Stepping in a bright red sports car, warping through the fabric of space and time, in a psychedelic, hypnopaedic trance: war, technology, commercials, skyscrapers, and nightlife flashes through your unconscious mind. These are the scenes that have defined recent decades, in which as a result has taken a multitude of forms that connect with us as a listener. Yet through the decades, sound still manages to invoke a painting in our mind that manages to take new meanings in the modern age. For me, it wasn’t something that came to me at the start. I believed I wasn't capable of producing a piece of art when I entered high school. I was envious of those I perceived as simply having a natural artistic talent that I somehow lacked. I tried out various artforms in hopes that I would find the creative spark that I saw others had, but it wasn’t until I was introduced to Is This It by The Strokes by my older brother. This album would become a cornerstone of my music journey as later that year on Christmas, I saved enough money to buy a Fender Stratocaster and borrowed my church’s spare guitar amp. It wasn't long until I began taking guitar a bit more seriously by learning theory and eventually playing bass for my church. This led to learning the keyboard, which pushed my understanding of theory and arrangement even further. I started to see my favorite albums and music differently. I began to break down guitar and bass parts, analyze how they worked together, and begin understanding how those songs were actually constructed with intentionality. Songwriting, lyrical analysis, and composition drew me in. So naturally, I began consuming music outside of what I had in front of me to give me more of a perspective of the wide varieties of what music can sound like. When I stumbled across a YouTube video of the 2007 Rock in Japan Festival of the Japanese rock band, Asian Kung-Fu Generation (Ajikan); I felt like I had seen a reflection of what my potential musical journey could sound and look like even though it managed to exist around the time I was born. Their album Sol-fa and J-Rock as whole opened me to a completely new world which demonstrated the ways jazz, punk, rock and new wave could fit into one genre. J-Rock, a place where melodies and riffs intertwined to create a story with complex arrangements and song structures. J-Rock showed me how emotion, angst, and energy can be captured and recorded and how the studio’s role can have a impact on the final product. It made me realize music production is where science meets creativity and where a band’s signature sound is crafted. That realization led to me buying an interface, borrowing a mic and making covers of songs on Ableton Live Lite. I’m pretty sure freshman me, the kid who believed he lacked that creative spark wouldn’t believe how far I made it. It’s uncanny to think that it's just the beginning. I’m not sure where music will take me, but it’s something I want to keep exploring in college while connecting with a community that shares the same passion as me. I want to surprise my present self and see how far a few years of fully dedicating myself to my art can take me. I want to see how far this journey can go—starting from my bedroom and running as far across the earth wherever my passion leads me.

“Why should I do music?” It’s a question I’ve asked myself time and time again as I explored different forms of art throughout high school. Photography taught me how to use my environment and find different ways to express emotion or ideas through a single exposure. Writing introduced me to stories that took the mundane and turned it into entirely different worlds that still reflect ours, like Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Though these mediums were enjoyable on their own, what really drew me was how they were incorporated in films, and videos. But, one medium that always added depth to those artforms, was the use of music in giving the viewer a mood or feeling. Although it's not something that we have playing in our minds during scenarios, it perfectly captures an emotion that when played timely, manages to mirror life perfectly. I used to think I wasn't capable of producing a piece of art when I entered high school. I sort of envied those who were creating really cool and meaningful creations. I tried out various artforms in hopes that I would find the creative spark that I saw others had. Yet, with time, music started changing that for me. I have two older brothers who were born in the 90s, went to high school during the 2000s, so when I was born in 2007, every car ride with them had a rock CD. Out of the bootleg CDs they had, the ones I couldn’t stop borrowing were, Is This It and Room on Fire by The Strokes. These two albums are a huge part of my high school years. One Christmas, I saved enough money to buy a Fender Stratocaster and borrow my church’s spare guitar amp. I was more than just fascinated with those records, I was obsessed with them, as at times instead of doing homework, I would learn some of my favorite songs from them. It wasn't long until I began taking guitar a bit more seriously by learning theory and eventually playing bass for my church. This led to learning a bit of keyboard, which pushed my understanding of theory and arrangement even further. I started to see those albums and music in general differently. I’d break down guitar and bass parts, analyze how they worked together, and begin understanding how those songs were actually constructed. Songwriting was one thing that caught my attention at first when I first dove into music, but one album that changed my perspective on the craft was, “Nevermind” by Nirvana. “Nevermind” showed me how emotion, angst, and energy can be put on a record and how the studio and producer, can really have an effect on the final product. It made me realize music production is where science meets creativity and where a band’s signature sound is crafted. That realization led to me buying an interface, borrowing a mic and making covers of songs on Ableton Live Lite. I’m pretty sure freshman me, the kid who lacked that creative spark wouldn’t believe how far I made it so far. It’s weird to think it's just the beginning. I’m not sure where music will take me, but it’s something I want to keep exploring in college while connecting with others who share the same passion as me. I want to surprise my present self and see how far a few years of fully dedicating myself to my art can take me. I want to see how far this journey can go—starting from my bedroom and running as far across the earth wherever my passion leads me.