, I kinda, you know, being an adult now and having my own money, I definitely indulge into things that I wanted to do as a kid way too much maybe sometimes, but, you know, I was like, I always wanted to have a collection of something, action figure or something, something. And when I saw that they make fun call pops also, I really, I like anime a lot, so I was like, oh well I'll just, I'll just collect that. 3 (38m 24s): There we go. Right on man. Well I appreciate your time today. I have one more quick question for you before I let you go, and I know if you have any advice for aspiring artists. 5 (38m 35s): Yeah, always. The biggest lesson that I've learned is letting go of your ego, no pun intended. And just being yourself and making music that you like, that is the only thing that's gonna carry you through this bumpy ride that this music journey is because you, no one will listen at first and it'll be very hard. But if you love the music that you make and it's a conscious effort to make music that you love, you know, obviously it's gonna take you some time to have your skill set match your taste. But, you know, it's, it's, it's just, that's the main thing, you know, if you really love what you're doing and if you, you really are passionate about it, you'll get there.