We caught up with the brilliant and insightful CHRISTIAN NGUYEN a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
CHRISTIAN, appreciate you joining us today. Do you wish you had started sooner?
Looking back in time. I had no backbone. I would be doing whatever I was told to do because it was the right thing. My passions for music was shunnned. Many of the typical arguing points were brought up to me: money, the chances of becoming famous and much more. Secretly I just wanted to make music but I would agree with everyone and laugh at the jokes they would make about the failing musician.
After my first year in college, I actually dropped out to puruse a music carreer. Ultimately, it failed. I didn’t make it big and now I was left with no degree and honestly mediocre guitar skills. I spent 5 years half heartedly pursuing a dream. However, luckily for me I learned valuble lesson. Consistency. While pursuing my dreams at night, I worked at a gym during the day. My my own body and many of the gym’s clients, I saw great results in weightloss and muscle gain. The ones that had the best results are the ones who stayed consistent. Not the ones who worked really hard for 1-2 months then quit or the ones who would come sporatically. The people with the best results were the ones who came in and put in the work day after day.
I feel like this concept can apply to all parts of life. Especially in music! Even if you don’t want to practice or write songs, be consitent and do it anyways. Even if you don’t want to work on guitar techinque, be consitent and do it anyways.
Sometimes I wish that I could go back in time and tell myself to follow my dreams sooner. But I think that is not a good way to live. Dwelling in the past can only do you harm. I wish I could have started sooner but if I did I probably would not have the wisdom that I do now. Maybe if I started later after finishing school I would have a more stable income and be able to put more time into music. However, I feel that this is the best time for me to pursue a creative career. I have gainied wisdom from failing and still have plenty of time to hone my craft.
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 am an aspiring musician who is making music for myself and hoping other people can listen and enjoy it as much as I do creating it. I actually got into guitar from my mother who bought it for herself and let it sit in the corner. I picked it up and the rest is history.
I currently teach guitar, and that process has been so eye opening for me. There are so many things that I as a self taught guitarist have learned out of order. A big problem I face with my students is not skill or techinque. It is confidence. Lacking confidence will make even the most skilled player sound bad.
What I am most proud of is that I the ability to express myself through music without the need to copy or emulate anybody else. I have what I call my own “sound” many musicians work their whole lifes to be someone else but never think about just being themselves.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
The most reward aspect of being an artist is the freedom of self expression. Sometimes people just bottle up thier feelings and have no route to release them, Being able to express yourself with by yourself is truly a wonderful skill to have. It lets you essentialy vent to yourself. It also serves as your own personal time capsule and gives you snapshots of your feelings and emotions during that time.
How did you build your audience on social media?
I ironically have a video that has over half a million view on youtube. It is a 14 year biography of my guitar journey. all my other videos have nothing compared to that, I think it is because of the story of that video. If you want to have sucess on social media. It is all about the story. Many of the commenters on that video tell me how it was inspiring to see someone like me become a good guiarist. Or how the my story inspired them to play guitar.
To be good at social media, the content needs to tell a story.
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