We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Anthony Jacques a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Anthony, thanks for joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?
My first experience with electronic music was “Benny Benassi & Global DeeJays – San Francisco”. I still remember the feeling I got from listening to that song. It was a combination of excitement, wonder, and nearly anxiety. I needed more of whatever this sound was. That’s when the bug started to bite. Fast forward to EDC Los Angeles, 2010. I was big into Trance and Electro. I had the opportunity to see Above&Beyond, Armin Van Buuren, and Benny B. I was HOOKED. The sound, the lights, the bass vibrating my spine. I just remember thinking, “that’s what I wanna do”. And not necessarily perform on the big stage, or have crazy pyrotechnics, I just wanted to give people the same feeling I got when I listen to the music I love. To be able to create an experience, and a memory that would last a lifetime was all I could think about. That’s when I knew I wanted to pursue a career in Doing & producing, but I wasn’t sure where to start or what to do. It was really overwhelming at the time.
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?
After my experience with EDC, I dove into production. I was using GarageBand on my 2011 MacBook Air, because as a broke college student I had no funds, so I couldn’t afford any other music software. I sat in my room and I scoured the internet for youtube tutorials, production articles, ways to sound like the artists I listened to, just anything remotely educational so I can learn to do what I wanted to do. It was the only direction I had figured out to take, as I had no peers in this scene.
I had just graduated high school, and I had a choice to make. I was feeling pressure from my family, to continue my higher education. The day I solidified my choice was one that I will always remember. I had applied to CalPoly Pomona for Hospitality Management. I was nervously waiting to see whether or not I got accepted. The day my letter arrived, I got accepted. But the feeling of excitement wasn’t there… I wasn’t happy that I got in. I was actually almost disappointed. It was a strange and conflicting feeling. But the second I put my letter down, I made my choice. It was official. I was going to be a House music producer and DJ, and nobody was going to stop me.
This moment I think is where I derive my discipline from. I still have that mentality. “Nobody is going to get in my way.” The only issue was that I was a shy kid, with no friends. No direction, no help. It was a scary world to sink your teeth into alone.
My first official move into the world was the one that changed my career for the better. I was on instagram, looking for a local spot to play for my first ever gig. I came across an ad for SpaceTaco Tuesday’s. (Quick shout out to the SpaceTaco crew, especially Daryl aka Seek-One, thank you buddy.) They were searching for DJs to play. I sat in my room for longer than I would like to admit, before I decided “screw it, just go. What’s the worst that can happen?”
I ended up meeting one of my best friend’s that night, Jorge Bejarano (Amazing human, producer, DJ). We had both decided to start our careers on the same day, and we happened to meet. I still laugh at this interaction. I remember seeing him at the bar, just decked out in Angel’s gear. A beanie, jersey, everything this guy was wearing was for the Angel’s. I myself am a Dodger’s fan. The first thing I said to him was “The Angel’s suck dude, you should find a better team.” We laughed about it, and started chatting. After the meeting, we went to his car and we just sat there and shared our productions with each other. They sucked, but it was the first time I had met someone with my similar tastes and who actually wanted to discuss production with me. I worked with ST for awhile, playing a few gigs here, helping with marketing, and it gave me the start I needed.
Shortly after that, Jorge introduced me to his friends, and this is where my life changed again. I met Harnold, Edgar, and Billy. Aka Patria Undrgrnd. The first night we met, we just played music in Harnold’s garage all night long. It was from 7p-9am or something like that. But I had found my home. Every weekend after that, we did the same thing, for years. We met up, got a few beers, and just played music all night. It was a training grounds essentially. We helped each other, taught each other how to be better, joked around, and just made memories. Some of my best memories are still in that garage. This place had brought A LOT of people together over the years. I owe my whole career to these guys. They taught me everything I know about mixing. All of this happened simultaneously as I worked on my production.
This is where my sound developed. I was deep in the tech-house scene, playing stuff from music labels like Dirtybird, Bunny Tiger, Cuff, and then I found the underground. In my opinion, the true underground music. Labels like Cuttin’ Headz, 8-Bit, Politics of Dancing Records, Classic Music Co., the list goes on. I started honing my skills, polishing my track finding abilities, and just overall became a much better artist.
I think this bond, all those years in the garage, and the ability to help each other, be honest with each other about things that didn’t sound good, or that song was whack.. this is what set’s me apart. The community I have immediately surrounding me is what makes me the artist I am today.
Today, I am fully involved with my crew, Patria Undrgrnd. We went from playing music in the garage for us 5 people, to throwing warehouse parties with massive names, and booking residencies in Las Vegas. We push ourselves to the limit, push ourselves to be better. Nobody accepts mediocrity, and THAT is the key for me. This crew, this mindset we share, this energy we all share is what I am most proud of. We are a family, and it makes me proud to see how far we’ve come, and I’m excited to see how far we can all go together.
Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.
It’s hard to think of something, because I have not had the mindset of a non-creative for 10+ years… But I think non-creatives won’t understand my drive and hunger to be able to do this for a living. I spent years of my life playing to nobody. Playing to empty rooms, bugging people to come to shows where I eventually didn’t even end up playing because it was so empty. But none of that ever stopped me. My love for the music is what constantly drives me. It keeps me going. I don’t care if I get to play for 1 person in a room. As long as I can make that person dance, forget about their worries for even 1 song, I was successful. This is what I think will be a hard concept to grasp for people who aren’t involved in this scene.
What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?
As a whole society, the most beneficial thing we could possibly do, is to consume more art. Stop purchasing your paintings, clothes, whatever from big names, giant conglomerate box stores and purchase from that one person on Etsy doing what they love. A $50 purchase at T*rget is nothing for the company, but a $50 purchase from someone trying to make a living? That could be the difference in rent, or dinner. Or a gift for someone close to them. That tiny amount of money goes miles further when you give it to someone who cares about the art they put out, whatever it may be. Also, specifically speaking about the music scene… support your local artists. Look for the people who put in work, who care about what they do. Book more unrecognized local talent. The major artist you support, was once a “nobody”. Support the little guys that are struggling, instead of booking the same talent over and over again. There is SO MUCH good music out there. You just have to have a little faith.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://soundcloud.com/tonyrafael
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ok.tony_/
- Twitter: @tonyrafael_ug
- Other: beatport: https://www.beatport.com/artist/tony-rafael/1008773
Image Credits
@highaboveproductions – IG, aka Samuel Macias