We recently connected with Bervin Harris and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Bervin, thanks for joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I knew I wanted to become a professional artist when I did my first singing at my High School. Even though I had sung in church growing up, it’s about someone else telling you, you’re really good. All my peers were telling me that I was amazing, and so I knew that’s what I wanted to do at that time, depending on how it made me feel. It made me feel amazing, and you always heard people talking about how much money you can make doing it. I felt that was the path for me.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

A little about myself… I graduated from college with a comparative arts degree which is singing, acting and dancing. I went heavily into songwriting, production, and the artistry of becoming a musician and a singer. So I signed with Capitol records, had a project that didn’t do that great, didn’t even get officially released globally. The single came out titled, “The choice was mine”, the album was called “In the Mood”.

I started doing production and I produced with KRS-One, Father MC, Heavy D, folk like that in the rap field. Then I did Jazz artist, Herbie Hancock, and so on as well as R&B artist and gospel. Then I started my own record label “Twin Records”, and had publishing through Orpheus records at the time, international publishing. That didn’t go the way I wanted it to go as well. I then became the Musical Director and Songwriter for a play production, called “I sing for love” with an all-star cast in Los Angeles. I even worked on a film, “Manhattan Man”, where I did the soundtrack along with Michael Urbaniak.

Then I decided I didn’t want to do it anymore, I didn’t get the return on investment I was hoping for even though I was making money, I wasn’t fulfilled. So I started teaching, and now I have Renaissance Youth Center, which you can check out at www.renaissanceyouth.org. Which takes up every ounce of my time, taking everything I learned and pouring it back into the young people.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Sometimes it looks great to have a major record deal and money is on the table, you got your advancement, it looks like you made it, but you didn’t quite make it. So you stick to it, if you find something you love, then nothing turns you away. It’s not about the money, it’s about the drive of your love. My thing is, if you love drawing if you love art, stick with that no matter what comes, no matter what contract fails, no matter what train or plane gets cancelled, you just stay on that path because you love it not because of what funds it is going to bring you.

No matter what family or friends don’t support you, just stick with it. If I can add a story, my parents did not want me to major in music or be in the music industry. They were definitive about it, I was kicked out of the house and was homeless. That did not stop me, it put a battery in my back to become even more successful. I started receiving a lot of opportunities in college, but I finished college because of them.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist or creator is the opportunity to have people appreciate your talent, understanding that you have a message birthed inside of you. Now how do I get that message, that vision, that gift out, so others can see?

The next part that makes it amazing is now how do I share what I have. If I’m a skilled singer, how do I teach someone else to be a skilled singer? Or how do I teach someone else to be a skilled musician, producer or whatever else it is that you do because you are not here forever. And so if I got to this plateau, how do I bring you up to that plateau knowing that you can get to a higher plateau also.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.bervinharris.net
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mrharrisryc
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Bervin-Harris-100067150503568/?paipv=0&eav=AfYNHOI-FVcKfvyt4KJvP2HmaYpbUKmG-2m3M51-XNfp4W2icUWHxu8VKAyWHZeiWbU&_rdr
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bervin-harris-b5897b46
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/mrharrisryc
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MrHarrisRYC
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/renaissance-youth-center-bronx
• Other: www.musicwam.org www.renaissanceyouth.org

Image Credits
Rickey Turner Edgar De la Vega