We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Exigent. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Exigent below.
Exigent, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?
Every musician has their own ways of learning, but in general, consistent practice and experience are the most important things. Practice schedules will look different for everyone, but just like a workout routine, you won’t see progress if you don’t practice. However, practice alone doesn’t make a great musician. Experience is the other piece of the puzzle that comes with time. All of us have been students of School of Rock, where we each had unique experiences with our own instruments and learned to develop our musicianship skills. Just getting up onstage and being in that environment taught us a lot of how band performances work. You learn how to set up and break down equipment, how band dynamics work, how to communicate onstage, and many other things. Mistakes, in fact, are often the best teachers. Rejection can be a helpful experience, as Angel explains. It builds character and can reveal to you the things you need to improve on. Now, she is able to look back on those situations and appreciate the growth since that time. Jessica and Jacob often joke with each other about old videos of their performances, knowing that the other will cringe and point out all their old mistakes. While it can be hard to watch old videos, they are fantastic ways to gauge progress and understand what you’ve learned since then.
Jessica picked up the bass in her late teens, when most people around her had already been playing out for years. Being new in the music scene was very intimidating since she wasn’t familiar with things like music terminology or equipment. Though no longer an issue, having that knowledge early on would’ve absolutely sped up her learning process. Angel feels that spending time on technical things would personally help her improve her drumming. Whether it’s drilling exercises or brushing up on music theory, there is also room to improve from a technical standpoint. Jacob wishes he took more time to practice when he was a child. He looks back on the times when he never wanted to practice and understands how important it really was after all.
Communication, organization, and networking are some of the most important skills to know as a band member. While technical skill is important, it’s easy to forget the value of interpersonal and organizational skills. Being able to communicate on the fly with your bandmates is such a helpful skill to have. Not all gigs are perfect. The sound itself may be off, you may not hear your bandmates, someone may make a mistake, all kinds of things can happen. In those moments, you need to be able to set aside nerves and work with your bandmates to make things succeed. Even off the stage, you need to be in touch with your band and be sure to communicate ideas and plans so everyone is on the same page. This is when organization also comes in. Keeping lists, managing social media, planning rehearsals, there’s a lot of organizational skills musicians may not even realize they need. Networking is also extremely important if you want to get noticed. You have to be prepared to talk to people and make a good impression, especially if they’re a connection to something like a venue or an event. Whether in person or through online interaction, every musician should know how to connect with others in the scene. Like Angel says, “you need to be the boss of the situation.”
There are tons of obstacles that people building a music career will face. Aside from the expenses of music equipment, things like burn out or personal insecurities can hinder you from moving on with your music. Angel says that there was a time when she felt stuck and unchallenged for a year, unsure of what she had to change to move forward. It’s a sentiment Jacob can also relate to, as he felt down and out at one point and was uncertain of what he should be learning next. Jessica, in fact, almost wanted to give up singing after hearing herself sing when she was a high school freshman. These are all roadblocks that can prevent you from reaching your full potential. Perfectionism can easily get the best of us and make us feel unmotivated, exhausted, or even believe we aren’t any good at what we do. Once you overcome them, you’ll find you can do way more than what you originally thought.
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?
Exigent is a three piece rock band from South Florida. The band members include 24 year old lead vocalist and bassist Jessica Elalouf, 20 year old guitarist Jacob Elalouf, and 16 year old drummer Angelina Bukata. The band was first formed in 2018 by Jacob, who also suggested the band name. He was in English class during a class reading of Julius Caesar when he noticed the word “exigent” on the page. It left such an impression, that it was chosen as the band name. Ever since then, we’ve aimed to live up to the word’s definition, which is “urgent” and “demanding”. In 2019, we released our first original song, Low. It won “Song of the Year” at the Josie Music Awards, which we played live at Dollywood. We also had to opportunity to play at 2019 NAMM and meet musicians from around the globe. Jacob and Jessica are both Ernie Ball endorsed and members of the Brotherhood of the Guitar, headed by world-renowned photographer Robert M. Knight. Angel is endorsed by SJC drums and Scorpion Percussion and has been one of the winners of the Hit Like a Girl Contest.
Rather than try and fit the mold, we prefer making things interesting by playing things people haven’t heard before. Our sets include original music, covers of other new rock artists, and popular songs with our very own twist. Not only do we have more fun, we get to introduce our audience to some amazing new music and artists we love. In fact, we have brand new original songs in the works and are planning to start releasing them in the next few months. We want to give a shoutout to Fame on Fire’s lead singer, Bryan Kuznitz, for being our awesome producer and bringing our vision to life. We’re proud to say that these upcoming songs represent exactly what Exigent is all about. We can’t wait to share them with you all very soon!
Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?
One things non-creatives may not understand is how much time, money, and effort goes into building an artistic career. Most people don’t see what goes on behind the scenes. They aren’t aware of the additional skills and knowledge you need to succeed in today’s musical landscape. Instruments, equipment, software, music coaches, all of that costs a lot of money! Life also happens, and things like work or school can get in the way. Jacob is currently learning music production and video editing on his own while also studying engineering. It’s certainly not easy to balance both of those things. He has to put the time into learning new programs and getting familiar with them while also keeping his grades up. As Angel also explains, balancing her work life with her music life is not easy. Just making one music video demands a lot of time and hard work. She has to mic all her drums, record multiple takes, and understand how to edit. She may discover that after recording, a mic wasn’t on, or a camera angle was off, which can slow the process. Just getting ready for a show requires lots of work, including the many days of rehearsing beforehand. On show day, you need time to pack your equipment, get dressed and do makeup, and travel to your show. Jessica also feels non-creatives don’t understand how much work goes into her position as a singer and bassist. Playing bass while singing is no easy task, and doing it while being interesting to watch makes things more challenging. She also recognizes how little the bass is appreciated by those outside of the music world, so she hopes to bring it the attention it deserves. The nuances of working in music often go unnoticed and people normally just see what happens onstage or on social media.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
Even with all the challenges, it’s so rewarding to be able to perform our own music and share it with others. Being onstage means you have control of the show’s atmosphere and your audience’s mood. You have the ability to make them feel a certain way and enjoy every moment of it. Angel especially loves the sound of the bass drum at concerts and feeling the boom in her body, a feeling she wants to give to others. She recalls when she started performing how good it felt to watch people dance along to the beat. Knowing that you have that ability to move people is such a wonderful feeling. Jacob also loves the thrill of the stage and hearing the roar of an excited crowd. One of the coolest things during a concert is when the audience shouts lyrics back when the singer backs off the mic. It’s amazing to see how one song can bring so many people together in a single moment. We also want to inspire others and express ourselves authentically through our music. It’s fulfilling to be able to channel all your emotions into writing music or putting on a show. Jessica loves to write her lyrics around certain emotions, topics, or themes, and setting them to powerful melodies. Knowing her lyrics have the potential to impact others brings her great joy. Music is absolutely a universal language!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/exigent.official/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BandExigent
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/exigent_band
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChZIOoujZGrn6qzH9G4zi7A
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2YvxkS2uS6qmBxLbIvLt1F?si=X2LbySdpQdC2pn__84bvew https://www.tiktok.com/@exigent_official
Image Credits
Ethan Elalouf