We had the good fortune of connecting with Adrian Gonzalez-Arredondo and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Adrian, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
After exclusively playing music for over a decade as a means of living, I realized perhaps it’s something I’m good at, so why not approach it as a business venture?
Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I love making art, but I’m allergic to identifying as an artist. It feels… disingenuous and restrictive. Music has always interested me. I’m drawn to sounds inside and outside my head. The way they relate to each other and the context they’re placed in (rhythm, harmony & melody). I’ve done it for so long it just kinda makes sense. Yet so much still doesn’t. Because it’s rooted in Relative Certainty, the relationship we have with the sounds we hear is unique. Yet we yearn to share that experience with others. For over a decade I’ve made a living playing music, mostly in hotels and restaurants. Financially rewarding but ultimately unfulfilling. I’ve written scores of songs that remain unreleased (hopefully not for long). This worldwide paradigm shift forced me to reassess meaningfulness, and I realized that this wonderful music scene is bereft of proper documentation. So I started capturing live performances of the many talented music friends I have in Miami. I didn’t realize this would give me a renewed sense of purpose. Local venues and non-profits are now approaching me to work with them to document the music around town. Let’s see where that takes me, but I’m definitely excited about it.
If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I assume that friend would be getting here on a Friday (in a non-quarantined reality), so I’ll start there; Friday: sorry, I’m at a gig, but you should check out the show at The North Beach Bandshell. I’ll meet you for drinks after in Midtown. Saturday: We’ll go meet Brian, Andres & Nick at their brunch gig, walk around the Grove and then my friend would have dinner while I play my set at the South Miami restaurant. Afterwards we’d go see other friends play in Little Haiti. Sunday: They’d come to my brunch gig after walking the Hollywood Beach boardwalk. Then we’d eat some kind of seafood outdoors anywhere on the East Coast (North Miami to Downtown) Monday: best time walk the Wynwoods, then at night saunter to a hole-in-the-wall bar to mingle with the locals. Tuesday: maybe finally check out one of the comedy open mics, or check out some sit-down live music with wine and dairy. Wednesday: Drive down to Key West and create blurry memories. Thursday: Come back from Key West in the early afternoon, have late lunch in Islamorada. Get to Miami, nap. Then at night go check out a crushing band at an outdoor venue (pre-rainy season).
Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
There are many to thank for what has lead me to this point in my story: my parents for shaping my education, in all its aspects; my sister for being a neverending fountain of positivity; my greater family for their tacit encouragement. I have to thank the Monkey Village, a house in Little Havana with misfit artists who welcomed me open-armed and always forward-looking. That magical place cemented the musical friendships that still stand today, and created the foundation of my appreciation for the unrivaled diversity of culture that Miami offers. It’s amazing that underneath the perceived superficiality this city is known for (rightfully so), lies an ebullient melting pot that no other city in the world can offer. Acknowledgments are always difficult for me, for there are so many variables that lead to the many circumstances that seem like they were meant to be. And I don’t believe in fate (but I do like the way it sings).
Website: oigomusic.com
Instagram: instagram.com/oigomusic
Twitter: twitter.com/oigomusic
Facebook: facebook.com/oigomusic
Youtube: youtube.com/oigomusic
Image Credits
David Hollister (image 1)