Coming from a long line of Musicians.

I'm going to keep this short and simple.
Music runs in my blood.

"You Got Me" Live Version Remix featuring my Dad
Single available on iTunes November 10.

An Experience

Watching a performance is different from experiencing one.

Lately, I've been concentrating on how to make my stage presence better. I've been working on interacting with the crowd and making them feel a part of my set. I've been working on making sure that I completely give my all without holding back any ounce of energy. I want them to experience my performance, not watch.

It's weird. Some shows I have so much energy and other shows I feel like I'm dragging. I want to say it's because of the crowd but I just realized that the crowd won't move if you won't move. So I'm starting to learn how to get the crowd more involved and manage my energy on stage to give my all without sounding like I'm over doing it.

But there are some artists out there who are just so natural on stage. As if the stage was there second home. I'm still trying to get to that point. And I hope one day I can be comfortable on stage like how I'm comfortable in my own shoes.

My team has been busy booking me shows for the next couple of months. I'm looking forward to getting better and grow as artist. Seriously, this whole "learning" journey never ends. Feels like I'm always striving to be better. Always looking forward to another day to continue my journey as an artist. That's a good thing, right?

On another note..

"You haven't been blogging lately. =(" said the person in my chatbox.

Thank you!

I didn't forget. I just like to write/blog when I'm inspired to do so. I want to make sure that each blog will mean something to me and to some one out there. And every post, I give you Me.

Trading War Stories

When I ask myself what my goal is, it's always the same answer.

I want my music to be a part of some one's life.

Every now and then, I get fan mail/messages from people who share their story with me. I got a message from some one who won a battle over a life threatening disease and my music helped them get through it. Some people say that I helped them recover after a break up or it helped them realize that this person might or might not be the one. Each message, each story, each person, has a story to tell.

And each story has a soundtrack.

The songs that I create come from personal experience. They are inspired from events that I go through personally. Some of the lyrics that I write were taken from real conversations I had with people. The things that I would say or the things that I would be too scared to say. But when everything comes on the record, I'm fearless. That's how you know you're getting real music. If you're able to connect with the record on a more personal touch. That's my goal.

Writing music hasn't been an easy journey. And honestly, the journey isn't over. I'm still learning how to express myself better. The best lyrics come out when the artist speaks entirely from the heart without second thoughts. Real music comes out when the artist isn't afraid. And as time gone by, I've learned to not to be afraid to share the world my personal story.

Music has done so much for me. Lifted me through the lowest of times. Helped me recover from break ups. Encouraged me to keep moving forward. Sharing my experiences with you has helped me through so much. And I hope I did the same for you.

Image is Key

Every artist has an image. It has to show who they are, where they are from, and what they bring. When I first started, I had the "Bay Wit It " image. In most of my pictures, I had the bridge looming in the background to show that I was from the bay. The way I dressed expressed my personality. Everything about it completely displayed who I was as an Artist and where I was from.

I recently took a photoshoot over the weekend to "revamp" my image. There were people still thinking I had the whole braids thang going on. I needed something new, something fresh, and also displayed my new look. But I wanted to keep it close to my original image. The whole "Bay Wit It" factor but this time more subtle since my music hasn't really been focused on The Bay's sound. That's why in the picture on the left has the bridge just faintly in the background.

Man I want to keep going but for some reason, I just want the pictures to explain itself.

Yeah, explains.

What's more irritating than a dog barking in the middle of the night?

Myspace Music Artists spamming my comments & inbox telling me to listen to their "hot" track.

Look. It's great that you make music. And I understand you want to show the world...

But seriously, please don't send me pre-typed messages or comments telling me to check out your "hot track", or tell me to join your fan page, or to call your number to leave a message telling you how "hot" your track was. Be real.

Myspace is so packed with these Artists who don't know the meaning of being "personal" with the listeners. They believe that spamming comment boxes, bulletin boards, and adding 2 Jillion friends a day will help develop and build their fan base. Shouldn't they know by now that the power of "Word of Mouth" shits on all of the above?

If people love your music, they will spread it, talk about it, blog about it, relate to it, all on their own. Not because you told them to. Not because you told them that the track they are about to listen to is "HOT" and will be the next smash hit. Shouldn't they figured it out now that the FANS make the Artist?

And that fans want a real artist. Some one who will communicate with them on a personal level. Fans don't want the automated message or comment. They want YOU.

This is why I blog. To show my appreciation to every fan that I have and the new ones that are just getting to know me. I love it when I get messages saying "I've been listening to you for years!" or "I like how your style has changed". It just shows that they've developed a relationship with me. They've been following my music without me asking to stick around. Whenever I reply to messages, I always say "I hope you stay in touch". And a lot of them do because they are my dedicated followers. And man, I love all of you for supporting me since the beginning...

...now go and listen to my hot sizzling super fire volcano exploding new song.

just kidding.

Giving up is like saying "No Thanks" to Winning.

I've been recording this song for exactly 4 days. Each time I buckled down, my recording session lasted about 5 hours. Today, I started at 7pm and it's now 1am and I finally put the final touches.

The reason why I take so much time into creating a song is because I want it to sound like how it is in my head. A lot of the times, it doesn't translate well onto the actual recording. This is where I go through the process of "Finding my Voice".

You can't spit all hardcore on a track that's smoothed out. You have to find that voice that blends well with the background. The beat is the director. You have to follow it's direction in order for your voice to be "one" with the beat.

Trust me, it's a long process for me. That's why my voice is different in every song I make. I mean, my voice is my "signature", but it's playing with the range of my vocals. Sorta like singers. Singers have different ranges that they can play with it. So do rappers. And it takes a lot of practice and patience to be able to find that range of yours.

I almost gave up on this song. I do that a lot actually. I get frustrated easily when things don't come together in a track. Sometimes I say to myself, "is this beat even for me?". And that's exactly what I asked myself with this new song I'm working on. I just about to delete the project file and push it to the back of the list...

But something told me to keep going and just give it one more try. 5 hours later, I found it. Everything worked. I found my voice and I found my comfort zone. Man, this has happened so many times now.

The beat for "Getaway Spaceship" was sitting in my archives for almost 4 months before I started to write a song to it. I was so clueless on what to write about and I didn't even have a chorus for it yet. I just had the main melody of the song and some drums, looping over and over. Then one night, when I was out and about with my friends, the first part of the hook came to me.

"She took me, took me...."

I searched in my head for something that would make sense. "She took me Where or on what?".

I rushed home and played the beat back. This beat sounds like it's from outterspace. It sounds like aliens are hovering above my house, ready to beam me up and take me far away. To "get away from it all"

Then it hit me. Getaway Spaceship. History.

Giving up is burning down opportunities. I wrote this blog for myself. So I can keep my head straight and learn how to be patient. Maybe it'll help you, too.

The Interview..

My interview with Limelight Radio/Socialush TV aired on Friday night, Sept. 4th. I usually do website interviews like they send me a list of questions to answer, then I just email and they compiled it to make it an interview. But this time, my conversation with the host of Limelight Radio was recorded and edited for the broadcasting.

We went over key questions like where I'm from, how I started, my musical background, and went over the songs that we submitted. I gave some insight on why I recorded the songs I made and what the purpose was.

Listen to the interview here:
http://www.socialush.tv/Media/Limelight%20Radio/LimelightRadio090409.mp3

Hope you like it!