We were lucky to catch up with Charles Chuck Die$el Wright recently and have shared our conversation below.

Charles Chuck Die$el, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you tell us about a time that your work has been misunderstood? Why do you think it happened and did any interesting insights emerge from the experience?

I’ve been in plays, singing groups, movies, musicals and all other types of professions and positions that requires talking to large groups of strangers. One thing a lot of people wouldn’t guess about me because of this is, I have social anxiety. When you see me you’d never know it, but growing up it made it difficult talking to people. Going to new places. Trying new things. I’d get hot. My armpits and forehead would sweat. My mouth would go dry. I’d hear my heartbeat. Yet I feel all my life no one ever knew. They just thought I was being weird or shy. People who didn’t know me would think I didn’t like them, or I thought I was better than them and that’s why I was quiet. However in all honesty I was more afraid of people and how they’d react, what they’d do, what they say. Or worse, what would I say?

When I would get like this, a lot of times I would just fall silent. In high school sometimes I would even reroute my path to the longer route to get places just so I could try and avoid situations that might require talking to people. Several times I was approached by loved ones about people thinking I didn’t like them or thinking I was stuck up. Some even started excluding me from group activities. So today when people commend me on my presence and my confidence in public speaking, I humbly remind myself of where I begin.

I also have to acknowledge what helped me adjust to this avoidant and detached behavior.
I started doing a couple of things. One of them is getting in touch with my breath and breathing. That helped with realize when I was becoming anxious. After that, I was able to start identifying why. Once I knew why, I was able to begin unpacking and breaking it down. Most of it came from not knowing what would happen next. Fear. Fear of the unknown. Which, when choosing a career in the arts, everything feels unknown. As I adopted a meditation and yoga practice I began to understand just how much is unknown in this world. As well as that controlling the world is the last thing I will ever be able to do. However, I could learn to understand myself and control my responses to outside stimuli.

When I stop and think of how I learned to better understand myself I realize how synchronous God is because I would’ve never guessed that I would find my meditation practice from pursuing a career in the arts. I had an acting teacher who taught us to meditate and do yoga. As well as several who emphasized how important breathing is and honoring the physical responses we have. While at the same time not being limited to them and how to overcome them. Now as a businessman who meets and works with new people weekly, you’d never guess thats how I was feeling. I just don’t let it overshadow me, and who I am and what I have to offer. Best believe, I still get anxious, I just learned to get more comfortable being me, even if that means being my nervous self.

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?

My name is Charles Antoni Chuck Die$el Wright. Im a professionally trained actor, a recording artist, audio engineer ,voice over artist, and both a published model and photographer. Who also creative directed and shoots music videos. Ive worked in the entertainment field for over 10 years and have collaborated with brands like AMW Group, Anker, BET, Microsoft, Nintendo, Universal Records, Samsung, Snapchat, Verizon and many more.

I trained for over 6 years in improv, Chekhov , Meisner and Shakespearean techniques. As well as film and on camera for tv classes. Before that I started acting at around 7 years old in church plays and by sophomore year was apart of my HS drama team. It was also around this time I started dabbling in photography, videography, and audio production. I took every elective my HS had to offer centered around the subjects. I also had my own laptop where I pirated different DAWS and experimented with vocal production and songwriting.

Having wrote my first verse and won my first battle rap by the age of ten, I always knew music is what I wanted to do. In 2013 as a freshman at Ohio University I took a junior and senior level music marketing and publishing class. To this day I thank God for the professor letting me in. Thanks to him Ive personally negotiated multiple contracts with big brands procuring my protection and proper compensation. Throughout the rest of college I would grow by performing during poetry nights at Donkey Cafe, a little spot off campus, and house party performances within my fraternity. It was in 2016 while in my senior year of actor training at Ohio University that I started my own record label and publishing company, Create Reality Records. In that same year I inked a publishing deal with a subsidiary of Universal Records and dropped my second and third EPs, Summer Sessions and #TRAPDIE$EL.

After graduation I moved to Tacoma, WA and begin seeking work. There I had my first acting agent and worked with brands like Microsoft, Anker and Nintendo. It’s also at that time I started modeling. In 2018 is I also when I spent every week working with and learning to use my camera and the adobe suite. As a part time job I worked in the media department at a church. It’s there that I became familiar with live streaming and broadcast, Black Magic equipment, stadium lighting and so much more. Luckily my mentor had been working in audio and video since the 80’s and had done production for pretty much any band you could think of that was hot over the last 25 years.

By 2019 I had managed to quit any jobs that weren’t in media or the arts and still survive. So I decided to move to where dreams really come true. Admsit the pandemic I moved to California and made my way to LA.
Since moving to LA I’ve been represented by Pacific Talent and Models as well as Kreativ Media. This past year I was a part of the film, A Deadly Entanglement as well as having been a part of two other feature films and two indie films. I’ve been on set with an artist signed to Beyonce, as well as Isaiah Rashad, and Da Baby. I’ve also been in the studio with an artist signed to Drake. Aside from that I’ve personally shot and directed music videos for multiple LA and Orange County based artist and worked celebrity events and parties as a photographer.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My goal and mission are to get people to be their truest selves and to explore what that means. To also let people know that we all feel alone sometimes and that’s okay. Some of the greatest things have been discovered by one person and then shared with the masses. We might feel alone but that doesn’t mean we can’t share something with others.

On a personal level I feel like my mission is to push myself to be the best version of myself I can be so I can be the person I wish I had to look up to as a child. As well as sharing love in all that I do.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist and creative for me is sharing beautiful things with people. Whether it’s a photo or a song or a moment of laughter. The enjoyment of others while taking in things I’ve been a part of brings me joy. So being able to say I had fun doing what I was doing, I got to be creative, and someone else enjoyed it. That’s the most rewarding.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.thechuckdiesel.com
• Instagram: WWW.instagram.com/chuckdieseltlw
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cdotwright1?mibextid=LQQJ4d
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/charles-wright-09a241a9?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/chuckdieseltlw
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@ChuckDieselTLW?si=r7N2xjCjtcgNhe5p
• Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2DS2SX624TVS36LnGuqFdm?si=aHfFes_5RrmxKfKqnjnApg

Image Credits
Troy Michael Photography Kell Ale the Photographer