We recently connected with Shravan Raghuram and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Shravan thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?
I took a risk when I got laid off of my day job as a private accountant at a pharmaceutical company. I realized that I had a bit of money saved up, enough to support myself for a while so that I could try and focus my attention entirely on creating. Taking that risk had its pros and cons, but largely it is a decision that I am very thankful I made. I think a lot of artists are fearful of taking that step, and it’s easy to see why. I think I feel most rewarded and happiest when I’m spending my time doing what I love the most, making music.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I got into it from listening to music. It was my favorite thing to do for years, and still is. I consider myself first and foremost a fan of music before a musician. That gradually turned into jamming with friends and writing songs. Improvising has always been a huge part of my creative life, and has remained something that excites me in ways that nothing else seems to. I have grown a lot as an artist into various disciplines. I began as a drummer but am now a professional bassist, I write songs on guitar and sing them, and have become a proficient tape machine improviser in live music contexts. Music production has been an ongoing journey for me and I have experiences in various aspects of that field as well: making beats, recording artists, mixing and mastering records. I am also a visual artist, particularly via collages, and a live music videographer capturing and documenting the DIY indie music community in Chicago. I am proud of where I have gotten to on my journey. I am very excited to continue to expand my knowledge by playing and collaborating with more folks. I currently play in several Chicago bands, inlcuding The Courts, Fruitleather, Kevin King Regime, Gerfety, Sick Day, and Doc Mino, among others. I enjoy fillining in with various bands frequenty whenever I’m needed. I recently went on tour with Chaepter, an artist from Chicago, playing bass across the East Coast and drums down South. I look forward to doing more stuff like that. I just love it, playing music makes me so happy. I’m always looking for more people to meet, songs to play, and skills to learn along the way.
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
I had to unlearn thinking too logically about everything. I am naturally very analytical, but learning how to go with the flow more and do what I’m feeling has brought me a lot of joy recently.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
I am trying to get to a point where I can fully sustain myself financially by playing music and making art. I currently work at a record store and spend pretty much all of my time creating and playing, and while I am lucky to stay busy and make money while doing it, it is not nearly enough to be financially stable by any means.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/shravsmusic/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shrav.ok/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/shravan.raghuram.7/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKybzNd_pNwJVH1p5Fj2J3g
- Other: https://linktr.ee/thecourts.mp4
Image Credits
Aggie Butvilas