The Devout Interviews: Chapter Australia

What is one of your earliest recollections as a child hearing a piece of music?

Music surrounded me as a kid. Whether it was my dad playing Frank Sinatra, Kenny Rogers and traditional mariachi music, or my brother rocking out to some Ozzy, Kiss and ACDC.  And they both played acoustic guitar, so I would love to sit and listen to that as well.  I don’t remember exactly the first memory or specifically what song it was, but I remember being very very young, yet still enraptured and moved by music. I didn’t understand it, but I couldn’t deny that it was a very powerful force to me, evoking emotional responses from me that I had no real clue why. All I knew is that it spoke to me, and I wanted more!

 

What compels you to create your music?

It’s been growing in me all my life, a passion of mine for as long as i can remember. From making mix tapes I recorded from the radio as a child, to learning the saxophone, to becoming a DJ, then learning to sing and performing with different groups.  This love and passion for music has grown and evolved over time.

After college and having to enter “the real world”, I couldn’t imagine music not being a major part of my life anymore.  So to stay as involved as I could in this love affair, I taught myself guitar and tried to start writing lyrics.  It was just a hobby at first, making the type of songs that i wanted, regardless of genre or style.  I would write whatever the muses would inspire and whatever emotion was driving me at the moment.  It was just amazing to me to take this love affair with music to the next level; a more intimate and personal place where I’m sharing more of myself than I am able to as a singer or playing an instrument.  But as the songs started to come out, and the vision for Memnoir started to develop, I began to realize it was something very special.

For me it’s not about wanting to be a rock star.  Would I love one day to be able to live off music and tour the world?  No question!  But I’m a realist and I know how such a tiny fraction of all artists ever “make it big.”  That doesn’t matter to me, my dreams have already come true. I’ve written, recorded, co-produced and released a CD of songs that I’m proud to share with the world. When I hear from people all over the world telling me how the Memnoir songs speak to and connect with them, well, thats just another dream come true… and all I need to continue this passionate pursuit.

 

Have you learned anything about yourself whilst writing your music?

I’ve learned alot of things during this process.. like my determination, resolve, how I react when facing adversity, setback after setback, and much more.  But if I had to choose one thing – its that music is in me and it will never die. Whether as a listener or an artist, I cannot imagine this life without it. While that may not seem groundbreaking, it plays a large role as you grow older and life continues to change everything around you.  The choices you make in life only get more important and more complicated: deciding on a job, where to live, who you can love and live with. Knowing what your passions are, what moves you and makes you happy, what you can live with and what you cant live without… these play key roles for me in the “big” decisions.

 

How has music influenced you as a person?

I could talk about this for days!  But for the sake of brevity, I will say that it plays a role everyday.  From helping me deal with and get through dark times to providing a soundtrack for the good times, music serves as an outlet and expression of the emotional roller coaster we call life. It embodies eras of your autobiography and manifests feelings you didn’t even realize you had.  A certain song can take you back years and years to a specific moment or event that this song captured in your life. It’s incredibly powerful!  That’s what influences me most in my writing; not specifically a style of music, but a feeling, a vibe, an emotion.