We recently connected with Jordan Austin and have shared our conversation below.

Jordan, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. What’s the best or worst investment you’ve made (either in terms of time or money)? (Note, these responses are only intended as entertainment and shouldn’t be construed as investment advice)

The best investment I ever did for myself was find a creative/expressive outlet. For me it was music, specifically making my own. With no solid background in theory or instrumentation, you can imagine the obvious difficulties I’d encounter while trying to produce. It took a long time to get comfortable creating beats and figuring out how to transfer my ideas onto a computer; and I’m still learning more and more each day. But that has been the beauty of it. Looking back at ideas I had 7 years ago and hearing what I’m creating now is a good reminder to always stay learning. I’ve achieved more than I would ever imagined when I first started creating. I’ve played shows with people I look up to as a producer, gotten to connect with communities across different states, play on insane sound systems, but most importantly make some very genuine friends that I love so so much. My life would be in a completely different place if I never picked up producing as a hobby and I’ve learned so much about myself through it all. Music and/or just creating in general is a top tier human investment that I highly recommend trying. Even if you feel like you lack too much experience (me).

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?

I picked up music production purely as a hobby after becoming obsessed with electronic music in my teens. DJ’ing being my first interest; me and my best friend Nathan Sengkhammee used to DJ for hours, everyday for what felt like years. In the midst of that, I became extremely intrigued in how the music we DJ’d, was produced. I then deep dove into FL Studio (music production software) making beats from 2013-2018/19 before I made the full switch to Ableton. I explored making a ton of different “genres” throughout these years and really began to craft my own sound/flow through it all. Around this time I took down all the music I had released (60+tracks) and decided to start fresh. I finally felt like I could create what I wanted and I now find myself making music that gets categorized as “Experimental/Free-Form Bass Music.” With that being said, I really try to bring a hip-hop approach to it. My roots have a lot of rap influence and I LOVE fusing both worlds.

For my live sets, in the last couple of years I’ve shifted my focus to playing mainly all original music.. Once I began performing like this, I couldn’t veer away. I’ve found almost nothing to be more fulfilling than seeing people dance to the music I spend my time on creating. And just in this year I’ve got to perform with artists such as Subdocta, Abelation, VCTRE, Mystic Grizzly, Chmura and many more talented humans that I look up to as creators. Each one has a specific unique sound that I admire dearly. And is what I hope to achieve. I don’t want to sound like or be like anyone else. My main goal is to be me <3

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

There is a specific story that comes to mind. A few years ago there was a DJ contest to open for a local Atlanta show that I really wanted to apply for. I spent a couple months making a short, all original mix to send in. Long story short, I did not win. I didn’t even get a notice. I truly wanted that art collective to at least notice me, as they threw some of the biggest shows in Atlanta (for this specific type of music). But they never did. I then began to see other people catching opportunities that I thought I too deserved. And instead of turning bitter, I used it as fuel to keep learning and creating. I accepted that I just wasn’t working hard enough and I then made it a goal that the only way I want to do this is if I’m meant for it. Meaning I needed to make music so good that people have no choice but to book me for shows or at least give me the time of day. And that still is the goal. I don’t want handouts or anything of that nature. I want to deserve it. And this year the same artist collective that held the DJ completion, hit me up to play multiple shows for them. It may have took a few years to achieve but it finally came full circle.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

The goal of this project is to inspire others to be their authentic self, to not be afraid of expression or failure, and to find something you’re passionate about and never let go of it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://soundcloud.com/sushimanemusic
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sushimanemusic/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/SushiManeMusic

Image Credits
Nate Hughes