MUSIC
At 18 I moved to Boston and started a rock band.
It began in a basement, practicing 3 times a week. I was excited to find others who also lived and breathed the idea of creating music and art - I thrived on it. We named the band “Therefore I Am” with the idea that what we made was a direct representation of ourselves. A year later went from playing to 15 people to 200. The VFW halls would become packed with people sweating and screaming the words to our songs. I began using the phrase “you are connected” during our performances and communicated that without the people experiencing the music- the band was nothing.
It was the community as a whole that created the machine that moved us. Without anyone to experience the art, what was it? To this day, that idea has remained as the foundation for my approach to art and design.
Before I knew it, Therefore I Am was touring 8 months a year and even signing a record deal. Over time, the rock n’ roll lifestyle began to take its toll on us, and a year after the release of our first major record, we disbanded due to personal and creative differences. In total Therefore I Am released 5 albums and played hundreds of shows.
After Therefore I Am dissolved, I began another project called The Tower and The Fool in Providence, RI. releasing 3 records and a 120-page book which I helped design, consisting of additional writings, stories, and images.
Music has had a profound impact on me. It has taught me how to work within a group- how to get along and how to disagree. How to challenge myself and others. How to scale ideas and work through problems. How to be vulnerable and exposed, yet stay strong and be a leader. How to be graceful and tender, but firm and defensive of intent. How to listen when criticized, and how to stay humble when complimented. It taught me that everyone can have an idea, but without drive and passion, those ideas will never materialize.
