I’ve been struggling to release my artist album for about five years now. A lot of that has been due to some really difficult life circumstances that honestly crushed my soul for a while, and along with that, a lot of my creativity disappeared too.
Thankfully, it finally feels like things are starting to come back together.
The hardest part now is balance. Working a full time job, being a father of two, sadly from a distance, and trying to keep up with life at this age makes it incredibly difficult to find the time and mental space the studio really deserves. I want to be in there all the time, but life does not always leave that door open as much as I wish it did.
That said, music is still my greatest passion, and I do not see that ever stopping. If anything, everything I’ve been through has reminded me just how deeply it matters to me.
The modern age is a strange one though. AI is fascinating, but I also find parts of it genuinely depressing as someone who has spent over 20 years learning this all the hard way. So many of us have spent endless hours in studios learning arrangement, synthesis, EQ, compression, mixing, mastering, sound design, and all the tiny details that make this music what it is. Then throw on top of that having to properly use social media.... It's tiring.
What I find interesting is how suddenly you hear people say, “Yeah, I decided to get into making music,” but when you ask what DAW they use, what EQ they like, how they process their bassline, or what compression approach they use, etc, the conversation suddenly goes quiet.
I realize everyone has to start somewhere, and new tools will always change the landscape, but I still believe there is something sacred about putting in the blood, sweat, and tears, spending years learning everything you can, and slowly shaping your own sound and style over time.
