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

Daniel, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today I’m sure there have been days where the challenges of being an artist or creative force you to think about what it would be like to just have a regular job. When’s the last time you felt that way? Did you have any insights from the experience?

Full disclosure, I have maintained a full-time non-creative job throughout most of my artist journey, so I don’t really wonder what it would be like to have a regular job. Instead, I think a lot about how focusing on supporting myself solely through music would change my experience with the medium and whether or not I want that.

Some background: I worked in the military full-time in my 20’s and have since then worked in Big Tech in planning & strategy. A few months ago I decided to take a break from my tech career and focus solely on music, giving myself a few months to catch up on incomplete projects and work on new ones for the coming years. I have a lot of friends who are doing similar things in varying degrees — some are maintaining their non-creative professional careers with no end in sight, and others have ventured out and are finding ways to maintain income through their creative skills.

For me, the litmus test is whether or not I’m still enjoying myself and the process. I don’t want to take on work that might technically meet the “creative” or “music-based” criteria if it’s not also fun and actively engaging my imagination as an artist. I’m happiest when the art is an outlet for me, and until the demand for my art is so high that it garners enough income to live off of, I will strike a balance between lucrative, non-creative work and fulfilling music-making.

Daniel, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I’m Daniel Pinho and I’m a musical artist, and I currently express myself through melodic house and techno. I’m also a veteran, health & fitness enthusiast, and traveler. I never really “got into” music because it’s been an integral part of my life since before I have memories. I grew up in a musical home, managed by my mother who also grew up in a musical home, so it’s really in my blood. My grandmother was a concert pianist from Vienna, Austria, and I like to think I am a modern-day reincarnation of her legacy as an artist.

If I had to boil my life philosophy down to one word, it would be “consistency.” I think we can achieve pretty much anything if we chip away at it 1% or more every day. That’s how I’ve accumulated the skills that I have in songwriting and music production and how I’ve built a network of friends and industry acquaintances, the combination of which has granted me major opportunities in the music space. I’m most proud of what I’ve built and, more importantly, how the journey has built me.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Far and above all else: artist collectives. If you’re an artist starting on your journey (or arguably anyone doing anything entrepreneurial), I highly recommend joining an artist collective. I joined my first collective in my late 20’s and it opened my eyes to the full range of possibilities in terms of what I could be doing as an artist (i.e. there are more options than just being a touring artist). I’ve also made friendships through the collectives that will undoubtedly last a lifetime, and I’ve learned SO MUCH from the other artists around me. There’s also just something powerful about surrounding yourself by people you want to be like; it helps put you in the right mindset and imagine other versions of yourself into which you can evolve.

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

There are many things that I would consider “most” rewarding… haha. I’ll list a few:

– Creating something that has never existed before.
– Giving voice (through music) to ideas and concepts that are unique to my brain.
– The unending process of learning and mastering the technical aspects of music production and music as an art form.
– The experience of collaborating with other artists.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.danielpinho.us/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danielpinho.us/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/danielpinho.us
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-j-pinho/
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/danielpinho-us