We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Israel “REALXTY” Unzueta a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Israel “REALXTY”, appreciate you joining us today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

I became a full time independent artist / creative entrepreneur in May 2021. Up until that point, my recording studio business was nothing more than a side hustle.

Since I began making music 12-13 years ago, I’ve recorded my own vocals, and attempted to learn the ins-and-outs of mixing and mastering. It wasn’t until 2019 that I started engineering and producing for other people as a job.

From 2019-2021, I focused on growing my clientele, honing my skills, and expanding my network. Building a business takes a lot of time, a lot of effort, and more than anything, consistency. I fell flat on my face a few times, and I could’ve easily given up. I never did, and it’s because of that that I was able to take my business full time in May 2021. My business had gotten to the point that income was becoming consistent, and enough to support myself.

There are a few very important things I learned that could’ve potentially sped up my process, had I known these things sooner. One of them being treating your business like it’s already your job. Show up everyday, or as often as you possibly can. Focus on taking one step at a time, don’t worry about running. If you don’t treat your business like a job, it will never become that. If you treat it like your job and show up every day, put the work in, and achieve goals you’ve set. you’ll get to where you need to be.

Israel “REALXTY”, 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?

My name is Israel, I go by the name “REALXTY” (pronounced “reality”). I’m an independent artist and creative entrepreneur from Chicago, IL. I started recording and releasing my first songs when I was around 12 years old (there are still songs of mine floating around the internet from 2011).

I currently run my business. DMND Studios, full time. I offer in-person studio sessions, as well as remote mixing, mastering, production, consultations, content creation, social media management, and brand partnerships. My goal is to be a resource for creatives, such as myself, who are looking to take their creative careers to the next level. While I was growing up, I never had any resources to help me with my music, and if I did have some guidance, I fully believe I would be in a completely different, better position than I am now. With my years of experience, I want to be that resource for others like me.

I’m incredibly proud of myself for turning my dreams into a reality. Being an only child of two immigrants, “chasing your dreams” isn’t really a thing people in my family do. They work whatever job they need to support their families, and make sure their kids have more opportunities. It’s because of that that I take so much pride in what I do, because I’m the first one to do something like this.

Creating your own path will always be more difficult than following a path that was given to you. Often times you’ll feel lost, hopeless, and have no idea where you’re going. But if you stick to it and stay consistent, it will be the most rewarding thing you’ll ever do.

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

For me, the most rewarding aspect of being an artist is living my life on my own terms. When I worked a 9-5, I felt like a slave to an office that I hated. The job would take up so much of my time and energy, and once I would get home, I would be too tired to put in work towards what I actually cared about. If I wanted a day off, too bad, because I had to go to the office. If I wasn’t seeing eye to eye with a coworker, too bad, because you’re all there for 8 hours a day whether you like it or not. I felt trapped and suffocated. I wasn’t living the life I wanted to live, I was living my life on someone else’s terms.

However, that all changed when I quit my job and took my passion full time. If I was exhausted and needed a day off, I could just take a day off. If I only wanted to work for a few hours that day, I could work as much or as little as I wanted. If I felt inspired, I could spend 12 uninterrupted hours in the studio and leave feeling energized, not drained. I stopped living a life by someone else’s rules, someone else’s standard, someone else’s vision. I was living the life that I wanted to live.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I had to unlearn that my passions and hobbies were just that – passions and hobbies. They can be so much more than that, but only if you choose to make them that.

As I said earlier, I’m the son of two immigrants who came from Mexico. My parents never had a chance to follow their dreams, neither did their parents, or the parents before them. So the idea of “following your dreams” was foreign to my family. Every time my mom would ask me what I wanted to do, I told her I wanted to make music. She would proceed by telling me that that was just a hobby, and that I would need to get a real job. And that hurt, a lot. For many years. And while that would sting, I never let it stop me.

It wasn’t until I got my first job at a recording studio that music really started to present itself as something that could become a career. Then I started my own business, and then I took it full time. Now, music pays for all of my bills, it paid for my brand new car, it’s paid for countless trips, and more than anything, it allows me to live life on my own terms. All of that could’ve easily never happened if I had listened to what I was being told.

Through many years of therapy and self-work, I’ve come to understand where my family was coming from. At the end of the day, I can’t blame them for not believing what they couldn’t see. Given their upbringing and their own personal experiences, of course it wasn’t going to make any sense to them. I’ve forgiven them, and don’t hold it against them. The good thing is that now, they understand (albeit in their own way). They understand that their son has always been destined for things greater than they can imagine, and it’s happening right in front of their eyes. So my advice to anyone is to not discredit someone else’s vision, just because you can’t see or understand it.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.officialrealxty.com
• Instagram: @officialrealxty
• Facebook: @officialrealxty
• Twitter: @officialrealxty
• Youtube: REALXTY

Image Credits
All photos taken by Jasmin Seda Visuals