Having said that, I didn't find my way to music till I was in my late teens. I picked up the guitar when I was 17 and it was just a fad at the time. Something to make me look cool. But what started as a phase soon became something that I love, something that help me breathe better.
I'm a singer/songwriter from Fort Cochin, Kerala. I was born and brought up here and I come from an Anglo-Indian family so music has been a part of my life since I was a child. I grew up listening to all the uncles and aunties belting out song after song at the house parties that we have.
Having said that, I didn't find my way to music till I was in my late teens. I picked up the guitar when I was 17 and it was just a fad at the time. Something to make me look cool. But what started as a phase soon became something that I love, something that help me breathe better.
I started doing small gigs in college to earn pocket money and soon realized I absolutely loved it. The gigs grew in number as I started to get more noticed and that led me to posting covers on Instagram and YouTube which helped me build a decent following online, people who liked my voice and wanted to hear more.
2. When did you first decide you wanted to pursue music and how did you start?
The decision to take music seriously was very very recent. I did my MBA from Cochin University of Science and Technology and that place is crawling with natural talent and genius. By chance I happened to join the University acapella group where I met wonderful other singers.
3. Who is your favourite artist and why?
Ed Sheeran. The first thing I look for in any song are the words, the lyrics, the meaning. Ed Sheraan, who has an insanely beautiful voice also has a way with words. The man can paint stories like no other.
Well it depends on what kind of singer you are. Right now, with everything online, finding an audience for yourself is not that hard, provided you are good at what you do that people can connect with what you're trying to say. Personally. I think opportunities lie everywhere you look for them.
5. Is format training required or can one train themselves purely on the basis of talent?
I never had any format training but I now I am looking into mediums to take classes and stuff. Music is a frustratingly vast area and the knowledge to be gained is endless. It is possible to do it purely based on talent but being familiar with both sides of the coin just makes you better.
6. What piece of advice would you like to give to future and aspiring artists?
There is no door that will not open if you kick it hard enough.
7. Which is your favourite book and why?
I am not much of a reader but lately a friend introduced me to a book containing a collection of Rumi's poems and I have taken a liking to it. He writes about love and life in ways that I wish could write. It inspires me and gives me new perspectives and anything that makes me look at something from a different vantage point, I welcome.
I started doing small gigs in college to earn pocket money and soon realized I absolutely loved it. The gigs grew in number as I started to get more noticed and that led me to posting covers on Instagram and YouTube which helped me build a decent following online, people who liked my voice and wanted to hear more.
2. When did you first decide you wanted to pursue music and how did you start?
The decision to take music seriously was very very recent. I did my MBA from Cochin University of Science and Technology and that place is crawling with natural talent and genius. By chance I happened to join the University acapella group where I met wonderful other singers.
There were two in particular named Nivia and Gaius who pushed me and kept trying to convince me to take the whole music thing more seriously. Which is when I started showing up to the local open mics and inturn was able to meet even more wonderful musicians.
The local following grew but I was still scared to take the next step. While I was doing my MBA I got placed in a bank where I worked for 2 years. Gosh that was not my thing one bit. Sitting behind a desk drove me crazy. I still tried doing gigs on the side but I just could not manage it well.
I did both half heartedly and when the whole lockdown thing happened I took some time to self reflect and think about what I wanted to do with my life. I write my own songs but until that point I had not let anyone hear then yet so as a way to test waters I decided to finally let people hear them.
So I posted the songs on my Insta and got an insane response and I when I realized that I could actually make people feel things and that people genuinely appreciated my music, I decided to take the plunge.
I started work on my first song, found a producer, got everything done and even quit my job so I can have better focus. and gosh the response was great.
It's now crossed 10K streams on Spotify alone in just over a week which is insane for a debutant. Super excited to see what happens next.
3. Who is your favourite artist and why?
Ed Sheeran. The first thing I look for in any song are the words, the lyrics, the meaning. Ed Sheraan, who has an insanely beautiful voice also has a way with words. The man can paint stories like no other.
When I started iI loved him for his voice and used to mimic him quite a bit and that has really helped develop my own style but I too am a song write more than anything and that too I like to think learned from him
4. Can you throw some light on opportunities one gets as a singer?
4. Can you throw some light on opportunities one gets as a singer?
Well it depends on what kind of singer you are. Right now, with everything online, finding an audience for yourself is not that hard, provided you are good at what you do that people can connect with what you're trying to say. Personally. I think opportunities lie everywhere you look for them.
The talent out there is abundant and no one is going to come tell you that they will take up your cause. A singer or any artist for that matter, has to make themselves seen. Put up more quality content, do gigs, be seen, be heard. You have to grind and get noticed. I have not met a single artist who has told me they had it easy.
5. Is format training required or can one train themselves purely on the basis of talent?
I never had any format training but I now I am looking into mediums to take classes and stuff. Music is a frustratingly vast area and the knowledge to be gained is endless. It is possible to do it purely based on talent but being familiar with both sides of the coin just makes you better.
It will help you take your talent to a whole other level. So I say, if you have the opportunity and means, professional training in your art would simply make you a better artist.
6. What piece of advice would you like to give to future and aspiring artists?
There is no door that will not open if you kick it hard enough.
7. Which is your favourite book and why?
I am not much of a reader but lately a friend introduced me to a book containing a collection of Rumi's poems and I have taken a liking to it. He writes about love and life in ways that I wish could write. It inspires me and gives me new perspectives and anything that makes me look at something from a different vantage point, I welcome.
- Jeremiah De Rozario
Instagram @jeremiahderozario
- Interviewed by - Christina Monachan
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