Tony Mantor: Why Not Me ? - Cannon Moore: Embracing Autism through the Universal Language of Music

Episode Date: October 15, 2023

Send us a text Who says music isn't a universal language? Today, we sit down with the inspiring young artist Cannon Moore, a 21-year-old musician from Florida. Diagnosed with autism at the tender age of five, Cannon shares his journey through the world of music and how it helped him overcome the challenges posed by his condition. From his early social struggles to an unconventional educational path, Cannon's tale is one of resilience, determination, and the incredible power of music. Life is a journey, and we all face challenges. What is remarkable about Cannon is his unwavering pursuit of his dreams, despite the obstacles he has encountered. Homeless and jobless at some point, he found solace in music and a supportive group of friends. Cannon's journey is testament to the power of friendship and the magic that can happen when you pair talent with relentless determination. He also discusses the importance of understanding autism and its effects on daily life, striking a chord with his candid insights. But the journey doesn't end there for Cannon. This ambitious musician has a vision for his future that's as bright as his spirit. He dreams of spreading happiness through his music, aspiring to deejay at large festivals and make a living from his passion. He shares his plans to move to Colorado, hoping to establish new connections in the EDM music industry. In addition, Cannon shares his coping mechanisms, such as self-talk and imagination, highlighting the importance of a solid support system and balancing confidence with humility. So, tune in, get inspired, and join Cannon as he breaks down barriers with his music and message. https://tonymantor.com https://Facebook.com/tonymantor https://instagram.com/tonymantor https://twitter.com/tonymantor https://youtube.com/tonymantormusic intro/outro music bed written by T. Wild Why Not Me the World music published by Mantor Music (BMI) The content on Why Not Me: Embracing Autism amd Mental Health Worldwide, including discussions on mental health, autism, and related topics, is provided for informational and entertainment purposes only. The views and opinions expressed by guests are their own and do not reflect those of the podcast, its hosts, or affiliates.Why Not Me is not a medical or mental health professional and does not endorse or verify the accuracy, efficacy, safety of any treatments, programs, or advice discussed.Listeners should consult qualified healthcare professionals, such as licensed therapists, psychologists, or physicians, before making decisions about mental health or autism- related care.Reliance on this podcast's contents is at the listener's own risk. Why Not Me is not liable for any outcomes, financial or otherwise, resulting from actions taken based on the information provided. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Welcome to Why Not Me The World Podcast, hosted by Tony Mantor. Broadcasting from Music City, USA, Nashville, Tennessee. Join us as our guests tell us their stories. Some will make your laugh, some will make you cry. Real life people who will inspire and show that you are not alone in this world. Hopefully you gain more awareness, acceptance, and a better understanding for autism around the world. Hi, I'm Tony Mantor. Welcome to Why Not Me the World.

Joining us today is a young producer and musician coming to us from Florida. Canon Moore is our guest today. Thanks for joining us, Cannon. Oh, no problem. Okay, so I told everybody that I have a young producer and musician. So just how young are you now? I am currently 21. 21.

Yeah. 21 seems like yesterday. Great age. So what age was it when you was first diagnosed as autistic? So I had my diagnosis whenever I turned about almost five. So for quite a while I've already known. So yeah, it's been pretty much a while. So when you was diagnosed, was there any marks?

or things that your parents were seeing that made them realize that they needed to have to get with a doctor and get a diagnosis. Yeah, so basically they told me that, you know, I had delays and learning, you know, just like the usual stuff you'll see common with autism inspection disorder. From the most part, it was just like delays and learning, and delays and walking, talking, just all that.

Okay, so once you was diagnosed and you started adapting and learning, as you was growing older, how did that affect your day-to-day life with different people you might come in contact with? Yeah, so I wasn't one to make a lot of friends. I would always try, but everyone else would just like not like me as much and they would just kind of just zone off and just, it kind of ignore me and just like ghost me the rest of the way.

But I would always explain things in certain ways that I thought was nice when it actually wasn't. So no one ever explained that to me. So I was just really bad with social situations. But after I found out about that, then I started to kind of go off and try to fix what I can do

so I can actually start having friends or like start explaining things better so people understand me better. Sure. So you're getting close to, let's say, 12, 13 years old. You're getting close to high school. Did you start branching out more, socializing? And when you did, how did that affect your high school years?

I never actually attended high school. After sixth grade, I got homeschooled the rest of the way. I couldn't really like handle school very well. So I kind of just wanted to do my own things. So that's about really it for that. I didn't get really any social. I wasn't social really at all, to be honest. Like through like the high school, middle school years,

I was mostly just with my family that whole time. Okay. So no social life. You're living at home. You're learning. You're homeschooling. You're growing. What else can you tell me about your life at that time?

Yeah. So when all this was going on, we were living at a lake house. It was located in Indiana. It was a pretty decent house. It was pretty big. It was really nice. It was a good environment to be around. But it was just, honestly, if I were to go back there, I totally would.

Like, it was probably, I've made the greatest memories there, too. It wasn't just all that. Well, that's good because you never want to take and just look at all the bad. You want to look at some good. So now I believe you're living in Orlando. Is that correct? Yeah, I'm in Orlando now. So what prompted the move from where you were to Orlando?

Yeah, so at the Lake House, my mom decided to move herself. So she sold and then we moved to, actually, we moved to Waterloo in Indiana, and we stayed there for about a year. She's kind of like fixes up houses and then resell them. So after that, I decided to, you know, that I need to do something to actually carry on my career in music. So I enrolled myself in a college and I did everything I could to possibly figure out how to get down to Orlando.

So by the time I got down to Orlando with absolutely no money, I had no money, no anything, just an apartment. And that's basically really it. I kind of slept on the floor. I was still trying to go to my classes. And then that's when actually one of my best friends came along. Oh, that's great. It's always good to have a friend you can count on.

So what age was it that you decided, you know, I think I want to do music and that's going to be my life. Ever since I was little, I loved music, but I didn't realize that I really enjoyed it until I was about like 10. And I got into this music called EDM. It wasn't pretty known at my age, but now it's really known. But whenever I played it, you know, my family, They would just make fun of me saying that, you know, it's not good.

It's, they'd just be like, yeah, this is like, yeah, like no one's going to listen to this. Like, like, you're trying to make a fool out of yourself, basically. I get that. Sometimes family will have no filter and tell you whatever they first think because that's what family does sometimes. But that doesn't mean they're not behind you or support you. It just means that sometimes they just don't get it and you have to follow through on your own. I enjoyed it so much. Like, I would play it over and over and over and over.

again, I'd play a song over 250 times a day, like the same song. Like, that's how much I loved it. It made me feel so happy and like, and I wanted to give that towards other people. So that's why I started getting really into music. That's great. Needless to say, I love music. So music can do so many things. It can create memories. It can bring back memories. It can just do so much. So I'm really glad that you found that because music can can change the world. So tell me a little bit about your music, what you do, what you play, and how you go about doing what you do in bringing your music to the places that you want for people to hear you.

Yeah, so I do everything over a laptop. I use, they call it a DAW. It's basically like a music programming software. So I use Ableton Live 11 now. So I used to use FL. That's how I first started getting into was FL Studios. That's what they call it. Or Fruity Loops, the side name.

I got to know that. And then I wanted to take a step up from that because FOS Studio is pretty good. Like a lot of people use it, but it's not the most advanced software out there. So I switched to Ableton and I started to make, that's when I started to kind of swing off in different genres. So I always start with DovStep, House, Future House, Pop, Rhythm, basically all that. Okay, that's great. So tell me your influences.

Who is it that you listened to that inspired you? And you said, you know, if I can do music, put it out there, this is kind of the way I would want to go. Yeah, so I didn't have the big, like, I didn't have the biggest inspirations. there was this a label. It was a small label at the time. He is Billy,

the founder of this label is Billy Woodford. He created NCS. Basically, it was like no copyright sounds. And then he signed really famous artists that turned out to be really famous over time. So like Alan Walker used to make like music for NCS. Now I,

a lot of people saw this music as intro music. Like, you know, music that you put on YouTube for like listening to on the side. But that's not how I saw it. That music, I listened to every day straight, like non-stop because it was like just, it made me feel something. So, like NCS and all the NCS artists, Alan Walker, Electrolite, Tobu, Gemio Seth, can name a bunch. Like all of them were my inspirations. And that's what I wanted to do. Well, that's great because it is a situation that

when someone listens to what you're doing, you're hoping that what you're doing will inspire them and help them through whatever they may be going through. So I commend you for that. And what I just say is do what you like to do because if you like it, there's going to be other people that will like it. You create your own pocket of people that follow you and then you just never know when you might be the one

that's inspiring someone to do something that they didn't believe they could do. Oh yeah, and that's what I'm excited for because if I know that I'm helping people, because music, you know, it saved my life for myself. I've been through in and out of a lot of behavioral health hospitals and because of family issues, all that. And every single time music has got me through

everything I needed to get through. So me doing that for other people, it would mean the world to me, to be honest. That's awesome. And I really hope that you can. So what do you do on a daily basis now because you're autistic and you still have to take and deal with that? So what's your day to day look like so that you can still keep moving forward to achieve the goals that you want to achieve for yourself?

Yeah, so I have a lot of coping mechanisms. The biggest one is just self-talk to keep my confidence up. That's a really big one for me. Believing that you can do anything because you really can, you can do literally anything you want as long as you keep going for it. And as long as you don't give up, it's just a matter of time before it actually happens. So that's why I've always told myself. I do use some other things like headphones sometimes because, or like ear plugs. Let's see.

What else? I have a support group kind of. My friends are a huge part of that. So they love the same music I do. So like I used to have the wrong support group and they would always like, like, you know, down what I actually wanted to do. So I'd say if you have like a bad support group, definitely do not listen to whatever they say. Absolutely.

You've got to have people that are in your corner all the time, but still be realistic about it. So your circle of friends that you have now that support you, can you give me a little bit of information about them? Are they autistic as well or some are, some aren't? what's your support group look like? Yeah, so when I went down to Orlando, it's kind of funny because my friends actually hated me at first. Like, I met them, I met one in class.

We did a class and we did a, like, we had to do like a project for like a music video or like making a song or something. And everyone else was just kind of like, really like, I don't know what we should do. So I kind of was like the heads up, kind of like the leader. So I was like, all right.

well, let's just do this then. And everyone agreed. So then I said, all right, let's, well, you guys want to do this? Because no one was giving me ideas. So I just kept throwing in ideas and everyone was going for them. So later on, they said I was so annoying because I didn't take any of their ideas. I'm like, wait, what? You guys never even gave me ideas.

So I was, but one of my friends, after that, he, I actually went homeless. It was actually really horrible because my roommates at the time, when I moved down to Orlando, they hated me, like, so. bad. Like, there was so rude to me. It was so awful. I was like, all right, you know what, I'm out of here. I can't deal with this anymore. So I moved in with, that's when I met my other friend for like, so I went on full sale housing. That's why I found my best friend. His name's Kim. And I was going to move in with him. We set in an apartment room, but I couldn't afford it because no one would hire me. So I applied for like 10 jobs, like literally 10 jobs. And still,

no one was hiring me within a month. So I was like, well, if this ain't going to work out. So Cam had actually not talk to me anymore because how bad he felt for me. So he actually pulled up one day out of nowhere. And I was like, hey, if you ever want to talk, like I really am not mad at you at all. And we should hang out again. So soon enough, he did.

And we started to actually talk and get along. And then we became literally the bestest friends. And they have, I don't think they're, you know, autistic or, but I do think they have disabilities. Like, I think my friend struggles with ADHD for sure and, you know, anxiety disorder, depression issues at times. And he really does struggle. So my other friend on the other hand, he has his kind of own issues.

I'm not, he's kind of like the mystery out of a sucker kind of. Okay, I get that. So I think you're a pretty bright guy overall. So how do you think dealing with your autism over the last 10 years or so has helped you move forward in what you want to do musically? Autism, honestly, it kind of like, I feel like it makes me not, like, it makes me not smart in certain areas, like socializing, but it makes me extremely smart in what I want to do, like music.

So like, I could get on a doll Ableton and I could just, or I could get on like pro tools, like a really advanced software and just scroll down and play with it like I've been playing with it for years. And it's like, it's all just common sense for me. Like all that is. But with, you know, socializing, that's something I have to really like put effort into because it's like really hard for me.

So like I think autism is just really a mystery for a lot of people. Yeah, that's well said. My main thing that I wanted to have my listeners here is your approach on it and how you deal with it on a daily basis. The biggest thing that we have to do is, get people who aren't autistic a better understanding on how to deal with it. And I'm just so glad that it's working out well for you. Yes, I am glad too.

Yeah, me too. So what's your aspirations? Where do you see yourself musically a year from now, five years from now? What do you think you're going to be doing and how you're going to be reaching your goals that you've set for yourself? Yeah. So I would call myself a dreamer. Like I do nothing but have big goals.

Like that's who I am. Like I see myself within a year DJing huge festivals and getting paid thousands of dollars every month. That's what I see within one year for me. And I've been working super hard to make that come true. You know, you got to put in the effort. My biggest reason to live is I love to make people happy. Like that's honestly I think would be my biggest reason to live is making my second. and others happy.

That's awesome because number one, you have to be happy for what you're doing and then if you're making others happy with what you're doing, that's just a big bonus. So now that we've covered what you want to do and everything, are you still in school at the moment? Yeah, so I go to college still.

I got a full school university in Orlando. I switched to online because I'm planning I'm moving to Colorado pretty soon. So that's going to happen in probably two months to three months, hopefully. I have to get everything going. I'm going to get connections down there. That's the only reason why I'm going down there is to figure out new connections, new,

because Colorado is the base capital for EDM. So I'd find really good connections on there. So I'm just currently traveling, trying to get as much things as possible. Because really, connections is what matters if you're trying to get into the music industry, because one person could say, oh, wow, this song's awesome, and they can make it a hit song if they're already famous.

Like, it only takes one person. That's absolutely correct. So what part of Colorado are you looking at moving to? So Denver is out of my budget. So I'm trying to go for Fort Collins, and Denver is out of control currently. So Fort Collins is very, like, chill. There's a lot of kind of peace community.

It's like a college community down in Fort Collins. And most music actually from EDM come from Fort Collins. So especially like Red Rocks, I believe, is only like 30 minutes from Fort Collins. So that would be crazy to live there and I would love to live there. That sounds like a good plan. I've heard that that's a really nice area to be. And it sounds to me like you've done your due diligence and homework on that.

So that's great. Yes. Thank you. So you went through these years, learning. what you know now, figuring out what you had to learn so that you could take and do what you wanted to do, what was your process in thinking of your future, knowing that there's all these obstacles that you've gone through, more obstacles that will come, and you have to let people know that just because you're autistic doesn't mean that you can't go for this,

do this, and make this your life one that is doing what you want to do. Yeah. So just like I said, self-talk is one of my greatest coping skills. But also I have a huge imagination. And just seeing myself, like, and just seeing where I want to be in my head and imagining it that what truly makes me happy. Just seeing like me up on stage just, you know, like everyone cheering for me. There's over 500,000 people in front of me. Even the people that hated me in the first place and told me that I would never get here. Like just saying them scream at me

because how much they want to, you know, get a signature for me. That's what I, that's what really keeps me going. That's great. You know the best way to get back at someone is just to have some success. Oh, yes. Well, I think what you're doing is really good. I think that you've got a lot of great plans. And the music business is a tough business. So I can commend you for what you're doing. And I think that overall, with everything you've gone through and what you're going through and your plans, I think you should be really proud of yourself. Oh, I am really proud of myself. especially like thinking, looking back of all the things I went through and knowing I'm still, you know, keep going. It's honestly, I'm so proud of myself.

Well, that's good because part of going out in the world is having that self-confidence that you can do it, having that little bit of ego that you know that you can do it, but don't let the ego override your self-confidence so that it makes you look bad. and then the biggest thing is do not let anyone say or do anything that stops you from accomplishing what you set out to do. Yeah, I, you know, and even like my ego teams seems to be like a little out of control kind of. But I always, you know, like recommend talking to a like a little friend, like a therapist because, you know, it's helped me through so much as well.

and I think anyone could benefit from a therapist. Even if you don't think you don't need it. Like my mom, you know, she thought she didn't need a therapist. But I said, you know, it's always good to have like a little side friend, side buddy, just telling, you know, just looking up for you, you know. So she did. And, you know, she says, you know, it improved her mid so much and improved mine. So it would be really good to have.

That's good, solid advice because anyone anywhere sometimes just needs. needs a little help. And some people think that, oh, I don't need to see a psychiatrist because they say, I'm not crazy. Yeah. Well, if that psychiatrist helped you get through whatever issue you're going through, then when you finish up, you realize that you needed that deep breath and things on the other side sometimes will look just a little bit better. Yeah, it's been a struggle, but I'm proud of myself.

I'm really just glad to hear the things that you've been through, the struggles that you've been through, and you've been able to keep one foot in front of the other and keep moving forward. And you haven't let anybody get in your head and stop you because it's so easy to let somebody, you know, kind of, you know, with all the people that would say, you can't do this, you can't do this.

It's easy to start believing that and then give up and you haven't done that. that's pretty awesome. Oh, yes. And life, you know, I thought about this, and I've realized that emotions is a big reason of why people want to live, you know? And if people don't have emotions, you know,

what would life be? It would be kind of pointless. So, like, emotions, and you got to realize that happiness and just feeling amazing every single day, that's honestly what really matters and taking or caring for other people and making them feel amazing too, because that'll make you feel amazing.

And that's really like the true reason anyone should want to live. Absolutely. Are you sure you're only 21 with that kind of thought process? It sounds like you're about 51. No, yeah, I am 21. I actually just turned 21 a few months ago in March, March 29th. Well, that's a real positive way to look at things. And I think that's just outstanding.

Oh, yeah. I totally agree with that because I have not. see a lot of people my age being very positive. But yeah, I literally run off positivity. Like that's my whole self-conscious. It's just positivity. That's great. I really appreciate what you're doing

because you're not allowing autism to change your goals, your setting goals, you're working towards them. And let me tell you, success is varied on, everyone has their different views of success. But what,

really comes down to is if you're happy with what you're doing and you're seeing progress and you're creating a body of work that everybody likes, that's successful. So you've just got to take and keep working on that, no matter whether it takes a year or five years, you've got the age going for you and you can build this thing and do it. Oh, yes. I think that, you know, that you're really just being happy or feeling like happiness yourself. And even if you're like in a, you know, living in a trailer or something, if you're happy,

then that's probably more successful than someone working or really being famous and being depressed their whole life. So I think that just going forth and being happy for what you want to do, that's like, that's truly being successful. Absolutely. And I think you've got a great mindset. Now, of course, it takes time to get in a better place, but you're only 21.

So you've gone through a lot of things in your life and you've got a great mindset. Is there anything that you look back and say, you know, I wish I'd done this or wish I could change this? Yeah, so what I really wish, and I thought my whole life that I wish I could change about myself was I wish I would show them how much I love them actually instead of just feeling it in the inside and not showing them, you know, because I always felt weird if I like said, you know, I love you to my mom or something. But I really wanted, you know, show my mom that I love her. It's just I couldn't because I kind of feel awkward about it. I think that's because of my autism. So I really wish I could really show people how much that, you know, that what they mean to me and that they like

really deserve more than what they're getting. That's an awesome statement and I truly hope that the people listening will say, you know, what he said I need to do more of. So this podcast is about understanding and I think you've done a great job at showing how autism has affected your life and how you've overcome some obstacles and done some great things. So anything else that you'd like to leave us with. Oh yeah.

A big one is just be yourself because being yourself, like you don't want to cut off. some things about you to fit into a friend group you don't belong in because you're just going to end up hurting yourself in the long run. Just be yourself and you'll find your true friends. And believe me, I sure have after I've been, after I wasn't myself for a very long time, never found my friend group. And after I just started being myself, my friend group just pops right in front of me. And yeah, that's, you know, being yourself is a true key to being truly happy. It absolutely is. And I've just enjoyed our conversation so much today. Yeah. Thank you for having me. It's been my pleasure.

Thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedule to listen to our show today. We hope that you enjoyed it as much as we enjoyed bringing it to you. If you know anyone that would like to tell us their story, send them to tonymentor.com. contact, then they can give us their information so one day they may be a guest on our show. One more thing we ask, tell everyone everywhere about why not me, the world, the conversations we're having, and the inspiration our guests give to everyone, everywhere that you are not alone in this world.