Meet Rio Peterson: Singer/Songwriter, Musician

We had the good fortune of connecting with Rio Peterson and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Rio, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking
I think risks are naturally a huge part of our lives. We take risks every day just by making the smallest decisions, and seeing where we end up with them. As far as the role it’s played in my life: my career choice, not going to college, friendships I’ve made, past relationships I’ve had, quitting jobs I hated, doing whatever on a daily basis and not caring about how much time I’ve wasted, have all beens risks. Haha. But also: playing music, writing songs, and creating anything in general have been the most rewarding parts of my life as well. So I guess it’s been some kind of a trade off. It’s the most incredible feeling when I write a song, and get something out of myself that felt like it was trapped. And I’m eternally grateful for that feeling. That one moment in creating. Every risk has been worth it just for that. 

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Talking about my music or songwriting is always kind of funny. Even as I write this, I’m smiling because I’m not sure what to write. I have countless influences, and love anything that’s original/personal. To me, that’s the only thing that matters when making music. If you’re ever catering to the public, and creating ONLY for the sake of fame, recognition, money, whatever, then you’re not a real artist. Not that we don’t all want success! Of course that’s important, but that’s a small part of being creative. Before I derail too much, back to the question: my music and anything else I’ve created are almost like little blips of my mind. I spend so much time just thinking to myself, that any song or video I’ve made is like an extension of that. It’s as if I just immediately run with whatever idea comes to mind first. And maybe there’s something to that, but I’m not sure. What I know is that I love encompassing all aspects of sound, and writing music every way possible. Which means doing whatever you want in the moment, and as long as you like it, that’s all that matters. A majority of it seems like it’s not from the same person, and I give myself a lot of shit for that. Sometimes I wish I went into a more specific genre than alternative rock, but again, that wouldn’t be personal. It wouldn’t be me. I love music too much to stick to any one genre or sound.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Well, during a horrible pandemic that’s taken a toll on the entire world, I say: don’t go out. Stay home.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My parents. I don’t owe anybody else in the world more than those two. They’ve put up with my stupid bullshit all these years that I’ve been depressed, supported me, let me crash with them, eat their food. They’ve given me the most amazing life anyone could have, and the only reason I even care about being successful is to be able to finally give something back to them. They are not only my parents, but the dopest best friends that anybody could have AS parents, and they are the real M.V.P.’s of my life.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/riopeterson/?hl=en
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/riopetersonofficial
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-tskapZ2LSJEETm9byIz6w

Image Credits
Photo credits: Melissa Evans, Jarred Noah Moore, Gregory Leone