We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Paul Vu a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Paul, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I am a classically trained pianist and played piano for about 12 years. I finished the program during my sophomore year of high school, and I always wondered, what now? A lot of Asian Americans in my shoes probably are able to relate and may have had the same thoughts, but the question really plagued me for a while. At that time, one of my close friends was interested in making hip hop beats and rapping, and convinced me to get into the beat making. I ended up making a few beats for him and also produced some introductory level songs. However, those songs would be the genesis of the music project that I have today.

I’ve definitely had a long journey since then, gaining experience and polishing up production techniques along the way, up to a level where I can confidently say that I am happy with my production level. There are always ways to speed up the learning process, like binge watching YouTube production tutorials, which is what I used as a resource, but I think the value comes from the hands-on production and songmaking process that really solidifies your chops. You have to put in the hours to get better. There are so many skills to learn, down to the technicalities of digital audio, but I think one of the most essential skills is the fundamental of song structure and writing, something that I am trying to still hone in.

There is no upper bound for learning, but the biggest obstacle for me is the time, where there is simply not enough of it to learn and improve music production while trying to live everyday life. But other than that, I am just slowly chipping away at it.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Home By Dawn is a project that I started in 2022. I was finishing up university and wanted to start becoming more serious about my music and seeing how far I can take it. The music that I make is EDM, with influences from a variety of genres. As a listener, I dived into EDM back in 2014 at the so-called “golden era” of EDM, with giants such as Zedd, Martin Garrix, and KSHMR being the notable few that really shaped the beginnings of my sound. Later influences include American melodic dubstep. Outside EDM, I like to include real instruments in my tracks, and emphasize piano as the focal point, since that is my initial background. Lyrically, I love tracks that are emotional and illicit euphoria and good feeling. One of my favorite tracks ever is “Together” by Martin Garrix and Matisse & Sadko, and that track really summarizes the same effect and feeling that I want to give to others.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

My top goal is to play at a major music festival, such as EDC. Realistically, it’s a long way to go, but there are plenty of smaller music festivals in California to shoot for, like Escape Halloween or Beyond Wonderland. I already have this vision in my mind, and I’m currently taking the steps on this long journey to achieve it.

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

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is seeing the impact of your art on others. I have met amazing people after my performances that came to me to talk about how well I performed, how they listen to my music, and how they are following my journey as an artist. Even outside of performances, I meet people that tell me that they know my music and listen to it regularly. Times like these make it so hard to hide my emotions and I can never seem to tame the big grin on my face. Seeing all the support means so much to me, and it motivates and pushes me even more to get to my goal and give the people what they want.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://homebydawnmusic.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/homebydawnmusic/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/homebydawnmusic
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/homebydawnmusic/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@homebydawnmusic
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/homebydawnmusic

Image Credits

Matt Nguyen, Jaskaran Mudhar, Brandon Morales, wlbwes