My favorite moment at any event is when you’re walking out after it ends and you’re snapped back into reality like “what just happened”..
The age of entrepreneur meets musician is upon us, and Friz is the prime example of such consistent cadence. As a frequent flyer with StoryTime Ent in his various single releases (Circa 4000 EP, Breathe, etc) and host of a monthly playlist series Friz Favorites, Friz continues to stretch his music reach into new, unexplored territories like online music festivals, 24 hour nonstop meditations (seriously, check out his post on Instagram about it) and developing a 24/7 music television channel. I could rave for days (pun intended) about him, but I’ll let Ryan (Friz) share more of his story, in our exclusive StoryTime Spotlight Q&A.
Q: What is your take on the state of the current music industry- where do you think the future of music will be?
A: I like the state of the current music industry honestly. It feels like the wild west where there’s so much you’re able to do. Fifty years ago major labels and radio controlled everything which made it really hard for artists to get a start. I like the concept of major labels as it gives artists a huge platform to take their craft as far as they can go with it, but it’s so important to also provide platforms for up and coming artists to make a living and boost themselves so they have a fair shot at making it to the top. Right now it feels like a better balance between those two ends of the spectrum than ever before. I think music will continue to trend towards empowering independent artists and towards decentralized solutions. Hopefully a perfect balance is eventually struck because I do see a lot of benefits of major labels.
Q: What does an average day look like, in your music life?
A: My days have no average haha. It’s funny because I schedule my days every day, but I do all my own artwork, I create all my own music, I manage my show bookings, I run all my socials, now I’m running a music television company which is both benefiting my music and gives me an outlet to help artists. I do a lot of different things and I have people who help me along the way. I’d love to continue to develop a stronger and stronger team and that is what I’m working for. Right now I have so much work I’m putting into my vision for my music brand and future with music that my days vary quite a bit. Every day I begin by not looking at my phone, going outside for a quick run or walk, meditate, and read and I also work to produce every day but other than that my days differ depending on the most pressing creative task at hand. Oh I also just graduated so school was taking up a lot of my time too haha!
Q: If you're not making music or playing a show, what are you usually doing?
A: I just always want to better myself. If I’m not doing something music oriented I’m either reading, learning, watching interviews. I’m really into mindfulness and have been really pushing myself to go deeper within myself these past few years. Sometimes that betterment of self involves sitting in stillness or watching the way a tree moves for ten minutes. I used to error on not getting enough sleep and thought I could “out mental” my body so sometimes working towards betterment means forcing myself to realize it’s time for a break and I need to step back. I like moving in some direction, not physically, but with the momentum of my life so when I’m not making music I like to be taking steps to build momentum.
Q: If your music was a food, what would it be?
A: A SMOOTHIE!
Q: How often do you listen to your own music, versus others?
A: I listen to my music a lot. I’d say it’s a good 50/50 between listening to my own music versus others. Especially when I’m working on a body of work, then I’m definitely listening to that a ton to make sure the songs flow well together, everything sounds right in the mix, I genuinely love the songs and can listen to them over and over again.
Q: What do you want your fans to experience when listening to your music?
A: I want them to go into their own world. I want my music whether they’re hearing it live at an event or in their headphones in their room to put them in the present moment and take them somewhere they haven’t been before or feel something real and tangible. My favorite moments at any event is when you’re walking out after it ends and you’re snapped back into reality like “what just happened”? That’s my goal with my music I create. I think the best way I can bring that experience to people is to go as deep as possible into my own world whenever I’m creating and invite people into that world so that they can experience it in their own way that’s unique to them.
Q: What is your favorite part about being a music producer/DJ?
A: I get to create and I get to share experiences with people while meeting amazing new people all of the time.
Q: Describe yourself in one word?
A: Loving.
Q: What is one of the most beautiful sounds in your opinion?
A: There’s so many beautiful sounds out there in the world. I love the sound of kids playing on a playground in the distance it brings this innocent joyous, lighthearted feeling I don’t know what it is. Like the sound you hear in the beginning of KIDS by MGMT or the beginning of the One Last Thing music video by Mac Miller.
Q: If you could master any instrument with a snap of your fingers, which would it be?
A: The human voice that’s the most powerful instrument there is in my opinion. I’ve been creating a lot more songs with me singing on them so get ready for that in the next year or so to come. Big shout out to Dr. Veera who has been teaching me how to harness my voice. She is one of the most incredible teachers I’ve ever had and working with her has transformed the way I live my life. She is working on big things right now too definitely be on the look out for her!
Q: Tell us more about opendoors.la. Whats the vision there and whats next?
A: Open Doors is the music television company I’ve been building in my head for the past few years. I had this concept of a 24/7 music television website which helps music fans discover the newest trends emerging by spotlighting talented artists/collectives all through a continuous stream of music video content playing live on a website all hours of the day. I felt now was the perfect time to build out this concept and so I built it and the website is now live. We already put on a virtual music festival with 38 artists and had 1,200 unique visitors come to the website within the first 48 hours of the Open Doors public launch. There’s many other festivals we’re currently working with that are going to be held on opendoors.la, a continuous stream of hand selected and continuously updated music videos is now playing, and tons of other features are coming that we’re working on which I don’t want to mention just yet. I have big long term plans and a vision I’m ready to execute for this project. My goal is to help as many artists, collectives, and music fans while doing it. It’s live now so you can watch live music television any time you want on the website opendoors.la!
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Interviewer: Aleksey W.
