We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful David Dilin. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with David below.

David, appreciate you joining us today. How did you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way of learning more?

It would be difficult to accurately trace where my learning began. I could start with being raised in a family of musicians, singers, and preachers. I may give credit to the inspiration of artists that I met, worked with, or was exposed to. Or I could thank my brother for pushing me to manifest my potential into my first body of music. Whether it be what was imbued in me at a young age by my family, or what inspired me and pushed me, I owe my education to exposure. I let my schooling be all that God and life directed my way.

And then one day everything became technical. I wanted to know the terms behind the chords, the theory behind the music, the science behind the art. I obsessed over cadence, word play, rhyme scheme, chord changes, every little thing. Knowing what I know now, I wish I could have learned these things from the start, so that converting ideas and feelings into sounds would be as easy as speaking a language. I find that to be an essential skill – translating what’s in your head & heart into something that can be explained or understood by others.

Looking back on the path I’ve taken, I believe fear and the approval of others were the greatest obstacles in the way of me learning who I am, both personally and artistically. I find myself in a better place now, where I can be free to express myself, to create without barriers. There’s no longer any fear of breaking the rules once you realize they never existed in the first place. They’re merely a self-induced illusion.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I started writing poetry on Tumblr at age 15. Slowly working my way up and eventually publishing on a collective writing blog, I gained enough confidence to start a poetry club at my high school where I shared my work and created a space for others to do so as well. Once I started to find my voice, my brother and I collaborated to produce my first body of music, an EP titled Vice Versifier. Soon after, I was also competing in international poetry competitions, like CUPSI (College Unions Poetry Slam Invitational). Seeing how my work affected other people for the better, allowing them to reflect and feel inspired, I continued to create more poems and more music, because I felt I had a duty to do so. A duty I enjoyed, and still do, to this day.

I write poetry and music that allow people to think, to reflect, and to hopefully be inspired, even if it makes them uncomfortable. I’ve used multiple languages, like in my poem “Polyglot.” I’ve discussed the effects of pornography on my mind, like in my song “Real World.” I even take a look at the concept of Love through a scientific lens in poems like “Love Economics” or “Our Genesis.” My gifts and my interests allow me to paint a unique perspective, and I believe that to be the case for everyone. I take pride in who I am, and my hope is that my works can instill the same pride in others who hear me. That’s what I believe, and that’s what I want everyone to leave KNOWING, after they’ve experienced my art.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

No matter how promising you may be, nothing is ever promised to you. I say that from experience. From a young age, I was told by many how great I would be, how I would be famous, how God would use me. While they meant well, this created an expectation in my immature mind, that as long as I tried, my expectations would simply manifest before me. For a while, they did, which only solidified this idea in my mind. I learned the hard way that you’re not always going to be everyone’s favorite, and you’re not always going to be seen in a positive light. That has nothing to do with your identity and purpose, though.

I once submitted a song I had been working hard on to multiple music review platforms. On the first platform, I received significant praise, which reflected my expectations for the song. Feeling confident, I submitted the song to another platform where it was heavily ridiculed. You would never think it was the same song if you compared the reactions from both platforms. The juxtaposition crushed me and made me rethink everything about what I was doing. How could the same piece of work be loved & praised in one mind and be detested in another? I spiraled into confusion and questioning my identity, questioning if I had somehow lost something or if I should have ever been making art in the first place. The gift in all of that was coming to know and love myself, and my work, in spite of ridicule. Things don’t always work out, but that doesn’t take away from who you are. Nothing is ever promised to you, no matter how promising you may be.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

The best thing a society can do to support artists is to SHARE. We give so much of ourselves to what we do, and it means the world to use when people is to treat us like their favorite memes or sports teams. I mean that. A comment, a share, adding something to your story, shouting us out, I promise you that just one little thing like that can pull us out of the largest rut of feeling uninspired, or unworthy. Reach out and engage – we love it, and in this age of technology, we NEED it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.daviddilin.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/daviddilin
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/daviddilin
• Twitter: https://x.com/daviddilin
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/daviddilin
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/daviddilin
• Other: https://daviddilin.ffm.to/sterlingsilver