A magnificent show is laid out by the brilliant independent rapper Vidal. He has come up with exquisite beats of R&B, blues, and hip hop in the enthralling track from the music video ‘Better Daze’. The artist belongs to San Jose in California and has created a lot of fan frenzy. He has come up with lyrics that will stir the emotional conscious and has paved the way for a new-look hip hop. He has come up with superb composition and has amalgamated various eclectic genres.
The music video is exotically shot and has aroused interest among the viewers with a touch of class. The uber-cool music video can be watched on major trending platforms like YouTube.
We caught up with the singer as he was busy during one of his music video shoots. He replied to our request for an interview quite candidly and we are taken aback by his positive gesture. We congratulated the singer on his latest success and asked him a few important things about his private and professional life. Hope that the interview is fulfilling for the audience as he divulged quite a few things that are new to his fans. Here are a few excerpts from the interview.
Daily Music Roll: You are attracted to various genres in music. But if you have to pick one favorite, which genre you are going to choose?
Vidal: If I had to pick my favorite I would have to pick what apple music calls “Latin” music haha. There are just so many dynamic sounds and songs for different occasions. The imagery in Spanish music is also unmatched. Admittedly, I may be a bit biased because of my heritage.
DMR: How did you got attracted to music as a child and did you got inspired by someone close to you or you are influenced by any musical legend?
Vidal: I come from a family of musicians, my grandfather played the accordion and sang. I remember being a kid and my dad would always be singing songs either that he wrote or would listen to so I was constantly getting exposed to different music from different generations. I got my first guitar around 13 and it just kind of stuck. As far as music legends that inspire me, there are too many to name… Carlos Santana, Lenny Kravitz, Immortal Technique, 2pac, J.cole, Mac Miller.. the list goes on.
DMR: Which musician is the biggest inspiration in your life who has provided you the drive for creating music?
Vidal: Everything I write is a reflection of an experience or emotion from something either past or present. If we’re talking about artists, I’ve always connected with songs that would talk about overcoming difficult situations. Songs like Hustler’s Ambition, by 50 cents, or For Your Eyes Only, by J.Cole, always stuck with me because of the feelings they would capture in their music using storytelling and creative lyrics. I’ve always wanted my music to have a similar effect on people.. as far as actually publishing some of the songs, I guess I have the quarantine to thank for that haha.
DMR: Because the music industry is a tough place to survive when did you think of taking the plunge?
Vidal: I took the plunge when I got laid off from my job working in the technology sector in San Francisco. I figured I had a bunch of time to kill and needed a change alleviates the feeling of being burned out doing something that I was happy doing, but not satisfied staying at. I figured, worst case scenario I could always go back to working in tech and had nothing to lose but so much to gain in terms of becoming a better musician and just overall confidence in the challenges I could successfully take on.
DMR: Which thing about the gamut of creativity gives you the adrenaline rush to perform in front of big crowds?
Vidal: It’s all about capturing emotion and being able to share it with people, whether that emotion is the feeling of triumph, or melancholy, or anything in between. Capturing that feeling in music and sharing it with people so that they don’t feel like they’re suffering in silence or to encourage people to enjoy things while they can is what drives me to create more music and hopefully perform for them once the quarantine is over!
DMR: Are you more of a go-getter and work hard towards your goal or do you have a laid-back and effortless approach that is more elegant?
Vidal: I’m always working on something, once I set my mind on something I make it happen and do everything in my power to bring an idea to fruition. I’ve learned to be patient the more I’ve ventured into bigger goals because everything takes time to cultivate, but if there is something that I can do right now to get one step closer to accomplishing the goal I’ll always be the first one in the gate and the last one the field.
DMR: Which musician among your contemporary has got the potential to make it big and can give others a run for their money?
Vidal: I’ve worked with tons of talented people, my boy hashbrown, cisco, ghost guy, juice.. the list goes on all of these guys are incredibly talented artists, producers, musicians with a unique spin on the music they create. In today’s day and age and with the internet, I feel like anyone can make a comfortable living doing the things they love it’s just a matter of time, effort, and learning all the tools at their disposal.
DMR: Did you get bogged down by the Covid-19 pandemic that has halted the progress of so many people around the world?
Vidal: It had the opposite effect for me to be honest, I feel like once my routines were completely changed up I noticed how much time I was wasting being “busy” instead of being productive. Once I saw that the lockdown was going to stick around for a long time was when I knew it was time to get to work. It has made things like performing live and collaborating with other artists a little more challenging but the pandemic was a blessing in disguise for me for sure.
DMR: How do you relate to the global socio-political scenario and how does it finds a place in your tracks?
Vidal: I could talk about this question all day, but I’ll try and give the TL;dr haha. I’m a first-generation American-born son of immigrant parents and I see how there are certain constructs that stack the odds against people in my situation or my parent’s situation. Because of that, I always write about the importance of the decision we make and how having the odds stacked against you can give you a greater sense of accomplishment but also reduces the margin for error that we are afforded because what would be a minor setback for people in higher socio-economic positions could be catastrophic for someone trying to establish themselves. As far as the political, I am lucky enough to be able to vote so I try to increase awareness and make sure anyone who has the same voting privilege is familiar with what difference they can make in their communities by being more informed on who and what they can vote for.
DMR: How do you relax during your free time? Do you go for a vacay or spend quality time at home with near and dear ones?
Vidal: My downtime usually revolves around doing something active. I like to do yoga, hit my punching back, go on a hike..I recently got into parkour that’s been a lot of fun. But mostly I like to stay active, it helps me connect with my body and no matter how resistant I may be to start a workout I always feel so good afterward. If I can’t do something active I’ll pick up my guitar and just jam or work on new music.
DMR: Do you have friends from the music industry with whom you share a great rapport or do you have friends who do not belong to the music industry?
Vidal: A lot of my friends from my childhood that I’ve stayed in contact with are musicians. One of my friends, Javier, I’ve known him since pre-school and was in a band with for a few years. He’s the only person I’ve ever taken guitar lessons from haha. Also my friend Ari, I’ve known him since middle school so we go way back.. he helps me mix and master my songs and makes them sound crips. Got a lot of love for those guys!
DMR: Have you achieved everything that you tried hard for so many years or do you think that some more things are still left to be achieved?
Vidal: I feel like this is only the beginning haha. My first song ever released was called “Prequel” and I very much feel like I’m still in the preface stage where I’m only just getting the opportunity to really accomplish what I set out to do. I’m eternally grateful for the things I’ve been able to accomplish so far.. graduating from college, becoming a software engineer, start a music career but, as I said, this is only the prequel of what’s to come. My goals are much more ambitious than before, but I am confident it is only a matter of time and energy until I accomplish them and come up with other goals to work towards.
