Andy Frasco's World Saving Podcast - EP 239: DENM

Episode Date: October 3, 2023

Have a casual heartbreak at the top of the show with our dear friend, Caleb Hawley. Plus: A special message for Andy from the LA Lakers. And Andy updates from the road. Here's to not drinking and feeling fantastic! But you know what always feels good? Catching Andy on tour right NOW in a town (possibly) near you. Please do enjoy this week's Interview Hour as we welcome DENM. Did he and Andy just become best friends?! Be who you wanna be everyday.  Watch this episode streaming now!! Psyched to partner up with our buddies at Volume.com! Check out their roster of upcoming live events and on-demand shows to enrich that sweet life of yours. Call, leave a message, and tell us if you think one can get addicted to mushrooms: [phone]  Check out our new album!, L'Optimist on all platforms Follow us on Instagram @worldsavingpodcast For more information on Andy Frasco, the band and/or the blog, go to: AndyFrasco.com Check out our good friends that help us unwind and sleep easy while on the road and at home: dialedingummies.com Produced by Andy Frasco, Joe Angelhow, & Chris Lorentz Audio mix by Chris Lorentz Featuring: Arno Bakker Caleb Hawley

Hello, hello, hello. This is Big Game James Worthy of the Los Angeles Lakers, and I'm reaching out to Andy. Hey, Andy, it's tour time. You start tour this weekend, and I just want to remind you and the UN to keep your shit together. Now get out there and shower the people with music and love. P.S. Don't give the crowd mushrooms. And now, a message from Caleb Hawley. Tell me what it's like to have a dream come true. If I never know, I could live through you. You'll get the blessings I can't live through you You'll get the blessings

I can't break through So tell me what it's like To have a dream come true Is it everything you ever wished for? Do you level up and yearn for more? Does fortune come knocking on your door each night? Does having it easy make you lose your fight? Tell me what it's like to have a dream come true

If I never know I could live through you You get the blessings, I can't break through So tell me what it's like to have a dream come true Watching you flourish is a beautiful thing But I get a bit sad just thinking of me when I look at this picture from 2003 I remember who I thought I'd be dream come true if i never know i can live through you you get the blessings i can't break through so tell me what it's like to have a dream come true you get the blessings i can't break through so tell me what it's like to have a dream come true. Beautiful.

All right, and we're live. Andy Frasco's World Saving Podcast. I'm Andy Frasco. How's our heads? How's our minds? Are we staying out of trouble? Are we not letting the demons, I tell you, the demons of anxiety, depression, everything, get you from having a good day. You got to go wake up and say, not today, devil. I'm at the beach right now. I've been in LA for five days. It's been amazing, but I'm at the beach right now.

But I'm at the beach right now And I'm saying not today devil No anxiety is gonna ruin No I'm not really that hungover actually I feel actually pretty good I've been getting some sleep I did take mushrooms And went to Gary Goldman's show at the Largo

Which was awesome with Todd Glass But I didn't really drink that much this week So I'm feeling fantastic So I'm just talking to anxiety right here. Anxiety, listen, motherfucker. Stay away. I'm at the beach.

I'm feeling good. We're ready to go. Yep. Oh, yeah. It's been a good time in LA. We got Denim on the show today. Yes. Great artist.

I saw him play. Was slightly stupid. It was a great interview. You're going to love the interview, by the way. But I was like, you know, should I do this opening segment? You know, my hotel room in L.A. or should I? Yeah, say fuck it. No video this time and just out here, just vibe with the ocean.

Damn. Feels good. Sometimes you just got to chill out. You know, it's like work all the time, work, work, work. Maybe you live, maybe you're landlocked. You don't have a beach or you don't have a lake. It's okay. Find a fucking happy place. Even if it's a park, find somewhere quiet, control your head, control your breath, and tell yourself that whatever you're going through isn't impossible to go through. We're going to make it through it. We just got to be patient

and we can't have this I want it now mentality. That's all. We can do it all we want. We can say, oh man, I want this big old record deal. I want a bunch of money right now. Give it to me. I want a girlfriend or I want a dog right now give it to me you guys gotta be patient gotta be patient in life and uh i guarantee you that everything will come your way damn these

ocean that i do miss i do miss california i do miss los angeles it's been a great five days just wrote a couple songs with Kenny Carkey. I'm like almost like, I've already got eight or nine songs now in the tank for the album. I'm pretty fucking stoked about. And then I did the Stern Show. Woke up at fucking 4 a.m. on Monday after I went to my buddy Danny Zagayer's wedding. Masatov Danny. That was such a fun wedding.

Saw all my friends. I haven't seen 15 years and you've heard the podcast something you know something i'm like ah my la friends fuck them but it was actually a good time it was bonding i mean it's like i feel like when you get older all these grudges you hold when you're fucking high school just let them go this is like the first year i'm trying to let it go and just hang out with people who they are now and not when they're fucking 18, 19. And it was awesome. We took MDMA. I found out. I guess you could like eat MDMA and like a gummy bear now, which is kind of fucking dangerous because you're kind of delicious.

You know, I remember when they were first testing out like the MDMA and the fucking gum gummies i'm like god this tastes like shit i don't know how anyone's gonna digest this but they figured it out and uh shout out to the mdma gummies because i was on the dance floor fucking two-step into some israeli fucking disco music it was fucking awesome shout out to israelis i was like they always have fun lit ass weddings so the wedding was great and then i um went to stern show i had to wake up at 4 a.m listen to the show i feel like i did a pretty good job i always get nervous i always start talking about like my sex life on stern when uh you know i feel like that's what they want to hear when it really is like if you take a breath you could uh there's more than you than just your past life andy so shout out to everyone who listened to me on that be frantic it's hard to fucking be on at

four in the morning i learned yeah i mean i feel for the people who have radio shows and stuff you know like god damn shout out to people who do radio at 4 a.m and just have to be on they're also probably not like alcoholics like i am where I stay up till 2 a.m. But I was proud of myself. Went to bed like 9 p.m. and all was Gucci. And then I did the Stern show at 7 a.m. Drove, went to the studio with Kenny Karki, wrote a fucking banger. And then I had to drive all the way back to Beverly Hills

and I was on the Sebastian Maniscalco show. That dude, didn't realize how big of a baller that dude was. Holy shit. He bought Gwen Stefani's house in Beverly Hills and it is fucking pimp as fuck. I'm like, God damn, Sebastian, you making that money? And then I looked him up a little more. I'm like, oh fuck, of course.

He's like drawing like 30,000 people and i was like damn you like my music this is cool so shout out to sebastian and p for letting me be on their show that was fun to sell they got freaked out of me because you know that's how you know you you my podcast fans you know i get excited i just i just spill my beans out you know i just like i'm completely honest my situations are like whoa whoa. Didn't know a man could talk so much about mushrooms and cum to a bunch of 50-year-old Italian dudes. But fuck it. We let them ride.

We let them know it's Gucci and the Frasco business. But yeah, it was a blast too. And now I'm on my last day before I head on tour. The guys this weekend. I was bummed out that Lansing canceled. That was fucked up. Because, uh you know I love Michigan and I guess the venue was not ready to play so sorry everyone who had tickets for Lansing but Cleveland it was Cleveland and Pittsburgh coming up we got a fall tour people I need you to buy some tickets I know you're late bloom not late bloomers but you always wait to the

last minute but we're playing bigger rooms i want to get close to selling these babies out um as we get closer to the date you know i know you guys are my fans are walk-up crowd but let's buy some pre-sale fuck it shout out to live nation wow i can't believe i said shout out to Live Nation, but it's true. They're giving out $1,500 stipends for bands in Live Nation venues, and they're taking away the merch fee, our fight. They're hearing our voices, people. That's why we have BJ.

That's why we're fighting for this shit, and they're listening. This podcast is moving. I love it. It's going to be great. So shout out to Live Nation, sirs, all taking out that merch for you. Because fucking musicians need that shit.

You're already fucking ripping us off. Not ripping us off. I shouldn't say that. But yeah, you're taking like 60% of the door already for your venue that you haven't kept up with. Come on, get it to go. So thank you for the merch. I appreciate it. And then last but not least, our sponsors.

And then I got to get on a plane to fucking Cleveland. From Malibu to Cleveland, baby. Let's go. Yeah, Dialed and Gummies. Guys, grab some Dialed and Gummies. They're the best in the business. Do I have to say it again? They're the best in the business.

Harmonize, straight out of Colorado. I do miss my weed out there and edibles out there. They're the best in the business Harmonagize, straight out of Colorado I do miss my weed out there And edibles out there Growing up in California I still think Colorado makes the best weed You know, there's a couple It's just great

All the edibles are cared for That's why I fuck with dialed in gummies So grab yourself some dialed in gummies This is the perfect time to go to Colorado Fucking fall. Oh, the mountains. The leaves. Red rocks in the falls.

The best. Little crisp. You wear a sweater and shit. God, I love... Fuck with that heavy. So check it out. And then if you want to... The video of Denim is on volume.com. So check it out. is on volume.com so check it out go to volume.com

go watch me in denim bromance but also head to volume.com if you're just in you love music they have tons of live streams i said when i say tons i mean fucking tons are the best in the business and if you are a content creator you might as well get all your content on volume.com what's the point not to you know we'll just hopefully someone watches your youtube video there's 10 billion fucking videos on there step it up people we need to get all we need to get you on all these content creators all this get it there so if you're a content creator head to volume.com slash creator okay guys that josh radner episode was fucking huge one of the for the history books the world's

same podcast for downloads thank you for all the new fans coming in town all right guys we're gonna have a great week denim this is gonna be great yo chris play some denim you're gonna love denim he is the fucking man. Really deep conversation. I relate with him a lot because I'm from LA. And he's from like SoCal area. Bounced around beach towns. And I think you're going to really love this interview. We bonded pretty well.

It was the first time we got to really meet each other. And it felt like we were becoming bros. You're going to love that. Before we go to the interview, take a deep breath. Realize you're worthy. I'm all zenned out because I'm at the fucking beach. I really feel like one of these LA hipsters just doing a voice memo from the beach. We're fucking YOLO. Feel good about yourself.

Be who you want to be every day. You need to take a break. Go to the ocean or go to a lake. Even go to the park. If you live in butt fuck nowhere, you just got to park there. Go to a park. Feel good about yourself because we need you for the long haul, people. We need you for the long haul. All right. Have a great day and enjoy denim. Wow. Rock star.

Wow, wow, wee, wow. Adam, how you doing, buddy? Pretty good. How are you, Andy? I'm doing good, man. Wow, this has been a long time coming. Yeah, sure. You know all my friends. I know a couple of your friends.

All of them. I feel it's time we have a conversation. I like that. So tell me about your mental health. No, I'm just kidding. We're going straight into it. Working hard on it. Man.

Probably a little lower than it should be, but... It's got to be hard to raise all those kids and go on the road and be away from the family and stuff. That's probably the biggest, like, the hardest part about this job. For me, personally, is just that sacrifice. part about this job for me personally is just that sacrifice that's like pivotal years of childhood development and growth and then their dad has to yeah dip and come you know how do you approach that from being a father instead of being a musician i don't know it just kind of it's got a i don't know i grew up with my dad leaving. So I understood that, like that grieving of like all this stuff. So I know it's just like,

I carry that. So when I leave, I feel that weight. And then I, when I come home, I just want to be stoked to be kicking it with the kids. And when I'm out there, yeah,

you play the best you can. Don't act like a dick, but just Be yourself I don't know What about time management? I'm pretty poor at it Yeah That's what I'm saying

Like How do you How do you figure out the time To get with your How long have you been with your wife now? Married 12 years Together almost Yeah like

15, 16 years Holy fuck dude This is wild And then how many kids do y'all, 16 years Holy fuck dude Yeah This is wild And then how many kids Y'all have? Four Holy fuck dude

And you're traveling And you're doing all this stuff Like Yeah So when you're When you talk about the dream What is the dream? To just

Get to a place Where music Can financially Take care of everything And we can Tour as a unit and comfortably and

I mean we already like yeah we homeschool our kids so we can just like go on tour and why not go to Europe and do history lessons

during the day and shows at night you know like that sounds cool Monty Yahoo does that yeah you know it's possible so

the goal is just to like make the best music I can. Yeah. And just stick around for a little, you know? It's like the reggae Partridge family, dog. Yeah, I don't even really play reggae. I know, exactly. Exactly.

That's the thing. It's just the scene that it works in. You know what's funny about that? Like why are we so easily, quickly to draw a stereotype on someone just because they play in that scene? Because I feel like we're curveballs in our local communities.

So is Little Stranger. Do you fuck with them? I'm going to tour with them early next year. Perfect. They're like our best. That's my best friends too. I feel like... And they're dope. They're funny. Yeah. That's some bootleg merch Officer To like a seven year old kid

They're just funny man They're the best They're good people So you grew up in San Diego You said you're not You were never really Into the reggae scene So what type of music

Were you listening to Well here's the deal I grew up in San Diego I mean Slightly Stupid Who we opened for At Red Rocks They were like Hometown heroes

But it wasn't like a scene It was just like Shit you hear at the beach Or like you're surfing And it's just like It's just there It's a part of the culture It's not like

I don't know It just never felt like Oh I'm trying to join this scene It was just like Part of it This is a music That comes out of me Effortlessly

And it's a blend of Alternative And punk And reggae And hip hop But that's cause like part of it this is a music that comes out of me effortlessly and it's a blend of alternative and punk and reggae and hip-hop and but that's because southern california is a melting pot so it's like you grow up with all those sounds and that i did a whole bunch of other stuff before you know i've been doing music like 12 years and it's just now starting to get to a point of like working because i'm just being myself at this point not trying to like be any other type of artist did you used to be that in

your career you try to like chase the rabbit's tail a little bit for sure like what who are you guys do you want well I was just like you know doing a lot of like pop sessions and pop songs and EDM songs and making beats and I was like how I cut my teeth in LA I was with rock Nation for a little bit,

like just producing and writing. And I played in other bands and like indie bands. And yeah, I think I was trying to run away from an aspect of my life that like, I felt wasn't like cool anymore or something. And then I just like grew up and was like, being yourself is actually cooler. How old were you when this happened?

That revelation of just returning to yourself? Probably like 30. 30, yeah, same. I was probably like 27. Late 20s. It's like when it wakes up.

And you're like, what am I doing? Or what is any of this for? A lot of people don't get moving or living in Southern California, how big it is and how competitive it is to like just fucking make and try to get a gig at the fucking Roxy. Literally anything. Or you're doing these pay to play for six at 6 p.m. and you're playing for, you have to bring a hundred people to to even get the fucking show. 100%.

But maybe it taught you how to hustle. Yeah. Oh, for sure. I mean, I was playing for pizza and beer for a long time and got a laptop, started producing music, and was like, I liked it a lot, you know, and it just made sense. And I just started

developing that and then I just learned all this stuff can all work. I can go tour. I can get in the studio. I can be at home. I can be gone. Whatever. I just get to be myself though. Not like trying to be some like, I don't know. You ever try to just be

what you think people want you to be? I mean, yeah. You know what I mean? That's social media. Publishers, managers, all these people that are like, oh, you need to make this kind of song, and you'll get a lot of money. And you're like, that sounds sick.

And when you don't have a lot of money, you're like, I want that. So you trust, and you listen, and you grow. And at the end of the day, you just got to learn to trust yourself. Was that rock nation shit like bullshit? No it was all very it was like my manager's awesome he's still doing great great stuff everybody it was all just a part of the process all part of the journey you know like but did you didn't like the direction they were good

it wasn't anything really with them it was just more so like I started making the music that I'm making now. And it didn't really fit in with whatever is there. It's more like hip-hop and pop. People are like, I don't get this beachy music. That's okay. What was the first song you wrote that you felt like you found yourself and found this new identity of denim? My Wave.

What is it about? Surfing. You're a surfer? Yeah, I grew up surfing. Shit. So that was another aspect. Just like so many parts of just my personality that I was like running from. Be like, I want to be this cool LA guy, like leather jackets and all that, you know.

Now I'm, I don't wear leather jackets as much anymore. Now you're a fucking rock star. Let's fucking go, bud. Isn't it funny? The minute we stop caring about what other people think and become ourselves, we finally get successful. Because I think it's the universe. Yeah. I think it's the universe telling us like, we don't have to fucking put on this fucking

bunny suit. We don't have to like be a clown anymore. Like the minute you start like trusting that you are worth it, that's when everything happens. Seriously. So you, so you wrote this song, My Way. What was in your head? Okay. So that song samples the Endless Summer

You ever seen that surf movie from the 60s? Yeah, yeah, yeah The theme song by the Sandals I sampled that because I was like I mean, if you look at like hip-hop You got like Ice Cube sampling the Isley Brothers That's the stuff that was on his record player as a child It's like, this is what on his record player as a child it's like this this is

what was in my home as a child you know it was like so that sound i just felt like oh i could like try to flip it and make a beat over it and like that was just where it just felt like just trying to tap into like your childhood dreams inspiration yeah just like all the sounds and everything and then it just kind of grew. But that had like a couple little skanks in the chorus, but it's not like a reggae tune per se, but you show it to some people in the reggae scene and they feel like it's fresh.

It should be here, not, you know. It's a good home base, you know, like to be able to like Grow your fan Like Fans are awesome In this scene And Yeah

But they're awesome anywhere If people like your music It doesn't matter what scene you're in Scenes are Well it's just Dividers Yeah It's just more dividers

I don't wanna Be categorized as one thing I just wanna go play music You play where Fuck You'll play for the Pop punk kids Rock kids?

I'm going to clap for that too. Let's fucking go. That's our guy. No fucks given with our boy. So, I want to know about the early years. What was it like growing up in Southern California? Did you get into drugs? I could see

something happening in your eyes. I could stare in your eyes and see maybe you had some trauma during the kids, during your kid life. What was going on that part of your time? Yeah, just a lot of addiction in my family and violent stuff. And then I got kicked out when I was 14. That's when I moved up to Santa Barbara.

And then, yeah then Two years later I was with my mom and new stepdad Got booted from there But just figured it out But it was a lot of drug use A lot of like Maybe unnecessary self harm What do you think made you

Feel like drugs was the safe space In that time of your life I just wanted to feel like drugs was the safe space in that time of your life? I just wanted to feel happy and escape whatever reality that made me feel not happy. I was just like... So yeah, I just got

heavy into it at a young age. It was at my third rehab by the time I was 16. What were you into? Pills? Yeah, pills. I loved them. Slumpy guy. rehab i was time i was 16 what were you into pills or yeah pills i loved it well dude i went slumpy guy we just be in high school just fucking chilling like on pills 100 yeah wow just like then there's like a crew you know we had a little crew like yeah people knew we did drugs like oxys and stuff it would be like oxys but mostly like Vicodin Yeah That was like what I was really really into

It was just like getting viked out and just be like When did it stop becoming fun? When I started feeling bad Yeah sad Yeah well I also like yeah Almost came close to dying after like somas Or like horse tranquilizers stuff what's that somas are like pills yeah they're not they've i liked them were you trying to kill yourself no it was just just

like there's just so much disconnect so there was like a lot of trauma so i was just like trying to go prove myself everywhere else and stay away from home as long as possible right and stay away from home as long as possible. I loved the lifestyle. I grew up skating and surfing. All my friends were always older. I was always getting into crazier shit than people just in my high school age. The vagabond life.

Dog town. Yeah, honestly. That was how I kind of saw it. Just like the next generation Z-Boys. Did you feel free when you were running? Dogtown, you know? Yeah, honestly. That was like how I kind of saw it was like, just like the next generation Z-Boys. Yeah. Did you feel free when you were running? What's that?

Did you feel free when you were running? You know, like skating, surfing. Yeah, yeah. You know, like moving. 100%. You know, like that's where you felt space. That was like the only place where like no one can tell you what to do. Right. You're not getting in trouble.

Like nobody's after you no one's mad at you you can just like touch nature and be in it and it's powerful the ocean's like i love it's just like the most intense force but at the same time can be the most peaceful it's like yin and yang yeah have you ever had like a very intense moment with the water maybe you're like dude yeah almost died or hit a shark or something multiple times just what the fuck tell me about it what happened yeah like a big wipeout where like i got a scar right here that like my board just snapped over my face you know just like and i was like underwater just kind of like floating like whoa just stuff like that where you like you come to and you're like,

damn, that's crazy. Were you ready? I just got in a fight with a wave and lost. Yeah, and it's got to be hard to, especially when you said you were doing a lot of pills, you're probably surfing on the pills. Yeah, I mean, that was kind of like... Was that scary?

No, none of it was scary, really. But it was just an adventure everything was always something new to do you know so what but yeah at 16 i kind of went to um another my final like rehab i kind of stopped now i think like alcohol is the last thing I gotta kick Uh huh But for the most part I just I like to smoke and chill Chill So who saved your Was there a mentor in your life that got you off all this stuff

Or like maybe your wife Yeah well it was like I went to this like halfway home And was living I was 16 with all these like 40 50 year old like you know it's kind of like a scared straight type thing just like oh my god all the dudes with no teeth like bro you got a lot of life to live you don't want this i'm like were you scared you're kind of right

i wasn't scared i was just listening yeah you know i was taking it in like these guys have lived hard lives very hard lives and like you have a choice right now you're young enough to choose like life's already hard like you don't have to make it harder by like sabotaging yourself right you know like you can navigate these waters were you writing during this time that was like when i started learning how to play guitar And like during all that Do you remember like your first lyric? I think it was like walking through the alleyways Of my mind Holy shit

You don't know me You don't know these streets brother Pop another pill That's wild Chill chill dude You're alright Chill chill you're from San dude You're alright Chill chill You're from San Diego

You're from Coronado It's all good It's paradise So you started writing music You finally got out of that That darkness Of that The pill bubble

And you It took you a couple times You said you had to go to rehab A couple times Yeah just pretty Pretty much like my whole High school career Yeah

And then I like Yeah Did you go to jail or anything? No Good Went to church Went to church Were you religious? pretty much like my whole high school career. And then I like, yeah. Did you go to jail or anything? No. Good. Went to church. Went to church.

Were you religious? For a while, yeah. What'd you learn about Christianity that you kind of like, helped you be secure with yourself at that moment in time? That like, I could just accept, I don't know, like forgiveness.

That was like a big part of like learning that you're forgiven for, by whoever, you know, or you have, you now have the ability to forgive. Right. I mean, that's all inside of us anyways. And that's just how it was taught, you know, but it's like, that was the first time I was really aware of forgiveness and how powerful it is, you know? And just like, you can actually like let go of things that don't need to be inside of you, you know?

Are you hard on yourself? Yeah. More than anyone else, right? For sure. Why do we do that to ourselves? I'm like that too. I'm hard on myself more than I give everyone else. Was somebody hard on you

when you were young? I think my dad and my mom just always made me work. So I always had like six jobs, seven jobs. Yeah. I just could never just like chill. Never enough.

It was never enough. Yeah. You too? Not with work, but just like... Your parents or anything? Just like, yeah, that critical like

they would rather see a perception right of what like a kid is versus like actually raising them yeah it's like you need to be this and you're not and it's like do you think it's that south one bit of a basket case yeah I'm like, hey, mom, I'm fucked up. I kind of need some help here. Do you ever feel like that it's the Southern California keeping up with the Joneses mentality? I don't know. It's a weird place. It's so weird, dude.

It's so competitive. Exactly. I think it's a very hard to live. Yeah, everything's so expensive. And people Move there Right And like so it's this whole like It's not like just

Oh there's just this culture You can go find that You know but like A lot of times it's like Just people with like Oil money moving And buying a mansion And you're just like

Whoa cool Yeah Our neighborhood just got more expensive I know You know It's like True Southern California people Like you're just like, whoa, cool. Our neighborhood just got more expensive. I know. It's like true Southern California people. You're raised there. Sixth generation. Yeah, I'm fourth generation Los Angelinos.

It's so... because there's not a lot of them there. Right. They all got pushed. They're all getting pushed out. I mean, you live in Denver now. Yeah. Oh, fuck yeah. This Whiteville is too expensive. Can't get away from the hustle. Yeah.

You know. But it's kind of nice too because I feel like if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere. Yeah. Like straight up. Yeah. It's like similar mentality to New York. How I think New Yorkers feel about New York is the same way. If you're from Southern California, it's rare.

I don't know. Not a lot of people. A lot of people just get stuck. There's a lot of, yeah, just like the drugs, everything. There's just so much of it there. and all the bad stuff and the good stuff it's all just right here right here and then just right there it says here that you were like um kicked you're bouncing around beach town to beach town yeah what do you mean by that well san diego and santa barbara are both oh do you drive that whole motherfucker you lived in both places yeah so when i was 14 i moved to santa barbara oh and that's when like

so i lived there 14 years and they're 14 years and now we live in huntington beach sick so what do you so you oh you feel safer on the beach yeah Which just sucks because it's expensive. I know, damn. We got like 20 kids, dog. How you living on the beach? 900 square foot spots. Let's go. That's the hustle, baby. It's a lot of life. Let's go. I love it. Definitely. A lot of life

and a little quarters. I love it, though. You know, it's like, that's what family's all about. You go through it. Like, I want to know, like, when did Roc Nation start getting hip to you? Were you, like, writing demos or, like, how old were you? And, like, what song was, like, damn, that's a hit? It was my old manager who was at Roc Nation. But he, like, was managing this other guy, Ethan, who was a DJ.

And me and him started, like, producing music. It's probably, like, who was a DJ, and me and him started producing music. I was probably 22 years old at this point. I honestly never tried to be a musician, but I just wasn't really good at anything else. My brain doesn't... An accountant? That's not me. Not that I'm dumb. But melodies and frequencies

I understand that world, you know And so I started making music with this dude, Ethan He was kind of like the producing on Ableton I was just like watching like this is crazy Were you just absorbing it like a sponge? Yeah, like you can do anything Like holy cow What did you see in him that you really loved?

Just like the freedom to create. Like if you can think of a sound, you can make it. Right. So if you're like, I want something that sounds like this and spend like 20 minutes tweaking a synth and you're like, we did it. Oh, shit. But he's really smart. He's a really great producer as well.

But he was being managed by this guy. And then we drove down to some big studio in LA, played him some of the songs. This was my old band, family band. And he was just like, yeah. Like, oh, we're going to take over the world. Yeah. I love it.

So that's how that started. And then just started writing and and producing more And building yeah So Were you getting on a lot of Rites with people Cause I heard Like I heard something like Your

Dirty heads helped you Like really start popping off Was that later in the career Or like Yeah that was only like Right A couple years ago Oh shit

So give me these years of What were you writing Were you like It was like a lot of EDM stuff Really Like you'd work with like DJjs and what they're like working on when you get in the room and just write top lines for their did you like that festival bangers it's fun it's still fun it's just not like as far as my like own artistry i was confused about that at that time. Right. Because there's so much

that I was just getting introduced to. Like, bro, this is going off in France. Oh, that's cool. But I'm in Costa Mesa. I've never been there. Yo, dog, I'm in San Diego right now. I don't know. Fuck France, you know?

But it was just, yeah, all of it made, definitely like helped me Grow into the artist I am today Just by Doing a bunch of stuff That's stretching And uncomfortable

And like Stuff that you never Songs that you're like Was that rat race Burning you out though? For sure Like what? Like after what?

A couple years? Yeah like six years Damn you did that for six years? Yeah Were you making dough? I was like sleeping in my car. I used to drive an old Volvo. I was sleeping in my car outside of sessions

because we were living up in Santa Barbara, so that's like a two-hour drive. Oh, my God. So I'd do like three, four sessions in a row, try and get like as many songs in for the week and then drive back home. Holy shit, dude. Yeah.

It's been working. You love it. Do you love it or do you not wish it was so grand? Yeah. I think I've just learned like now I take less. I do less, but each step I take does more. But I had to do all that stuff just to learn. I don't know.

I had to do it. It's all part of it. You ever get out of a session and the dude you're working with just fucking sucked and then you're sleeping in your Volvo and you're just like, fuck this. Yeah. I've left sessions before.

Don't tell me the name But tell me the situation Give me the situation though Just like recording Trying to record a top line That like You're like this isn't good Like why are we still wrestling with this But then they're in the booth

Just like Doing line after line, like freestyle, like, we'll get it. We'll get it. You're like, okay. I'm like, I'm out of here, dude. I'm tired of seeing my family. They go to put money in their meter.

And I tried to like be all sneaky, but I put my backpack on. I was like, yep. And I was just standing at the elevator and they came back. I was like, oh, you're leaving. I was like, yep. And I was just standing at the elevator and they came back up. I was like, oh, you're leaving. I was like, I think we got it. Oh, dude. How is that like? Okay, well, see ya.

Later. That's gotta fuck with your head, man. Especially when you're one of your, I mean, when the goal is to write a hit. Yeah, you're just like... But if that's the goal, then. Especially when you're wanting, you're, I mean, you're, when the goal is to write a hit. Yeah. You're just like, but if that's the goal, then that's where you already

messed up. Right. You know, I think I was thinking the, not, maybe not wrong, but like,

not the best way to make music. Yeah. You're not trying, you shouldn't try to make a hit. You just tune into the frequencies. They're all,

they're already playing. You can hear it the frequencies. They're all already playing. You can hear it. And when you spent your whole life trying to find yourself and then going through these sessions where you're just giving your brain to someone else, it's got to be a fucking mindfuck. Yeah. I've never really thought about it like that.

But I'm glad I did it. I'm going to clap to you, dude. I like you. You're a good thing. You're a hard worker So You said Fuck this I'm done with this

Then it says here That you Recorded your first record Where are you getting This information from This is cool This is Luminati I got

The Luminati We did a whole We had a little PI follow you We had a little PI check So then it says I guess this is your first record

That you had a Dude Yourself studio Built in shipping containers in Costa Mesa Yeah What the fuck? So yeah, basically from my old band We did one of those things where you can like Family band, right? Yeah, family band

You can sell your masters or like To like a... I kind of forget what it's called, to be honest. But basically, we sold a handful of our songs, masters, to like something to get money. So you sold some... So we took that chunk of money and bought three shipping containers. And over like six months, just did all the construction,

framed them, insulated them, stacked them up. So it was inside a warehouse in Costa Mesa. It was like adult Legos. It was honestly really dope. Was it hot? No, they're all HVAC inside. Like plush.

It was nice. Had a little sofa. It was like... Did you like live in the studio then? No. Because you already had a pad. This was later in your life? Yeah, this was like 2018.

Oh, like right before COVID. But then lost it at COVID. Yeah. So all the containers are up in Santa Barbara now on my friend's property. Just like he has a big field. And they're just like plugged into his house. So people still create music in them, but... So tell me about that process of building your own studio

and this is finally you. And then it's gone. It's fucked up. The most money you've ever made, spent, lost, just right there. Did you write your best work or do you feel like that was okay work? No, that was the Slum Beach Denny album A lot of that was made in that studio Holy shit

Yeah I kind of lost the studios And gave it to those people Like I don't really have like rich friends So if you're like Hey anybody got 80 grand To like buy these Yo your boy's broke They're like nah nah, sorry.

Where my trust fund kids at? Yo, Stro, where you at? I wish Stro was in my life that time. No, but damn, that's fucked up. But what's cool is that everything started shifting after that. It's just like that needed to happen.

And then not immediately after that,'s just like that needed to happen yeah and then like immediate not immediately after that but like very soon after like i met christian i met adam i met all the people that are on the team now i started making like in my opinion the best music i've ever made just because it's pure it's not like trying to be anything else it's just you're being you exactly and then authenticity all that like yeah like got to like my production and won a grammy with soja like not with the studio like it's like that type of stuff where it's like all these rad people and like cool blessing things just started popping up, but I didn't have a spot to make any of it.

It would just be like, well, fuck, just come through. Isn't it amazing? You were chasing this dream of fucking being successful on other people's terms, and the minute you started just trusting yourself, you started getting Grammy noms, your fucking studio, you got your fucking management team. I mean, like, why are people so afraid

to just follow their gut of who they want to be? I don't know. It's scary sometimes. Yeah. I think that's it. You just want to fit in. You just want people to, like,

appreciate and value you. But if you're like, once you get to the point of like, I literally don't care what you think about me. I appreciate and value myself like inside. Not in like a cocky way, but just like some self-love type stuff. It goes back to that childhood insecurity, bro. 100%. I'm like that too. I'm like, fuck, I'm 35 years old.

I'm still insecure as fuck about some of this shit. Of like trying to impress everyone and shit. I mean, who doesn't want to be impressive? I know. Why? It's not a terrible thing, but it's also like if you could lose yourself striving to impress people

when it's like, just sit down on the sofa and chill. Or like, just try to impress yourself. Yeah, exactly. Are you okay in your own skin right now? Yeah. Because if not, let's go have a talk. Is it a lot of your themes in your music and lyrics are kind of that?

Yeah, I mean, I think I try to just... It kind of started just evolving. I think it's getting realer as it's going You know like There's still songs on Slum Beach Denny That I'm like I don't know if I would like Write that again

Yeah But I'm glad I did for that time You know Yeah And I'm sure that's how I'll feel about this next album A few years after that Yeah You know like

I was just so young and naive You know like I was young, dumb and full of cum. Exactly. It was a younger me. It was a younger me. The hard way. You paid your dues. Now you're doing your solo project.

Was it scary to go full solo? Or are you always doing your heart? I felt like the next proper step. That's just like, I can produce like the next proper step That's just like I can produce all the sounds I want to make I don't need to ask you for a bass line Because I can make a bass I don't need to ask you to play keys

Because I can play Everything just grew into a place of like I got the whole band up here I can hear the sounds Just let me vibe out with it for a sec Instead of like arguing over a bass line For 30 minutes Right Like

Almost How sick of digging holes grandpa Yeah Well that's too damn bad Too damn bad Billy That's what it felt like sometimes I hear that bro And you know what also

It's like I have a question about the buyout When you got that buyout From those songs Did you have to split it With the whole band Or were you the songwriter I was a songwriter but there's a few of us from the band that were doing the studios so it's like we kind of used it like it wasn't really anyone else's

money but i kind of used it like this is it's to build our next was that the dream was that the last straw that broke the camel's back for Family Band? Family Band was already done at that point. It was like our synth player moved to Alaska. Other dude went to Vegas. People just moved.

It was just like, well, the band's over. Do you have abandonment issues? Me? Yeah. Do you feel like it's all on me when people just leave you? Yeah. I mean, that's how it was.

Yeah. Like, actually. Why? Just as a kid. Yeah, exactly. So it's like, as an adult, it's like, I can do this. I know, but we're suppressing. Yeah.

We're suppressing. Yeah. We're like, we're suppressing our feelings. You know, it's hard to be abandoned all the time. It's trauma. Yeah. I'm like that too. But then you kind of like, you can end up self-sabotaging to become abandoned again. Exactly. Because that's all you know.

Yeah. Do you push people away a lot? I can. Yeah. I try not to I used to be a lot more Intense I think And now I just don't really care

About most things The way I used to Were you a fighter? I fought a lot You whooped some ass? Yeah I got my ass whooped a lot too What was the biggest ass whooping you got? Oh from this big

dude i'm not gonna say his name but it was he was big did you i was over it it was like we fought you know it's like high school fights it's like in a parking garage all the kids are like yeah they're all circling you forget this moment It's like hitting a wall Yeah, and he would just hit you And I just like, I turned around and walked away And got like, right in the like Temple ears And knocked out

So crazy Damn bro My back was facing you It's like that Kimbo Slice Those Kimbo Slice videos where they would just fight. Do the backyard fights. Backyard bashes. Jorge Masvidal. Or bum fights. Game bread.

Just in the backyard, just knocking dudes out. That's all like Southern California shit. Yeah, and Florida. And Florida too? Oh, hell yeah. I feel like Florida and California are very similar They're like The parallel

Music too They're like The southern coasts Yeah You know it's like They each have their own cultures that are very different But there's a lot of weird similarities too Yeah

But also a lot of very different parts Yeah I don't know sort of shout out flow rider yeah shout out flow rider you know like i taught you we talk about abandonment issues so do you think with all those abandonment issues through trauma and yada yada through your life do you think having a family saved your life because you 100 it's like You have a gang And it's like It just I don't know having that responsibility Gives you more reasons to not do the

Dumb stuff that Makes you feel worse You know what I mean it's like I want to show up and be present and ready And like able to handle Four kids screaming and not be like And you're hungover. So it's Monday morning.

You just flew in like, dad, I want cereal right now. Oh, do you? Oh, yeah. I want some water and some sleep.

Exactly. But, uh, no, I hear you, man. It's, I mean,

that must've saved your life too. Having a family, having a fucking rock system. Yeah. Cause when you have that, then you, then you, man. I mean, that must have saved your life too, having a family, having a fucking rock system. Yeah. Because when you have that, then you're unstoppable. Then you can just focus on your music. I knew that early on. Yeah.

Subconsciously. It was like, because I was the only child in a broken home. And so it just like was super lonely. Yeah. A lot of the times. And it was just like, you go kick it with friends. That was like how you interact. but there was no other like voices. It was a lot of just crazy, you know?

I mean, yeah, you're by yourself. You're basically entertaining yourself. Literally. And then if you have a fucked up brain. Then it's double fun. It's double fun, dude. I feel you. I was like that too.

Super fun. I'm eight years younger than my sisters, and so they all were in high school and college, and I was just by myself. Super fun. My sister, I'm eight years younger than my sisters. And so they all were in high school and college. And I was just by myself. And my parents were a little too old. They weren't really like, they were a little tired of raising kids. Tired. A little tired.

Yeah. So I just had to entertain myself. And sometimes it was fucking weird. Jameson makes everything more entertaining. Oh yeah. Oh yeah. Learned that at a young age. Oh,

you were drinking and shit early? See, I didn't start drinking until I was like 20. I was like 11. Shut the fuck up. It's like my warm blanket in life. Drinking. That's why I got to get it.

That's your new... That's like the last thing slowing me down for sure. You think you have a problem? Oh, yeah. Yeah. But it's okay. I do too. I'll figure it out.

You're not hurting anyone, right? Just myself. Yeah. Which is maybe the worst part Well you know Talk about that self healing stuff Exactly You know in your songs

That's the season I'm going through Yeah Hardcore is just trying to Piece it together Calm the mind Yeah Like that's why That's just why my brain is

Very loud Yeah how do you And when I drink and smoke I'm like So I can't stop. I stopped smoking weed. It's hard. Yeah. I'm in,

I'm in my head. Anxiety ridden. Unless I'm like, it's getting there. Yeah. It's even, yeah, it's just,

I've also got like, just that addictive personality. Like, I'll just take things to the very, that's why I know not to do pharmaceuticals and narcotics anymore because I'll just go. I know. I'm the same way. I tried meth one time and

I stayed up for two days just beating off. Having the time of your life. I'm like, this is why I can't do drugs. I was addicted to sex. I felt like I just had to cum and I'd go to drugs. Yeah. Because I will get addicted. I'm just like, you know, I was addicted to sex. I was like, I felt like I just had to come

and I'd go to bed or something. Yeah. And that didn't work at all. I was looking at myself in the mirror. I'm just sweating in this like German hotel room or German bathroom, like in the lobby bathroom.

I'm just sweating because I'm trying to beat off in the lobby bathroom. I'm like, what the fuck am I doing? Because I have addictive personality. Yeah. This is why we got to say no I doing? Because I have addictive personality. Yeah. This is why we got to

say no to that shit. We need to keep you healthy. We need to keep you out there fucking riding, fucking shredding gnar. Shredding the gnar. That's what, you know,

we got to get you fucking surfing again. Dude, honestly. Because like, that was my question. Before we talk about your new record, I wanted like how,

you know, it's like you need that zen, that whatever, that surfing and skating. how do you find that zen when your schedule's getting busier your kids are getting older yeah i mean like you're giving everyone else all this still trying to find it but working out helps a lot you know yeah like that i'll just like go in and go to him, you know, saying mean things to myself in my head to keep going. Like, don't fucking stop.

You're a fucking piece of shit. You're not stopping now, bitch. You little bitch. You motherfucker, you're a piece of shit. I know you just played Red Rock 17 times this year, but you're a piece of shit. Yeah, I'm learning to be a little kinder in the inner dialogue. Let's be nice

to ourselves, bro. But yeah, the Zen is, I think, coming soon. I don't really have it yet. I just smoke weed and we go to the beach a lot, honestly. And that's like the best. The Zen is like, I don't have a job.

Yeah. Like the Zen is, I don't clock in anywhere. Like Joe Schmo over there. Even though that sounds very tempting sometimes because it sounds more consistent and like reliable and you don't have to leave for months on end. And like, but at the same time, they're gone eight hours a day, 40 hours a week. Right.

And we're just like at the beach yeah like we're just gonna go get sunburned yeah why can we have that mentality in our brain no say no say oh god it's life is so weird especially when we're gonna turn into a therapy podcast dude this is what we do i mean fuck the music i want to get to know you bro this is my God, life is so weird, especially when we're going to turn into a therapy podcast. Dude, this is what we do. I mean, fuck the music. I want to get to know you, bro. This is my first time talking to you. I want to know what's in your head, you know? It's like a whole lot of fun.

Yeah, well, me too, brother. Welcome home. Here. Hold on. Hold my hand. Welcome home. So let's talk about the new record a little bit You know something a little piece

You know Yeah How are you feeling about it? Feeling good about it? Very happy Who did it? You produced it? God damn it

Yeah You're a fucking machine Dan Thanks You're torn and then you made a new record And they produced it What are you writing about? What are you talking about in these songs? A lot of it is

Like a lot of it's about the struggle with addiction. A lot of it's love letters to my family. A lot of it's the hardships of just balancing it all and trying to find your peace, like what you're saying.

That's where my zen, but it doesn't like heal it it just i'm able to like process it and then the more i listen to it it just kind of do you think we ever heal it i think we just yeah yeah so what are we doing wrong i don't know i started going to a brain doctor yeah well like a psychiatrist no no like a real like a oh like they put it on your head? Like a brain person So what'd they say? Like, is it all Got some science?

Like a big, big bag of fun for him Oh yeah, they're like, welcome Hey bro, good luck He's, but he's just You know, he's Obviously educated and that stuff, but like He's like, that childhood trauma, all this stuff Like, drinking's not helping This isn't helping, like like if you really want to find that like we're gonna

rewire your brain right so you can have that yeah but it's gonna take time and a lot of work on your end and i'm like okay yeah i want that like more than anything i just want to like wake up stoked yeah yeah dude i'm i i got the sad gene too. I was suicidal. Why? I don't know. I think it's that abandonment stuff. I was the same way. I felt like I was a loner. I felt like no one cared about me.

I felt like in high school, people were just making fun of me or something. Maybe it was all in my head or maybe it was. I had this trauma from that that I couldn't let anyone in to see the real me. Totally. I was like class clown. Yeah, same.

Always getting kicked out of class, but making everybody laugh. But then I'm the one sitting out there like, man, get out of here. Yeah. Okay. Very well. Yeah. Bye. Happily.

Yeah. God damn it. Being a kid sucks yeah it's hard man I wasn't good at it I wasn't good at it either I wanted to grow up so fast and just like

start doing this and yeah and now I think we have to repair that kid inside we forgot yeah we don't have a kid

like you ever like kids like I'm grown yeah don't tell me what to do you ever like recently like just eat

some ice cream like brings you back to like what you thought kids did like go to the swings with your kid you know I mean I do that every day and have a joy you're smiling right no it's like I think even that's really

powerful too is like having these children like if I'm not able to have fun They're able to have fun Something's off They don't need drugs They don't need anything They're just high on life

Why can't We be like that That sounds fun And a lot easier And not be afraid To go to the brain doctor We'd be like that. Yeah. That sounds fun. Yeah. And a lot easier. Yeah. And not be afraid to go to the brain doctor. We take care of our broken arms when we fuck up in snowboarding or skating. Sometimes I don't do that.

God damn it. We need to take care of this man. No, but it's so hard, dude I'm so anxious It's like really learning to take care of yourself For the first time Because no one taught you or did Like just straight up like When you learn to take care of yourself

By doing a bunch of bad things It's like hard to unlearn all that It's like just bad habits That have created like A sadder lifestyle Right Than like I look at some person It's like just bad habits That have created like a sadder lifestyle Right Than like I look at some person that like

Doesn't do any of that stuff And they're all stoked and rock climbing Like oh that's sick You're like god I get pissed off at happy people Like fuck you God you're so simplistic No but like it's just like

You're just envious But sometimes I feel like those people are the ones that came from the most bullshit. Right. And like, they figured it out.

Yeah. And it's possible. Well, you're on your path, buddy. I think we're both on our path. Let's go. I'll clap to that. Let's go. One more time.

One more time. Damn, this has been a pleasure, man. That's like the politician handshake. This has been a pleasure. So. That's like the politician handshake. This has been a pleasure. So you got a new record out coming around October, November, somewhere around then? That'll be the first single.

Cool. Yeah. What's it called? Caliphess 2 is a single. Wow, what's Caliphess mean? Southern California. Oh, yeah? It's like, yeah, Mexican slang for SoCal.

Oh, wow. So the first record has a song called Caliphess, but this It's like, yeah, Mexican slang for SoCal. Oh, wow. So the first record has a song called Cleafus, but this one's like different, but it has Be Real on it. Oh, really? It's going to be fun. Dude, how was that, having him in the studio? Honestly, I went to his studio. Damn.

It was awesome. Like, he was super cool. And, yeah. That guy's been in the scene forever, dude. Right. Ups and downs. It was awesome Like he was super cool And yeah That guy's been in the scene forever dude Right Ups and downs Living legend Like that's the type of stuff

Like if you would have told yourself as a kid Yo someday you'll be on a song with this cat Yeah You'll be like I don't believe you Nah dog But now it's real Yeah

And it's not out yet But I listen to it It's real I hear his not out yet, but I listen to it. It's real. I hear his voice. Let's fucking go. See, that's why we got to believe in ourselves, Devin. There we go.

That's the theme of this podcast. Believing in yourself, telling the bad trauma in yourself. Not today, devil. You're going to suck it from the back because we are moving forward. We're not keeping any of that trauma anymore. We're going to be ourselves and we're going to suck it from the back because we are moving forward. We're not keeping any of that trauma anymore. We're going to be ourselves and we're going to be present because trauma is past and future. But if we stay present, we're happiest. Isn't that crazy?

It's crazy. You can ruin your present, your future, just from trying to forget the past. I know. Suppression. That's crazy Yeah That's why we're gonna Just think about all the That's why we're gonna be happy

We're gonna be fucking happy We're gonna smile We're gonna appreciate life Cause you're gonna do Stroll's gonna put you on 17 more Red Rock shows next year And it's gonna be fucking awesome You're gonna enjoy life

Honestly life is good. There's no reason why it shouldn't be. So, with this mind state, my last question is, what do you want to be remembered by? Like the legacy? Yeah. I mean, obviously

there's that thing of like, I want the music to touch people. But like beyond that i don't i just want to be like a decent guy good husband showed up for his kids nice to his kids just like i don't know be remembered is just like i do was real yeah he just kept it a hundred well I'm like try to love people as best I can and

that's that well from from this interview my first time really talking to you I can't wait to be your friend bro this is gonna be great

cheers bro thanks for being on the show thanks for having me later bro you tuned in to the world's podcast with Andy Fresco

thank you for listening to this episode. Produced by Andy Fresco, Joe Angelo and Chris Lawrence. We need you to help us save the world and spread the word. Please subscribe, rate the show, give us those crazy stars. iTunes, Spotify, wherever you're picking this shit up. Follow us on Instagram at World Saving Podcast for more info and updates. Fresco's blogs and tour dates you'll find at andyfresco.com. And check our socials to see what's up next.

Might be a video dance party, a showcase concert, that crazy shit show, or whatever springs to Andy's wicked brain. And after a year of keeping clean and playing safe, the band is back on tour. We thank our brand new talent booker, Mara Davis. We thank this week's guest, our co-host, and all the fringy frenzies that help make this show great. Thank you all. And thank you for listening.

Be your best, be safe, and we will be back next week. No animals were harmed in the making of this podcast. As far as we know, any similarity, instructional knowledge, facts, or fake is purely coincidental.